Your days are packed with schedules and lunch meetings. Sometimes you wish you ate one square meal that would not make you feel guilty, especially when you know you haven't eaten right. But most of the time, do we have a choice? The fact is, we have, only if we control our urge to binge.
Dietician Janaki Rawal of Parulekar's Gym, Mumbai offers some vital tips with regards to office eating habits:
Cheat foods
Cheat foods are those food items that help us satisfy our appetites, but don't provide us with any nutrition other than loads of useless calories. So the next time you sip on a cola or bite into a burger or pizza, know that you're cheating your tummy with the wrong type of food. Opt for the healthier option, rather than the tastier option.
Heavy-duty caffeine
Tea and coffee can surely add that zing to your day, but try and limit it to two cups. Too much of caffeine can lead to acidity.
Irregular meals
"By continuously being irregular about your eating habits, you land up confusing your body about the next meal of the day. As a result, your body tends to slow down its metabolic activities that further leads to food getting stored in your body as fat," mentions Janaki. So as far as possible, stick to your meal timings and avoid skipping meals no matter how important your meeting is.
Heavy dinner
Since work hours are becoming longer, and in spite of returning home late at night, we tend to eat heavy meals. It cannot be helped, especially when it's the only meal we get to eat with our families. But if wise choices are made, then this late night dinners can be made healthy. Dinner should always be light -- with salads, dal, chapatti, sabzi and a chicken/ fish dish (optional).
Keep your lunch simple too, with the same formula -- roti, dal, sabzi and chicken/ fish. Avoid too much of masala or gravy, if eating from your office cafeteria. End your meal with curd and fruit. Eat till the point you feel satiated, there is no point in over-eating, but don't skip meals or eat poorly either. Remember, with the hours that you put in, you must eat well.