Implement these six changes and you won’t gain weight between June and September – in fact you may even lose as much as 20kg before spring, depending on how bad your current habits are. By Dr Ingrid van Heerden
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We know when the temperature drops our weight does
the opposite. As we tuck into pies and stews to ward off the
winter chill we’re making sure there’s an extra – fatty – layer
between us and the cold. And when it’s miserable outside
nobody feels like getting up from the couch to exercise.
The slow-down in physical activity and a winter diet of
stodgy, fatty food are the main reasons people gain weight
in winter.
So, how do we avoid becoming as heavy as our favourite
winter foods?
CHANGE 1: GO FOR FRUIT, DROP THE PUDDING
Winter fruits such as
oranges, grapefruit,
naartjies, pawpaw,
kiwi fruit and guavas
are brimming with
protective nutrients
such as vitamin C and
bioflavonoids to help
ward off winter colds
and flu, and they’re
low in kilojoules.
Try
eating one of these
fruits at each meal to
fill you up and boost
your immune system.
The difference
If you eat just five
portions of fruit a week
(more would be even
better) instead of pudding
or a 100g bar of
chocolate, you won’t
gain a gram. If you used
to eat puddings, cakes
and chocolates at least
three times a week your
new habit will help you
lose up to 5kg in three
months.
CHANGE 2: OPT FOR LOW-KILOJOULE SOUPS AND STEWS
Winter is the best time to eat soups which can be nutritious
without increasing your energy intake. The simplest
soups can be made with a variety of vegetables cooked
with beef or chicken stock. Use stock cubes that are low in
kilojoules or make your own stock from chicken or beef, let
it cool in the fridge then remove the fat that has solidified
on top.
Use fat-free milk to make cream of vegetable soups
and add fat-free yoghurt instead of cream. Prepare your
soup or stew the day before, let it cool in the fridge and
scoop off the solidified fat before you heat it. For every
teaspoon of fat you remove, you save nearly 200kJ. Serve
vegetable soups with crusty wholewheat bread for a delicious,
wholesome, non-fattening meal that will keep you
warm and full for hours.
The difference
Try having a low-kilojoule
soup for
one of your main
meals every day this
winter. Remember
to skim off the fat
from your stews.
This way you won’t
gain weight; you
may in fact lose
up to 3kg in three
months.
CHANGE 3: SWITCH TO FAT-FREE DAIRY PRODUCTS
Research shows eating more
fat-free or low-fat dairy products
can actually help you lose weight.
Using fat-free milk for hot drinks
such as Milo means you won’t be
piling on the kilos this winter.
The difference If you replace
full-cream milk with skimmed
(fat-free) or low-fat (2%)
milk, use low-fat yoghurt and
cottage cheese instead of the
full-cream versions and stick to
no more than three portions of
dairy a day (three glasses of milk
or three small yoghurts or three
matchbox-sized portions of cottage
cheese) you can lose between
2 and 4kg in three months. How
much you lose will depend on
whether you choose fat-free or
low-fat dairy products.
CHANGE 4: TRY NON-NUTRITIVE SWEETENERS
Instead of adding
two or three teaspoons
of sugar to
your hot beverages,
use artificial or non-nutritive
sweeteners.
If you have five hot
drinks a day, you’ll
save between 800
and 1 200kJ.
The difference
You'll lose between
2 and 3kg in three
months.
CHANGE 5: GO SLOW ON THE PIES, FRIES AND PASTRIES
It’s convenient to
snack on sausage rolls,
samoesas, pastries, chips
or deep-fried chicken
takeaways when it’s
cold outside. Somehow
the idea of eating warm
food seems comforting.
The difference
If you can steer clear
of these foods this
winter you have a good
chance of not gaining
weight. And if you
usually eat a pie and
packet of hot chips a
day your new habit will
help you to lose up to
5kg in three months.
CHANGE 6: BE ACTIVE
Make a deliberate decision to be
more active this winter. Go for
brisk walks when the sun is out;
join a gym; go to dancing, Pilates
or yoga classes; or try home workouts.
After 10 minutes you’ll feel
as warm as toast and glowing with
health. Being active will also help
keep gloominess at bay.
The difference If you continue
your summer exercise regime you
won’t gain weight. If you’ve been
a couch potato you’ll lose weight
if you start exercising. If you walk
briskly for 30 minutes a day, five
to six days a week for three months,
you’ll lose up to 1.5kg in three
months. If you add three 30-minute
sessions of muscle exercise to your
routine three times a week, you can
lose 3kg in three months.
Fast fact: If you
feel depressed in winter your
body reacts by producing
more serotonin, the "happy
hormone". One of the ways in
which the body tries to boost
serotonin production is to
increase your craving for
carbohydrates. Unfortunately
many carbohydrate foods such
as chips, cakes, pies, pastries
and chocolate also have a
high fat content. If you eat
a lot of these foods because
you feel the urge to stock up
on carbohydrates you’ll most
probably gain weight.
- (This article originally appeared in YOU Pulse / Huisgenoot-Pols magazine, June 2008. The current edition is on sale now.)
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