Wednesday, April 8, 2009

Rice... one bowl or two

I met some friends the other day and the topic of weight loss came up. As usual, everyone brought up their favourite “kalau tak makan nasi, pasti boleh kurus”. Then another friend echoed saying “Actually, I dengar kalau you makan nasi once a day, OK, tak gemuk”. Then echoed another friend “Ah Ah… betul lah, I pun dengar cerita sama”.

OK, if you are wondering why I am writing the dialogues in Malay, is because it is as it happened… and not for any other reasons.

Now back to the topic… is it true? If I cut down my rice to once a day, will I see weight loss?

The answer – It all depends on the amount of physical activity you do in a day. If you just sit in your office chair all day and then sit in you car for the traffic jam, and then in front of the TV… then even eating rice once a day might be overkill for your waistline. But if you work as a construction worker… heck, you could eat rice for breakfast, lunch, dinner and supper and yet your body would be as lean as Bruce Lee. Why? Because of the amount of activity you do.

There are thousands of other weight loss myths just circulating out there and the thing that they all have in common… is that it is a perceived easy way out to weight loss.

Sorry to burst everyone’s bubble… but there is no shortcut to losing weight and keeping fit. Workout more and eat less… you do these and you will definitely lose weight.

Are there any other weight loss myths you guys have heard? Would love to hear them if you have any.

PS: If you want to know more weight loss myths and whether they work or not, do check out “Good Living” magazine which is out in news stands now. I wrote an article for them with regards to weight loss myths. If you see the magazine, please do pick up a copy and have a read.

9 comments:

Azmyspin said...

Rajan bro,

Most ppl have this negative mentality when it comes to this rice thingie. & U were right, it totally depends on the amount of activity. I have been teaching cardio for 5 years now, and believe me, rice is very much needed as a fuel source. its like a 'petrol' for our body. Without rice as carbs, we cant really exert our body into our best of potential.

Hope I'm making some sense here, esp to the 'rice skeptics' out there.

P/S: can i pls have a free copy of the Good Living mag that u wrote on?

Kerp (Ph.D) said...

since i dont really workout i'd better stick to a plate a day, and that would be during lunch. in fact, this has been my practice for the past years. only when i dine out will i give in to all the temptations. cant do anything, feeble will-power.

Rajan said...

Azmy: You make absolute sense.. rice and carbs are what they call energy foods, because it is used to give us energy.

problem arises when you got too much energy foods, but no outlet to use all that energy... so it gets stored. i too personally believe that rice has been given a very bad name unnecessarily.

Yes... you can. maybe when i meet you this weekend, i pass you a copy.

Kerp: Sticking to once a day is a good guideline to go with. Maybe you want to try reducing your rice little by little over time so you don't feel the drastic drop. This is a good way to cut down if you think you do need to cut down. Also, cutting down slowly is ideal for those with feeble will power. hehehehe

anfield devotee said...

But Kerp, you eat out all the fooking time . . .

Kerp (Ph.D) said...

then i may have to cut on my outing la, before anything else...hehehe...

thanks for the tip rajan.

Rajan said...

Kerp: No-lah Bro... you can still go out but eat sparingly. Maybe next time you go out to eat nasi, before your start eating, push one small amount of the rice to one side... this is basically the rice that you are not going to consume. Every week... increase the size of this push aside rice slowly. Soon, you will be able to tell the shop... nasi separuh... and fill up on other things like Vege and meat and you won't even realize you are eating less rice. that's the secret... slow and steady... but make sure you keep reducing it.

Kerp (Ph.D) said...

i am so game to give it a shot. but it all depends on the execution. thanks.

Rajan said...

Kerp: it's all in the mind....

ian yusof said...

yup, have to agree with you.. it all depends on the activities that we do, coz IT IS THE EXTRA CALORIES THAT'S NOT BEEN BURNED THAT WILL BE STORED AS FAT. Nothing got to do with the food whatsoever .... But the again, if we enjoy certain food which are packed with sugar & calories, make sure we balance them out with more intense activities.