HEALTHY MEALS THIS NEW YEAR
EVERY new year I make some adjustments to my life and diet, but especially this year as it feels like the COVID pandemic has aged us even more with added stress and uncertainty as we deal with our new world and new life. Promising to be healthier is always at the top of most people’s resolutions, but this wide and unrealistic promise is usually sure to fail as habits, especially eating habits, are very hard to change. However, this year holds more chance for lasting change as many of us have been forced to make some drastic changes to our lives. Eating more local and fresh produce makes good economic sense too, as it supports our local farmers as well as teaching the family to eat more nutritionally. The dietary lessons of fighting NCD’s, by eating healthier and living longer, have often fallen on deaf ears, but if any New Year’s resolution was ever going to help change that perception and promise, it must be in 2021.
Resolution #1 - More roadside shopping
Whilst COVID has halted much of our economy, it hasn’t stopped our farms from producing fresh seasonal produce, and some of the best fruits and vegetables can be found at roadside stands around the country. A recent discovery of a rare mango that tastes like a pear at the Momi Bay junction only proves this. This “cucumber mango” as the farmer calls it, will only be in season for another few weeks but this is what makes it exciting by the road. The produce found along the main roads are often manned by struggling farming families, so it is even more reason to give them a little financial support by buying their produce. Most often than not, you can also strike a bargain if you buy in bulk. Our nations’ roadside farmers are like Mother Nature’s doctors, they provide seasonal medicinal foods to prolong our health.
Resolution #2 - Eat more of rainbow
Eating the rainbow is a dietary concept I teach to children to remind them how to eat fresh foods that represent the colour of the rainbow. It is an easy way to remember if you are eating nutrition foods, and it applies just as much to adults as well. Green represents cabbages, lettuces, cucumber and leaves. Red can be watermelon or apples. Orange could be mango, carrots and mandarins. Yellow can represent bananas, rockmelon or gourds. Purple could be eggplant, dalo and kumala. White could be kumala or Chinese radish. Adding fresh fruits and vegetables to your diet is the first thing that you need to promise to yourself in 2021. Don’t take a resolution that you’ll directly eat 4-5 different kinds of fruits daily. That is practically not possible, especially for those who don’t like fruits or don’t have a habit of eating them daily. Start by eating one colour fruit daily. It could be any seasonal fruit which is available easily in your area. With time, increase the fruit consumption to two, three or even four different types of fruits, across all the colours of the rainbow. If the amount seems too much, you can do a portion control and eat different fruits in small quantities. This way you can include fruits in your diet in the easiest way possible.
Resolution #3 - Learn to cook at home more
As a chef I take for granted the ease of cooking, but YouTube and other online videos have really taken the mystery out of cooking a home meal. The earlier stay-at-home orders intensified our interest in cooking with many learning how to make breads, donuts and one-pot meals online. Cooking at home also puts you in total control of reducing the bad ingredients of oils, fats and sugar in your diet, and increasing seasonal produce that you may or may not be able to get at your favorite eatery.
Resolution #4 - Don’t give up your cravings
Eat because you are hungry and not because you are bored. Most often, people snack on cookies, chips and chocolates only because they are getting bored and not because they are feeling hungry. It is better to ask yourself whether the junk food you are eating is actually doing any good to your body or not. Satisfying your cravings is one of the hardest things to control but when you give in, try to replace the junk with healthier treats, and if all else fails and you succumb to that chocolate craving - eat less of it.
Resolution #5 - Avoid binge eating at night
This is one of the biggest mistakes people make and probably the fastest way to get fat - over eating before you go to bed. If you don’t allow time for your body to digest and burn the food you eat, it just sits inside undigested and it eventually gets stored as fat on your tummy and bum. If you do end up having a huge meal, try walking it off before you go to bed. In the Pacific Islands, yagona drinking also plays a huge part in this bad dietary habit. Grog suppresses hunger whilst you are drinking, but as soon as you stop passing the bilo, your body goes into hunger pains if you did not eat something beforehand. This is usually when grog drinkers whack a pot of curry or soup noodles in no time, and then fall asleep on a full, undigested stomach. Eating late at night contributes to weight gain and disturbs the sleep. It is better to finish your dinner at least 3-4 hours before you retire to bed in order to keep your body healthy. In the case of late night grog drinkers, the trick is to eat something small before your kava session, and when you eventually finish grog, make sure there is only something light to eat - not a giant pot of curry.
It’s never wise to take a resolution of completely cutting fried food and sugar from your diet. This might make you eat these foods more than before because of reserve psychology. It is always practical to slowly eliminate unnecessary food items from your diet. For example, if you are habitual of eating biscuits with your evening tea, try to reduce the number of biscuits or buy a brand that is less sugary and sweet. Similarly, if you have a sweet tooth and eating something sweet post-meal is your weakness, try reducing the sweetness slowly. If you can’t resist fried foods, help reduce the amount of oil by absorbing the foods paper towel or swap to healthier oils like olive or coconut. Slowly eliminating fried foods and sweets from the diet this way will help you follow the resolution for a long duration as well.
If weight loss is your motive and you are already following a specific diet and workout routine, then it is better to always plan your cheat days. Giving a monotonous diet routine a much-needed break is always good for your body. This satiates your cravings and also gives you more motivation to properly follow the diet. Make sure you mark one day a week for 2-3 days a month, as per your choice, which are dedicated cheat days. Have the meal of your choice, relax and get back to your diet the next day. This will help you in sticking to your new year resolutions in the most convenient way possible.