OPINION: Melted cheese a snack from hell

IS IT just me or does everyone think nothing tastes as good as skinny feels?

IS IT just me or does everyone think nothing tastes as good as skinny feels?

That's a lie, obviously. I don't think that at all, I just read it this week and I'm trying to make myself believe it.

I'm four weeks in to the Sunshine Coast Daily's Kick the Kilos campaign and I thought I'd give you an update.

To help me along I've joined the Pursuit Fitness 12-week challenge and it was weigh-in day on Wednesday.

Three-and-a-half weeks in, I have lost 3.2 kilos.

I know all you diehard encouragers out there will be all "Well done. So much better to lose it slowly. A kilo a week is perfect" but go easy on the backslapping, it wasn't that good.

I've been bragging because I haven't found the constant state of near starvation too difficult.

That's probably because I cheat sometimes.

During the week I am really good. Two eggs and half a tomato for breakfast. A shake for lunch. Fish and salad for dinner.

In between, I'm downing more herbal tea than a bearded man at a yoga convention.

Weekends can be tough though.

I allow myself three glasses of wine on Friday and Saturday, purely to preserve my family's quality of life.

Other than that, I'm trying to stick to my eating regime. But life is just so much more tempting on weekends.

Healthy eating is easy for me. I love vegetables and I'm not really a sweet tooth.

Melted cheese, however, calls my name in ways I can't describe. I'm happy to eat anything healthy, I just want a cheesy pasta on the side.

I went to bed last night because my son made a toasted sandwich and was eating it on the couch.

If he was sitting beside me with a plate of raw broccoli and almonds it would have been fine. I love both those things but I can easily resist them.

What is the magical power of hot cheese? And why do our bodies crave things that are bad for us? Apparently it's evolutionary.

The human body needs a variety of nutrients, including fat, sugar and salt. And back in the day those delicious treats were very hard to come by.

When people worked hard, foraged or hunted for tasty treats, their bodies recognised the reward and it came with an endorphin rush.

In the last century we have had unlimited access to fat, sugar, and salt and we haven't evolved in response.

Our brain still rewards us for tasty treats, even when our body doesn't want or need them.

I think it helps to understand what we're facing, it's 200,000 years of evolution people. The size of your bum is not entirely your fault.

Anyway, onwards and upwards. Three kilos down, just 17 to go.

And remember, nothing tastes as good as skinny feels. Apparently.

Originally published as OPINION: Melted cheese a snack from hell