You can spend half of your salary at the most expensive gym in town and still feel unhealthy.
The crash diets and madness of workouts do nothing but kill that spirit in you of losing weight. But the big question is: are these crash diets and workouts making you healthy or are they just making you slim? The human body needs a healthy lifestyle to stay vigorous. Here are five simple tweaks you can make in your food habits to stay healthy and youthful.
Fix a time
Don’t confuse your body by eating at a different time each day. The early you understand and adopt the habit, the better it is for you. The human digestive system needs proper gaps between each meal to digest and assimilate the food. Skipping meals and obnoxious eating timings will only lead to the eating between meals or those sinful mid-night snacks, adding an unwanted layer of fat to your belly.
Eat a rainbow
Colours add charm to life, isn’t it? They sure do the same to your body. Try eating fruits and vegetables of as many colours as possible as each coloured fruit will have its own unique nutrient. Upon doing this, you will not have to worry whether you’re eating right or not since you will be consuming minerals, vitamins and other essential nutrients that your body might need.
Swear by breakfast
Every cereal commercial keeps chanting about the importance of a good breakfast and they are not all that wrong. Skipping your breakfast for that meeting you are late for might be the worst decision you made that day. And if you keep doing the same on a regular basis, you might have to face its consequences once you cross your 40s. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day as your body does not receive any nutrients post the previous night’s dinner. You sure are a busy man, but there are a lot of healthy, quick and easy to make breakfast ideas you can use.
Quick & Healthy Breakfast Ideas
"A healthy breakfast is the most important meal of the day,” says Dr Jyothi Prasad, chief dietitian, Manipal Hospital, Bangalore.“There’s a nearly ten-hour long gap between dinner and breakfast, during which the body is on fast mode. As the name suggests, breakfast is the meal you eat to break that fast,” explains Dr Prasad, “It refuels your body with essential nutrients to kick-start your day. So don’t skip it.”
1. Whole-wheat bread sandwich: If you’re a vegetarian, Dr Prasad suggests a simple paneer, onion, tomato and cucumber sandwich. “Spread a layer of low-fat paneer instead of cheese, as it’s a healthier option,” she stresses. A layer of grated paneer, sliced onions, cucumber and tomato, salt and pepper – and you’re ready to go. For non-vegetarians, keep some boiled, boneless chicken pieces handy. Mustard sauce or mayonnaise with boiled chicken and onions tastes fantastic, try it out today.
2. Cereal: Dr Prasad warns against those sugar-coated cereals in the market. “Choose sugar-free wheat flakes or corn flakes. They pack in carbohydrates, fibre and protein,” she says, “add some fresh fruit or dried fruits and nuts to make it more wholesome.” Museli that combines a variety of grains and driedfruits too makes for a good option.
3. Daliya: “Popular up north, daliya (broken wheat) makes for an excellent breakfast option,” says Dr Prasad. Daliya is unrefined wheat, loaded with fibre and complex carbohydrates, it’s healthy and can be made in a jiffy. Dr Prasad recommends adding a handful of nuts to make daliya a perfect, complete breakfast.
4. Dosa: “Choose a multi-grain dosa — what we call adai down south — over the regular kind,” suggests Dr Prasad. It packs in multiple nutrients – just what you need to jumpstart your day. However, make sure you use a non-stick pan, and less oil though.
5. Eggs: While eggs make for an excellent breakfast option for kids, adults must tread cautiously. “Get your lipid profile checked,” recommends Dr Prasad, before you go on an egg eating spree. If your cholesterol is high, make sure you stay away from egg yolk. A good source of protein, selenium and riboflavin, egg whites are low in saturated fat and cholesterol. So beat in one or two egg whites, add some chopped veggies (cut and store in refrigerator), a pinch of turmeric, salt and red-chilli powder to taste — mix and scramble or make an omelette. “You can add a slice of brown bread, if you choose,” says Dr Prasad.
6. Steamed idlies: Your neighbourhood supermarket is most likely to have a stock of idli batter. Cook idlies the night before, if you’re too rushed in the morning. Eat idlies with honey, it’s yummy and won’t require additional time for making chutney or such. In the morning, microwave idlies, pour some honey and you’re ready to go.
7. Oats: High in fibre, oats is known to help regulate blood sugar levels and keep cholesterol under check. What more? It’s easy to make too. Again, Dr Prasad suggests adding nuts and fruits or dried fruits to that oat porridge.
8. Poha (flattened rice): Poha is simple to make and takes very little time too. “Add veggies like peas, and perhaps even carrots into your poha to make it more nutritious,” says Dr Prasad. Keep some roasted groundnuts handy to add that extra zing to your poha, groundnuts are also healthy as they pack in antioxidants, folate and a host of other nutrients.
Binge on fruits
For the ones who suffer from a sweet tooth problem, fruits are a saviour. If you crave for something sweet all the time, try carrying a fruit with you on the go. Fruits have natural sugar; sucrose, that should satisfy you. And if that isn’t enough, add a few drops of honey on it. This will help you watch your calories and also give your body the required nourishment.
Shift to warm water
Warm water is very helpful for the human digestive system. It removes the toxins out of your body, which are responsible for acute headaches and body pain. They also clear your intestines, thus, keeping you safe from all the gastric diseases. Warm water also works wonders on your skin and makes you look hydrated and fresh. The idea is that the temperature of the water that you drink needs to be higher than the room temperature. So, if you like your water on the rocks, it’s probably time you realise that it can be worse than your whiskey!
Bad eating habits are very easy to catch and when you keep following them for a very long time, getting back can be very difficult. These quick tips are easy to include in your schedule. So, kick off those bad table tics right now than cry over your weakened system later.
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