Some of that cake please... I'm on a DIE-T!!

What do you mean by 'are you that fat?' ?? I'm okay you know. My friends think I look great. So I must be... Emmm... Am I?



But the question is: how much is okay? I see those tiny skinny girls and wish I could be slimmer. On the other hand, some make me realise I'm lucky to have some life in me.

Girls are so crazy over being extra-slim. Trying to shed off every inch of fat on their bodies. Sheeesshh! They really have nerves to continue this never ending diet control. After a certain limit, some of them start looking under-nutrition, till they become completely unattractive.

Now when it comes to me, I'm a big food lover. I've enjoyed health, and for the last 2-3 years, I became chubby. Gosh I loved those wonderful things mum cooked. Apart from the usual stuff we have, I was big fan of chinese cuisines, fast food, pizza; which meant lots of cheeze, and chocolates were my weakness. I loved having sweets, soft drinks...

Basically, almost everything.

A big problem, yes.

There came a time when the bad things started happening. I began feeling bad about myself. Everyone said I have a pretty face, but I should loose weight. I didn't pay attention at first, till I started hearing this often :/ I tried, but I guess it wasn't hard enough. I would give in to something delicious. That was a failure!

But then, it started happening at college. People started joking, passing sarcastic comments. They were friends, but there was a time it started bothering me. At times it hurt me. I constantly felt myself a failure who couldn't control her body urges for delicious meals. I felt I was a slave to my own body. And then, the health risks were always there. I knew I had to be in control of myself. I had to. I had to come out of the feeling of being a looser because I knew I wasn't. The thing that I wanted most to have back was my self confidence.

I looked up the internet, asked some uncles who were doctors, gathering up everything useful I could till I got an idea of how to start my weight loss plan and how to go about it. So here, I try to give you some facts that helped me in this regard. It's quite simple, nothing that you haven't already heard about, but it worked for me. I lost all of my fat. Now I enjoy a very good health with a very girly 48kg body (though some readers may think I'm rather weak, but I really am not). May I add, I joined no gym whatsoever. I only stuck to what I had in mind for myself. Yes, it requires a lot of patience, but it's worth it.

While writing this, I'm aware of the fact that some of my readers will no doubt have more knowledge on this subject. Please add something to my knowledge if you can via your comments. I would really appreciate it if you help me and many others in attaining a healthy-eating lifestyle through your feedback. Corrections, ofcourse, are most welcome.

Walking:

I started a one-hour walk that I did very honestly and regularly everyday. But make sure you slowly and gradually increase your pace else you will hurt your leg muscles. Yes ofcourse you will have days when they will hurt, but it's okay to give it a break, provided we don't do it every other day. I found that doing so helped me walk better the next day. Make it a bit easier for yourself this way, instead of hurting yourself and give up on it altogether. How much pace is right? Simple. Walk at a pace that leaves you slightly out of breath. Just follow this simple rule and you will be at an increased pace everytime your body can it without you even noticing it!

I give you some tips for feet protection;

• Get shoes you are really comfortable in, preferrably the ones made for walking. Makes sure it has a little room at the toes.
• The shoe should be flexible. If it bends into half then it is too flexible.
• Walk short distances at first. If you have no pain problems, then gradually increase distance.
• Cement is a hard surface to walk on. So initally, walk on tracks etc.
• Treadmills can cause feet problems too. Start with a slow pace and gradually increase it.
• Don't use cotton socks. Try synthetic ones. They reduce friction, absorb less moisture.
• Some easy stretching exercises can be done before walking as a warm-up. It helps.

Some people go for stair-climbing. Yes it really burns up calories fast, but it can get too much. So I didn't do it... better stick to walking; at least I can maintain it na! I read a few precautions about it, mentioning here for you. Make sure you get comfortable shoes, that's something we all know. Emm... yes, the two main points the stressed were to keep the back straight. No, don't make it rigid, keep it flexible, but try not to bend it unless really necessary. The second point is not to try running on toes at stairs. Do it calmly, don't run, put your whole foot on the step one at a time, else you can have an ankle pain or worse injury.

A close friend who was into fitness programs big-time recommended running/jogging also. A half hour jog can burn as many calories as you can do in a one-hour walk. For some reasons I couldn't switch to that, although I still would love to jog. 

Another option is cycling which can be more fun to do. Cycling outdoors you can enjoy the scenery, nature etc. Doing it with friends is even more fun. One little disadvantage is that for some ratio of the time you cycle, it burns up calories, but as it gets longer, it goes over to using your energy leaving you more exhausted than you should have been.

Whichever option you choose, make sure you stick to it.

Water:

Water worked miracles for my weight loss plan. Sure I heard the benefits from here and there, but then one day I searched through it.

Drink lots of water!! That's what I came across at many different places. I used to complain because drinking made my tummy bigger :/ That was only for a while. Honestly gals, it really boosts up the entire weight loss process. Some of the benefits it will be doing for you are:

>> regulating your body temperature
>> lubricating joints
>> nutrient transportation
>> ensuring proper digestion
>> a healthier skin that glows

For more information on this and other related topics, see this page.

And it's directly linked to loosing weight because:

>> water encourages proper kidney function, so that the liver burns more fat
>> an excellent appetite suppressant; you feel fuller with absolutely zero calories taken in!
>> helps body to work at its optimal level that helps it to burn more fat

Drinking "lots" of water can be a little difficult especially if you haven't been taking enough of it lately. I was one of those girls who didn't drink it much. So here are some things I tried to get myself going.

• I set aside a 1-litre water bottle for myself that was almost always filled with 1-litre water at adequate temperature.
• Somehow I found it easier to drink from the bottle rather than from a glass. Strangely I got more water in this way than I would have had if I used a glass.
• Don't think about how much you have to drink, just drink!
• And while you're drinking, think of all the good things this water will be doing for you soon. The benefits are endless aren't they??

---

Well, these were the two major things I stuck to. I initially started with walk till my body got used to it nicely. Once I was at a good pace with it, I started a light workout daily that comprised mostly of stretching exercise and a little cycling. And about 1 month after that I reduced my diet. I went on salads. I made sure I had lots of greens, an apple almost daily and milk early in the morning. I gave up on sugar completely except for a little every now and then just to suppress the craving. But take it as a precaution: before you reduce your food intake, first get used to exercise so you strengthen your muscles. Otherwise you'll grow weak. The best part is, once your muscles are strong, they keep burning body fats even when you're not exercising. Cool, right? :)

Find a good incentive to get slim and trim and then just work work work on it. At times it seems likes you're not loosing anymore weight and that's the time you need to keep your spirits high. 'Cause that's the time after which you start loosing weight real fast. Keep track of your accomplishments. Make it a reason to celebrate everytime you loose an inch from your waist or a kg. That will keep you going through it. Everytime you feel you cannot resist the urge to have a piece of that creamy cake in the fridge or the mouth watering chocolate treat your friend sent you, just think of the efforts you put in your weight loss goal and how the results came up slowly and nicely. Or you can imagine yourself wearing that awesome pair of jeans you saw at a store the other day. Once we get a good healthy body with a nice figure, everything and anything looks good on us. We feel great, boosts up our self confidence and we start taking things positively, because when you know you look good, you'll naturally feel good :) So it can make a lot of good change in your interpersonal life.

So I say, get up and start an active routine, check what you eat, try a healthier lifestyle. Trust me, you'll love the new you!

Best of luck!!

Hugs ~~

--

picture courtesy: deviantART