Once upon a time I used to be painfully skinny, in the days
when skinny wasn’t fashionable.
After a lot of mindless eating (made possible by being with
people who indulged in a lot of mindless eating) I finally put on weight - so
much weight that one day, when my eyes finally saw instead of just looking, I
could not recognize those flabby arms, legs, bums and tum.
The shock of that sight galvanized me into working for 2
years to lose all that fat to reach a happy, healthy medium, with a combo of consciously
eating a healthy diet and exercising regularly, something I had never done
before.
The results were satisfying. I became more active, alert,
flexible, mobile and productive, not just physically but also mentally. My
persistent allergies became less persistent. My general health tests and scans
started yielding good results.
Of course the satisfaction had to turn to complacency. I
received my wake-up call yesterday when I wore an old short-length shalwar qameez.
 |
| Mission: Must fit back into this |
I could barely squeeze into it and though
I insisted on wearing it, it was strangling my whole torso from neck down. I
weighed myself and discovered I have put on 15 kg since last year.
Since I have started exercising I can make some weight provision
for muscle mass. But there’s a limit to that provision. The rest is
clearly fat mass. This was inevitable with my steadily increasing eating out,
food portions and intake of junk food, mostly chips and chocolate cake. I have
been exercising regularly but that’s not helping anymore because of the excess
food I’m consuming. I need to couple it with a few weeks of focused
eating-with-awareness.
So I’m seriously starting my diet plan from
today, not tomorrow. My sister helped me lose weight last time with a 1500
calorie diet plan she had got from somewhere; I’ll just try to remember her diet plan and
follow that. My target is to just lose the extra mass to fit back into that
shirt.
Today I’ve checked all I have in the fridge and
have made a list (lists always help me) of the food to avoid and to eat today.
 |
| Leftover spaghetti and scalloped potatoes |
 |
| Last night's kabab roll |
 |
| Nimco's crinkly chilli chips that I had been nibbling |
 |
| Chocolate cake sent by someone |
 |
| Chocolates, also sent by someone |
 |
| More chocolates |
 |
| Some more chocolates |
 |
Homemade gajar ka halwa
|
Today's Meal Plan
|
9.00 am
|
 Coffee with milk. Coffee for increased metabolism and milk
for my dairy intake of the day. I’ve started taking full cream milk now because I felt
the skimmed milk was making my skin look rookha sookha and also of
course because the coffee just wouldn’t get frothy. |
|
9.30 am
|
 Boiled egg. No to salt, yes to black pepper. Egg for the
rotein and increased metabolism and black pepper for the flavor and increased
metabolism. |
|
10.00 am
|
 A couple of bair. Full of nutrition and energy. |
|
11.00 am
|
Fresh yogurt with dates and nuts. A refreshing energy
booster.
|
|
12 noon
|
 A giant slab of chapli kabab from the protein
pyramid, with half a roti.
I have an early lunch to avoid hunger pangs that can lead
to famished overeating.
|
|
1 00 pm
|
A ‘qahva’ of ginger and
cinnamon to burn off the chapli kabab.
|
|
2 00 pm
|
 A salad of carrot, cucumber, tomato, green pepper,
cauliflower florets, cabbage, lettuce (all metabolism boosters) with a light
dressing of olive oil (a good oil) and lemon juice (a metabolism booster)
that will not defeat the purpose of the salad. |
|
3 00 pm
|
Some pieces of boiled sweet potato (a good weight loss
filler).
|
|
4 00 pm
|
A clear soup made from a small piece of chicken, tomato,
carrot and cabbage leaf. I’ll add a dash of lemon, tobacco sauce
and white pepper (metabolism and taste boosters) using a friend’s
recipe.
|
|
5 00 pm
|
A serving of fruit for energy and fibre.
|
|
6 00 pm
|
Tea or green tea, depending on my mood and need.
|
|
7 00 pm
|
An early dinner of aloo gosht (protiens and some
carbs), half a roti and kachumar.
|
|
9 00 pm
|
A tablespoon of ispaghol mixed in a glass of water.
|
·
This is just a guideline
which I will naturally adjust to maintain good health, stamina and temper.
·
I have already adjusted
from mindless overeating to a controlled calorie intake, so this should be easy
for me to follow.
·
I keep a week’s
supply of dates, nuts, salad, fruit and small chicken pieces (for clear soup)
and prepare the day’s meals in advance so that I don’t
binge on junk food when I get hungry.
·
I keep eating small
portions often to not reach hunger point.
·
I take prescription
multivitamins and supplements.
·
My medical tests are clear.
·
It helps and inspires me
when my family and friends also eat healthy and exercise.
·
It certainly costs less to
eat junk food than to eat healthy food.
·
I hope I do not cave in to
that chocolate cake.
Skinny is still not appreciated. ☺
ReplyDelete