If it seems that you have been eating as usual and the pounds seem to be creeping on - you could be a victim of hidden calories.

When we are busy, stressed or focused on something else we reach for convenient snacks that are usually high in fat. This unconscious eating will add up to a whole of extra calories in the course of a day or week. This mindless eating is nothing more than a habit that can be broken.

To get this habit under control write down everything you eat for the next 3 weeks – everything! Be on guard for those times when you are more susceptible to unconscious eating.

At work:

• You find bowls of candy on coworkers’ desks
  

• Your coworkers bring in doughnuts and pastries
  

• Office gatherings – where you will always lots of fatty food
  

At home:

• You’re cooking dinner and sample the food – these calories add up
  

• Your children don’t eat all their food – you eat that too – more calories
  

• While talking on the phone – there goes how many cookies?
  

• When you are worried
  

• When you are happy
  

Dining out:

• You eat the bread that is served before the meal
  

• You have a drink before your meal
  

• You eat dessert which you usually don’t do
  

Parties:

• Endless party snacks that are full of fat and calories
  

• Talking while you eat is the easiest way to take in those extra calories
  

• Then those drinks again – it is easy to stack up the calories
  

Watching Television:

• We are so focused on what we are watching that we pay little attention to how much we are eating.
  

The first step is to tune in and be aware of those times

One pound is equal to 3,500 calories. Depending on your gender, age, muscle mass, and size you need approximately 2000 calories per day to stay at your normal weight. When you consume more than this amount your body stores the added calories as fat. If you go over your daily requirement then you will have to exercise to get rid of those calories.

If you go to this site you will be able to calculate how many calories you need to maintain your weight. (The weight is in kilos)

http://www.thecolumn.org/how-many-calories-do-i-need.asp

Check out this site to find out how many calories are in candies and junk food

http://www.calorie-count.com/calories/item/19134.html

Sheila Dicks is a wardrobe and image consultant who teaches women how to look slimmer by dressing to suit their body type. Visit her at http://www.sheilasfashionsense.com to download a copy of her e-book Image Makeovers and get How to Build a Wardrobe free.

sheila@sheilasfashionsense.com