The most important thing with this new eating strategy is to plan what you need to see you through the week.

Look at your ‘timetable’ and ask yourself:

• Are there any days when I end up having my meals at unusual times?
• Can I make time to prepare my own meals rather than buying them on campus?
• When are my danger times? See ‘Danger times’
• Have I got sensible snack choices to see me through the week? See ‘Snack choices’ next week!

Meals at unusual times

If you have set days or nights out, it makes sense to plan for this rather than buying something ‘on the hoof’ as these kind of choices tend to be high fat/sugar choices which not only contain lots of calories but can be expensive too. It may be that you need to split your normal meal time into two and have a mini meal earlier than normal and a second mini-meal afterwards. Look at the snack choice list and meal ideas for suggestions.

Danger times

We all have danger times – that is a time or times of the day when we need a snack to keep us going. Most commonly these are mid morning, mid-afternoon or early evening. You may well have one or more of these.

Remember that snacking is not ‘bad’ and if there are times when you know you are likely to feel hungry it makes sense to acknowledge this and plan your eating strategy accordingly.

Know when your danger times are and have an appropriate snack. It is better to work around these feelings of hunger than to try and fight them and feel miserable. The chances are you will cave in the end and then rather than making a controlled choice you will opt for something higher in fat or sugar.

Planning is key – part two next week will look at snack and treat choices in more detail.

Jacqueline Bretherton (BSc, MSc, R.Nutr) and Nutritionist at the Centre for Sport