We live in a world surrounded by myths. ‘PEOPLE’ say that it's harmful to cut down weight drastically but I haven't experienced anything of that kind. As long as you eat healthy, sufficient enough to do your daily chores and to fight against diseases nothing will harm you. I am not a doctor but I've read quite a lot on health, fitness & diet and I would like to share my ideas and views in this post. ‘PEOPLE’ interpret things the way they want it to be and rub those ideas onto others, Perhaps I am doing the same thing.
The first and fore most thing you need, to cut down your weight is not an ab-crunch, neither the Atkins diet nor the good old sauna belt. But it is your 'will power' which matters the most because it needs a lot of will power to control temptation. I have seen a lot of ‘PEOPLE’ who say that they are on diet control but when they pass by a KFC they keep all their resolutions aside, the yummy broasted chicken becomes the most important thing in the world at that moment. Hey you better keep this in your mind 'yummy is yuck'. No one likes the healthy stuff. Even medicines taste bitter. So I conclude this paragraph by saying that
“Strong determination is the most important thing”.
The other things which you need, to cut down your weight are very much tangible.
The next most important thing rather the only thing that can make a person look handsome/beautiful is a good balanced diet. ‘We are what we eat’. A healthy diet will never make you obese. Another myth which I have seen among ‘PEOPLE’ is 'Just go to gym everyday and work out on dumb-bells, that’s it you automatically cut down your weight'. I would say it works the other way. 'Eat healthy and don’t even go for work out you’ll never put on weight.' It’s better if one gets his diet prepared by a dietician. Otherwise there a lot of websites, which provide valuable information about different kinds of diet.
Some basic Gyaan(Knowledge) on food
Understanding Carbs- Low-carb diet is a buzz word among all those who are under diet. Carb is an acronym for carbohydrates. If a person is obese then in most of the cases the culprit is carbohydrates. So let’s understand what these carbs are. There are 2 kinds of carbs i.e. simple and complex. The simple carbs are the direct sugars like chocolates, cool drinks, sweets, rice etc. Complex carbs are like carrots, potatoes etc which take some time to digest and mix in blood.
Complex ones are observed to be the best carbs to have. A person who takes carbs in excess more than what he needs to run his body will accumulate all the carbs and fats making him obese. I have seen a lot of ‘PEOPLE’ who drink coke or pepsi for no reason. For them it’s a fad to get pepsi to their workplace and sip it while working. They don’t realize how much harm they are doing to their body.
We should engineer our body. We should realize what is good and bad for our body and understand how much of essentials are needed by our body. Anything in excess is harmful. Even a medicine when taken in excess will kill you. :D
Understanding fats- It’s very clear from all of my sources of info that if we have just enough carbohydrates and then do a little workout, it will do wonders. It can cut down the flab.
Fats are broadly classified into 3 categories
a) Saturated fats- Fats we get from meat, dairy and eggs and also in some plant sources like coconut and palm. One should avoid these fats as much as possible. In the meat again it is not advisable to have red meat which is from goat, sheep etc. as it increases the cholesterol levels in blood. White meat is supposed to be the best option. It can be obtained by consuming fish and chicken.
b) Unsaturated fats- These are obtained from plant sources like peanuts, soy, olives etc. There are some studies which suggest that having these fats may actually lower the bad cholesterol and maintain good cholesterol in blood.
c) Omega3fatty acids- This is very critical for our health but cannot be manufactured by our body. Good sources of omega3 fatty acids include coldwater fish, walnuts, soy etc.
Understanding proteins- These are the building blocks of body. According to me protein is the hero. It’s very essential in building muscles and healing tissues. Good sources of proteins are chicken, eggs, fish, sprouts, Soya etc. Fish is my favorite food :). Again I would like to remind my readers that anything in excess is harmful. Excess of proteins is observed to have caused kidney problems. There is an interesting concept which I found in one of the articles I read. Some eatables individually are not sources of protein but when eaten in combination form a very good source of protein. Rice and Peas, both individually are not a sources of proteins but when had together provide proteins to the body.
Things to be kept in mind
The following are the tips which I followed strictly and I’ve seen a significant change.
1) Avoid chocolates
2) Avoid Tea, Coffee; if you take milk have it without sugar
3) Say strict ‘No’ to soft drinks
4) Say strict ‘No’ to junk food
5) Eat 1,2 garlic cloves everyday
6) All Non-veggies your order of preference should be like follows
a) Fish
b) Egg white
c) Chicken
d) Mutton
Note:
1) Carbohydrates- Excess of carbs may lead to diabetes, obesity and heart problems
2) Fats- Excess of fats may increase cholesterol and lead to heart problems
3) Proteins- When taken excessively affects kidneys
4) Fish- Contaminants like mercury might affect your health :(
So what did I do?
My diet comprised of the following
Breakfast - 2garlic cloves,2 tomatoes ,2 carrots,1 plum,2 rusks, half capsicum,3 boiled eggs only the white part and lemon juice with salt. Believe me it’s a heavy breakfast.
Lunch - Salads containing onions, carrots, palak and tomatoes. Occasionally I used to have 2-3 slices of bread.
Dinner - Boiled vegetables and oatmeal. It was very difficult in the initial few days. But I made up my mind that am on sick food and have to follow this religiously or else I would die. It really needs strong commitment to stick this rigor.
Another suggestion at this point, ‘don’t stuff yourselves in one go rather have in small quantities and more number of times’.
Last nail to the coffin :), the workout.
Enough of eating now let’s think about how to burn those calories. I think a person needs to hit the gym for at least 4 days a week. Cardiovascular exercises should be compulsory part of your workout, specially if your aim is to cut down the weight. There are a wide variety of cardiovascular exercises like cycling, running, hiking and swimming. Depending on the availability you should try to do at least 2 of them so that you don’t get bored doing the same thing everyday. Another myth among ‘PEOPLE’ is that 'Running fast will make you sweat a lot and burns a lot of fats & calories'. My take on this is like this. Running fast will only tire you soon but one has to keep in mind that the ultimate purpose is to burn the calories, cut the flab and not to get tired soon and crash on the floor gasping after a burst. One should enjoy while working out in gym. Its better you team up with some one so that you will have some motivation. Also invest some time and money in buying nice attire for gym; even it helps in motivating you to go to gym.
Before going to gym I used to have one banana so that it gives me the instant energy. Then I used to run or cycle for 5km every alternate day followed by regular stretching and dumbbell exercises. One should understand that a heavy workout with insufficient diet actually cuts down the muscles and is not healthy.
Any soft risks?
A potential risk I have noticed among people, who indulge in serious diet and fitness program, is being outcasted by friends. It is a natural tendency among human beings. Everyone wants to be fit but only those who can fight the temptation and be focused can achieve it. So the friends who cannot control this first start by discouraging the person and then slowly start avoiding the person. One common thing I have noticed is the person will not be invited to parties and other gatherings. So these things also have to be kept in mind and it is important for the person to keep good relations and yet be focused on fitness. This is from my personal experience.
Finally I would like to conclude it by saying that “A healthy workout supported by a good balanced diet will keep you fit and handsome/beautiful”
After following the above suggestions strictly cutting down 10kgs is bound to happen and I am a living example.
If you have any queries do contact me I don’t charge for consultation ;P
