Eid Mubarak from Health Factory!

By – Lama Dalloul, Junior Dietician, Health Factory

Hope that this Eid and the holy month of Ramadan, bought you and your family: Love, Peace, Health, and Healthy life.

Upon completion of this holy month, especially after Eid;”Feeling Guilty” is a common personal status! Excessive “Ramadan Desert”, overeating, unhealthy fatty meals, extra juice and coffee, back to smoking!
STOP!

Instead, we should open a new healthy page in our life. Our goal should be to maintain, all the weight that was lost during Ramadan.
Our body is accustomed, to get 2 meals per day. The metabolism might have been changed, but we should get back to our normal healthy new routine without disturbing our body.

 The first few days after Eid, we should frequently eat light small portions.
TO FOLLOW:

•   Divide your meals into three main meals (breakfast, lunch, and dinner) and 2 snacks,     depending on your lifestyle.
•    Eat a variety of foods to ensure, that you intake all the required nutrients in proportion (50% carbohydrates, 20% protein and 30% fat).
•   Balance your calories to complete or maintain a healthy weight (depending on individual energy needs)
•   Do not skip breakfast because, it is the fuel for our bodies to cover all its needs in the morning, that helps the body to function well throughout the day.
•    50% of calories coming from carbohydrates should be, complex carbohydrates, such as whole grains and cereals.
•    Vary your choice of fruits and vegetables every day, of all the different colors (vegetables promote dark green, red and orange).
•    Avoid snacking.
•    Practice regular physical activity and reduce sedentary behaviors.
•   Read the labels of foods you buy in the market with reference to their content of Na, saturated fatty acid, cholesterol.
•   The method of cooking is very important. Grilled and boiled food is recommended, and no fried food.
•   The effects of physical activity according to its duration:
•   30 minutes a day of physical activity of moderate intensity are recommended to reduce the risk of chronic diseases.
•   60 minutes of physical activity of moderate or vigorous intensity on most days of the week are recommended to help you manage your weight and prevent gradualweight gain.
•   60-90 minutes of physical activity of moderate intensity for all days of the week are recommended to support weight loss.

 Our daily program should be as the following:

• Breakfast (between 8:00 am and 9:00 am) one source of complex carbohydrate, source of protein and source of healthy fat.
• Snack 1 (between 10:30 am and 11:30 am) a piece of fruit
• Lunch (between 12:30 pm and 2:00 pm) the heaviest meal of the day : should contain starches, vegetables, protein (better go for the lean     proteins), and healthy fat (like olive oil as a dressing for the salad)
• Snack 2 (between 4:00pm and 5:00 pm) either a piece of dried fruit (dried figs, raisin, dates, dried apricots, etc.) or a healthy fat option like mixed nuts, 1/8 Avocado, almonds.)
• Dinner (between 7:00 pm and 8:30 pm) should include a healthy salad with a dressing of lemon, olive oil (1 tea spoon) and vinegar with a lean meal like lentil, low fat cheese sandwich, chicken breast with steamed vegetables.

This distribution of meals will help our body to get used to our new lifestyle and eating patterns. The most important advantage is that we will be increasing our metabolism and avoiding digestive problems through enhancing the bowl movements
 

How much Calories I should have??

According to your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) you can know how much calories you have to consume per day.
When multiplied by Physical activity levels, it gives us the Total energy expenditure (TEE) which is the total of energy we are burning per day according to our physical activity levels.
So you can

•  For weight maintenance: BMR + 500 Kcal/day
•  For weight loss: TEE- 1000 Kcal/day (500 Kcal for food and 500 Kcal from exercise), the calories intake should be minimum as per the BMR.
•  For weight gain: BMR + x Kcal/day + milk shakes

To calculate your BMR you can use Harris & Benedict Formula:
For women: BMR= 655.1 + (9.56 x weight in kilos) + (1.85 x height in cm) - (4.67 x age in years) Kcal
For men: BMR= 66.5 + (13.75 x weight in kilos) + (5 x height in cm) - (6.57 x age in years) Kcal
To get the total energy expenditure we have to multiply by the Physical activity level (P.A.L.)
No physical activity P.A.L  1.2
Light exercise (2-3 times/week) P.A.L  1.375
Moderate exercise (3-5 times/week) P.A.L  1.55
High exercise (6-7 times/week) P A L  1.725
Very high exercise (2 times/day) P A L  2.9

When the total amount of calories is decided, the food should be distributed into carbohydrates, proteins and fat.
To Limit  To Consume

The intake of saturated fats (butter, whole milk products, fatty meat) Vegetable oils, walnuts, avocado, almonds
Consumption of trans fats to a minimum (bakery products such as donuts, cookies, vegetable oils, hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated) Lean sources of protein such as lean meat, white poultry without skin, fish, seafood, beans and peas.

The cholesterol intake below 300 mg per day (egg yolks, shrimp, offal) The consumption of milk and skimmed milk products or semi-skimmed milk.
The extra calories from added sugars, fats and additional oils and alcohol. Taking 2 liters of water a day (8 glasses).

The consumption of sodium by avoiding very salty food (pickles olives, meats, salted nuts, chips, salty cheese, tomato paste, sauces ready, canned goods).