Watch a Green Prophet become a lean, green, health machine…or die of internet embarrassment!

Faisal O'Keefe — Fri, 08 Apr 2016 12:20:47 +0000

The weeks that girdled Christmas and New Year’s had me living like a fois gras goose, endlessly stuffed with food and drink as my family raced from Jordan to England to the US for clan-centric rituals ranging from a funeral to a birthday, with the usual winter holidays in between. I recently scanned the snapshots, and there it was before my eyes (and under my chins, and around my was-once-there waist. I am fat.

A wake up call in black and white and color. It’s time to face the music. (What’s the best playlist for better health?)

Nothing I do is single-dimensional. I‘m fat, and I want to be fit. I aim to distance family menus from meat, and shop local produce. I’ve never followed a diet, that’s not to say I didn’t try one. It was usually an office affair, with a full and varied crew trying The Cabbage Soup Diet, Scarsdale, Weight Watchers and Atkins. But I’m a culinary Casanova; when it comes to prescribed menus I’m a notorious cheat.

I believe I suffer the reverse of anorexia. I know I’m no Kate Moss, but feel no connection to Mama Cass. So why am I shocked when I see me in pictures? Jabba the Hut is my doppelgänger, the imaginary albatross around my flabby neck. I weigh the same as I did when I entered the hospital to give birth to my firstborn. Thing is, he’s now 28.

So damn it, it’s time. I am beginning a six month program of uber-mindful living. And I will write about it, wins and losses, no holds barred. Slap me with comments and advice. Cast me some criticism. I could use the distraction from falafel sandwiches, bulging with salty pickles and dripping with tasty tahini.

Green Prophet often reports on health trends, food and fitness. I write about this, now it’s time to live it, here in Amman, near the bounty of Jordan Valley farms. The vegetable souk is bursting with produce. Plus it’s Springtime, when weather demands you get up from your computer and go outside for a walk or a hike. Looks like I am out of excuses.

This is not a vanity piece, it’s more a travelogue through food and fitness ideologies. I’ll try on a different approach every few weeks, and wear it like my old Catholic school uniforms – donned daily without deviation. It’s a kind of Cinderella health story. I can hear the clock ticking, and my time to take action is now. Trot alongside me, poke fun or cheer me on, be inspired to try some new behaviors yourself.

The first few weeks will be about mindfulness with a starter list of actions that I can count on one hand:

Keep a log of what goes in my mouth, and record daily weigh-ins. Have to find a place to stow this; haven’t been this secretive about a diary since I was 12 years old. I will show progress and stats.
Get moving. Pulled out an ancient and underused step-tracker. Will aim for 20 minutes on the treadmill, plus walk more outdoors. Thinking to start with a BB King playlist, as I expect my hamstrings to be feeling the blues.
Start each day with a big gulp of water with a splash of apple cider vinegar. This tip is a perennial pop-up on social media. It can’t hurt. A shake-up to the gallons of water I already down daily.
Put a silver stake through the heart of ex-pat living, and cut out alcohol. No drinking at home, and limit the rest. Burn bonus calories by pushing back drinks bought by unbelieving friends.
Eat more soup. This will help slide us into a less-chicken-based diet, and up veggie consumption. Thanks to the fabulous cookbook Soup for Syria, I already have a freezer full of the stuff to carry me a month. Got some recipes to share? Don’t be stingy!

And so it begins.

Image from Health and Love Page

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#OnlyInDubai is eating the calories you just burned considered “good health”

Faisal O'Keefe — Fri, 30 Jan 2015 08:03:02 +0000

Working out with no results? Health professionals in Dubai have a counter-intuitive solution to consider: eat more!

So you’re trying to make good on your New Year’s resolution to put down the shawarma and pick up some weights. But after a month, you can’t see results (nor your toes). Fear not, the Dubai Health Authority (DHA) has your back (and belly) with a dozen new programs about nutrition for exercise.

Exercising and healthy eating go hand-in-hand, and you’re unlikely to reach your desired workout results without a healthy meal plan, warns the DHA. Planning to burn 600 calories during your work-out? Then swallow a snack packing 300 calories. You read that right. They claim that a healthy pre-exercise nibble should contain 50% of the calories you expect to burn, ideally made up of about 30% protein, 55% carbs and 15 % fats.

DHA-suggested examples start out sensibly enough with nuts with yogurt, and hummus and veggies, but then escalate to peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and yogurt smoothies – menu choices that likely led you to the treadmill to begin with.

But here’s where their plan really derails: they also recommend a second snacking after your workout – again, loaded with half of the calories you’ve just burned off. The DHA smartly urges that ample water be drunk throughout the workout, but goes on to state that your exercised body is in “recovery mode”, requiring a nutrient dense meal to stay in best health.

“In 2013, we noticed that although some of our patients were regular with exercise but they were following incorrect practices such as not consuming water during exercise, consuming unnatural protein sources etc.,” said Wafa Ayesh, DHA Director of Clinical Nutrition, “We then realized that it is important to educate people about correct nutrition especially before and after exercise so that they can see positive results and be healthy. People need to understand that exercise and healthy eating go hand-in-hand.”

Exercise boosts metabolism, which means that after your workout your body at rest will burn more calories than it would had you not exercised. But to sandwich workouts between meals that replace in total the calories you just spent sounds like flabby fitness advice. Especially in the Gulf states which are producing a bumper crop of obese and diabetic people.

In its weekly Twitter clinic, the DHA announced it will carry out several awareness campaigns at walking tracks throughout the emirate over the next 3 months.

They’ve set up booths at Dubai’s various walking venues where they will be addressing topics such as nutrition for athletes, ideal foods to consume before and after exercise, and the hazards of energy drinks. They will also give free health screening for Body Mass Index, blood sugar and blood pressure. Find them at these locations on the specified dates:

Zabeel Park, Gate 3: 4 to 6 PM on January 19, February 16, March 16, and April 6
Al Khawaneej: 4 to 6 PM on January 26, February 23, and March 23
Hatta Park: 11 AM to 1 PM on February 9 and March 9

And if DHA is to be believed, bring plenty of snacks.

Image of athlete eating rice from Shutterstock

The post #OnlyInDubai is eating the calories you just burned considered “good health” appeared first on Green Prophet.

weight loss - Green Prophet

Watch a Green Prophet become a lean, green, health machine…or die of internet embarrassment!

#OnlyInDubai is eating the calories you just burned considered “good health”