Sometimes people using a VLCD meal replacement product can experience short term constipation.

As such, during the Healthy Weight For Life™ program it is important to:

1. Take preventative steps to reduce the risk of developing constipation
2. Be aware of your normal bowel habits and act early if you notice you are needing to open your bowels less than usual.
3. If you become constipated don’t ignore it, take action as soon possible
4. Speak to your doctor or pharmacist if symptoms persist, if faeces are bloodstained or black and tar-like, if you have other symptoms such as a headache, fever or pain.

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Yes, you can change around the meals that you replace with KicStart™ to fit in with your lifestyle. E.g. for shift workers. Some people find that they need a little bit of an extra boost in the afternoon, so they have a portion controlled main meal during the middle of the day and replace their morning and evening meals with KicStart™ instead. Others have found that having a portion controlled breakfast suits their routine better and will replace the other two meals with KicStart™.

You can also move the portion planned meal around to work in with your social commitments - if you are out for lunch, then have your portioned meal then and a sachet at breakfast and dinner. Or if you are going out for breakfast with family or friends, have the portioned meal at breakfast and use your meal replacements at each of the other 2 meals. To ensure that you are selecting the correct food in the correct portion you should refer to the relevant guidelines in your Week by Week Guide book. As you move through the program, gradually you will reduce the number of meals replaced with KicStart™ as you build up new healthy eating and lifestyle habits.

Have a drink of water

Often people confuse thirst for hunger so try having a drink of water to see if that helps manage your hunger. You could also try one of the 'free drinks' listed.

If the distractions and a drink of water or another 'free drink' do not reduce the desire to eat after 15 minutes then you can use your imagination to prepare a 'guilt free' tasty snack from the 'free foods' list.

Distract yourself

If you feel that you are hungry the first approach is to try and distract yourself for 15 minutes - for example you could:

• Play with a pet
• Go for a short walk outside
• Phone a friend for a chat.

Can I have additional fruit?

Whole pieces of fruit (NOT fruit juice) are an important part of a long term healthy diet however they do contribute to your overall energy intake. During phase 1, the Motivational Weight Loss Phase, it is preferable to limit your snacks to 'free foods'.

Information about fruit can be found in phase 1 page 8 of your Week by Week guide. The free food list is designed to incorporate all the foods you can be having between meals that will not have a negative impact on your program. If a food is not listed there it is safe to assume we do not want you to be eating it in phase one. We will introduce more fruit in phase 2 but at this point berries are what is recommended because of their lower sugar content. For longer term thinking we follow the Australian Dietary Guidelines recommendation of 2 serves of fruit per day.

We recommend that members should aim to increase their incidental activity during the day PLUS a planned period of physical activity every day. If this is not something you are already capable of, just start with a comfortable 5 or 10 minute walk on a flat surface. Aim to increase this every few days until you have built up to 3 x10 minute walks each day during phase 1. By the end of phase 2 there is an expectation of regularly achieving 30 mins of physical activity or 10000 steps per day on a wearable device eg Fitbit, Garmin or Apple watch. This level of activity should continue throughout phase 3 & beyond.

What kind of activity should I do?

Some people may find walking too painful on their joints, and so we recommend that you find alternate options that suit you and that you find fun. Examples include swimming, cycling, yoga, pilates, taichi, dancing, rowing, and so forth.

Active living doesn’t require excessive motivation or discipline nor does it have to include a rigid exercise regime. With a little planning and imagination, becoming more active can be easy and enjoyable - even fun! Any chance to be more active should be seen as an opportunity not a chore.

The program is designed to address old eating habits that no longer serve you and replace them with a healthy approach to eating.
If you want to achieve this you will need to change some of the things you have been used to doing (habits). Adding sweet treats cancels out any benefit from using the meal replacements.

Sugar cravings are very real, but they can be managed and reduced – as with many addictions you can go “cold turkey” if you are feeling strong, or wean off gradually. If you can identify the time you are craving the sugar and also what action you usually take (eg a sweet treat after dinner every night), this is the first step to making a change. Interestingly a recent study has shown that a 15 min walk will produce a similar feel good “rush” as eating chocolate would stimulate in the brain, hence the cravings get easier to resist. So give that a go if you can.

There are some sweeter choices that can be eaten in moderate portions in the breakfast and lunch plans (eg yoghurt, plain sweet biscuits such as milk arrowroot,sweeter fruit) or you can choose sweet things that use sugar-substitutes (eg diet jelly) so that you get the sweetness without the calories, or you can work on reducing the craving by not feeding it, by distracting yourself, and also counteracting with a savoury or neutral taste.

Some suggestions include:

• Green tea or licorice tea
• Water with lemon wedge
• a small savoury snack (from the Free Food list – see the recipe section for some ideas)
• have some air-popped popcorn or a punnet of strawberries
• Chew sugar-free gum
• Go for a walk
• Phone a friend
• Gardening or other activity to keep your hands busy
• Identify if there is an emotional trigger and plan alternate strategies

Even artificial sweeteners can still trigger sugar cravings so it's better to try gradually weaning yourself off natural sugar rather than swapping it for artificial substitutes where possible. As you gradually switch out the more refined carbs for whole choices, your taste buds adjust, and you’ll likely find yourself craving less sweet things.

Alcoholic drinks do contribute to the overall energy intake for the day which shouldn't be overlooked when you are trying to lose weight. Alcohol is high in energy (kilojoules) and of little nutritional value. In addition, in some people alcohol can stimulate appetite and/or reduce inhibitions leading to more food being eaten than initially intended.

In Phase One it is preferable that, if possible, you avoid alcohol entirely to give you the best chance of actual weight loss. If you do choose to have a drink of alcohol during Phase One we suggest that you try to counteract the extra energy intake with some extra activity. As an indication, the energy in 1 full strength beer or an average glass of wine would have to be balanced with an extra 30 minute walk (approximately).

During Phases Two and Three and in the long term, alcohol should be considered an “extra” and the additional calories off-set by increasing your activity where you can.

If you would like some more information on safe alcohol consumption you can refer to the National Guidelines for Alcohol Consumption.

Recent clinical data indicates a strong relationship between stress, obesity and ill health. Short, sharp reactions to acute stressors such as an argument with a friend or family member or problems with work that are quickly resolved and forgotten about, will cause no permanent harm and the body is well designed to cope with this type of situation.

However an inappropriate and prolonged (chronic) stress response where you feel unable to cope and continually on edge, results in an excessive and continual secretion of stress hormones. These hormones, via a complex relationship with other chemicals, can exert a wide range of effects on various tissues and organs of the body, but most specifically in relation to body weight, they can cause increased visceral (tummy) fat deposition and a decrease in your lean muscle mass over time. Both of these situations are deleterious to long term health.

You may not be able to avoid situations that cause you stress, but what you can do is find strategies to make sure your reaction to the stressor doesn’t affect your health or your weight.

More information on stress management strategies

Many who have lost weight only to regain it later tend not to allow themselves to confront problems directly and are much more likely to turn to food or drink in response to emotional distress. Conversely people who have successfully achieved a lasting weight loss have been able to learn how to face problems head on and use problem solving strategies to overcome the hurdles everyday life presents to them.

The development of problem solving skills is particularly helpful at times when you are dealing with emotional distress so you don’t revert to old unhealthy habits.

More information on problem solving strategies