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I was inspired after talking to a new found friend to try a new diet. So, I have not had any rice, bread, noodles or crackers since 8 November.
I have cut down on stuff with lots of added sugar which, of course, includes sugary drinks. I now drink water or green tea only.
If I want something sweet, I take some roasted almonds, dark chocolate (70% to 85%) or fruits.
I have increased my intake of animal protein and greens. I have even started to take butter and certainly hope it is the right thing to do.
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| Cowhead belongs to QAF Ltd. Buttercup belongs to Auric Pacific. Be careful. I found out today that Buttercup is actually not butter! http://foodtherapybyaz.com/2014/05/27/i-cant-believe-its-not-butter/ Luckily, I chose to get Cowhead. I like supporting my companies. AK is definitely a butter virgin. |
Although being inspired is important, what really made me want to try this new diet was a visit to the clinic.
I was told that I was 7 kgs overweight. OMG!
OK, to be honest, I knew that I was probably somewhat overweight because my pants felt tighter around the waist than before but 7kgs?
That's a lot of excess weight!
Anyway, my new found friend told me that, to lose weight, exercise is 20% while diet is 80% of the formula. That was a revelation. I have always thought that exercise is more important than diet.
So, what have I been eating this week?
Here are some photos of the meals I had:
All prepared at home (except for the dark chocolate, of course).
It has been only a week. I don't know if I have lost weight but I guess I will know in another couple of weeks.
Stiff upper lip and soldier on. What?
On a separate note, I am thinking of taking a short break from blogging and anything related to my blog which would include time spent on Facebook.
So, if you do not hear from me for a whole week or a few days in the near future, don't be alarmed. Just taking a break.
Bloggy Award
10 comments:
Ak,
Guess it was weight when I saw that headline.
Because that is sometime I want to lose too.
Enjoy the sabitical
AK,
All the best in your weight losing regime.
I think less meat will be heathier. Try replacing meat with legumes, grains, nuts and seeds.
Legumes include beans, soy, chickpeas, peas, peanuts and lentils. Tempeh and soy milk (without additives and sugar) are good. Dont overeat tofu/tau huay because they are more processed and have a coagulant which can accumulate as kidney stones.
There are some rumours that soy is bad. So long if you limit to 3 to 5 servings per day and non-gmo soy, it is actually healthy. Soy protein is complete with good ratos of essential amino acids. Legumes and grains also complement each other to provide complete amino acids.
This link has more info on essential amino acids: www.veganhealth.org/articles/protein#table3
Whole grains such as oats and whole wheat are good stuff. Problem is that whole wheat bread in supermarkets is not 100% whole wheat and usually contains too many unnatural additives such as iron, calcium, etc. which should be eaten from veggies.
Walnuts and flax seeds are high in omega 3s (also found a bit in veggies).
Usually dried nuts, seeds, beans and lentils need to be soaked before cooking/eating. Flax seeds require soaking and then blending.
Mustafa is good place to buy legumes cheaply. Nature's Glory is good place to buy organic stuff cheaply.
Coffee, tea and certain herbal drinks greatly reduce the absorption of vegetarian (non-heme) iron. Try not to drink them after meals within 2 to 3 hours. However for meat eaters, reducing intake of meat (heme) iron could be a plus point,
Veggies are good especially green leafy veggies. Try making smoothies with banana and raw greens (choy sum, xiao bai cai, sweet potato leaf, kai lan, romaine/lettuce, xian cai).
Kombu strips is high in iodine which can help to detox the body. Just soak or wash the surface a bit and can be eaten raw. Available in Sheng Siong.
If you become a vegetarian/vegan, you need to take vitamin b12 supplement.
If you do not get enough direct, close-to-overhead sunlight exposure (without skin block) from 10am to 4pm, you may need to take vitamin d2 or d3 supplement. Around 15 - 20 mins per day is enough to avoid sun burn.
PS:
Remember to floss your teeth regularly (non-fluoride floss is safer, can buy from iherb).
Brushing your teeth with sea/rock salt dissolved in a bit of water is very good too (safer than fluoride toothpaste).
Brushing with baking soda plus a bit of water is also OK.
To add more to my previous comment:
Try to avoid sticky food with added sugar because the sugar will stick to the teeth for many hours and cavities will grow bigger and bigger. Need to floss and brush ASAP.
If you floss for the first time, you can smell the stink especially in-between the molars. You will become an immediate convert to flossing regularly.
Partially or fully hydrogenated oils are very bad to health.
Vegetable cooking oils are not healthy. In general, food cooked above 100 degrees celsius is not recommended. So steaming and boiling is fine. Pasteurised is better than UHT.
Extracted oils such as extra-virgin, cold-pressed olive oil should not be taken in excess. Whole, less-processed foods are better.
Get good fats from coconut, avocado, nuts and seeds.
Omega 3s are more challenging to obtain from plant sources. Walnuts are too expensive, and flax seeds though very cheap, taste OK but not amazing, and are troublesome to soak and blend. Soy foods have small amounts of omega 3.
Hi AK, I hope you will adopt a balanced diet which is the truly proven method. The recently popular Low Carb High Fat (LCHF) diet is not backed by hundreds of years of real-life human dietary habits. In simple English, it means that the side effects of a High Fat diet will be only known to the human practitioners in 20-30 more years later.
Hi everybody,
Thanks for the encouragement and suggestions. Much appreciated. :)
Hi AK,
Yup. Be careful of fad diets. Stick to moderation, eating a healthy portion of fruits and salads a day but still with a little carbo and white meats. I was never fat but was quite unhealthy cos I don't exercise. Luckily, in my mid-thirties, I discovered yoga. I am now doing yoga and other forms of exercise every week and can't get by without it. It's a habit really once you find something you like. Just got certified as a yoga teacher a year ago too and teach private classes. My students lead sedentary lives but somehow felt yoga was something that they can stick to. I find that yoga itself actually makes me eat less "heavy" stuff. It just feels better when the body is lighter and it was not really for any weight control etc. Hope you find a sport/activity that you like and will "voluntarily" stick to it. Best of wealth and health!
Hi YP,
I do yoga too. I go for weekly classes with my mom, actually. ;p
Thanks for the concern. :)
Haha reminds me of what I made for myself for dinner last night. Boiled broccoli, carrot, shiitake mushroom, sweet potatoes and oven baked salmon. I find it hard to totally cut white rice and bread.
Eating clean is a test of willpower. May the force be with you!
My willpower is weaken recently with the bags of potato chips which my mum had bought.
Hi rusty,
Yes, we need lots of willpower. I know what you mean.
Apparently, I have lost almost 3 kgs since I started on this diet. Just to find out if the diet actually works, I didn't do any vigorous exercise during the same time period too. So, the diet does work. I will see if it continues to work and if I lose another 3 kgs in the next month or so.
I cannot cut out snacking totally although I have been successful in avoiding rice, bread and noodles thus far. So, I guess the weight loss process is a bit slower for me. When I feel the urge to snack, I reach for some dark chocolate and almonds. I also have apples and bananas almost daily. My sweet tooth cannot be denied. ;p
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