March, 2014 | Raga Olga D'silva

Guest Blogger Views; Sugar- to Tax or Not to Tax

by Ragad | Mar 6, 2014 | Diet

Today the UK media reported that England’s Chief Medical Officer suggested that taxing sugar, similar to the tax on alcohol and cigarettes would assist in reducing the endemic obesity problem in the UK. (more…)

My bucket list number 1

by Ragad | Mar 4, 2014 | Diabetes, Diet, Motivation

My bucket list number 1

So, no time for the gym? Do you have a bucket? Here’s one way of using it!

When I’m Feeling Blue, All I have To Do Is …….

by Ragad | Mar 3, 2014 | Diabetes, Diet, Motivation

We all have blue days. Don’t we?

Some days it is because we are overstressed, overworked, upset with somebody, hurt, not feeling loved, unwell or someone whom we love deeply is unwell. So many reasons. But some days we feel blue for just no reason. I am certain, we have all been there. This morning I woke up feeling blue. Just for no reason. Perhaps it is the London grey day? But then its grey most days here? So, why today? No real reason.

But, that’s not the point. The point is what do I do when I feel blue? Well, there is ‘what I did‘ when I felt blue in the past, and ‘what I do now’.

My past

In the past, without giving it much thought – I would just head to the pantry, and pick out whatever came my way, obviously anything edible :). I have had ice-creams at 9 am, chocolates at 7 am, have eaten my way out of feeling blue by chipping away at potato chips all day, have had pizzas (which I typically don’t like) for lunch and dinner and in-between meals, eaten and eaten and eaten my way out! Did it make me feel any better? A big FAT NO. I piled on the pounds and kilos and thought it was fine to do that. By the time I got over this very temporary phase, I would be feeling fat and feel guilty. The guilt would make me go back to feeling low, and the cycle would continue. I would make myself feel better by eating and foolishly thinking, that at least I wasn’t calling up anyone and whining, or putting up sad Facebook posts, ha.

My now

Today I woke up feeling blue. For no reason, as I said. Just did. Each time I felt the desire to get something out of that pantry, I stopped myself and drank a glass of water. Yes, I feel bloated now, ha! But, guess what. Today, I won’t be doing any of that. I put my mind over matter – fully.

Instead, I will::

Continue with my normal healthy options
Go for a walk, and exercise longer
Call a friend and chat – and be honest about my feelings
Read a trashy novel
blog (which I am doing now – but will I post this? hope so…so others can get some tips..)
Watch ‘Jeremy Kyle’ and see how life is worse for others
listen to my favourite songs (oh, Dido…where are you?)
Perhaps, feel a little bad for myself – get tired of being a superhuman some times…
And simply CHILL

Good luck to those of us that feel this way, some days. Just know that this too shall pass. Don’t eat trash on such days. Just do the right things for you, and those are not connected with food. Distract yourself with better stuff — and it will pass. I promise myself that ..today…!

(more…)

The Magic of Weight loss

by Ragad | Mar 2, 2014 | Diabetes, Diet, Motivation

You have no idea, how many people I meet, talk to , communicate with, tell me how lucky I am to lose this weight. I smile and thank them all for their kind words. But seriously, in my head I think “lucky my ass”. If hard work is luck, then yes, I am very lucky. It almost feels as if people believe that those like me who lose weight, are illusionists. They eat some magic potions, and behold one day, wake up smaller, just as one day they woke up fat.Unfortunately, luck has nothing to do with weight loss. Just as it had nothing to do with weight gain. Laziness plays a big role in gaining weight (of course there are those who are afflicted by very painful illnesses and just cannot exercise), we start calling it ‘lifestyle’ issues. Hard work plays a major role in losing it, simply!

It’s pure science though. Nothing to do with magic.I was eating way too much. I discovered when I started logging my food. I would honestly think I wasn’t eating much. My meal portions were really small. One piece of bread (roti bread), or a small portion of rice, with simple lentils and salad was my regular meal. Honestly, that was it. Then how did I gain the weight?What I did not account for was all that I ate in-between my very small portions – the two biscuits I dunked into my coffee each morning, the post breakfast snack at the office, the post lunch snack, the potato chips pre dinner, the couple of whiskeys with tandoori chicken, and then the yummy ice cream, or chocolate that followed my very small dinner. Oh, and if I felt very happy that night, and if I was distracted some exciting ‘food’ show on television (thank you Masterchef), I would inadvertently get at least 2 slices of bread pan toasted with enough butter for a week.

In my mind, I was eating about 1200 calories a day, which is the recommended calorie intake for women my age. However, when I did finally log in my food intake on www.myfitnesspal.com (a free tool to log in food, drink and exercise) I was beyond shocked!!! I was eating for at least 2 women, and some days for three. No wonder I was the size of a house (a proper 3-bedroom one at that -:))

To lose weight, I realised all I had to do is simply eat for one person. Eat right kind of food. You cannot eat for one person, and eat a horse. You got to eat right. Decide your meals for next day a day in advance. Plan, plan, plan. Most of us don’t know how many calories we intake in each meal. Use free tools such as www.myfitnesspal.com.
Divide your meals into
– breakfast
– morning snack
– lunch
– afternoon snack
– evening meal

When I started eating right, some days I struggled with even consuming 1200 calories a day. When I was eating ‘whatever’ came my way – I was eating upto 4000-5000 calories a day.

It’s simple science. None of us really need to get into specifics of that. What we need to simply remember is consuming our recommended calorie intake every day, exercising every day (any form of exercise is fine) and leading a good lifestyle (drinking plenty of water, and getting at least 8 hours of sleep). Staying HAPPY is very critical. I learnt that I am an emotional eater. I eat when I feel low. Now I substitute that with exercise, reading and simply annoying others 🙂

Bring the magic to your lives – eat well, exercise! Don’t be secret eaters, as I was.

Let’s not pretend that our weight is just coming on its own. Let’s take ownership, so we can change it, so we can get healthier.

I challenge you to log in your food today on www.myfitnesspal.com. Log in every morsel, every drink, coke, pepsi, sprite, every thing…and then check how many calories you actually take in. Then calculate how many calories you really burn each day. The answers will come. It’s simple science. Not magic. But losing weight can be magical, as I have found out!

No Time for Exercise ? Try This

by Ragad | Mar 2, 2014 | Diabetes, Diet, Motivation

Please follow my Facebookpage

My blog is not about losing weight. It is about re-gaining health. I am a middle-aged woman, with a full-on life. I lost control for a while, gained huge amount of weight in a very short span, and got very ill. I was told I couldn’t live much longer if I did not do something about it. The starting point for me was to lose the excess weight. It was not easy. It was not hard either. It was just about making a decision and taking action. I decided to take one day at a time. Every day, I focussed on that one day. And slowly, things changed. I lost the weight. I re-gained my health. My diabetes went into remission. I no longer suffer from hypertension. My liver is fine. The stone in my gall bladder is getting smaller. Is it a “miracle” as we would like to believe? No. It is simply, about making a decision and taking action, and sticking with it, every day.

One common phrase I have heard over and over again, “You are so lucky, you can exercise, I have no time to exercise”!

Seriously, one thing we all have in common is the 24 hours we get. What we do with those 24 hours each day, is what makes us different.

Make the decision and take action:

I have been there — making hundreds of excuses for not being able to exercise> some of my common excuses were:

No time – long days, and longer nights of work !
Travel – as you all know, I travel atleast 10-15 days a month
Children – Two teenagers is a full-time job plus more…
Social life – late nights can be tiring … with all that eating, and drinking!
Unpredictable life – I have to travel at short notice at times
Over 40 – My life is now about my children, so why bother!
Why put the effort – Exercise does take effort.
What will people think – Oh, I thought the whole world was watching 🙂

All of the above is totally true, and has not changed, honestly. But, I decided to work with it. So, I make use of what I have, with the time I have.

Just simple things to do at home. Remember, every little thing does count, as my trainer once told me, “everything is CBO” (Calorie Burning Opportunity). Ten calories here, and ten calories there…it all adds up. And it’s fun!!!

Buckets: Oh, that’s the best. I use half filled buckets (soaked with whites) to lift. helps with building my core, and also my arms.
kichen bench for push ups – while cooking, waiting for the pot to boil…
More ways to use the chair – I do planks, tricep bench dips. I sit on the chair at times, and do stomach crunches.
Stairs: Apart from using the stairs to go up and down, I use them to do push ups. I do about 50 odd a day. Just because I can!
Children : If you have young children, carry them around! Amazing calorie burners.

I am still a few kilos away from my goal. But my goal is not about my weight. I want to stay well, healthy and alive. I have a lifetime ahead of me, after all.