The best way to lose weight is to calculate your daily allowance and then remove five hundred calories. Your aim is to lose body fat rather than other soft tissue structures (including lean muscle tissue) and water. Each pound of body fat is equivalent to 3500 calories. So to lose one pound of body fat per week, reduce your calories by five hundred a day because any more and your body starts to break down lean muscle tissue for energy.

As fat is the most concentrated form of energy – nine calories per gram – your body holds onto it if you break this vital rule. Let me give you an indication of how vital fat is to your body. A very fit man weighing seventy kilograms, with a healthy fourteen percent body fat, will usually have 135,000 calories to burn in preparation for times of starvation. His body has held onto this as fat represents a vital source of energy. If his body starts to starve, lean muscle tissue will first be used as fuel. Only when these supplies have depleted, will his body start to burn its fat stores. This emphasises how important fat is to your body, as it not only protects vital organs and the brain, it also provides insulation, aids hormone production and protects nerves.

Make sure that you eat a balanced diet. Research has shown that because people stick to the same food types deficiencies can occur. They then continue eating until they’ve found the food that provides them with the nutrients they need.