78 HEALTH & BEAUTY Less than perfect Health & beauty advice from Rowena Kitchen
There is a new bully on the block and it’s the endless parade of groomed, skinny and styled celebrities that make us feel less than perfect.
W
here to begin? The cost, the time, the growling hunger pangs or the feeling that you will never
achieve such a wondrous appearance even if you devote most of your waking day to the game? Well, right back here at the starting line, to me the only goal is to be the best me I can be and to hell with the rest of them and their rather pointless quest. A friend of mine says ‘We are all thin in the graveyard!’ Which sums it up rather brilliantly. So while we are still living we may as well enjoy ourselves. Can you imagine devoting your life to your image? It’s madness. Our weight has become a form of
entertainment or almost hobby like. Which diet you have tried and failed at is not actually an interesting topic of
conversation.There are many other things out there to entertain us. Art, literature, film, family and communi- ty service. But still we are drawn like moths to a flame to the holy grail of weighing the same we did at age 18. Fat, stout, chubby, heavyset, roly-poly we’ve
Strain on your joints and your heart will not bring you any joy. Move around a bit more and eat a little less. Those are the basics that the diet industry don’t want us to think about! Today with so many labour saving devices and trans-
But still we
are drawn like moths to a flame to the holy grail of weighing the same we did at age 18.
heard them all and there are dozens more words to describe someone who does not conform to current weight standards and images. We get it - Fat Bad Diet Good. Our fascination and obsession with losing weight takes up most of our newspapers and social media. Apparently some women spend most of their life on a diet. Hating themselves if they cave and eat cake and then feel guilty that they actually enjoyed it. Dieting has been around for hundreds of years. Bulimia was a common practise in Ancient Greece. We know this because Hippocrates mentions it as a way of balancing food intake with exercise to stay healthy. Fast forward to the 1920’s when American advertising advised women to smoke when they felt hungry….I feel a lawsuit coming on! Being healthy and happy are
the corner stones to a life well lived. If you are overweight and it is affecting your day then you can do something about it.
port, readily available to save us the bother of even walking to the shops to buy food, mean we have to set aside time to exercise... and more often than not pay to do so! Most humans have legs and feet and can walk. There are many ways to make walking a valid form of exercise without special equipment and you can find many plans and programs online if you are not confident that the simple action of leaving the house and walking briskly for half an hour a day will work for you. Physical exertion not only burns fat but it exercises the heart so a win-win all around. Low fat diets can help prevent heart disease, obesity and pre diabetes. The companies that produce special foods that
are low fat are making a fortune while people keep on getting fatter. We’ve all seen those hateful ready meals that cost more than regular ready meals all because they contain less than 300 calories. And ready meals in any shape or form are not a good idea if you can avoid them. If time is an issue for you then look at Jamie Oliver’s 15 minute meals for inspiration. Not only are they fast but he pays attention to making his recipes healthy. It’s not just foods that the diet industry want us to
buy. Pills that promise magical weight loss, milk shakes instead of meals, clubs that charge to weigh you in front of a room full of other desperate people and hope that your public shame will act as an incentive. Let’s not forget the plans that cut out entire food groups accompanied by tediously finicky recipes. I say don’t join in! Foods that
are low fat by nature are the best way to eat. You are not stuck eating just lettuce as there is a wealth of deliciousness available. All fruits and vegetables are low
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