Try anything worthwhile and there are a hundred roadblocks and so it is with trying to stick to a sensible diet. Here’s my list of the toughest pitfalls.
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| Picture courtesy Google images |
Kids.. They are the biggest roadblocks of all. It was all much much easier before they came along. I’d simply NOT keep fattening stuff at home. Our fridge never had butter or cheese or chocolate sauce or Nutella (yum). Not so now. I have to keep the fridge stocked with all of those plus mithais and sweets. It’s so easy to pop in a chocolatey, gooey éclair each time you pass the fridge. What’s worse, I have to make stuff they love which is invariably fattening.. aaloo paranthas, French fries, puri-aaloo, pastas loaded with cheese, groan…. And then I have to say ‘Eat Eat Eat’ to them while saying, “DON’T EAT DON’T EAT DON’T EAT” to myself. What a trial.
What do I do: Well I make watered down versions for myself. A muli parantha for me when it’s aloo paranthas for them.. a pasta dish heavy on veggies minus the cheese for me while they tuck into the cheesy version.
Stress…. And there is plenty of that thanks to Point No 1. Each night after we’d put the kids to sleep the husband and I would order tubs (yes tubs) of Natural’s Ice Cream (isn’t it heavenly?) and demolish the entire tub between the two of us. That was our way to relax. As soon as the kids were asleep we’d crave something scrumptious. That’s when the kgs started piling on.
What I do: Plan. I now keep something low fat and delicious for the night. I get the maid to chop fruit or I make some yummy honey/lemon tea. Well it’s not a Natural’s tub but we make do.
Weekends: All week I’d be carefully counting calories… avoiding anything that was remotely fattening. Then along comes the weekend and I think I can relax a bit and bang… my dieting takes a plunge. All my calculations go for a toss.
What I do: Again, planning seems to make it better.
Parties… All those birthdays I go to thanks to… yes once more it’s Point No 1.. and the yummy foods on display… all of it necessarily fattening. Tough to resist.
What I do: I choose the lesser evil… Make a beeline for the salads, pile up the raitas, missi roti over puris, mixed veggies over koftas.
Formal dos… These are worse than regular parties where you can hide and escape.... Husband’s boss’ party or at the in-laws (specially if they’re new ones), and the boss’ wife/MIL saying -- Why aren’t you eating? Oh come on.. you can diet another day. Have some kheer, na. Dead dead dead.
What I do: I load my plate with everything on offer.. yes everything. Then I eat just the healthier stuff while letting the dangerous things rest on the plate. Then when the dinner is winding down I quietly dump all of it. Wastage ..I know. But then I read somewhere, “It’s better to let food go to waste than go to waist.”
That’s it then for now… eat well and eat carefully.
PS: Incidentally one of my favourite quotes is "Everything I like is either illegal, immoral or fattening"
BTW there's a page on FB by that title too. Talk about like-minded people.