Food For Thought

I have just had my dinner after an elaborate cooking of chilli chicken and fried rice that took me precisely two hours, in between feeding Dylan his cerelac and taking him out for his poo. Cooking is quite a destresser but not great fun, though, when you have to start from scratch -- peeling garlic, cutting onions, etc. After what started out as a hit-and-miss affair, my culinary skills have improved over the years. I love the freedom to explore and I think the importance of having a simple, nutritious food at home rather than gorging on heaps of junk food or restaurant food is something we all overlook in our busy lives. Today, of course, was a feast born out of that sudden craving for something different.

But brown is the flavour of the month for me. I have been experimenting with brown rice, brown unrefined sugar and brown pasta, in my bid to do away with anything refined and white such as white bread, white sugar which only takes its toll on the liver and has no fibre or vitamin content. Intelligent eating is something that I learnt a couple of years back when my weight almost crossed 60 kilos. After spending a fortune with dietician Anjali Mukherjee, I realised I was a fool relying on someone to get me back on shape.

Her mantra was simple and involved common sense. Basically, do not exceed your calorie intake over 1500 or 1000 depending on how active you are in a day or a week. Start your day with a lukewarm glass of water to flush out the toxins from your body. Have a cup of tea with two biscuits and four or five almonds. Nuts are rich in vitamins and that way your are not vitamin deficient. Then breakfast should increase a bowl of fruits, or cereals or whole wheat bread with some butter to taste. Lunch should consist of salads, two chapatis, bowl of vegetables, bowl of lentils or other dals. Dinner again can be the same. In between snacking should be avoided and fruits should be taken if you are hungry. I have been following this pattern of eating for quite some time coupled with few exercises. The result: I don't have an hour-glass like figure, but I feel healthy and fit and I am not overweight.

Maintaining body weight is all about eating in moderation. It's not rocket science. Sometimes people tell me that they hardly eat and yet they put on weight. I know the reason. Most of us starve through the day and then end up the day with a sumptuous wholesome dinner. That leads to bloating and water retention. The thing is, the more we delay in eating, the longer we delay pur metabolism. When we start the day with a healthy breakfast, it not only makes our brains alert but kickstarts our metabolism needed to burn our calories and fats. On the other hand, when we do not eat and remain hungry, the body uses up all the stored energy making us lethargic and unhealthy.

I am a foodie and I love good food but I can resist chocolates, cheese, white bread, red meat and indulge in them just once in a while. The other important thing is also to drink lots of water in between the day -- that curbs the appetite from going on an overdrive. My experiments with food and dieting has made me wiser and slimmer. However, my vice for 'paaning' remains. I don't know who to turn to for this. Maybe I should see a shrink!