Friday, June 27, 2014

Black Eyed Charm

Black Eyed Charm

It’s time for another healthy recipe. This time I’m giving you Black Eyed Peas (Cow Peas), locally known as Chawli, in a different avatar. One honest confession - l have never been a fan of pulses except the occasional Rajma and Chole. Chawli wasn't even at the bottom of the list; it was out, till I came across this recipe of Black Eyed Peas Cutlet. And of course, one cannot overlook the health benefits of chawli. So here's the recipe. You can use the bigger variety of chawli.

Black Eyed Peas Cutlets










Pic Courtesy: Sanjana Kodical
Ingredients
1 cup chawli
¼ cup besan
1 onion
3 green chilies
6-8 curry leaves
½ tsp salt
Oil
Method
Soak the chawli overnight
Chop onion and two green chilies fine
Tear the curry leaves
Drain the chawli and grind with 1 green chili to make a coarse batter
And cut onions, chili and curry leaves
Add salt and besan
Mix well
Make cutlets of desired shape
Heat a non stick pan and grease it slightly with oil
Shallow fry cutlets till golden brown on both sides

Health Benefits of Chawli
-         Rich source of iron
-         Lowers cholesterol
-         Rich in fibre, low in fat, helpful in weight loss
-         Rich source of potassium, important for heart function and muscle contraction
-         Helps diabetics to maintain blood sugar levels
-         Has Zinc, essential for the immune function and protein synthesis
 Has phytoestrogens

Sunday, June 22, 2014

Fat Kids..Obese Adults

Fat Kids.. Obese Adults
My client's six-year-old son Yash is gaining a bit of weight on the abdomen. His health-conscious parents and grandparents are slightly worried because it’s hereditary for the boys in the family to start gaining weight around that age. My client recalls how he himself had been a thin kid till 8, after which he started gaining weight steadily.

Slim Boy
Yash had been a slim boy and a fussy eater at three. His parents, particularly his father, stressed over his eating habits and rued the fact that he was thin. Yash was fed cheese liberally, one of his favourite foods. Yash is an active kid and plays a few sports. Now with this slight weight gain, his family has clamped down on his cheese intake.
My other client, Shilpa's eight-year-old son Rohan is plump despite the fact that he is super active. Shilpa wonders why. In Rohan's case, I attribute it to excess oil in their food. At least, that seems to be one of the reasons. I have asked her to reduce the amount of cooking oil and see if it makes a difference. Shilpa also wanted to know if she should cut down on Rohan’s food intake. I asked her not to.
Kids Don't Like It
Although Yash’s family is conscious of their oil intake, rice or rawa dhoklas and idlis, sandwiches, upma and poha are popular breakfast items in both the families. I advised them to replace rawa and rice with green moong, daliya, whole wheat and oats. The response was – the kids don't like it and refuse to eat it. This is natural since they are used to the lightness and fluffiness of the rice and rawa items. So this transition seems little difficult right now. Once the kids grow up and become body conscious, it will be an easy transition.
Healthy Eating Habits
So right now, what can the parents do? They can mix oats in the rice idli and dosa batter. They could try a 50-50 ratio and if that doesn't work reduce the proportion of oats to 40%. Also, they could try replacing rice with jowar or making whole wheat vegetable stuffed parathas, wheat dosas and jowar dosas for breakfast. But I still advise them to stay away from refined items like rawa and maida. Parents should inculcate healthy eating habits in the kids before their tastes are developed. Introduce them to a mix of the healthy and not-so-healthy foods.

Dangers of Childhood Obesity
Some parents like their kids looking chubby. But childhood obesity comes with its own dangers. Overweight children are highly prone to a host of diseases like diabetes, cholesterol, high blood pressure and hormonal imbalances. Obesity has a negative impact on a child’s psychological development. At times, they get teased and bullied physically and verbally resulting in a traumatic childhood.
Overweight or Obese Adults
Another danger of kids being fat or overweight is them growing up to become overweight or obese adults. The increase in the number of fat cells during the growing stage makes it difficult for them to lose weight and then maintain a healthy weight even as adults. They have to be extremely careful with their diet and exercise regimen. Fat cells, once formed, remain for life. They can only be reduced in size with a healthy lifestyle.  
The major cause of childhood obesity is poor eating habits. A sedentary lifestyle only worsens it. Kids are spending an increasing amount of time on their laptops, computers, play stations, mobiles and television.  
  
What Can Parents Do?
Overweight children are more aware than anyone else that they have a weight problem. They need support, acceptance and encouragement.
- Keep a close watch on your children’s diet
- Avoid empty calories found in sweets, soft drinks and fried foods
- Give them lots of fresh fruits, vegetables and whole grains
- For a treat, give them fruit instead of chocolates
- Make exercise a family affair
- Gradually change your family’s eating habits
- Reduce the amount of time spent in front of the television

Saturday, June 7, 2014

Just Throw It Out

Just Throw It Out

My client, Shweta Rathra, had been enjoying her kids’ vacations to the hilt. Almost the whole of May was a series of foreign trips with only five workout sessions in between.
Now, holidays also mean diets going haywire. 
The result - a frantic call the minute she touched Mumbai last week - "I have gained lots of weight. I've bloated and am feeling very heavy. I want to start my workouts from tomorrow. Please help me lose weight!"
Want My Body Back
To make matters worse, she had a close family wedding exactly a week from then! “I want to get back my pre-holiday body. I want to look good at the wedding," she continued.
Now that was a really short time period to get back in shape. But to give her her due, she has always been on the slimmer side although with extra body fat around her waist (read that as a tyre).
Water Retention
A quick visual assessment the next day and I concluded that she had water retention. This was the main reason for the bloated look and heaviness. She admitted that she hadn't been drinking enough water. Eating restaurant food for almost a month combined with insufficient water intake and lack of exercise were the culprits.
Drink..Drink..Drink
During the workout session, she found it difficult raise her legs. The first thing I asked her to do was consume a lot of liquid throughout the day. Next, was a strict diet regimen for a week which she agreed to wholeheartedly. I gave her a series of one-day diets like Fruit and Milk, Soup and Paneer, Sprouts and Curd, Oats, and Watermelon Diet. These were combined with rigorous workout schedules for a week.
Feeling Lighter
After a couple of days she started feeling lighter. The swelling on her face, hands and legs had subsided. She was also enjoying her diet. She never felt hungry and was energetic throughout the day. Not only did she work out with me, there were days when she did half hour of cardio on her own in the evening. Today, exactly a week later, she has gone back to her pre-holiday weight.  
So what exactly is this water retention? It’s a state when your body conserves water if you do not drink enough or if you consume a lot of salt and sugar. This includes chips, sauces, chutneys, sweets sugary and sports drinks, to name a few.
Beat It
Beat water retention by consuming lots of fluid throughout the day. This could be in the form of plain water, nimbu pani, chaas, dilute green tea, coconut water or barley water. Even ginger-tulsi water helps a great deal. For those who hate drinking too much water, adding 30 ml of unsweetened fruit juice to a litre of water and sipping it throughout the day helps. Also, load up on veggies and fruits and exercise the water away.
Medical Issues
Of course, there are other more serious issues like heart or kidney problems, protein deficiency that can cause water retention. These are best diagnosed and treated by a medical practitioner.