Monday 6 August 2012

Eat Right to Shed Weight - A diet post

OK :D That has to be the cheesiest title ever :P And hey there! :D *How can I ever not greet you guys and start a post?!*

After the wonderful response to the Fitness For Beginners post, many of you guys asked for a diet post. This post goes out to you, Namita :) *No not me, Namita from Vivacious Flair ^_^*

When it comes to weight loss, diet and exercise go hand in hand. If you diet without exercising, you'll end up looking flabby. And if its a huge weight loss, like some 10+ kgs, you might also end up with sagging skin :o *OMFGG!!* If you work out without dieting, you'll have a larger appetite. Obviously, there will be no weight loss. So guys, they say weight loss is both proper dieting and effective workout.

Dieting is NOT starving. If you skip meals, your body will go to starvation mode and will start storing fat. Your metabolism will slow down and this will affect your workouts too. Fad diets don't work. I have tried just one though. The diet where you basically eat fruits and vegetables for a week. Its more of a detox. But then, once you get back to your regular diet, all the weight (sometimes double of what you've lost) will come back. The cabbage soup diet, the eat-this-many-gms-of-this-diets don't work. They just don't work.

Conclusion? Dieting is a tricky business. Period.

But?

Its not rocket science. All you have to do is make it a healthy, balanced one. Here are my lil tips to have a healthy diet that also aids weight loss.

PS: I am a vegetarian. Obviously, I don't know how the chicken and the fish and the crab work :D So include them as per your wisdom :P

Let me enlighten you now *ahem* 8)

1. Eat smaller meals, more frequently. Yes, you have read it on a million websites and still don't follow it. Instead of three huge meals, go for 5-6 smaller ones. This will keep your metabolism high all through the day and keep you energised. Let me give an example. If you work out in the mornings, then have a light snack before you start with the workout. A small fruit or a glass of milk perhaps. (I'll give a list of non-fatty snacks and negative calorie foods). After about half an hour after the workout, have a big breakfast. Three hours from then, treat yourself to a handful of nuts. (Almonds, cashews, mix them up,whatever you fancy) Just a handful. Let your lunch be light. You'll again feel hungry three hours from then. Munch on fruits or gulp down a glass of fruit juice. Always have a very light dinner. Stop before you feel full. It takes 20 minutes for your tummy to realise whether you are full or not. *For your brain to realise, actually :P*

2. Everytime you feel hungry, drink a glass of water. Often, thirst is confused with hunger. If you still feel hungry after a glass of water, eat light.

3. Stock up on healthy foods for snacks and cravings - fruits, veggies, oats, nuts, sprouts. I always stock up on sprouts for all-of-a-sudden-cravings. A bowl of fruits or vegetables is always, always, always preferable over a big fat burger. Salads and wraps are wonderful options too :) Keep in mind the toppings though :P All the calories you are saving up can get added through the toppings.

4. Sip on green tea throughout the day. Green tea contains weight loss inducing extracts, which also fire up the metabolism rate. The anti-oxidants present in green tea help in clearing the skin off flaws and are anti-aging. Enough reasons to gulp down the weird-tasting-liquid? :P Three cups of green tea a day is considered healthy :) Note, it can cause insomnia-like conditions. Ya know, it contains caffiene, so don't drink right before bed :)

5. Don't have dinners after 7 PM. I know, this is very hard to keep up with. If you can't adjust this in your schedule, try to have it atleast two hours before bed :) Your body will thank you :)

6. Try avoiding maida (white flour). Go for brown bread. Also, white rice is not very weight-loss-friendly. I know its a staple, but hey! Weight loss is more important!

7. Drink water. Lots of it. If you are hydrated, you are less likely to crave.

8. Mom told me a tip like five minutes ago. A spoon of dry fried, ground, horse gram, with a cup of warm water every morning in empty stomach helps in a weight loss of some 2-3 kgs per month. Err, I can't comment on it right now, as I'll be starting it from tomorrow. If I see any positive (or negative) results,I'll let you guys know. After all, that is a spoon of sprout everyday. YAY! :)

9. "I already ate that double cheese pizza today, so let me gobble down all the cheesy, gooey, greasy stuff today, its OK. I have already broken the diet". No. Don't. Its like telling, "I fell down today, so I will not get up but crawl on the ground the whole day." Silly, isn't it?

10 Avoid junk. No matter what the circumstances are. Don't load your refridgerator with junk. If you see it, you'll eat it. Follow the good old proverb, out of sight, out of mind.

11. When you go grocery shopping, go with a full tummy. Have oats and a cup of strawberries may be? :) This way you'll not crave for junk. Shop wise. The outer perimeters of the mart are where the healthyness is stocked. Avoid the inner racks - the cheese, the butter and the gooey stuff.

12. Don't beat yourself too much. Sometimes, its OK to give in. I myself binge when I am mind wrecked. I do. No matter how much I preach to you guys, there are days, (especially the PMS and chum days. I am a total wreck then :P. These harmones, I tell you, are develish) where you will want extra sugar for a rush. Try your best to opt a lil healthier options. Top the salad with more honey may be? Substitute regular chocolate with dark chocolate. Instead of a coke, go for lemon juice.
You see, you don't want to regret too much later ;)

13. No matter what people call you - obsessed, fitness freak, picky, fussy,whatever-other-names, do what you want to do. The same people will be surprised shocked with the results.

Believe that you can do it, and just do it. Your tummy ain't a waste basket. Remember, almost 70% of your weight loss is your diet. Choose wisely. Below are some motivational as well as inspirational pictures. All are from Pinterest. You can follow me if you like, I have pretty wonderful motivational pins ;) My fitness board? Sweat, Weight and Watch!








Everything looks so yummy and radiates health, know? ;)
As of now, this is my diet:

A cup of milk before work out (Jillian Michaels' 30 day shred - I am now comfortable with level 1. I am planning on clubbing level 1 and level 2 with 15 minutes break. Lets see ;))

A healthy breakfast after 30 minutes after working out - usually non-rice dishes. 

A bowl of sprouts with a pinch of salt and pepper if I am hungry (I usually don't feel hungry until lunch cuz my breakfasts are big :D)

For lunch, 2 to 2 1/2 chapatis (roasted with minimum oil) and a veggie curry. A small bowl of yogurt sometimes

Fruits for evening cravings! I tend to get very hungry during evenings :P Ya know, hunger pangs types >.< That is when I munch on a bowl of fruits or mixed sprouts. Depends on what I crave for :)

Dinner is again like lunch with a different curry. 

Cups of green tea and warm water+honey+lemon juice through out the day. Honey is said to mobilise the fat stored in your body.

As of now, I feel light :) My skin is doing better and hair is healthy too :) *I feel like a grand ma typing that out :o*

So girls, give in your tips in the comment section :)

I'll give healthy diet recipes as I when I prepare them :) 

Stay inspired, stay healthy :)

Love,
Namita 



14 comments:

  1. m flattered ;) ;)
    good write up girl :)
    I follow almost all these points.

    My funda is to eat your staple diet.
    I am a cheese lover, sooooo once in a while i do indulge in it and it never causes any harm.

    I do eat fruits within 30 mins of completing my workout , I crave for apples when I complete my workout :D

    Being a punjaban/sikh eating something meetha after dinner is like a tradition or sth :p ..I have managed to stop it in my home :D cos its sheer overeating.

    eating some sweet is not a crime, but you should never take it as soon as you have your proper wholesome meal.

    I cringe at those ppl who say oooohhh we are on weight loss,,i can't eat that piece of mithai,,thing is that anyone can,,its not poison for God's sake!! you just need to use your mind a lil bit :)

    For me there are some 5 meals in my day , starting at 9 and ending at 9 .
    I need to have a yum healthy bfast so I have poha/upma/paratha/dosa/grilled sandwich.

    Rest of the day is of vegetable,chapati,daal and fruits.
    Rice ~ white rice is my fav ~ so i do have it in a healthy proportion once or twice a week.

    Drinking one full glass of milk is the most imp thing specially for girls/ladies because you know your body needs allot of nutrients .

    I drink max 10 glasses of water everyday,,can't take more than that. But yes if I am out I drink water like anything.
    :D

    Nothing is bad food in my opinion, everything that is termed as food is meant to be eaten, but yes you must see its quality and how is it prepared.

    I dislike colas , drinks , shakes and everything of this sort.
    I love nimbu paani :) :)


    munching a full packet of biscuit will never fill ur hunger everr,,

    everything present in market as diet food ~ well use your brain before buying them :)

    I am learning to be healthy and still a novice.
    But i love working out..

    and its not about being fat or slim,,
    workout is for everyone :)

    Its never never never too late to adopt healthy life style :)


    oooooooooops :p i wrote too much :p :p :p

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    1. Whoa! That is one wonderful tip! :D I might as well copy paste it into the post ;) Thank you so much Namita, I am so glad you took out your time to type out so much :) You are a very healthy individual, health conscious but not too fussy :) Good luck with the weight loss and a happy healthy body sweetie :)

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  2. Happiness...now that Iv started working out, I needed something like this post to keep me motivated towards eating right. I am a big can't live without rice person. I used to have a good portion for dinner...now Iv shifted to no butter rotis. My body though doesn't agree to low carbo diets. I get easily tired and loose energy at end of the day...I donno what I should do...:(

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    1. Opal :) Congratulations on starting the regime love :) Well I am sort of somewhere obsessing over fitness, and I hate rice from before :o I always prefer rotis, chapatis instead :) You can try including more smoothies, fruits and desserts may be? That way you'll get a healthy sugar rush and you won't feel tired. We feel tired when the glucose levels drop in the body :( I'll try finding recipes for you :)

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  3. i lovedd the post to the core . . .and point 9...roflolol . . . i am planning to go sprouts not to lose weight but just as a fitness measure to avoid junks :)

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    1. haha thank you di :P awh all d best :) prevention is better than cure, isnt it doc? ;)

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  4. im toh just reading and reading :0

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    1. Aww Vanu :) I hope you got the 30 day shred :) Good luck!

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  5. very very informative post, thanks for posting <3

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  6. Hey Namita,
    Nice post dear *Sorry bahot din bad i will blabber my opinions :P*

    Well can your post work for reducing flab around stomach :( i have flab that i hate :( :( i m waise patli shatli :P but that flab arghh " I HATE ".

    I do not at all follow healthy lifestyle But now i think i will do at least chota waaala my version of healthy lifestyle by reading your post it tempts to have a good body :D chote version se shuru karungi toh aage jaungi:) See na you make a post on reducing flab. Also as I have a tight schedule *Engineering you know :P*

    I cant make everything you listed in the post but i will start with milk glass*with bournvita of course* then workout i guess and then breakfast and then college and then i have at 1 lunch timing so i guess 2 rotis with some beverage like juice or limbu pani * I am known for carrying colorful juices to college :D *

    Then at 5 or something some fruits or roll and then class and then to straight to home to dinner at nine :) hope it sounds OK .Please tell any more suggestion or improvements in my routine.

    Love,
    Piya <3

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    1. Hey Supriya! glad to see you back :D

      Sure, I'll post work outs targeted for specific areas :) As of now, crunches are usually suggested for tummy flab, but they aren't very effective either! I'll make posts sweetie :)
      Yea, start small, it will lead to bigger steps :)
      Haha sure, colorful food is always welcome :) Incorporate greens and more of natural foods in your diet - avoid soda, coke, cola and go for fresh juices :)

      Well I have my dinner at 6 :D yes, I'll be home by 5 45 and will be famished! So I have my dinner at 6, and if I am hungry by 8 or 9, a glass of milk or a bowl of fruits will do :)
      You might want to try this, easy and effective :) I lost 2 kgs over a month just with this habit :)

      Do let me know how it goes :)

      Love,
      Namita <3

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  7. that's a wealth of information, girl! I started working out this year and in the process have automatically down unwanted calories too. It's not like I stop myself from having a pizza or that yummy KFC zinger burger. It's just that when I see the weight tipping on to the scale, I decide what's the point working out just to put it all back on you again. It just makes the workout count to nil. So i enjoy my daily diet but with less unhealthier options. I do indulge in a little sweet daily, I haven't cut anything out, it's just that I have reduced junk food by almost 70% than what I used to before. I snack on healthier sweet stuff like prunes, dates and eat more nuts instead of salty fried chips.
    You have written this post very well. Kudos to you :)

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    1. Now that is so smart :) Keep it going CC :) You are so right :)
      Thank you :D

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