Article - Fitness - Health Issues

“Health Issues”- I have always flinched at this phrase. Nevertheless, that is what I experienced these past few weeks. I will spare you the gory details, but suffice it to say that I was advised not to exercise; and that was at first, very frustrating. You see, for a person who is struggling to lose weight, ANY break from a regular workout costs dear! If this were me at the beginning of last year, I might have thrown up my hands and resigned myself to fate. However, this is me today – a LOT lighter and more confident and well,… much more sensible - even if I say so myself!. After a few hours of feeling frustrated and sorry for myself (really, I should win an award for candid talk!J), I went about planning how I would control my weight.

I decided that losing the weight on a “no-exercise” period was not as important as controlling the weight. You “never-been-overweight” people out there might smirk “what’s the big deal about that?” However, those who have “been there” and “done that” will fully empathize with what I am trying to say. When your exercise regime slows down or halts for even a brief period, you can literally see those numbers go up on the weighing scale (not unlike magic!! ). So, I wondered, what could I do to keep those numbers status quo and perhaps even make them descend a wee bit?

The answer is quite basic really. Diet control. Oh, I don’t mean starving yourself or eating “boring” food (Here, I risk drawing a frown from the nutrition experts;)). I just made seven, simple rules which I now fondly call the “Seven-Up/Chin-Up” strategy!!
Lower sugar and salt intake (just take what you absolutely need)
Stick to skimmed milk – for coffee, tea and curds, buttermilk, etc.
Eat dinner before 7 pm
Snack healthy - fruits, etc. will do it. Even if the occasional snack were a bit oily or fatty, I would have a very miniscule quantity – just to get that craving out of my system. It is very important not to crave. When the mind craves, the body tends to give in. At least, mine does! Candid indeed!
Drink around 3 litres of water through the day – it has to be a conscious effort
Stay active in the house or in the office – walk around, do some cleaning and sorting – every little bit helps!
VERY IMPORTANT – Weigh self every day
I cannot be more emphatic about how important it is to get on the weighing machine every single day or every other day. Lots of us have been in denial and avoided the weighing scale like the plague lest the bad news reaches our eyes! That’s half the problem. Face reality – that is what life’s about!

I have an added advantage MIND YOU. By that, I mean my 2-year old toddler who thinks that her mother has to give chase for a fair distance and then use some considerable resourcefulness to pin her down and catch her before she can be made to do just about ANYthing! (Am sure she knows her mom needs some exercise!)

Hmmmmm…. “Health is wealth” is an age-old proverb. Food for thought?