Be Penny Wise and Stay Slim

It is a vicious circle you see, first you eat and spend money and then you go to the gym or join an aerobics class and again spend money to lose weight. But the tortoise diet, not only helps you to lose the extra weight, but reduces you food bill as well.

So what is the tortoise plan. Well the tortoise plan goes like this:

*Follow a 52:22:20 ratio of carbs, protein and fats. If you can’t do that in one meal, then spread it out over the day. So, now you can eat rice and roti.

*List out 30 of your favourite foods. Out of which half of it should be health foods. Help yourself to moderate servings of these.

* If there are some calorie filled ingredients that you must have, use them only for flavouring rather than as main course. Can’t say no to cheese? But you can definitely say no to Pizza, instead grate it on a whole grain bread toast. Use small cubes of chicken to add a little taste your bland vegetable soups. But don’t have that rich chicken curry with lots of butter or ghee with mounds of rice.

Tortoise diet is the coolest, sensible, calorie curtailed diet which allows you to indulge in your food cravings. It is a natural diet which encompasses all essential nutrients. It is extremely easy for the body to get used to this diet and most importantly stick to it. And once your body gets used to this diet, you can see for yourself that automatically your body will not like to be fed in any other way.

Combined with exercise (a half hour brisk walk, 15 minutes of stretch, yoga and pilates), weight loss can be around half a kilo a week. By doing this you can lose up to 18 kilos a year. It’s really worth it, don’t you think so?

Now what is a typical Tortoise Plan:

A Vegetarian Meal

Early Morning:1cup of tea with half a teaspoon of sugar.

Breakfast: two tablespoon of oats/dalia with one cup of skimmed milk and fruits.

Lunch:2 whol ewheat chapatis.

1 cup curried vegetables/low fat paneer

1cup dal and a good helping of salad

Early evening:! glass of buttermilk and fruit or 1 cup of tea and fruit

Dinner: 1 bowl of tomato soup, sprouts chaat, one and hald cup of noodles/pasta with mixed vegetables.

A Non-Vegetarian Meal

Early Morning: 1 cup of te with half a teaspoon of sugar.

Breakfast: 1cup of skimmed milk with one slice of whole wheat bread and a boiled egg followed by a fruit or lime juice.

Lunch:one and a half cup of rice with mushroom and babycorn stir fried and a piece of chicken or fish with lots of salads.

Early Evening :! glass of butter milk and a fruit.

Dinner:1 bowl of chicken soup and baked fish with one cup of pasta and mixed vegetables.