Recreate Your Vacation Mood At Home
July 31, 2007
You desperately need to take a break but you don’t have any vacation time left. Or maybe all your colleagues are on leave and you have to stay back to manage work. You didn’t book in advance and all the best hotels are booked at your favorite getaway. There is no need to sulk or feel depressed.
Here are some tips to create your vacation ambience right at home.
1) Set your computer’s screen saver to a white sand Caribbean beach or lush rain forest background.
2) Take an “ocean” bath by adding two cups of muscle soothing bath salts to running water. Like the sea, the salts work wonders on dry, chapped skin.
3) Wear a floral printed shirt and shorts when at home or wrap a tropical print sarong around your waist after showering instead of wearing your usual bathrobe.
4) Tuck a flower behind your ear; wear floral garlands and when you sit for your meals.
5) Listen to a calypso CD on your stereo or plug it to your Ipod or walkman.
6) Set fresh fruit, cheese and crackers on platter. Whip up a virgin pina colada and relax.
Creating such an ambience is exciting and you can enjoy your beach vacation in the comforts of your own home.
©Nayna, 2007. All Rights Reserved.
A Guide To Cut Down On Your Salt, Starch, Fat And Sugar Intake
July 31, 2007
Cutting down on salt, starch, fat and sugar content in the diet helps the body in a variety of ways like prevents heart disease, lowers cholesterol, weight loss management, diabetes and so on.
1) Avoid using solid fats like lard and butter, instead go for vegetable oil.
2) Use low fat yoghurt instead of sour cream in dips, soups, salads and toppings.
3) Try skimmed milk instead of whole milk.
4) Reduce starch consumption by draining the water out after cooking rice.
5) Oil consumption can be cut down by parboiling vegetables first and then stir frying them. As the vegetables are partly cooked, the oil required and its absorption is very less.
6) Enjoy low sodium salt instead of the normal salt. Or use unsalted ingredients.
7) Replace sugar with honey or cut down the portions of sugar by one-third or one fourth in your dessert recipes.
With these changes, you can ensure healthy living without compromising too much on the taste and flavor.
©Nayna, 2007. All Rights Reserved.
Balance Dinner Parties And Weight Loss Without Guilt
July 30, 2007
Going out for dinners and grand parties are a lot of fun. Spending time with loved ones, meeting new people or getting into a beautiful evening dress and making heads turn can really spice up your life.
Usually big events like a reunion, wedding or some big soiree, guests are intimated in advance. You plan the right clothes, schedule your appointments accordingly and then starve yourself. At the event, you will be eating a variety of high calorie foods and drinks so it is a general feeling that such a strict starvation will help manage weight. But this is absolutely wrong.
Starving all day only triggers a big glutton fest at night. Being hungry all day makes the blood sugar level fall rapidly and by dinner, you are famished. So it is very easy to over indulge with whatever food you see around. Such crash dieting only slows down the metabolism.
Here are some pointers to balance dinner parties and manage weight loss without any guilt.
1) Never skip breakfast.
2) Eat small meals throughout the day. Every four to five hours is ideal so that you won’t binge later.
3) If you did over indulge at the party, then don’t starve yourself the following day. Instead drink plenty of water, juices and eat fibre rich food so that the system gets flushed. Certain foods can make you feel bloated and heavy so this is an ideal way to cleanse the body internally.
4) Excessive exercising after over eating should be avoided. It will only add strain on the body. Just workout at your usual tempo and maybe an extra fifteen minutes of cardiovascular exercise can help.
Indulging in the good life is wonderful but making the body suffer is not the ideal way to live your life. So the next time, you are invited to a grand celebration keep these pointers in mind and eat your heart out, guilt free.
©Nayna, 2007. All Rights Reserved.
