More so, in an age when most of us drive to work, eat out really often, snack on junk food and lead more stationary lives...at the mercy of computers at work and television sets at home. So what do you do in such a situation to protect yourself against rising cholesterol levels or the dangers of an impending heart attack, hypertension, diabetes and obesity?
If you ask me, there is no short term solution to the risks such a lifestyle poses. If at all there is a solution, it is to make slight changes to our everyday lives and commit to them forever. I believe that initially the results may be slow, but the longer you stick to the techniques mentioned below, the healthier you will feel and see yourself become.
EAT... AND LIVE HEALTHY TECHNIQUES
1. WATER: Start and end your day with a glass of water. Drink a glass of water in addition, before and after each main meal you have. That will keep you fuller and hydrated throughout the day and you would have automatically consumed your required quota of 8 to 10 glasses. Adequate water intake prevents your body from unnecessary water retention and also prevents it from storing water as reserve, in the wrong places.
2. MEALS: Eat within half an hour of waking up and never skip breakfast. Besides breakfast, break lunch and dinner into two segments each. This means, that instead of having three larger meals, you will have five smaller meals a day. The logic behind smaller meals is that it is easier for the stomach to break down and digest. Since the body's metabolism is slowest at night, do ensure that dinner is a smaller meal compared to lunch and have it preferably, three hours prior to sleeping.
3. CHEW: A little known fact is that chewing food instead of gobbling or gulping it down, helps in keeping our weights healthy and in check. Make it a habit to chew slowly, 15-20 bites per mouthful is good! Doing so, not just aids digestion but also helps you know when your stomach is full.
4. BALANCED DIET: Being a vegetarian, for me a balanced diet includes getting my daily dose of fibre in the form of oats, brown bread and brown rice; calcium in the form of milk and curd; proteins in the form of pulses and legumes and vitamins in the form of salads, green vegetables and fruits. For non-vegetarians, lean portions of meat in addition are preferable, since they are low- fat. Consulting a dietician to know your personalised balanced diet needs, is strongly recommended.
5. AVOID: While a teaspoon or two of sugar and oil a day is fine with me, I try my best to avoid items with trans-fat, excess sugar or fat like oil, butter, clarified butter, cheese, cream, etc. I also avoid items packed with excess salt, because too much of it is unhealthy and causes water retention. It is important, not to completely do away with sugar, salt and a little fat in our lives, because they are brain food. However monitoring your intake is essential because fruits, vegetables, bread, rice and pulses, already contain some amounts of these.
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