The Non Healthy stuff that is Healthy

  My weight loss journey, be it before my pregnancy and, now the post-partum weight loss have both been pretty long. And all this while, I have tried to research on everything that will make one fit evenly remotely. On this journey, I have realized that I love working out at home, body weight can surely kick ass and that there is a lot of health foods that are not healthy.

 Something that also hit be right between the eyes was, that there were lots of things that people thought were unhealthy that is not bad. I have truly started to believe that everything in moderation works best.  So I decide that needed to list down 5 top blacklisted are not that bad after all

No 1 Rice:

Now this grain has been belittled, exception being Brown Rice, in all health books, fitness talk shows dieticians. I am a south Indian by birth though (half northy  by marriage) and I love my rice and Sāmbhar. So when everyone recommended that I give up rice to lose weight, I couldn’t handle it. I was like why should I; I lived on rice my entire life till I got married and was always fit as fiddle with flat abs( yeah I have seen some awesome washboard abs in the mirror).So why now, I knew something wasn’t right and then came the countless Google searches .This is the result. Let me first elaborate the Nutritional facts about white rice. A 100g dose (raw) contains:

• 80 g carb
• 1 g fiber
• 0.6 g fat
• 7 g protein
• 0.07 mg thiamin
• 1.6 g niacin
• 0.8 mg iron
• 25 mg magnesium

Read more: http://www.marksdailyapple.com/is-rice-unhealthy/#ixzz2MkeG5fpz.
So the main content is Carbs and carbs are not bad. When we eat this with bigger portions of veges, legumes and curd than the rice, we add in nutrients and vitamins that are lacking. In fact the South Indian staple of sambar and rice is the best mix of protein and carbs. Of course that doesn’t mean you wolf down bucket load of it. I am not denying that unpolished versions of grain are always good so if you can’t afford brown Rice then at least try the red rice or par boiled rice. Remember the key phrase is moderation

No. 2: Egg Yolks

Most health recipes or low calorie diets expect you to use egg whites and to toss away the yolk. The general reasoning being that it is high in fat and cholesterol.  However in reality egg yolks are the most nutritional part of the egg.  The healthy egg white which is packed in protein is not as nutritious if dint have the egg yolks amino acids to balance it out. Furthermore it has 90% of the calcium, iron, phosphorus, zinc, thiamin, B6, folate, B12 and pantothenic acid in an egg. If you want to know more read this lovely article from where I quote some of my facts from http://www.streetdirectory.com/food_editorials/meals/breakfast_meals/egg_yolks_are_not_unhealthy.html

No3: Pizza and Pasta

Italians eat loads of pasta and pizza and are fittest amongst Europeans. But every nutrionists and health fanatic will ask you to stay away from pizza and pasta. The difference is American pizza and pasta vs the true Italian Pasta and Pizza. Italian pizza are smaller portions with thin crusts and loads of veges and fresh tomato sauces and very little cheese considering its American counterpart to be heavy in the base with loads of cheese and sparing veges, not to forget the huge portions.  Most brands we find in India go the American way, best bet is if you ever have a pizza and pasta craving while on your fitness journey,  is make them home. Of course that means also making the crust. There are some wonderful recipes online. But don’t forget the portions

No 4 :Ghee

Before you get your guns out to shoot me down, hear me out and then decide.  Most Ayurvedic treatments involve ghee as an ingredient. The reasons you should opt for at least a small part of your daily fat intake from ghee because one it is full in Vitamins A, D, E, and K, two it gives us an antioxidant conjugated lineolic acid which is being studied for it effects to fight cancer and third it is an excellent cooking medium because it doesn’t break down in high heat like many cooking oils do

When mum made ghee at home it left an amazing fragrance lingered in the kitchen. Moral is try making ghee at home instead of opting for the store bought ones.

No 5 : Bananas and Potato

One a fruit the other a vegetable both dreaded in the weight loss field for its carb content. Seriously why is everyone scared of carbs?   

Nutritional Values for White Potato, Fresh, Baked (with Skin)

·         Calories                           278

·         Fat                                  <1 g

·         Saturated Fat                   <1 g

·         Cholesterol                      0 mg

·         Carbohydrate                   63 g

·         Protein                            6 g

·         Dietary Fiber                    6 g

·         Sodium                           21 mg

·         Vitamin C                        37 mg

·         Thiamin                           <1 mg

·         Niacin                              5 mg

·         Vitamin B6                       1 mg

·         Copper                            <1 mg

·         Iron                                 2 mg

·         Magnesium                      81 mg

·         Manganese                      <1 mg

·         Phosphorus                     224 mg

·         Potassium                       1,627 mg

Nutrients in a banana, per serving*:

·         Vitamin B6 – .5 mg

·         Manganese – .3 mg

·         Vitamin C – 9 mg

·         Potassium – 450 mg

·         Dietary Fiber – 3g

·         Protein – 1 g

·         Magnesium – 34 mg

·         Folate – 25.0 mcg

·         Riboflavin – .1 mg

·         Niacin – .8 mg

·         Vitamin A – 81 IU

·         Iron – .3 mg

Potatoes are packed with nutrients with the exception of Vitamin. All the added unwanted fats make it unhealthy. Just by itself it is harmless and can actually lower cholesterol because of its combination of insoluble and soluble fibers. Bananas on the other hand are quick energy boosters especially after a strenuous workout. It can also work as a pre meal to workouts if you tend to work empty stomach first thing in the morning .They are high in potassium , magnesium, iron and fiber. So if you are not diabetic and healthy then go ahead and enjoy this lovely fruit and amazing vegetable. However …….moderation…. the umpteenth time