User's comments:
"This is what I had for breakfast:
1 slice of low-GI brown seed loaf with fish paste, GERO fat-free fruit yoghurt, an apple and 1 cup of Rooibos tea with fat-free milk and no sugar.
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"I’m currently on a healthy eating plan and I'm trying to lose weight. I also take vital supplements (Maxi B and Lecithin), a multi-vitamin and a calcium supplement.
Please tell me if I’m eating correctly to lose weight and what else I should do to lose weight. My weight is at 80,8kg and I'm 1,58m tall."
Expert's comments:
I would like to start by congratulating you on making an excellent start to a new lifestyle!
Breakfast is one of the most important meals of the day and has been linked to weight loss and weight maintenance. It seems to help regulate hunger, satiety and your overall calorie intake throughout the day.
I'm very happy with the content of your breakfast. You are eating a fibre-rich starch, fat-free protein and a fruit, all in appropriate portions.
Something to consider is that a little bit of fat is still necessary as part of a healthy eating plan. Healthy fats, obtained from fish and plant sources, e.g. avocado pear, nuts, seeds and vegetable oils, have various benefits such as maintaining cell membrane integrity, skin quality, normal oestrogen levels, adding flavour and keeping you satisfied for longer.
The multivitamin, vitamin B complex and calcium supplement are a good idea to supplement your diet. Remember that the best-absorbed nutrients do still come from food.
You currently need to lose weight and your BMI falls above the recommended normal range of 22-24,5 kg/m². Remember that BMI is a useful guide to assess your level of risk associated with chronic health problems such as heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, and high cholesterol.
BMI should not be used in isolation as it does not account for individual variations in build and body composition. Muscle is three times heavier than fat mass, so if you're exercising more frequently and building muscle mass, your weight may in fact decrease very slightly at times.
Regarding your weight, try not to make it your only focus and measure of health. Make sure you set a realistic goal weight for your height and build. Your long-term goal weight should be approximately 63-65kg.
Initially, an excellent place to start is to try to lose approximately 5-10% of your current weight (4-8 kg) over a realistic period. This in itself is associated with enormous health benefits and reductions in disease risk. Losing weight sensibly means a maximum of 0,5 to 1,5 kg per week. This will ensure maintenance of weight loss over the long term.
You should also aim to measure percentage body fat and your waist circumference to assess any improvement in your body composition. Losing centimetres rather than kilograms is usually a better reflection of losing fat mass.
Remember that your main goal is ultimately to be healthy. A waist circumference of less than 88-90cm is associated with decreased risk for chronic diseases of lifestyle such as heart disease.
Here are a few summary points regarding your eating patterns:
Don’t miss a meal. Eat three meals a day – meals should contain a combination of low-fat protein, fibre-rich starches, vegetables or fruit, small amount of healthy fats. If you get hungry between meals, eat small, healthy snacks in between.
Eat five-a-day, i.e. 3-4 different coloured vegetables and 2-3 fruits.
Eating healthily shouldn't be boring – ensure variety so that you enjoy meal times rather than finding it difficult to finish a meal. Don’t deny any foods. Everything has its place – even treats.
Eat red meat no more than 2-3 times a week and fish more than 1-2 times a week.
Overall, you should follow a low-fat eating pattern and decrease the amount of added sugar. Limit fizzy cold drinks and always dilute fruit juice. Read food labels to assess fat content. A product is low in fat if it contains <3g fat/100g and "fat-free" foods have < 0,5g fat/100 g. Practically, one should aim for "lower-fat eating". Choose foods that contain fat between 3-10% and try to stick to about 10-13g fat/meal.
Practice healthy methods of food preparation - stirfry with small amounts of canola or olive oil, grill, boil, poach, braai, bake, roast, and limit frying.
Use salt sparingly.
Drink lots of clean, safe water – 1,5 to 2 litres a day.
Control portion sizes.
Avoid eating after 8pm in the evening.
Below are some ideas for healthy snacks:
Fresh fruit or fruit salad (low-fat/fat-free yoghurt and mixed seeds can be added over the fruit)
Dried fruit rolls, sticks and bars – e.g. SAD mebos sticks/bars
Health bars – e.g. Woolworths Cranberry & Almond Bar, Apricot & Sesame Seed Bar, Yoghurt & Nut Bar; Mixed Seed Bars, Jungle Oats Berry/Yoghurt Bars
1 small muffin (banana, carrot, date-and-nut or bran) and a fruit
175ml yoghurt or 300ml drinking yoghurt (low fat/fat free) and a fruit
Peanuts and raisins or dried-fruit-and-nut mix with a fruit
A slice of wholegrain bread, rice cakes, Cornthins, Provitas or digestive biscuits with peanut butter and/or honey. Other toppings could include cottage cheese, cheese, Oxo, Marmite, avocado pear, fish paste, jam (obviously adding tomato, lettuce and cucumber to the topping will increase the nutritional value)
Vegetable bites, e.g. tomato wedges, cucumber or carrot sticks, celery sticks, baby tomatoes (fat-free or low-fat cottage cheese will add some taste variety)
Popcorn (made with minimal oil)
Biltong (no fat – ostrich, game meat, lean beef)
Exercise is a very important part of achieving and maintaining weight loss. It is also a great ‘de-stresser’ after a long day behind a desk and computer. Many people find the gym quite intimidating and often off-putting, resulting in less frequent physical activity.
Brisk walking is still considered one of the best exercises. You should aim to be active for at least 4-5 days a week for 45-60 minutes a day.
Try to be more active on a day-to-day basis, e.g. climb the stairs vs. taking the lifts, walk to the shops, park far away from the entrance to the shopping mall, do chores around the house, do gardening etc.
If you struggle to find a whole hour a day, the same benefit can be obtained from breaking your allocated exercise time up throughout the day, e.g. three sessions of 20 minutes instead of one session of 60 minutes.
Good luck on your new commitment to healthy living!
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