Many of us make health-related resolutions, such as to lose weight, stop smoking or join the neighbourhood health club. While it is common to set prime goals, experts say that setting smaller goals could do more for our health. They are less overwhelming than a big, sudden change.
Here are 10 Small Steps to Try:
1. Monitor your weight and work on making sure you are not gaining extra kilo. For that take complete body composition analysis from a reputed centre. Then only we can identify whether your increased weight is due to muscle gain or an increase in fat. If you gain muscle weight, it's absolutely healthy. But if you are gaining fat weight, then it’s essential to check your eating pattern. Even if you gain just a pound or two every year, the extra weight adds up quickly.
2. Be active. Do whatever you can. ESCASO® GDDiET® suggests you can do any movements, including household works, dancing, playing with children, etc. I consider all you can do as an activity. There is no need for costly workout stations or equipment to become fit. Monitor your eating pattern.
3. Eat breakfast. Breakfast eaters weigh less and have better diets overall. But make sure that your breakfast is nutrition-packed. The food combinations we suggest, is carbohydrates, protein and fat. You can have all the traditional breakfast. Try to avoid sugar-loaded packed breakfast options and breakfast juices.
4. As a typical Indian, you can add all our traditional foods. As a south Indian, I always include idly, dosa, appam, kanji, upma, poha, egg, dal, paneer for breakfast.
5. Have leafy vegetables every day. I recommend adding a leafy vegetable a minimum of 12 times per week. They are non-starchy carbohydrates. Leafy vegetables contain a lot of fibres, vitamins & minerals. The fibres in the leafy vegetables are food for intestinal bacteria. You can eat leafy vegetables with your protein, especially with red meat, chicken etc. Eating a salad (sauteed with a healthy fat like butter, olive oil dressing) as a snack is filling and may help you eat less during the meal.
6. Eat healthy fat like coconut, coconut oil, almond, olive oils, ghee, butter etc. Avoid bad fat like vegetable oils, hydrogenated oils and Trans fat. Combine high protein with good fat. For example, in Egg the white part is pure protein and the Yellow part is fat. But contains all essential fatty acids, vitamins and minerals. So have a whole egg.
7. Consider calcium by including two or three daily servings of curd or buttermilk. Dairy calcium is good for bones and may also help you lose weight. ESCASO® GDDiET® suggests avoiding cow’s milk, as most of us are allergic to cow’s milk.
8. Eat when you are hungry. Stop eating when you are satisfied. Select nutritious foods when you are hungry. It will help to cut down cravings and overeating.
9. Lose just 5 to 10 percent of your current weight. But always lose weight from your excess fat. For that, correct your eating pattern. The health benefits are huge, it helps to lower high blood pressure, blood sugar, cholesterol and triglycerides.
10. Keep track of your eating pattern, sleep, water intake and stress levels. Write what you eat over the next couple of days and look for problem spots. Often, just writing things down can help you to correct your eating plan and sleep patterns
In My Book ESCASO CODE, I describe the genuine reasons for overweight or obesity and suggest suitable solutions to tackle the obesity problem with authentic food. In this book, I have explained the complete healthy eating plan for the entire family.
Grinto Davy Chirakekkaren
Founder ESCASO® GDDiET®
Author ESCASO CODE
Orthopaedic Physiotherapist
Clinical Nutritionist
Health & Wellness Coach
