At Roczen, our goal is to help you improve your health, support weight loss, and help you with lifestyle changes in the long term. Although many factors affect our well-being and health, what we eat and how we eat are among the most important. We focus on you as an individual, recognising that everyone has unique circumstances impacting their everyday lives and what, when and how they eat. To support this, we’ve developed a range of food interventions, allowing your clinician to work with you to ensure our recommendations align with your specific goals.

The nutritional guidelines in this article should serve as a guide and not a rigid set of rules. They are a framework for making informed choices around food, but can be adapted to your needs, preferences, and lifestyle. Think of them as a starting point on your journey towards better health rather than a strict roadmap. You may need to adapt things from the get-go and that’s ok! Your group mentor and the clinical team are here to support you, offering feedback and support to ensure these guidelines suit you.

The Roczen dietary pathway:

• Sign-up & Health questionnaires: After signing up, we asked you to complete a series of health questionnaires, which helped us to understand more about your medical and psychological background and needs.
• Onboarding: During onboarding, we learned more about you and what you want to achieve with us. From here, our clinicians will recommend and provide:some text
  • Nutrition guidelines: These guidelines here outline the core principles of the Roczen programme related to food.
  • Food list: You’ll receive a comprehensive list of foods and ingredients. The foods are organised into a traffic light system to help guide you on how often to eat different foods within your nutrition plan.
  • ‘Building Balanced Meals’ guide: This guide (which is found in Explore) brings the Roczen nutrition guidelines and your recommended food list together, helping you build meals that contain all the nutrients you need and align with your overall plan.
  • Fasting Guide: Depending on your personal goals, your clinician might recommend you try fasting. It's not for everyone; only an option. If your clinician thinks it could be helpful for you, we’ll provide additional information in these guides on how to manage your eating times and fasting periods, including tips on what foods work best.‍
  • Follow-up: Every month, you'll be invited to a video call with your clinician to discuss how you're doing. We'll look at your progress and adjust your plan if needed. Remember, what we start you off with isn't set in stone - it's just the beginning. We'll check as we go along to make sure you're getting the most out of your journey with us.

Core Principles:

The Roczen nutrition guidelines, which we recommend to all patients, are built around a set of core principles highlighted below. Remember that your food list will help you tailor the guidelines around your goals.

• Build balanced meals according to the Roczen balanced meal guide. This means ensuring that each meal has a good source of protein, fibre-rich vegetables, healthy fats, and potentially some carbohydrates, depending on your personalised plan.
• Prioritise fresh ingredients and ‘whole’ foods to ensure a varied diet rich in essential nutrients and nourishment to support health and weight loss.
• Limit your intake of ultra-processed foods high in added sugars, salt, refined carbohydrates, and unhealthy fats.
• Drink plenty of water —the goal should be eight glasses or 2 litres a day. If this feels too much, set a smaller target to start with and aim to gradually build up to 2 litres.
• Limit caffeinated drinks to two cups daily. Try to drink them earlier to avoid the caffeine impacting our sleep quality. 
• If consuming alcohol, drink in moderation and follow national guidelines to ensure safe drinking, e.g. no more than 14 units (approximately 6 glasses of wine or 5 pints of standard strength lager) per week for men and women.

Building balanced meals

• A well-balanced meal will include a variety of nutrients that satisfy our hunger levels until the next meal.
• A balanced meal should include protein, healthy fats, (+/-) high-fibre carbohydrates and plenty of fibre from non-starchy vegetables. See our ‘Building Balanced Meals’ guide to help with this.
• It can help to build your meals around the protein first, then add non-starchy vegetables and healthy fats, and finally add some complex carbohydrates (e.g. wholegrain rice, pearl barley, sweet potato), if this is in line with your plan and food list.
• Eating meals without starchy carbohydrates (bread, pasta, potatoes, rice, etc.) can help improve blood sugar levels and may lead to more weight loss in some people.
• Meal planning and cooking larger amounts of food in one go, also known as ‘batch cooking’ can reduce the time spent cooking each day. Time invested in planning and preparing food in advance (i.e. batch cooking) is returned in the future, when your food is already prepared, but it does require space to store and keep the food fresh.

Protein

• Protein is a vital part of our diet, playing a key role in maintaining muscle mass and regulating the hormones which make us feel hungry or full —both of which are important when trying to achieve a healthy weight.
• Eating a rich source of protein with each meal helps you stay fuller for longer, making it easier to manage hunger and maintain steady energy levels. This is especially helpful if you’re following a recommended fasting guide.
• Incorporate a variety of nutritious protein sources like lean meats, fish, lentils, tofu, beans, eggs, quinoa, and dairy. For more specific options, refer to your food list.

Fat

• Healthy fats are crucial for hormone production, nutrient absorption, and optimal brain function. They also contribute to feelings of fullness and satisfaction.
• Prioritise unsaturated fats from dairy, olive oil, eggs, avocados, seeds, nuts, and oily fish (such as salmon, tinned tuna (in spring water or brine) or sardines).
• Aim to include a small portion of these fats with every meal.
• Use extra virgin olive oil as your go-to cooking oil, add nuts or seeds to salads and yoghurt for dressings, and try to eat oily fish at least twice a week to ensure a balanced intake of healthy fats.

Carbohydrate 

• Our guidelines are based on a mindful approach to carbohydrate intake. We’re mindful of the types and volumes of carbohydrates we consume, which will help maintain healthy blood sugar levels, improve metabolic health, and support weight loss goals.
• Prioritise ‘complex’ carbohydrates which refers to higher-fibre and higher-protein options such as quinoa, wild rice, legumes, pulses and grains, as opposed to refined carbohydrates such as white rice and chips.
• When eating carbohydrates, do so with proteins and fats as part of a balanced meal.
• Read nutrition labels carefully and be mindful of refined carbohydrates with high sugar content. For further guidance on reading food labels, see our ‘Understanding Food Labels‘ article in Explore.
• Consider low-carb alternatives to starchy carbohydrates, such as courgette noodles, cauliflower rice, lentil pasta, and black bean pasta. 
• Minimise your intake of sugary foods, drinks, and juices, e.g., sweets, chocolate, coca-cola, lemonade, and fresh orange juice. 

Fibre

• Fibre plays a vital role in maintaining a healthy gut by promoting regular bowel movements and beneficial gut bacteria, which are essential for our health.
• High-fibre foods help keep you fuller for longer, reducing overall calorie intake and supporting weight loss efforts by controlling hunger and preventing overeating.
• Fibre slows the absorption of sugars into the bloodstream, helping to stabilise blood sugar levels, particularly when consumed with carbohydrates.
• Non-starchy vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, legumes, and grains such as quinoa and oats are excellent sources of fibre. Incorporating a variety of these foods in all of your meals ensures a balanced, nutrient-dense diet.
  

Reducing intake of unhealthy ultra-processed foods (UPF)

• Whilst some processed foods such as non-dairy milk alternatives, tofu, tempeh, frozen vegetables, and tinned fish are nutritious options which can form part of a healthy and balanced diet, many other UPFs are high in refined carbohydrates, unhealthy fats, salt and other artificial ingredients that can negatively impact our health.
• Throughout the programme, we’ll help you learn the types of UPF to be mindful of. Our food list also provides further information on which foods to be aware of and eat in moderation.
• When preparing food, aim to use plenty of ‘whole food’ and raw ingredients.
• When struggling for time, processed foods such as tinned chickpeas and lentils, frozen vegetables, and pre-cooked grains can be efficient and cost-effective ingredients to use.
• Read labels carefully and be mindful of ingredients you wouldn’t usually find in your kitchen (e.g. High-fructose corn syrup, Sulfites E220-E228, Nitrites and Nitrates E249-E252, Butylated hydroxyanisole BHA, E320).
• Look out for hidden sugars using terms like fructose, sucrose, and high fructose corn syrup.
• See our article on ‘Ultra Processed Foods’ for more information on the type of UPF to reduce in your diet.

Hydration & caffeine 

• Aim to drink at least 2-2.5L of water per day. This may help to manage hunger levels, and avoid unpleasant symptoms if you are fasting.
• While prioritising water, the occasional consumption of sugar-free, sweetened drinks such as diet drinks and sugar-free cordials is ok in moderation. Try to avoid consuming these as part of your everyday diet; instead, use them to curb sweet cravings or for special occasions.
• We recommend limiting drinks with caffeine to 2 per day and drinking them well before bedtime to reduce their impact on sleep. For example, you have the last caffeinated drink by 2 p.m. Focus on water intake, which is a crucial part of the plan.

Alcohol

• Alcohol is high in calories (7 calories per gram) and can significantly add to daily calorie intake, potentially having a negative impact your weight.
• Consuming alcohol can make it more challenging to make healthy food choices. It reduces self-control and may increase cravings for sugary, greasy snacks or high-calorie, fatty foods.
• To consume alcohol in moderation, follow UK guidelines: limit intake to no more than 14 units per week, spread over 3 or more days, with several alcohol-free days each week.

Frequently asked questions:

What about portion sizes?

Your food list will provide some information on portion sizes, alongside our ‘Building a Balanced Meal’ article, which aims to help you understand portions without having to weigh and measure all of your food. Your group mentor will also be able to answer any questions about portion sizes. Our collection of recipes, designed around our nutrition guidelines, is another great place to find inspiration and build your understanding.

What if I’ve been recommended a fasting guide?‍

Your clinician may have recommended a fasting guide, during which you fast for the remaining part of the day. There are a range of fasting guides (16:8/ 14:10/ 12:12) aimed at naturally reducing our calorie intake by restricting eating to a shorter time period, which in turn helps improve blood sugar control and metabolic health.

Below are some examples of how you might adapt these guidelines around your fasting guide:

16:8 (Time-restricted eating (TRE))

Details:

• Fast for 16hr period
• Eat during 2 x 2hr windows, within an 8hr period(2 meals) 

Typical day:

• 12:00: Meal 1
• 13:00: Protein-based snack
• 18:00: Meal 2
• 19:30: Small snack 
• 20:00 - 12:00: Fasting
  

14:10

Details:

• Fast for 14hr period
• Eat during 10hr period (2-3 meals  +/- snacks)

Typical day:

• 10:00: Meal 1/ protein-based snack
• 13:00: Meal 2
• 16:00: Protein-based snack
• 19:00: Meal 3
• 20:00 - 10:00: Fasting 

12:12

Details:

• Fast for 12hr period
• Eat during 12hr period (3 meals +/- snacks)

Typical day:

• 08:00: Meal 1
• 12:00: Meal 2
• 16:00: Protein-based snack
• 19:00: Meal 3
• 20:00 - 08:00: Fasting

What are the potential side effects and challenges?

When changing your diet, it’s common to experience changes to your bowel movements as your gut adapts to a new way of eating. Here are some tips to help manage these side effects.

• Drinking plenty of water will help to maintain healthy bowel movements and prevent constipation.
• Be mindful of how much caffeine you drink - aim for less than 2 cups daily.
• Inform your clinician of any concerns about your bowel movements, or if unwanted side-effects fail to improve after the first week.

How quickly can I expect to see results?

Many factors impact our ability to lose weight and improve health, some that are in our control (i.e. diet, habits, sleep, exercise) and some that aren’t (i.e. genetics, medical conditions, hormones). While being part of the Roczen programme is progress in itself, we know that you are here to achieve your goals and make progress. We have therefore compiled some tips based on feedback and recommendations from others on the Roczen programme:

1. Set realistic goals and expectations to start with - it’s better to keep hitting small targets and then set more goals as you progress instead of setting unrealistic and overwhelming targets that set you up for not achieving them.
2. Reflect on non-scale markers of progress, which are called “non-scale victories,” such as your waist circumference, how clothes fit, energy levels, physical activity you’ve achieved and how you feel generally.
3. Avoid weighing yourself daily, as your body’s weight can fluctuate throughout the day. We recommend checking your weight or taking measurements once a week instead. If stepping on the scale is causing you anxiety, please don’t hesitate to talk to your clinician.
4. For those with a goal of losing weight, a realistic expectation could be weight loss of around 5-7% of your starting body weight through diet and lifestyle changes, but this isn’t the case for everyone. Those taking GLP-1 medication may see more weight loss than this. Remember, the rate of weight loss will be different for everyone, so your clinician will help you set realistic targets based on your individual circumstances.
5. If you’re not seeing any changes on the scales, it can help to check in on what you’re eating and drinking. Are there any patterns in foods or behaviours that may not align with the guidelines or that could be hindering your progress? If so, discuss these with your group and clinician.
6. Remember to focus on other aspects of your health that impact your weight and food choices, such as sleep, physical activity, stress management and self-care. 
7. Be patient and kind with yourself as you work on making changes. Sometimes, progress isn’t immediately reflected on the scales, but this doesn’t mean that your efforts aren’t improving your overall health. Trusting the science and maintaining consistency will eventually lead to better health and progress.

See our article ‘Realistic Weight Loss Goals' for further information and support.