Getting back in shape is an uphill task. If you have been trying to do so yourself, then you need to follow a low-fat diet. Making a diet chart for obesity and adhering to it is extremely important in such a case.
How to calculate body mass index (BMI)
If you have been worried about your weight, and want to know where you are to set a goal for yourself, you need to figure out your BMI.
To do so, you need to follow the simple formula of kg/m².
Kg stands for your weight and m stands for your height in metres. If your BMI is 25 or above, you are overweight. A healthy BMI is between 18.5 and 24.9.
When one is planning such a chart for obesity, there are certain things you need to keep in mind.
Your goal with this diet is to reduce your weight but not let any nutrient get deficient in your body. This diet is primarily focused on reducing your weight and making you slimmer. You cannot ignore your bodily needs and starve yourself.
Hence, while on one hand, you do need to increase the number of vegetables, fruits and whole grains, you cannot completely cut out on fats.
Fat is required for a lot of functions of the body and is not inherently a bad thing. Our goal is to get away from the obesity scale, and that should not be forgotten. You need fats in your body for energy and get nutrients from fat-soluble vitamins such as vitamins A, D, E and K.
Diets that are low in fat are good for your heart – they reduce cholesterol and reduce the risk of heart diseases.
If we had to make a standard diet chart for obesity, we would plan it the following way.
Diet Chart for Obesity
Breakfast
When it comes to breakfast, you can pick anything from the following –
- 3 egg whites, 1 brown bread lightly toasted and half a cup of low-fat milk preferably without sugar
- If you are a vegetarian, you can have sprouts, toasted bread with avocado and low-fat milk.
- One onion paratha along with curd without sugar.
- Besan cheela along with low-fat curd or a glass of milk.
- Brown bread upma
- Cucumber sandwich with sauce or chutney
- 1 cup low-fat milk oats and fruits.
It is important to punctuate your three meals of the day with smaller snacks, and we recommend a fruit like papaya or a couple of bananas after your breakfast and before lunch. Other alternatives include coconut water, strawberries, peanut butter sandwiches, musk melon etc.
Lunch
When it comes to lunch, you have the following combination –
- 1 cup of daal of your choice, but arhar or masoor dal is preferred, along with a couple of chapatis and curd.
- You can also make a nice salad that is fulfilling as well, and skip on the dal and chapati.
- Rajma curry and chapati
- Fish curry with chapati or brown rice and salad
- White chana with chapati or brown rice and curd or salad
The next snack on this diet chart for obesity can be either a bowl of vegetable soup or boiled sweet corn.
Dinner
When it comes to dinner it is always advised that you keep it light. You can have any of the following combinations –
- 1 cup pumpkin vegetable and one chapati along with a salad.
- Vegetable soup and salad.
- Lightly toasted brown bread, vegetables, and salad.
- Vegetables such as bottle gourd, bitter gourd, ladyfinger/okra, soybean etc.
Your chart for obesity should be balanced and you need to cut down on sugars and fattening stuff. You need to work with your present body and make sure your weighing scale needle doesn’t move to the right.
What to avoid when following a diet chart for obesity
Here are the things you need to cut down on when you start working on your diet sincerely.
- Give up on soft drinks, sweets and candies. You need to cut down on sugar as much as possible.
- Do not skip your meals under the pretence that you will lose weight this way. This will make you want to eat more at odd hours.
- Do not eat quickly. Make sure you are chewing your morsels properly.
- Do not go grocery shopping when you are hungry. We get distracted by this momentary hunger which leads to you buying sugary and junk foods.
- Just because fruits are deemed healthy doesn’t mean you can keep snacking on them all the time. One fruit per day, or two at max is enough.
What habits should you incorporate when you have a diet chart for obesity?
If you are now on your way to following your rigid diet chart for obesity, then you need to remember the following things. Look at them from a positive lens and it will be better.
- Incorporate vegetables into your diet. Eat them for all your meals. The key to not getting bored of them is adding variety and cooking them in different ways. Roasting vegetables always elevate the flavours.
- Drink water, plenty of it. You should start your day with a glass of water and make sure you are getting your eight glasses in a day, at the right intervals. Sometimes our body tricks us into believing our thirst is hunger and we end up snacking on something that makes us have gastric issues as well.
- Start exercising. Of course, not everyone can just go to the gym and be perfect from day one, but you can at least start walking, jogging or running for 30 minutes each day. You can increase the intensity and switch up exercises once your body gets conditioned to exercise. It is important to exercise for your chart for obesity to show fruitful results.
- On a similar note like before, join a club for swimming, badminton or tennis. Not only will you sweat it out in a fun way, but the serotonin boost is also a bonus.
If you are someone who used to snack a lot on things earlier and still wants to do so but doesn’t want to restrict the progress of your diet chart for obesity, then you can try alternatives. Nuts, berries, fruits, yoghurt, seeds, calorie-free beverages, quinoa, minimally processed foods etc are your friends.
Getting back in shape is a journey and you will falter a few times. But if you have supportive people around you and faith in yourself, you can do great. We hope your journey to a healthy body has minimal difficulties!