Here's how you can eat healthy through Ramazan
Breaking your fast with a feast will only make you gain weight instead of losing it
PHOTO: SANDERSONFARM
Time for pakoras, samosas and yummy jaleebis! Whoops, we mean time for spiritual enlightenment, family time and lots of charity. Yes, everyone's looking forward to Ramazan; all for different reasons, perhaps, but while the excitement runs high don't let it get to your waistline.
Breaking your fast with a feast will only make you gain weight instead of losing it. Dr Razeen Mahroof, an anaesthetist from Oxford suggests that one should fast with discipline and see it as an opportunity to lose weight, reported NHS Choices (UK's biggest health website).
“The underlying message behind Ramadan is self-discipline and self-control," he says. "This shouldn’t fall apart at the end of the day."
According to the expert, food intake needs to be simple and contain all major food groups. The following healthy meal ideas will give you a balanced and varied diet during the holy month, providing you with ingredients from all the major food groups.
Sehri should be a moderate meal and contain wholesome foods, rich in fibre, which will help release energy throughout the day and keep you full.
“Suhoor should be light and include slow digesting food like pitta bread, salad, cereal (especially oats) or toast, so that you have a constant release of energy,” Dr Mahroof says.
Here are four suggestions to prepare a healthy pre-dawn meal.
Sehri* meal plan:
2. Wheat-based cereal with milk, a plain scone or crumpet, and an apple or banana.
4. Cheese, then one teaspoon of jam with crackers or toast, and a handful of dried fruits.
Iftar, on the other hand, is customarily broken with dates and/or water. The dates provide a burst of energy and the water is an instant source of hydration, it also reduces the chances of overindulgence.
Iftar* meal plan:
2. Chicken with boiled rice, vegetable curry and mixed salad, followed by fruit salad with single cream.
4. Pasta cooked with vegetables and chicken or fish, and a slice of plain cake with custard.
*Fluids (water and juices) and dates should be added to each sehri and iftar
Here's what you should avoid having:
1. Processed foods that contain refined carbohydrates (sugar and white flour) as well as fatty sweets (mithai, chocolates, biscuits, etc)
2. Try avoiding coffee, tea or any caffine-based drink because they tend to stimulate faster weight loss through urination.
3. Deep fried foods - we know you love pakoras, and if you can't keep your hands off this yummy iftar staple, treat yourself to just one!
4. High-fat cooked food - parathas, oil curries, greasy patties.
5. Refrain from frying, deep frying and using excessive oil in your foods.
Instead try these healthy alternatives:
1. Baked samosas
2. Home-made pastries
3. Chapattis without oil
4. Baked or grilled meat and chicken
5. Shallow frying
6. Milk based sweets (rasmalai and barfee)
A balanced food and fluid intake is important between fasts. The kidneys are very efficient at maintaining the body’s water and salts, such as sodium and potassium. However, these can be lost through perspiration.
To prevent muscle breakdown, meals must contain enough energy food, such as carbohydrates and some fat.
“The way to approach your diet during fasting is similar to the way you should be eating outside Ramadan," says Dr Mahroof. "You should have a balanced diet, with the right proportion of carbs, fat and protein.”
This article originally appeared on NHS
Breaking your fast with a feast will only make you gain weight instead of losing it. Dr Razeen Mahroof, an anaesthetist from Oxford suggests that one should fast with discipline and see it as an opportunity to lose weight, reported NHS Choices (UK's biggest health website).
“The underlying message behind Ramadan is self-discipline and self-control," he says. "This shouldn’t fall apart at the end of the day."
According to the expert, food intake needs to be simple and contain all major food groups. The following healthy meal ideas will give you a balanced and varied diet during the holy month, providing you with ingredients from all the major food groups.
Sehri should be a moderate meal and contain wholesome foods, rich in fibre, which will help release energy throughout the day and keep you full.
“Suhoor should be light and include slow digesting food like pitta bread, salad, cereal (especially oats) or toast, so that you have a constant release of energy,” Dr Mahroof says.
Here are four suggestions to prepare a healthy pre-dawn meal.
Sehri* meal plan:
2. Wheat-based cereal with milk, a plain scone or crumpet, and an apple or banana.
4. Cheese, then one teaspoon of jam with crackers or toast, and a handful of dried fruits.
Iftar, on the other hand, is customarily broken with dates and/or water. The dates provide a burst of energy and the water is an instant source of hydration, it also reduces the chances of overindulgence.
Iftar* meal plan:
2. Chicken with boiled rice, vegetable curry and mixed salad, followed by fruit salad with single cream.
4. Pasta cooked with vegetables and chicken or fish, and a slice of plain cake with custard.
*Fluids (water and juices) and dates should be added to each sehri and iftar
Here's what you should avoid having:
1. Processed foods that contain refined carbohydrates (sugar and white flour) as well as fatty sweets (mithai, chocolates, biscuits, etc)
2. Try avoiding coffee, tea or any caffine-based drink because they tend to stimulate faster weight loss through urination.
3. Deep fried foods - we know you love pakoras, and if you can't keep your hands off this yummy iftar staple, treat yourself to just one!
4. High-fat cooked food - parathas, oil curries, greasy patties.
5. Refrain from frying, deep frying and using excessive oil in your foods.
Instead try these healthy alternatives:
1. Baked samosas
2. Home-made pastries
3. Chapattis without oil
4. Baked or grilled meat and chicken
5. Shallow frying
6. Milk based sweets (rasmalai and barfee)
A balanced food and fluid intake is important between fasts. The kidneys are very efficient at maintaining the body’s water and salts, such as sodium and potassium. However, these can be lost through perspiration.
To prevent muscle breakdown, meals must contain enough energy food, such as carbohydrates and some fat.
“The way to approach your diet during fasting is similar to the way you should be eating outside Ramadan," says Dr Mahroof. "You should have a balanced diet, with the right proportion of carbs, fat and protein.”
This article originally appeared on NHS