Carrot & Stick!

The weightloss battle is one of the hardest we will ever wage in our lives. This is also the longest battle we will fight - for the rest of our lives! Lets face it...after 25 we put on a kg naturally every year and its harder and harder to keep the metabolism up.

Why do we need to fight this battle - to be healthy, to build discipline and will power, to have more stamina and be able to pursue activities we love (treking, dancing etc), to look our best and to have control. Its the one thing we can control and that brings a great deal of self satisfaction.

Why did I name this post Carrot and stick? Well we're all motivated differently - some by the carrot and some by the proverbial stick. But for those who are motivated by the carrot, this weight loss battle is one hard uphill climb initially because the first results are slow to come by and hard to hold onto.

However, I promise you, if you stick to it, you'll beat the plateau and love what you are trying to achieve and why. Please do stick to it. It might seem at various points that you lose a little and it comes back on. Remember weight fluctuates on a daily basis and if you lost that 1 it is on the verge of disappearing forever. Just stay committed for the next couple of days and you'll come away a winner.

Overall, I think enjoying a healthy balanced lifestyle is important but lets not give up on our goals because they seem a little tedious. If thousands around us can do it - SO CAN WE.

I have a serious heel pain. It is right now restricting free movement. Plus my job requires me to be on my feet for at least 3 hours a day and it is killing me. If you know any remedy, quick and hassle free preferably, please let me know. I have not even been working out; so have no clue what is causing it.

Injury

So, after giving full gyaan about figuring out the best cardio workout for me I started to feel a growing pain in my feet. My heels couldn't take anymore impact and as I squeezed a near one hour workout in the afternoon I gave myself no time to stretch, which I realized is time consuming but your best bet against injuries at the gym. I did an express stretch of merely five minutes which in itself was bad cause I was hurrying the process. I learned three lessons from my injury and reading alot on the internet.

Lesson 1: Stretch

Positively before and after your cardio work outs. If you have never done stretches ask the physio therapist or instructor at the gym. Get it right and you will have a fun filled exercise life. Especially calf muscles, the back and ankles to hold that whole body up when you are pounding on that treadmill.

Lesson 2: Rest

With two of us injured sitting in London, we can only tell you stop when you are injured. Importantly, the feet or heel. Give your feet rest and time to recover but don't let go of other kind of exercises. If you are not used to strenuous exercise build slowly (although you might want to jump steps like I did). Figure out what your body is telling you. If you do weights your muscles will scream in pain the next day -- that is not injury. Rem the 48 hour rest period -- Alternate the cardio and strengthening workouts cause your muscles need to rest before they can jump back up. So five days of continuous full on cardio workouts may work against you (I should have known this but cause I don't like weights I just thought it would be alright)

Lesson 3: Water

And a lot of it. Apparently drinking at least 3 litres of water is good when you are exercising. Swimming - one of the best exercises for form, fitness and if you have feet injury. Steam or using the sauna can also detoxify.

I am not claiming I do all of this but I don't want you all following the same rabbit hole and this is sort of a form of rant so that I realize what I am not doing right and what I should be doing.

And, Idlis are God's Gift to mankind! 

Speak now or forever be silent

     Hey guys, if no objection I would like to open our blog to general viewers so that we may get more comments or viewership... your friends might wanna see it and get pumped up reading it. It is a bit personal so let me know if you are ABSOLUTELY against it. :-)

Hatha

     So, after all this excitement about running and zumba classes I have realized that my fitness level is below plunge. Yes, that's right! I just came up with a new low. My heels have begun to hurt because of high impact while walking and jumping around in the zumba class.
     I have already stopped running and substituted it with elliptical (with this my posture and back some how feels uneasy) and cycling (my bum hurts after sitting for too long and sitting at the desk for the whole day).
     I have already started grumbling about the E&C workouts so my plan is to do two weeks of yoga. Although it will not be high cardio workout it will at least make me flexible? waaiiill! Will keep you posted about it.

     Till then check this out -- http://www.yoganu.com/

On Loop

Keep repeating this to yourself. It worked for me. For the two months that my mom was here I used to hit the gym in the afternoon, which was after coaxing my boss to give me an extra fifteen min for lunch so that I could shower and get back to work (didn't want a stinker sitting next to him ;-) But now after my mom left everytime I don't step out at 1PM I get jittery like I haven't done something that I am supposed to. Although I hate routines and I am guilty of not really falling into the exercise routine the fact that I am even thinking of it is a huge step for me.

     So think, repeat and do. Let's go girls! Anyone doing anything???

Congratulations Pavithra.  It is the most crucial time, so don’t let go and gain that entire weight back girl. Get a grip n picture that gorgeous curve you are going to have on D-day.

I hope all you girls get this. I think it is my maiden blog post! I have only put on weight since this blog. I can think of nothing but food of late. Plus all those cook shows on TV! Not helping my cause. Sigh!!!!

Countdown

COUNTING CALORIES


Use this website to find out how much calories you need to cut and keep a tight leash on it. Every product maker needs to give you the calorie break up on the packet so look at it before buying.
     For example today, I picked up an egg sandwich thinking I should eat proteins for breakfast (Tick check box) but what I failed to realize was that Mayo was the topping (Cross check box), which in the end had given me double the calories than what I expected I would get.
     Sometimes, we assume what we eat is healthy but it is not. Worth taking a double look before buying.
     If you don't want that Dorritos packet giving you the inviting, seductive look then stop buying it. - Read it in some article in a random website and paraphrased it.
     Be consistent. For at least the next 6 months, eating healthy should become a lifestyle not an one-off event. That means not eating over the weekend. You hold back on the calories through the week and plunge into an eat-all-you-can buffet then you gain all the calories you lost over the last five days. It is just counter productive. I realized that is what I am doing and I am going to phase it out of my life.
     This is more of a ramble to myself than telling you guys what to do. But it helps penning it down. Also bought a book for myself and started to note down what I ate and how I felt afterwards, if at all I had any emotion about it.

HALP!

Hey Ladies,

I don't know you from adam and the only person who I know and is a close dear friend is Anu. However, through these years of blogging...I do feel like you are friends...people I understand and relate to. And this blog you are also the sisterhood - you're fighting the same battle with the same tools and it's awesome!

Right now, I need help. I really do. I'm panicking and I have no idea where to start for all the lectures I've been giving you girls!

To break the news, I'm getting engaged in Nov and married in April next year. I have 7 months to look great and get fit. However, while this should be a great motivating factor for most women, I am only eating more and lazing about more. In other words leaping these two milestones I just mentioned and officially looking 4 months pregnant!!

What do I do? And how do I do it? Please help!The problem is, that no matter how hard I try to diet and be healthy I seem to falter every 3-4 days and I have seen no results in the last one month. This is highly de-motivating and I don't know how to break the cycle, see some result and find a motivation to keep going long term.

Tips, tricks, philosophy...anything you can give me to set me on the path will be much appreciated.

xoxo

Emotional Eating.

I have fallen off the wagon. I ate and ate chicken korma and rice throughout the weekend and cupcakes. I am good for five working days in the week but if I am sitting at home or going out I end up eating unhealthy stuff. Also, I had a huge fight and the only thing I could fall back on was food.. Talking helped a bit and so did exercise. But it wasn't enough. I needed the comfort of food. Is there anyway or anything you guys to do stop?

Please help! :)

Back to Basics

I've been yo-yoing with my diet. Good for a day - bad for two days, good for half a day, bad for yadayada..

However, I'ts been 4 days of being good now - feels great! Lets not lose the focus girls.

I know we talked about healthy lifestyle but I'm realising I am very goal oriented. So, I have a goal of losing 5 kgs in 3 months and I have an end date of 18th Sep.

I'm hoping this will help me stay on the straight and curvy!

Cravings

I can't I can't I can't stop thinking of food today. Waiiilll!!! I had a healthy breakfast of eggs and healthy lunch of salad and yogurt but now all that is running in my head is FOOD! FOOD!! FOOD!!!

Heeelllpppppp aaaayyyyyaaaahhhhhhh.... *Creeps towards food bar*

Inner Beast

Hello ladies!

I understand that this post might seem a little out of place and context but bear with me while I explain myself..

What is the biggest tool in our hands at all times? huh? huh? Well the correct answer is introspection. And so I used that tool for the past few days. Do you know what happened?

Yes I did find my epiphany!

You see I've often wondered why exactly I can stick to healthy eating for a month but then totally slide after that whereas supermodels eat healthy all the bloody time! I've also wondered why when I love swimming I go regularly for about three months and then again slide for the rest of the year whereas people like my dad can keep at it every alternate day for 10 years consistently! This has been an underlying trend in everything I have ever attempted to do. Blogging...petered away when we all stopped, art - stuck to it for a month, piano - 6 months and the list goes on! :(

The answer is not something superficial such as motivation or interest or just needing the right information because I always had all of that. Deeper thought made me realise my true problem is that I am inherently lazy. I am. Harsh reality but I am. I don't do the dishes at night at times coz I'm too lazy and guess what there's nobody to tell me to toe the line. I don't do laundry for extended periods of time and sometimes I put off cleaning up. I am purely and simply lazy. And this trickles into every sphere of my life. Luckily I've found a profession that leads me to a new and exciting project every 3 months and I manage to stay on top of it. But if I didn't have that I'd never get to the end of anythng that took real effort, discipline and perseverance.

Each of our situations and real root problems is different. But I've identified mine and it is laziness. I've already started attacking this beast since the weekend like getting up to do 'it' no matter what like be it anything in any sphere. No more putting it off. And I think taming this beast will help me lead that healthy life I want to lead.

So what is your inner beast?

Gym Class Zeros to Gym Class Heroes

     After S wrote the post asking about the Dos and Don'ts I realised I had the same problem when I first joined a gym. I did not like the trainer and avoided him like the plague. But when I moved to Mumbai, the gym had two fun trainers who pushed me to do more but at least did not force upon me things I didn't like. For example, they coaxed me to run even when I couldn't but did not push me to do sit up with weights because my back hurt and did not like it.
     But what they did teach me and this could help gym beginners or just work-out beginners as it did for me.
     -- You have to mix cardio and weights - weights like any misconception doesn't make you look fat after you stopped. You will look and become fat if you stop exercising. Period. But in case you just don't want to take a chance with weights then with cardio you need to remember that the body needs at least 24 hours to repair itself. So if you do cardio in the afternoon like I do, going next day morning might feel alright but the body needs more time to heal.
     -- Which brings me to the second point - keep a schedule. Do it daily at 6pm in the evening or 7am in the morning. Once you fix a timing other committments can be worked around it.
     -- With the exercise days I alternated them a couple of months back. I used to go Monday, Tuesday take a break of Wednesday and do Thursday and Friday but most often than not I hated doing anything on Mondays let alone workout! So, now I do four continuous days of cardio (zumba uses light weights - helps in tightening those arm muscles that hang and wobble :-))
     -- Get a couple of days of yoga into the schedule if you can. It gives upper body strength and makes you more flexible. I thought it would be boring but once I entered the class and started it I can honestly say I remembered only how happy I was doing the Shavasana at the end of the session.
     -- Have a routine and push yourself harder. I can give others excuses but I cannot fool myself into believing that I am doing the right thing.
     -- And golden rule after cardio - an ABSOLUTE MUST - stretch stretch stretch!
    
This is what I am going to try doing. Picked it up from this website. Like the website suggests, go for the distance or go for the timing. I am hoping to go for the timing.


Have fun :) Update progress

Week	Workout 1	Workout 2	Workout 3
1	Brisk five-minute warmup walk. Then alternate 60 seconds of jogging and 90 seconds of walking for a total of 20 minutes.	Brisk five-minute warmup walk. Then alternate 60 seconds of jogging and 90 seconds of walking for a total of 20 minutes.	Brisk five-minute warmup walk. Then alternate 60 seconds of jogging and 90 seconds of walking for a total of 20 minutes.
2	Brisk five-minute warmup walk. Then alternate 90 seconds of jogging and two minutes of walking for a total of 20 minutes.	Brisk five-minute warmup walk. Then alternate 90 seconds of jogging and two minutes of walking for a total of 20 minutes.	Brisk five-minute warmup walk. Then alternate 90 seconds of jogging and two minutes of walking for a total of 20 minutes.
3	Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then do two repetitions of the following: Jog 200 yards (or 90 seconds) Walk 200 yards (or 90 seconds) Jog 400 yards (or 3 minutes) Walk 400 yards (or three minutes)	Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then do two repetitions of the following: Jog 200 yards (or 90 seconds) Walk 200 yards (or 90 seconds) Jog 400 yards (or 3 minutes) Walk 400 yards (or three minutes)	Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then do two repetitions of the following: Jog 200 yards (or 90 seconds) Walk 200 yards (or 90 seconds) Jog 400 yards (or 3 minutes) Walk 400 yards (or three minutes)
4	Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then: Jog 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes) Walk 1/8 mile (or 90 seconds) Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes) Walk 1/4 mile (or 2-1/2 minutes) Jog 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes) Walk 1/8 mile (or 90 seconds) Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)	Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then: Jog 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes) Walk 1/8 mile (or 90 seconds) Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes) Walk 1/4 mile (or 2-1/2 minutes) Jog 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes) Walk 1/8 mile (or 90 seconds) Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)	Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then: Jog 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes) Walk 1/8 mile (or 90 seconds) Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes) Walk 1/4 mile (or 2-1/2 minutes) Jog 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes) Walk 1/8 mile (or 90 seconds) Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)
5	Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then: Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes) Walk 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes) Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes) Walk 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes) Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)	Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then: Jog 3/4 mile (or 8 minutes) Walk 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes) Jog 3/4 mile (or 8 minutes)	Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then jog two miles (or 20 minutes) with no walking.
6	Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then: Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes) Walk 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes) Jog 3/4 mile (or 8 minutes) Walk 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes) Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)	Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then: Jog 1 mile (or 10 minutes) Walk 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes) Jog 1 mile (or 10 minutes)	Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then jog 2-1/4 miles (or 22 minutes) with no walking.
7	Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then jog 2.5 miles (or 25 minutes).	Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then jog 2.5 miles (or 25 minutes).	Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then jog 2.5 miles (or 25 minutes).
8	Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then jog 2.75 miles (or 28 minutes).	Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then jog 2.75 miles (or 28 minutes).	Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then jog 2.75 miles (or 28 minutes).
9	Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then jog 3 miles (or 30 minutes).	Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then jog 3 miles (or 30 minutes).	The final workout! Congratulations! Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then jog 3 miles (or 30 minutes).

My First Step..

JOINED THE GYM.

I never once thought i will be stepping on the doors of a place filled with the big machines which will make me sweat and loose weight ..

But recently with all the motivation in air i wanted to do somethin and....taaddaa .... i joined a gym.... 

Since this is my first time.. need help on Do's and Dont's.

PS: jus paid the membership ;) 

Good News! :)

Checked my weight after about two weeks of dieting--or contained eating--if there's a term.

I was 47.7. Now I am 45!!! So happy :). Just wanted to share this. 

I want to eat something to celebrate now :). 

Happiness.....!!!!!!

When the Pizza Passed Away...

It died a silent death. 

D walked towards my small table on the terrace, and tapped my puny shoulder. Her plate smelled of heaven. Of all the temptations that life on earth is peppered with: A dominos barbeque chicken, cheese burst pizza. I love.

She pulled that vulnerable chair next to mine and plonked herself and politely held out my-ex-staple-diet, "Want some?" I gave it one hard look, a look its shiny, oreganoey, chickeny self, deserved. Some? I want every single inch. Never in my life have I felt so depraved.

I looked away, while the other half of my body revolted...a small mutiny later, I refused with a heavy heart..and a heavier belly.  And I sat there watching her slowly soak in its delectable beauty. 

This is so hard. But I just don't want to hate myself in a couple of hours. Small pleasure, HUGE pain.

So I let it die a not-so-natural-death.. RIP..You will be terribly missed...till I let myself conquer the desire to break-free. And I reach a place where food makes me happy, not guilty.

  

Dedicated to Pavithra and Anu...

PS: This is so hard and I am salivating..But say no now, so that you can give yourself a treat..a well deserved one. 

Sloth

I need a motivational lecture. This has been a weekend of sloth. It satrted at 5 pm on Friday and has continued into Monday morning.

I do not want to list the upmteen number of junk foods I've consumed in the past 72 hours as I do not want to take you down with me.

But please somebody give me some direction and pull me back on track! This weight loss attempt isn't pointless right? Right?

the Gas system

Is it me or is there more gas in your tummy after eating salads?

My office has been relatively quiet as most of our reporters are working from home. London transport authorities sufficiently scared the bejeesus out of most of the Londoners saying that public transport systems would be packed with tourists and Olympic goers. (I have had the best commute since I joined Platts, Canary Wharf last year - getting a seat to sit in peak morning hours was a dream)

My point being, my tummy whines with gas and EVERYONE till Timbaktoo can hear it and it aint pretty!

It shuts up even the profanity spewing employee of the month at my office! Waaaiiil! I knew there was a downside to eating veggies. Any solution?

Help.

I Have Sinned...

Boss took us out for lunch to Rajdhani in UB City. Boss is veg. Rajdhani serves only veg food. I ate. Almost everything that was on the plate. Even the sweet dish.

But I looked away when the second serving came along. Only if the waiter would let me be. He put some Khichdi with a big spoon of Ghee. And the plate lit up like a sunny day. 

I ate it all up. I would have loved for the waiter to do sales for my company, he was so persistent. Came running to my  guilty empty plate and threw a small helping of rice. Sweet kadi had to leave its residence.

Now I am feeling bloated. My stomach is full of veg calories.

And I wish my boss was a meat-eating freak...not a sober herbivore...I so wish.

But today, I have sinned.

Star!

OK I know this is absolutely silly. I shouldn/t be so excited and thrilled over literally a non-achievement. But you don't understand...I'm a foodie. I live to eat. I dream about food all day and I've been this way as far back as I could remember.

I also suffer from chronic cravings. I mean at times immediately after lunch am hungry and starving for some yummy sweetness or some tangy evil. Sigh.

But yesterday was the first day since I started on this crusade to be healthy that I went through a whole 24 hours without eating any sort of unhealthy junk. Nada. Zilch. None at all. Mind you I was hungry all day but I ignored my urge for the salty and sugary and went for salads, soups, cous cous and avacado and somehow made it through the day without over-eating and without junking.

I feel like a star. Really...like I said its silly but you don't know the inner battle I face!

Anyway I was wondering if we should have an awarding system here? Stars, badges and so on and so forth! Our own little victory club? ;-)

Also...I love you girls for being here and fighting this battle with me.

All for one and none for fat!  Thank you! :D

Bon apetite

So, this is what I made - my first feta cheese salad - curtesy my Greek colleague. He said : "Every time any one uses Danish cheese a Greek boy dies" :)

Spring onions

Cherry tomatoes

Feta cheese cubes - literally not more than 15 cubes.

Mixed herbs

Dash and another dash of lemon juice (someone called the traffic cops after the second dash!)

Pepper powder cause I am not a bell pepper person

I made the mistake of adding salt. Feta cheese is by itself salty so keep hands away from that salt shaker. 

Bon apetite

Shakshuka

So I finally tried this Israeli dish out. Read a few recipes, got tired and then made my own. It wasn't that bad. 

Or so I think. It seems it adds up to only 260 calories or thereabouts. So here's what I did.

Finely chopped an onion, then 3 tomatoes (recipes say you need garlic too, but there wasn't any at home!)

Looked for tomato puree (I used instant coz I don't have patience to make from scratch)

Cut some green chilies

Then, I put the onions in oil and sauteed it till they were brown.
Put the tomatoes in. And then the puree. 
Because I didn't have garlic, I added some Pizza-Pasta sauce. (mistake! it was a little over-powering)
I sauteed till the tomatoes were vulnerable enough to break with a nudge.
Then covered it and let it cook, till it was slightly watery.
Then added salt and green chilies. 
Then broke an egg on top of this mixture. 
Covered it. Let it cook for about 5-10 minutes. (I don't like sunny side up, so I let the sun set)
Then added some coriander (love coriander)
Ready to eat!

It was not bad for a first attempt. Only, I added too many chilies, sauce and did not have bell peppers and paprika and garlic. 

Try it. Please :). And let me know if you liked it. Definitely better than Oats!!

Happy Eating! :)

Jackpot!

Just wanted to share..

http://www.healthyindianrecipes.co.uk/recipes/

An excerpt from the blog:

Welcome to Healthy Indian Recipes where you will be taken on a culinary journey which will teach you how to cook fabulous mouth-watering Indian meals that are bursting with flavour but without the usual high calorie content.

You too can cook tantalising healthy Indian food using common store-cupboard ingredients in no time at all.

Experimenting with Baingan Bharta tonight...wish me luck! :D

Since we are on the topic of salads!

So, Anu’d asked to easy-to-put together recipes. The first thing that came to my mind as soon as I read that sentence was “Salad!”. But then I am guessing the first that came to your minds as you read my last sentence was, “Boring!”

Let me try and interest you in changing your mind. Salads don’t have to be boring. And no, I ‘m not gonna say add half a pound of friend bacon to make your perk up your salad. There are other ways to do it, one just has to scout a little harder for the right ingredients, and NOT BE AFRAID TO EXPERIMENT!

So, Anu’d asked to easy-to-put together recipes. The first thing that came to my mind as soon as I read that sentence was “Salad!”. But then I am guessing the first that came to your minds as you read my last sentence was, “Boring!”

Let me try and interest you in changing your mind. Salads don’t have to be boring. And no, I ‘m not gonna say add half a pound of friend bacon to make your perk up your salad. There are other ways to do it, one just has to scout a little harder for the right ingredients.

There was a time when I used to take salad for lunch daily—and I did this for months without getting bored of what I ate (and I have the attention span of a ping pong ball, so THAT is huge), so I think this is good sort of advice. A salad can only be as good as the things you put in it (so is everything else in life, so yay for profound me, huh?). The trick is to mix things up.

1. Try and have at least 4 different main ingredients in your salad—don’t try and eat JUST lettuce for lunch, it's tiring, unsatisfying, and after a week, might make you want to weep. And when you say 4 different things, really mix up your ingredients. Move from the tried-tested-works to the hmmm-what-if-I-try-this. Take risks, some days will be spectacularly bad, and you may hate your morning self for putting your lunch self through the ordeal, but then some days will be pure serendipity.

2. Try new veggies, try new, and lean kinds of meat. Trick with meat is to opt for the non-friend, and laden with a million spices variety. Try grilling/toasting a small piece of meat with some pepper corns, garlic, and salt. Add say tomatoes, cucumber, some colourful bell pepper and bingo, you have a new salad.

3. Make friends with herbs—fresh or dried, these things can perk up your salad without loading it with calories. Plus they have other associated health benefits that google will tell you with more authority than I can J

4. Mix flavours—add a sweet fruit with a tangy veggie, add a cooked ingredient (say boiled pasta/potoatoes/eggs/lightly sauted veggie that you cant eat raw) with the uncooked ones.

5. Add fruit to your salad—they bring in colour, flavour, and well, joy J

6. Add nuts and seeds for crunch—in small amounts. Melon seeds are my favourites and they are very easily available in India.

7. You could avoid carbs in your salad if you need to, but be sure to include some protein—nuts, eggs, meat all help. Just veggies and fruits will leave you feeling cheated after a while.

8. Don’t ve afraid of the dressing, but try and avoid store bought ones. More often than not, they are not healthy, and the preservatives are often fattening, defeating the purpose of the salad.

And since Anu asked for recipe, and so far, I’ve been trying to get away with vague ideas, here is the recipe for a very simple salad dressing. The measurement are a li’l vague, you could, and should, experiment and see what combination works best for you. This makes a generous dressing for a generous bowl of salad J

Juice of half a lemon

A teaspoon of mustard (you can pick brand/amount of heat as you prefer)

Pinch of salt

A tablespoon of honey

A teaspoon of olive oil

Generous pinches of pepper

I like to add a sprinkling of chilli flakes for extra heat, but you could ignore this.

Take all the above in a blow, whisk together, and you are done! It is one of my favourite dressings (and this is just something I came up with after trial and error, so it’s a no name dressing). Works well with most veggies, and select fruits (apples, strawberries, peaches, I have tried and liked. Mango I have tried and not liked so much.), beautifully with meat and eggs.

You could supplement the lemon with vinegar, but then probably not take a very pungent one. You could omit out the olive oil entirely. You could use a teaspoon of sugar instead of honey, but then the taste is only a passable reproduction. You could add sprinklings of dried herbs for added flavour—mint was my favourite. TASTE IT AS YOU ARE MAKING IT, then you can add more or less of things depending on what you like.

If you are taking this for lunch, remember to add the dressing only just before you are eating--or your veggies will become soggy and yucky. You could cut the veggies up beforehand and leave them in the fridge, you could make the dressing up and leave in fridge. It will last without fridge for a day--just the dressing some resting time--make it and let it stand for say 20 mins at least, so that the flavours have time to blend together.

So that then!

Baby Steps

A life style change is a change in preferences too not just habit.

Here's the first! I went to Subway for lunch with the colleagues and decided to go for a salad instead of a sub. Drab eh? Actually NO.

You can turn any sub into a salad...decide what veggies you want and what meat (stay healthy and stick to chicken or turkey breast) and they toss it up for you. If you stick to low calorie sauces such as Hot chilli, light mayo and honey & mustard (yes its low cal) you don't come up to more that 200 kcal in total!

Its win WIN. Its totally tasty so a new favourite and I know I won't have any trouble picking it on the next visit because my taste buds sure as hell aren't compromised!

Green leaves, veggies, protein + YUMMY = Nirvana!

Fathoming ourselves

This post has been marinating in my head over the last couple of days. I am still debating the wisdom of posting it here—wondering, whether what I am about to say is counter productive to the expressed objective of this blog. But then, most of you guys who know me well, know how difficult it is for me to think one thing and then not immediately say it. So forgive me my lack of restraint.

It’s just that every time someone advocates weight loss, my guards go up. Please don’t get me wrong, I am with you on the need for motivation to tackle weight loss thing. And I do agree that weight can, and does effect your health. But over the last days, I’ve heard food being referred to as the evil enemy, being a foodie referred to as something you need to “quit”, 50 kilos being referred to as fat, and this, has been making me deeply discomfited.

Living in a (rather skewed) culture that places unimaginably high and undue premium on the skinny ideal, to hear friends talk like this, somehow is hitting too close home, I guess.

I’ve pretty much always been seen as fat. And I say seen, because in all the years of relatives, friends, and many time, entirely random strangers, telling me to lose weight, never once has what I think of my own body mattered. I was fat, and so I needed to lose weight, because it is not healthy to not to. And of course, I resented it. More because I didn’t get it. You see, the strange bit here is that I have as many skinny friends as the next person. But standing next to them, I never felt particularly unhealthy, or even less healthy. Of course, I was far from what was the “ideal weight” that was predetermined for me. Even so, I’ve often had more stamina, more energy and fewer health problems that most of them. So I never understood the lose-weight-get-healthy thing, even as doctors have blamed my weight for everything from my headaches to dandruff (I kid you not.). 

And then one day, one doc called it for what it is. When I shrugged at her weight loss talk she said, “Don’t you want to lose weight, be aesthetically pleasing for others to look at?” Aesthetically pleasing.

And therein lies my problem with the whole weightloss rigmarole—the idea that skinny is pretty, pretty is healthy, so shed those tires fatso, so that we can look at you. I think this thinking needs to go—this whole wrapping a deep-seated preference for a body image in the shiny coat of healthy and selling it as concern. I am not saying overweight is healthy, but that we need to stop pretending there is an absolute co-relation between weight and health, because that does not always tick. Our bodies are different, and what works for one should not be the median that the rest of us try to follow. We need to better understand our body, what it is capable of and with how much.

I decided to lose weight when I felt my weight was physically coming in the way of me doing all the everything I wanted to do. And I decided to do it on my own terms—by being in control of what and how much I eat, how much activity I get. I didn’t want to punish my body into submission, I wanted to work with it. And no, I am not losing weight overnight, but I am feeling better about myself.

I think as women, as friends, we need to encourage and inspire each other to get more in control over how we perceive ourselves, and what we make our bodies go through and why. We need to learn, not to hate food and our bodies, warts and all, but to continue to love, but learn to be more in control of both. To not give up on what we love, but to make healthy choices while not beating ourselves up too much for indulging ourselves. Most importantly, to concentrate on how we feel, what we think of ourselves not how we look and how others want to see us. I hope we can all get to healthy—whichever side of the weight spectrum that falls at, without losing our sanity, our loves, or our selves.

Phelps and his calorie count

I have re-posted a Wall Street Journal article by Sarah Rubenstein -- Please beware - the headline says "Don't try it at home"  :) 

Swimmer Michael Phelps’s next career may be in competitive eating. Besides grabbing five gold medals at the Beijing Olympics so far, making him the winningest Olympic athlete ever, he’s got to be setting new marks on the chow line.

A New York Post account of Phelps’s… wait for it… 12,000-calorie-a-day diet, gave us a stomachache. Could one human being really consume that much and still be in Phelps’s shape? And could this possibly be healthy for Phelps, even considering his five-hours-a-day, six-days-a-week exercise regimen?

Here’s Phelps’s typical menu. (No, he doesn’t chooseamong these options. He eats them all, according to the Post.)

Breakfast: Three fried-egg sandwiches loaded with cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, fried onions and mayonnaise. Two cups of coffee. One five-egg omelet. One bowl of grits. Three slices of French toast topped with powdered sugar. Three chocolate-chip pancakes.

Lunch: One pound of enriched pasta. Two large ham and cheese sandwiches with mayo on white bread. Energy drinks packing 1,000 calories.

Dinner: One pound of pasta. An entire pizza. More energy drinks.

Does a diet like this make sense even for a calorie-incinerating human swimming machine? We checked in with Mark Klion, a sports medicine doc and orthopedic surgeon at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York. He reminded us that the eating game all comes down to basic math.

If you eat fewer calories than you burn exercising, you lose weight. But an athlete like Phelps, who exercises up a storm, has to worry about eating enough to replenish the scads of calories he’s burned. If he doesn’t, Klion explains, his “body won’t recover, the muscles will not recover, there will not be adequate energy stored for him to compete in his next event.”

But what about the choice of foods? All those eggs and ham and cheese can’t possibly be good for him, can they? Says Klion, “I think for him, because of his caloric demands, he can probably eat whatever he wants to.” And besides, Klion says, if you’ve got to eat that much, it better be enjoyable, or you won’t be able to keep up. Phelps might not be so eager to shovel down a pound of tofu in a sitting, Klion points out.

Still, Klion cautions that he knows plenty of athletes who’ve been training for marathons and have gained weight because they thought they could eat whatever they wanted. So it really does take some planning. Some resources on the Web might help, such as thiscalorie-use chart from the American Heart Association and a calorie calculator fromRunner’s World magazine. This calculator from the Calorie Control Council includes a bunch of different activities, from dusting to playing ice hockey.

But these kinds of calculators don’t really apply to a someone like Phelps, who exercises way more vigorously than the typical person, says Kathleen Laquale, an athletic trainer and nutritionist who teaches at Bridgewater State College in Massachusetts. Even by athletic standards, Phelps is in his own league. Laquale says cyclists in the Tour de France commonly consume a paltry 8,000 to 10,000 calories a day.

Hop and Skip

This blog is super awesome. It's helping me do two things I love most: Writing and Dieting. Not the latter so much. Anyway, I haven't checked my weight yet. I am a little scared it would disappoint me or discourage me from continuing. So end of this week, I'll have a figure ;) Hopefully!

I am tired of having oats for dinner every single night. It's super boring. So today during lunch I asked my gym-going, fitness lover and foodie boy for tips to cook low cal yummy stuff. And that's the tale of the Shakshuka. I'll try it out tonight. Excited!

I solemnly resolved to diet. Now it's time to take the next step: Exercise. Found a skipping rope at home: I should clean my cupboard more often. So I am gonna start skipping today. Lets see how far it goes.

I have set weekly targets for meself. Half a kilo per week should be do able. I am hoping against hope.

Oh and thanks Pavitra for the tummy tip. As soon as I read it, I sat up straight. Still in that uncomfortable position :) All for good.

So Skip Eat! :)

Monday Motivation

Ok. This is it. Am laying my goal down here so you can name and shame me if I don't achieve it.
5 kgs by 31st Oct.

As Anu said, STARTING TODAY.

I signed myself into ivillage for fitness and diet updates and got a really cool article on easy belly weight loss tips. Some silly some we could really imbibe.
http://www.ivillage.co.uk/get-a-bikini-ready-belly-without-any-diet-or-exercise/150805?nlcid=ud|08-06-2012|

One cool thing that a couple of flat bellied women have told me is constant posture. Sit up straight even at work. Every time you forget pull yourself up and keep the stomach muscles lightly tight all day. It soon becomes a habit and tenses and works them.

Mission Hopefully Not Impossible.

Foodie

Girls,

I am going to start dieting from Monday Aug 6th and I need easy to cook recepies. Please post and help.

Saddy, make idli is not an option! :P Little South India is far away to go and get idli maavu!

Snehaaaaa--- help, cook! (you know she tried teaching me how to make aloo parantha before I left to London the first time. I loved it but never tried it :)

Losing It!

One of my colleagues just sent all of us an interesting link about dieting and exercise to lose weight. I think she figured her colleagues are heading toward all the wrong fatty directions. And she is so right. The article sparked a debate in my bay. Suddenly, a quiet, hard-working (we'd like to think) bay, sprung to life. That's when I realized, there isn't one person here who has escaped the fangs of yumminess. Everyone is fat or getting there. And everyone is interested in getting fit.

That's great. While some only exercise, some diet and exercise, some--like me--only diet. Well, they say they come in all shapes and sizes! And some aren't doing a thing--just hoping that the world will end and there wouldn't be any food left to eat. 

Anyway, today was my day-off diet. I had a toasted steak sandwich, not great. And a lemon Ice Tea. No dessert. The boy ate a Mocha Flakes all by himself. While I sat there looking at him. Surprisingly, I didn't want to even taste it. Layers of chocolate and coffee cake..now who wouldn't want that?  My off-diet day made me realize I am finally off-food. 

By the way, here's the link: http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/08/01/dieting-vs-exercise-for-weight-loss/

Morning Madness!

So...I had the alarm on for 6:30 am this morning and I had a pilates class at the gym next door at 7:30. I woke up, switched the alarm off and closed my eyes and semi-dozed off again. All the while my mind or two-minds warred with themselves whether 'to go or not to go' and guess what??? I pushed outta the bed at 7:20 and barely made it to class...and I couldn't have had a better start to the day!

There was stretching, meditation, some abs, the glutes were worked on and so were the thighs.

The body is relaxed, the mind is calm (inspite of a looming 'we need to end it talk' with the boyfriend) and I didn't even feel guilty about having one little cookie as a mid-morning snack!

Happy Wednesday!

Zumba zumba ho ho

Went for 45 minute zumba session. Marco, our zumba instructor, asked us "who are all going to finish this class and get back to sitting on your desks?" A couple of us put our hands up. He replies "No, you are not going to be able to sit after I am done with this song" My ass hurts!

But dancing is one of the best, fun ways of exercising :-) and after two months of pain in the ass Marco - I am loving it.. :)

Hide and NO Seek

Just had my daily dose of 'refreshingly' bright idlis. Struggling hard to resist the temptation to grab chocolate-laced Hide and Seek Milano cookies. I love them and they are right there, on the desk next to mine. Have been offered twice, offers that I would open-mouthly accept--rejected, with a heavy heart.

I am hiding from them, and I don't want to seek them. Sweet, heavenly, chocolaty, delicious.

I am just telling myself, had you hidden and not seeked (don't know what the past tense is, if I had some chocolate in me, I could have made something delectable up!) when you should have, you wouldn't be suffering now...

Like Pavitra said: Think , Pause, Act... I thought, I paused (I drooled), I acted like I didn't care..

...and still trying

Think. Pause. Act

It's all about will power or control...whether to push yourself or to stop yourself.

It's all in the head. Being a foodie is like being a smoker. There's no two ways about it - one needs to accept that one is slipping and one needs to be harsh with oneself and stop.

We need to have the mind to think it through, the will to pause and the control to act in the right way. And I think we can do it. I still haven't quite figured it out but I really think we can do it because there have been plenty out there who have quit smoking successfully! ;-)

On another note. Just joined this mailing group - Think. Pause. Act for the duration of the Olympics. It lays down a tiny value challenge per day for us to follow and send it via email. Really cool and I think it feels really good to achieve following a value through everyday. It might just give us the will to get into that healthy lifestyle.

Do join! http://www.innerspace.org.uk/pause.think.act.php

Oh and Anu - thanks for the invite - if there's anything to motivate oneself its being a part of a kindred group.

Once Upon a Time..

....I was as thin as the edges of a razor. But not so sharp. Today, I am as fat as a sintex tanker, but not so deep. So you see? Imperfect thin was ok, I never tried putting on weight--if there is such a thing--but imperfect fat? Not acceptable.

So now, for a week (that's a stretch, but what the heck) I have idli for breakfast, idli for lunch, and oats for dinner or nothing. Its very, very, very, very hard to not eat meat. So Danny super well done!

More than the will to not eat yummy food, I hate looking at my big tyres. I could fix a puncture, really. But it's all going to vanish. No exercise yet, but will get there soon. Hopefully!

I was 35 once upon a time..now I am 47.7 and all those over 10 kgs is FAAAAAAAT. A whole family of chicken and beef and pork and....lovely things.

But soon I'll go back to once upon a time.....Soon.

Olympics

Inspiration - Real people. Not Airbrushed

Love what you do to achieve what you want. Get an exercise routine which you love.

Days a blur...

Day 2 to 6

Nada from me. I was traveling in Liverpool and my legs hurt after walking for one whole day. My mom had better stamina than I did - ego bashing! :(

Heard from Surya - jumped with her son for half hour (plans to hike it up by some more)

Archana - for a person who has a new baby via C section she is doing half hour of treadmill. You are an inspiration, Archu.

Day 7 - I am going to walk for at least half hour if I can move my butt from my desk. Any words of motivation????

Day 1: Friday

Anyone doing anything today? I've clean socks and undies for my gym session in the afternoon.

Going to the gym in the afternoon serves many purposes.
1. I can sleep in late.
2. I don't need to take a bath early in the morning
3. I can take a longgggg lunch break
4. I am damn hungry and eat well and because I am tired I treat myself to a well deserved coffee :)
5. I have my evenings free

zumba zumba ho ho!

Motivated S

Awwww.. This is so sweet nunie.. Jus read a status in fb.."people say motivation doesn't last..so does bathing..and hence recommended daily" I guess this sure should be the starting point..:)

Meat free Danny

Woohoo!

Danny just told me that she has stayed away from meat since July 9.

Way to go.

Killi is in it to win it cause she has added on a few kilos. 

Template

For easier usage -- this is the template we could use. By default the day starts with Surya. You will be the first entry for the day :) and Archana/Dhanya would be the last!


Day 1 - 

Surya


Killi 


Sneha


Susha 


Anu


Archana


Danny

Let's start from this Friday girls! You don't have to go out of your way to a gym. Half hour of dancing for Surya, half hour of yoga for Danny, half hour of just standing outside in the Chennai sauna heat for Sneha and we should be good to go. :-) Please join me...a