With a few smart changes to your lifestyle and diet, you can make your weight loss last even after the month. See more videos at www.gulfnews.com/videos
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:0010 minutes before fasting, I want to eat everything on the table.
00:11I want to have the fried samosas, I want to have all the bajiyas and everything.
00:17But the minute Adhan goes off, I usually have a glass of water and a couple of dates, and
00:23then I go pray Maghrib and come back to the table, and then I can't eat anything.
00:28I just have some fruits and wait a little while, and then have a little rice, some fish,
00:34some vegetables, and then I'm too full.
00:36But yeah, I always lose weight.
00:38I lose at least four to five kilos during Ramadan because I can't eat a lot.
00:44So I think last year, for 2017, my resolution was to get my weight down from 90 to 85.
00:53It actually went reverse from 90 to 95.
00:55So yeah, that's an ongoing challenge, and snacking often is kind of one of the habits
01:02which is responsible for that.
01:04It actually helps.
01:05So Ramadan kind of puts a restriction of not eating when you're at your desk or in your
01:10office space.
01:11So for at least one month, all those snacks and in between the meals, kind of quick bites
01:18come to a stop.
01:19In our office, there's a little bit of a practice, it's become a sort of a ritual now, and whenever
01:25somebody is coming back from their country, and they tend to bring in all the chips, and
01:32especially the halwas and the sweets from the country they belong.
01:36So that also gets gradually reduced during the course of Ramadan.
01:40Ramadan is a great chance to lose weight for people who want to lose weight.
01:48If they follow dietary advices, healthy dietary advice, which I would love to share today
01:54with you.
01:58Have two main meals, the suhoor and the iftar, and one snack or two snacks in between.
02:05So the suhoor is the most important meal during the day.
02:09So a lot of people tend to skip suhoor, which makes it difficult for them to continue their
02:15fast.
02:16They will feel more tired, and they will end up eating more at iftar time.
02:22And this also results in indigestion and overeating, which may lead to weight gain as well.
02:29So suhoor, please don't skip suhoor.
02:35My next tip would be to start your iftar with one date, one glass of water, or maybe a low-fat
02:42vegetable soup, and take a break for five or ten minutes.
02:45This will allow your digestive system to be ready, and it also will decrease your hunger.
02:51So you won't eat as much.
02:55Also, at iftar, go for the grilled items, not the fried items.
03:02Include vegetables at your meal.
03:04Include protein.
03:05Also, complex carbs.
03:08Go for the quinoa, the brown rice, the brown pasta.
03:15Dieting is a lifestyle.
03:16It should be done in Ramadan and outside of Ramadan.
03:19So the most important thing is controlling your portion, having frequent small meals
03:24after Ramadan.
03:29Choosing the right snack.
03:30Don't go for the bag of chips or bag of candy.
03:33Go for the healthier options, vegetables, fruits, nuts, popcorn, as I mentioned before.
03:41If the individual or the person is healthy and has no medical complications, and used
03:47to doing exercise outside of Ramadan, he or she can do some exercise one or two hours
03:54before iftar.
03:59Another important tip is to be hydrated.
04:02Be well hydrated from iftar to dawn.
04:06Drink at least eight glasses of water, and stay away from the famous Ramadan juices that
04:11are high in sugar.
04:17Another point also is to limit your sweets.
04:20I know sweets can be very tempting in Ramadan, but try to limit them to two to three times
04:25a week.
04:26Try to make them in a healthy way.
04:28If not, share it with someone.
04:33You put in your efforts through the month.
04:35I think what you would need to avoid is the iftar dinners where you kind of go lavish
04:41on eating.
04:43What you're also trying to do is steer away from snacking on fried foods, especially people
04:49from the Indian subcontinent, and trying to move towards fruits more during iftar and
04:54this thing.
04:55And as we tend to get older, you also realize your body doesn't take in as easily the fried
05:01items, and you have problems with gastric trouble, digestion, and a lot of that.
05:06I think the best thing to do, this month is a great month.
05:10It's a month of reflection.
05:12Don't think you have to go to every iftar party that you're invited to.
05:16It is absolutely okay and acceptable to politely decline.
05:21And I think that's a great way to kick the weight off.