With the new year just around the corner and with the excesses of Christmas, many of you might be considering how best to get your healthy diet back on track and to shed those extra couple of festive pounds. However, you should remember to maintain a healthy diet and not do anything too drastic in a bid to lose weight.

The Honey Diet is a new technique that is being hailed as a breakthrough way to lose weight easily and at a good pace. But what is it?

Basically, the key to the honey diet is a single spoonful of honey every day before you go to bed. Of course, this still needs to be used alongside a balanced diet that doesn't contain too many fats and sugars, as well as regular exercise. But it is the honey that is the main trick behind your weight loss. 

The plan has been formulated by nutritionist Mike McInnes, who found that honey is a great weight loss food during his years of research. As well as your spoonful of honey before bed, simply replace any sugar throughout the day - such as you would put in tea or coffee - with honey.

It has been found that replacing sugar with honey triggers changes in your metabolism that stop you reaching for sweet treats by reducing sugar cravings. These changes to your metabolism mean that it works a bit faster, helping you to burn fat even when you are sleeping. Mr McInnes suggests that by continuing this habit of using honey instead of sugar, it could help to shut down any cravings for sugar completely. 

Eating honey instead of sugar is a great way to cut down on the processed foods in your body, which can make you put on weight. You might also find that you have more energy as you are less prone to sugar crashes, which occur when you have burnt through all the processed sugars. 

If you are considering giving the Honey Diet a try, it is important to remember that a balanced diet that contains plenty of fruit, vegetables and water is important to your health. Reducing the amount of carbs - especially by cutting out potatoes - is recommended for this diet. Switch to brown rice, bread and wholemeal pasta to give you a better energy boost.   

You should also aim to exercise regularly to maintain fitness levels and maintain a healthy weight.