Looking for some healthy inspiration for the weekend? Here are five easy ideas to help you feel better, fitter and fabulous - even if you want to wait until Monday before implementing them!

1: Eat something spicy. It doesn’t have to be hot - milder spices like ginger or mustard work just as well as more fiery things like cayenne pepper or chilli. Eating these ingredients can help lift your metabolic rate by almost 50% for up to three hours after you eat. If you’re not a big fan of this kind of food, adding a small amount of cinnamon to your coffee can have a similar effect.

2: Clear some clutter. Anyone who knows me will probably be giggling right about now, but I started getting rid of clutter from my house for the last two weeks, and it feels so good I can’t believe it. If you’re someone who feels like every surface in your house is crammed with too many items, set aside an hour to go through an area of your house (kitchen cupboards are one of my favorites) and cull. You might be surprised at what you’re holding onto. In the Feng Shui world, this also helps energy flow - yours, and the energy of your home.

3: Forget your diet. That’s right - throw it out the window. If you can create a daily calorie deficit of 500 per day, in one week, you should lose approximately 250 grams (1 pound) - a healthy and sustainable weight loss. Exercising more, and making better choices about the way you eat should have you on your way to 500 calories less per day.

This is far less fabulous sounding than the latest celebrity diet fad, but it works. There are no safe or sustainable quick fixes. If you can’t stick to it for the rest of your life, that crazy plan isn’t for you. Instead, try these ideas.

*Enjoy a wide variety of food - including the occasional treat
*Exercise - find something you enjoy doing, or find a friend to motivate you
*Eat enough filling foods to stop you from feeling hungry all the time. Do some research on low GI foods, which keep you feeling full longer
*Eat at least 1200 calories a day. Any less and you won’t have enough energy to be physically active, or mentally sharp
*Set realistic goals of a healthy weight for you, which may not be the lowest weight you’ve been. I used to weigh 49 kilograms, which was dangerously unhealthy. I’m now around 63 kilograms, and healthier than ever before. Don’t think the weight you were at fifteen is what you have to achieve to look and feel your best … especially if you’re no longer fifteen!

4: Here are a couple of ways to save 500 calories (2000 kilojoules). Instead of spaghetti carbonara made with cream and bacon, make a tomato sauce for your pasta. Add grated vegetables like zuccini, carrot, onion, garlic, chopped celery or fennel, capsicum, spinach and basil, oregano or marjoram - and you’ve just eaten something really tasty and also super good for you. The fibre in the vegetables will keep you feeling full, and if you have a larger ratio of sauce than pasta, you’ll avoid feeling overfull.

Instead of having fish in batter with chips, skip the batter and grill your fish, and make a baked potato. Have some low fat sour cream on the potato, or make a dressing from lemon, garlic and a little olive oil to pour over it. Add a salad of baby spinach leaves, tomato, cucumber with a splash of balsamic vinegar and you’ve got a great meal.

Go for a walk after dinner, and you’re practically perfect!

5: Yoga pose of the week: Chair rest*

Miss M relaxes in chair rest pose

Ever feel exhausted, or like you need to relax after a busy day? Then this is the pose for you.
Find a place where you won’t be disturbed for at least three minutes. If you can spare the time, ten minutes will make you feel like a new person. Get yourself a chair, and a mat or towel to lie on. Lie down on the floor, and rest your calves on the chair in a position which leaves your knees at 90 degrees. Let your arms rest beside your body in a comfortable position, relaxing your shoulderblades and neck.

Now focus on letting your whole body relax - there’s nothing else to do. Think about your ribs expanding to the side as you breathe, and see if you can make your breath slightly longer than it normally is. Don’t force it if you can’t. Stay there for as long as you comfortably can, then keep your legs bent and roll to the side. Rest there for a moment before you come back to a sitting position.

The benefits of this pose include relieving fatigue and overcoming stress and anxiety, as well as assisting lymphatic drainage and blood flow. Try it, I think you’ll like it.

*If you’re more than sixteen weeks pregnant, or have any problems with your lower back, please seek medical advice before performing this pose. All the advice on this page assumes you are in good health and have no special dietary restrictions or needs.