do you have a healthy relationship with food have a think about it what does this even really mean now this is the question I am commonly asked by the majority of my clients who walk through my door in clinic and I'd like to ask you all some questions and you don't need to put your hands up but do you think carefully have you ever calculated the calories in your meal before eating it or have you followed the latest dietary trend like the juice cleanses 5:2 Atkins meal replacement programs or perhaps you're that person that steps on the scales in the morning and then feels really bloomin deflated afterwards or you know you should be eating some more green vegetables and a whole varied diet but you end up ordering a takeaway three nights a week and ordering the same thing to your desk at the office the next day because I don't need to see a show of hands I'm pretty confident the majority of you have tinkered with your diet in some shape or form to feel differently about ourselves and the fact of the matter is we all have a relationship with food we have to eat to live right so this relationship is developed throughout our lives and this is something that I discuss with my clients in clinic and I often call at your food world which is everything you all believe about food or your food script and that's the journey that it took you to get to where you are now with food I developed an unhealthy relationship with food aged 17 my life quite literally changed overnight I I went from working in my local Subway store as a sandwich artist because believe it or not that's what we were called to winning classic FM's young musician of the year as a soprano without any formal training I left home very young to London to embark upon a whole new life I was very excited it was worlds away from small hometown in Wiltshire I had some amazing opportunities and for those of you musical theater fans in the room you might know I've son on stage with alfie Boe and Michael Ball even international royalty I was led to believe that I would be the next Katherine Jenkins needless to say it couldn't have been further from the truth and after three relentless years on the singing circuit I had a career which was quite frankly over before it had even begun and the record industry's pursuit of quick changes and fixes overnight held no boundaries I believed that in order to be successful I had to be slim and to fit into these beautiful and binding dresses that they provided me with and the perfectionist in me tried I tried so hard I went straight down to the local supermarket and I stocked up on all the latest products you know the ones I mean those there's no calorie energy bars and the pho oh there's food chocolate tea milkshake things and chokers I thought I was being really healthy in doing so of course after a period of time I became I became so malnourished and low in energy that in desperation I went to my doctor and I remember this moment so clearly I was searching for answers and instead of identifying my nutritional deficiencies he prescribed me with antidepressants and looking back I still can't quite believe that they were so quick to medicate someone so young in this situation this was a complete no point in my life so my decision to switch singing part-time and enroll in a three-year degree in nutrition and health it it saved my life quite literally saved me I still can't believe I graduated three years later with a first-class degree in nutrition and health which would really astonish my GCSE science teacher I had very little time for science back there and it was all about the music and I went straight away with my clients on London's Harley Street to work with them on their nutrition with these big ambitions that I could help every single person that walked through my door now of course I soon quickly realized that it's very hard to separate what someone should be eating of how they feel about the food they're eating because the psychology and nutrition they are what work hand in hand and this is what inspired me to study a further master's degree in obesity and another master's degree again in eating disorders because we all have that inner voice inside our heads and for so many people this voice it'll be dictating how you choose the food you choose it tells you what to do for some people it's very loud it's almost like a bully inside your head that tells you that you're not good enough or that you should be doing this or you should be doing that and for some people that's the voice that dictates your food choices how can you help people implement health behavior changes if this voice is ruining their decisions every single day keeping them trapped the most useful thing you can do is learn to separate that voice in your head with what you really want and what you really would enjoy that day for instance making very small changes can have really really big results if consistently carried out one such example would be a plant-based diet now this is known with fountains of research to improve health and vitality but that is a small change that cannot be measured by a number on the scales how can the scales be a marker for health how can how you look on the outside reflect how you're feeling and how you're functioning on the inside stepping on the scales frankly consumed so much time and you spend your whole life aspiring to reach this one number because you can't enjoy that pizza cake or donut observe how you feel and be mindful watch and save at the moment because everything in moderation that's what life should be about if you respect your body enough you're given a whole variety of different foods on a daily basis and if you get organized and you believe in yourself and those that allow themselves enjoyed foods the research suggests that they are less likely to overeat and binge on foods because black-and-white thinking that's what gets us into trouble I'm sure a lot of you can relate to this one they're very all-or-nothing well I've had one biscuit so I might as well have the whole pack or I've been really good all week so I'm gonna have this now at the weekend these are the thoughts in our heads that can make life just that little bit more difficult I try and merge these thoughts from black or white into gray a middle ground how about instead of I've had one biscuit I have one or two but I'll have it with some yogurt or fruit instead well if you're exhausted why go on that run when you could just go for a walk these are very very small health behavior changes that cannot be seen by a number on the scales because being stuck in that cycle the binned restrict cycle is a very vicious place to be and I'm sure a lot of you may be able to relate or know someone or you've tried to follow your latest social media star or celebrities diet and often that means taking something out of your diet rather than what you can put into it how many of you have restricted what you've eaten and then the minute you restrict that food item or you can think about obsessively every single day is that food item that you've restricted which then leads you to eating that item and then you're riddled with fingers of guilt feelings of shame which lead you back to stretching again this cycle can keep people trapped their entire lives but it doesn't have to be that way the single most important thing that I have ever learned is that you are all as unique as your personalities and what works for you it won't work for your friend or your child even because you're your genetically biochemically unique individuals and you need to find a balance that works for you because the minute that you embark upon a diet for anybody about to do a diet on the verge of one or giving up on one let me tell you that I've been there very lost and confused but I can assure you that the secret to good health is not hiding and the bottom of a pack of super foods or a pack of chia seeds and what fatty diet peddlers do not share with you is it's not how you feel days or weeks later it's how you feel months and years later because diets don't work if diets worked we would we would all be doing them so I developed four easy to remember principles to help you all focus on nourishing your mind and your body on going back to basics I call these my four R's respect your body because if you respect your body and think how amazing it is it will treat me right in return it's about the mindset listen to your voice and not that voice that may be there in your head think about refuel food is fuel food is energy food is an amazing thing it's not just for people that work out think about how you can fuel your day in the correct way rehydrate now there's a very scary statistic that the average Briton drinks one glass of water just one your body is 60% water it's such a simple simple aspect but a vital function of life for you to feel amazing every single day back to basics and recover allow your body time to rest and I'm not just talking again about muscular repair talking about about your hormones or your mind or sleep sleep is something that is too frequently overlooked I believe that food is not intrinsically good or bad and we need to stop labeling in this manner because everything is there to be enjoyed so I would like you all to consider unlearning everything you thought you knew about nutrition just decided and go back to basics seek out qualified advice and stop turning to a search engine and if we can stand together we can fight diet culture we can embrace our individuality --zz we can do different because education that is truly empowering and I have a vision that food is is something to be seen as a positive aspect of life offering fuel enjoyment and happiness for your mind and your body and that is what I call a healthy relationship with food you