As with almost anything else, it depends. I do recommend dark chocolate (at least 70%) to my clients. I believe, we shouldn’t feel deprived and need to indulge in something gooood from time to time. Hopefully this something gooood is also good for our health. I do always explain and distinguish raw, dark chocolate from the sugar loaded candy ‘chocolate’ bars. It sometimes takes time to train our taste buds but we can fall in love with the good stuff. If we make chocolate at home (so easy!) we can gradually start reducing sweeteners (like honey or a little bit of xylitol) and switch to appreciation of a more bitter taste of dark chocolate and still feel satisfied. There are also good versions available in health food stores nowadays but please always read the ingredients. Not everything bought in health food store, even organic, is indeed healthy. Please read this article by Dr. Mercola to find out about benefits of dark chocolate loaded with polyphenols. 

I believe, that dark chocolate can be very beneficial and I do make it at home or buy for my son as a healthy treat. Unfortunately, it doesn’t work for me (sight). I do react to chocolate, even the highest quality one, and develop eczema. It’s not an immediate reaction and it took some detective work to figure it out. It just shows that something I regard as superfood could be quite the opposite at times. I never say ‘this is good’. I say ‘this is good for me’ instead. It’s all about experimentation and finding out what is good for us, what nourishes us and what makes us feel and look the best.

I hope you can enjoy chocolate :)
Happy Valentine’s Day!

In response to the needs and questions of my clients I have come up with the healthy weight management program. Please do contact me if you are interested or have any questions.

Who is the program for?
You will like this program if you struggle with weight loss, low energy levels or want to feel great in your own body. This approach will bring you long lasting results. I won’t ask you to ignore your body’s important signals like hunger. Instead, we will work on optimizing your diet so you can nourish your body, have more energy and the optimal weight will follow. Your body likes to be fit, you only need to feed it the right kind of foods.
You will also like my approach if you want to prevent unhealthy patterns and chronic problems occurring later in life and want to optimize your metabolism now.     
 
The program
The healthy body weight program focuses on optimizing your metabolism. It’s not about calorie counting, frankly quite the opposite. Different foods have different effect on metabolism, hormones, and chemical reactions in our bodies, irrespective of the amount of calories they contain. The goal of the program is to work towards new body weight set point, to minimize cravings, optimize energy levels and work in alignment with our body and its needs, not against it. Fighting hunger and exercising more is not the best strategy as it rarely brings lasting results. Instead, you want to listen to your body, eat when you are hungry paying special attention to the quality of food and its effects. This program will help you understand these basic principles, guide you through the process and set you on the path you can follow yourself.
 
What is included?

• Initial consultation, lasting up to 90 min, to assess your health and any underlying causes likely contributing to weight problems, setting up goals and preparing for the next stages.
   
• Three follow up consultations to guide you through the phases of the program.

 

• Information (basic or in depth depending on your expectations) about our metabolism and mechanisms of successful and permanent weight loss. I believe that understanding of why you want to implement changes is the key to greater motivation and better results.

 

• Structured program to guide you through four necessary phases but flexible enough to meet your individual needs, expectations, and your schedule.

 

• Phase 1: General health assessment, your individual needs and health concerns, that will influence the program and dietary recommendations.
   
  
• Phase 2: Working towards healthy metabolism and breaking old, unhealthy patterns.
    
  
• Phase 3: Working towards your optimal weight at the rate appropriate for you.

 

• Phase 4: Optimizing the diet you are happy with and can follow long term.