No, there really is NO magic portion. You cannot wish it away, it’s science. You can work on it.

I have been at it, it has been 8 months, I am closer to my fitness GOAL. I am now 22 kilos lighter than when I started off in May 2012, losing about 2.75 kilos each month. It feels great. It feels great not only because of the physical aspect that everyone sees and appreciates, which to be honest is a very small component, I am a self conscious person and I basically hate being noticed so the praises and the complements are overwhelming mostly, the really great part is a very personal aspect. The fact that I could be consistent, I never despaired, never doubted that I could change, that is the biggest achievement in all this.

See the way I see… I don’t want to appear holier/better than thou when it comes to choosing right, eating right etc… (I have until recently eaten hedonistically)… but from the mails and messages I have been getting I just want to tell who have similar fitness goals or living with PCOS… that not losing hope and not losing sight of your GOAL is paramount. You set your sights at a point ahead, and make the journey. If just starting off is difficult, take a week at a time, for a month, then you’re already a natural. Trust me when the first 3 kilos each month peel away the rest is a CINCH. You’ll be addicted to your goals.

Just to set you off… here are 3 small STEPS:
1. STOP SUGARS – just stop it, I cannot sugar coat this pill for you, you’ll just have to take it like it is. This is YOUR goal – STOP the godamn refined, processed, horror called SUGAR. (in the first two months this includes sweets, mithai, chocolates, cakes, pastries, jaggery, honey, brown sugar, low cal sugar, sugar free sugar, or anything passing off as sweet as sugar). Look at it as a DETOX. If you’re reading this post chances are you’ve already eaten a lot of sugar to last a lifetime, so drop it for two months. Let your tongue forget the taste of sugar.

You know what’s really crazy by the time your second week’s up, you’ll start tasting the natural sugars present in the fruits and vegetables that you should start including in your diet. The onion in the stir-fry will be sweet, the carrots? don’t even ask!!

And the really cool part – weigh and measure yourself before the sugar detox, and after it (1 month) I guarantee you a difference. You know its no big deal to say no to a piece of cake or pastry, you HAVE to take charge.

2. STOP SIMPLE CARBS, like maida, starchy stuff, instead opt for whole grains/complex carbs. There are so many these days that its almost embarassing not to know or try some!! Try new unique grains and flours, quinoa, red rice, a combination of wholewheat, finger millet (ragi), besan (chickpea flour), jowar (sorghum), bajra (pearl millet), amaranth flour – for roti and bread. These should form the smallest quarter of your plate.

3. STOP ‘DIETING’, eating boiled, insipid food in the name of DIET FOOD. Diet food is all about changing the way you think food, changing your lifestyle to a more wholesome pattern of eating. So you think and you eat! A little bit of planning, a little twist in the taste, a new approach, they can all go a long way towards your weight loss goal.

Here’s a recipe that’s typical of a lunch or filling breakfast. I call it HOUDINI PARATHA, you can call it whatever you want! Its so cool that I am letting you decide a mystery ingredient. Only that the mystery ingredient has to be a nutritious, wholegrain flour… or even a seed (like ragi/finger millet).

What you need

1 cup boiled and mashed cauliflower
2 tablespoon minced ginger garlic chilly
1 bunch chopped coriander leaves
1 teaspoon chilly powder (optional)
1 teaspoon turmeric (optional)
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup corn meal
1/2 cup any wholegrain flour or seed flour (I used a mixture of sorghum and chickpea flour)
Salt to taste
Some water for the dough

Virgin olive oil for cooking

Method

1. Use the first 12 ingredients to make a tight dough. Divide the dough into equal parts and roll out into thick roti.
2. Heat a skillet medium high and cook the roti on both sides, smearing with a little oil, till golden brown spots appear on the two sides.

So a meal would be 1 paratha, a bowl of yoghurt, salad and a bowl of stirfry. Kapish?

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