We all like eating out at restaurants, but it’s easy to go overboard and be lured away from your healthy eating plan. Open buffets are the worst, as the more food you see, the more you feel tempted to eat. Here’s how to make the right choices and avoid messing up on all your careful good eating plans.
Even if you only eat Indian food at home, it’s all too easy to wave goodbye to your healthy eating plan — sometimes without realizing it — when confronted with mouth-watering food. With careful planning and smart choices, however, it’s possible to stick to a low fat eating plan, thereby avoiding post-meal guilt or anxiety about all the unnecessary calories you consumed.
I have outlined the calories and fat content of some of the most popular Indian food choices, so that you can make smart choices the next time you eat out. Good luck.
Dish Fat Calories
Chicken korma (350g) 51g 669
Chicken tikka (350g) 15g 420
Chicken tikka masala (350g) 40g 553
Chicken dhansak (350g) 30g 504
Chicken biryani (400g) 30g 652
Chicken dupiaza (400g) 25g 399
Lamb rogan josh (350g) 35g 511
Lamb balti (350g) 35g 536
Prawn bhuna (350g) 30g 420
Prawn madras (350g) 29g 389
Vegetable balti (350g) 28g 371
Vegetable biryani (350g) 28g 469
2 Poppadoms (60g) 23g 301
Meat samosa (75g) 13g 60
Onion bhaji (30g) 7g 109
Pilau rice (180g) 7g 253
Boiled rice (180g) 2g 248
Exercise Hint
The Exercise High
Exercising really does make you feel good, both physically and mentally. Scientists now believe that they have identified a brain chemical that might be responsible for this effect, which is phenylethylamine. It has been found that levels of phenylethylamine increase after exercise in most cases. This increased level of phenylethylamine is probably linked to the high that people get from exercise. So, next time you’re feeling down, get up and exercise. You’ll feel all the better for it! No time for exercise? Well do my Mini-Morning Workout every morning — it’s a great way to start the day! Just send a blank email to [email protected] for a free copy.
Recipe of the Week
Chicken Tikka
Serves 6
Ingredients
800 g lean chicken breasts (skinned)
4 cloves crushed garlic
4 small pieces ginger, finely grated
4 tsp. yoghurt
2 level tsp. salt
4 green chilies, finely chopped
6 tsp. tandoori paste
4 tsp. olive oil
Finely chopped coriander
Tomato wedges
Method
Wash chicken, cut into 3-cm long pieces and place in a large bowl. Add all ingredients, except the oil, and mix well. Leave to soak for 2 — 3 hours. Pan-fry the chicken with olive oil for 5 minutes on a moderate heat. Cook in a pre-heated oven 200C for 25 minutes, or until tender. Garnish with tomato wedges and coriander.
Ask Alva
I have been taking a slimming supplement and for three months my weight steadily decreased. But now I seem to have stopped losing weight even though I haven’t made any changes back to my bad habits. Why do you think this is? Priti
You say that you haven’t slipped back into bad habits, but it is a good idea to keep a food diary. If you’ve been following a rigid eating plan for some time, you may be bored and your motivation for staying with it may be fading (after all, what’s an extra biscuit now and then?). Keeping a food diary, or a record of what you eat each day, will help you pinpoint situations where you might be indulging more than you realize and help you get back on track. And do try again. Many people get trapped in cycles where, amidst their efforts to follow a healthy diet, they stray and can’t seem to get back to a healthy pattern of eating. The first step is to forgive yourself. Look at past patterns and see how unhelpful these emotions are. What you’ve eaten isn’t the problem, but how you’ve reacted to it is. If you’ve fallen off the wagon, remind yourself that no one’s perfect and focus on getting back to your eating plan. If you email to [email protected] I’ll send you a copy of my Healthy Eating Guide that will ensure you get plenty of variety into your diet. Alva
For all your weight concerns and questions e-mail Alva Carpenter at:
Selected letters will be replied to in this column.
