Now the festivities are over it’s time to lose that excess weight and get into a healthy routine for 2011.

The secret to long-term success is to take it slowly and avoid crash dieting or faddy celebrity-style diets. It’s time to start a sensible plan of healthy eating and regular exercise.

Here’s a few tips to help you on your way…

Get rid of all leftover temptations - throw out fat-making fancies or give away unopened foods that are still within their sell-by date. If it’s not there, you can’t eat it.

Increase your intake of fruit and vegetables. They’re all low in calories and fat and high in fibre, but they’re very nutricious. They also make great snacks between meals when you feel hungry. Try keeping some raw carrots, cucumber and celery in a bowl in the fridge for when you get the munchies.

Reduce your fat intake by avoiding fatty meats and meat products and choosing lean cuts of meat instead. Remove visible fat and skin, choose low fat dairy products such as semi-skimmed milk and low fat yogurts (and of course avoid fat-laden fried foods, pastries, cakes, buns and biscuits).

Packaged food may be labelled low fat, but it could be high in other baddies like sugar, so check the ingredients and energy values of those tempting packets on the supermarket shelves.

Eat wholegrain foods wherever possible. They are higher in fibre than their refined cousins, so they stay in your stomach for longer - helping to make you feel fuller, more satisfied and not as likely to nibble.

Drink plenty of water or low calorie squashes. People often confuse feelings of mild hunger with mild thirst, so drinking plenty of water will help you avoid these feelings. Also, remember that water before and with meals helps you feel fuller so you eat less.

Diet changes are become doubly effective when combined with an exercise regime. Try a combining low impact aerobic exercise that uses up stored fat (e.g. walking, jogging, swimming, dancing) with some resistance exercise to help build and tone muscle (e.g. light weights, resistance bands, pilates or yoga). Aim for 3-4 exercise sessions per week, with a day’s rest in between. Try exercising with family or friends to help keep you motivated.

Don’t starve yourself for long periods or skip meals or your metabolism will plummet. Instead try to have regular meals and plan in advance what you are going to have.

Don’t be too hard on yourself. One portion of sticky toffee pudding isn’t the end of the world. Treating yourself once in a while is not such a bad thing and can sometimes spur you on. No food is completely off limits - just don’t give in to temptation at every meal.

Don’t set yourself unrealistic goals if you’re going for weight loss. A safe and sensible target is about 1 kg (2 pounds) per week.

Don’t weigh yourself too often. Try to limit it to once a week (first thing in the morning after you have been to the loo). This will give you an accurate idea of how much weight you are losing.

So decide on your programme, stick to it, and show the world a new you for the new year.