Rotund or stick- thin
Monday ~ January 01, 2010 by Sangeeta Posted in Health, random
Why are you so thin? The world has always been obsessed with slim people. Thin people. People with just a little fat – in the right places. I have often wondered why thin people are thin and fat are fat. I can comprehend shapelessness – or lack of body toning. But cannot understand why some are bony thin (me) and some happily plump. Though many would be quick to say heredity or genes, I am not so readily convinced. I remember being called thin all my life( it’s not been a very long one yet, but nevertheless). Perfect strangers dishing it out with a hint of envy, acquaintanes exaclaiming that I would soon become invisible, friends and family with concern in their voices. I have by now learnt to take most of such comments in my stride. Well.. sometimes I do wonder if I look quite alright or not. I then stand in front of the mirror and look critically, puzzling. I turn to my husband, absorbed in his laptop, asking if I appear too thin. Rubbish, you look perfect, he says without looking up. I turn away satisfied. Most times, I just assume that people too wonder how is it that I am so thin. Which is probably why they cannot stop saying it. So after some careful thought, I have come up with a list of guidelines to help you recognize yourself. Are you thin or fat because of what you do or because of some heredity issue? I have come to the conclusion that I am thin, in part because of my genes, and in part because of the way I lead my life. What I am about to state is of course restricted to my own self and I speak for no one else. 1) Thin or Fat: A way of life. After hearing people comment about your physical appearance all your life, your thinness or fatness becomes a physical trait – like the colour of your hair or skin. I believe you subconsciously associate the attribute fat or thin along with the rest of your physical description – 5 feet 6 inches, fair, brown hair, fat. This I feel has a negative impact on those who have valiantly tried to shed excess kilos for what seems like ever to them. In my case, for example, no matter how many ice-creams and chocolates I eat, my weight will just not budge. Now I know I cannot just wish away the calories into nothingness – so I assume I must be ensuring that I compensate in some other ways. By either exercising more or just running around doing chores or something to burn it out. Fat people on the other hand after stuffing themselves will feel – oh.. this will just settle somewhere and I will keep looking the way I have been all my life. To keep looking the way you always have been is what the problem is. As long as I don’t get fatter or thinner, I’m alright. Aap itne santoosht kyun hain – pouts a peeved Shahrukh Khan in an advert. Guess that is how we should be with ourselves too. If you think you are fat, keep trying to change it – do not accept it. If you think you are too thin, work on that. 2) Company Not Food: Company is more important than food. When you are having a nice dinner out somewhere, I think it’s useful to focus more on the people with you rather than on the food in front of you. I mean, think about it – it will all go down the drain anyway. So why not pay more attention to your friends or family or whoever? You will cherish those people foreever. It will also ensure that you have pleasant table manners – I mean who enjoys the company of someone very intent on gobbling their food like there’s no tomorrow. I always think of a friend I have whenever I have the urge to greedily gobble. She takes a small morsel into her mouth, chews slowly, finishes, pauses, looks around, says something and then moves to the next bite. How amazing is that? 3) Drink More: Drink more than eat. Water I mean. And its also good to begin with soup or juice. Its definitely healthy and fills you up quite a bit. I generally have the habit of drinking water at the end of my meal. But whenever we eat out, I always have at least three full glasses of water during the course of the evening. It gives you an idea of what the status of your hunger is. Else you end up saying – I have no space left for even water! 4) Stop eating when you feel somewhat full. We tend to not pay attention when we are having fun or when our fav dishes are laid out. But have fun not with the food, but with the activity. If you have got together with friends, enjoy that rather than binging on the food. I have somehow always managed to resist eating anything at all, no matter how much I like it, once I have felt my hunger abate. 5) Awareness: It is important to be aware of how different foods affect you. I hate having junk food when I am hungry. I always have a proper meal when hunger pangs hit me. I get really hungry around 6 in the evenings. I usually sit down and have dinner then. Even if no one in the family is in the mood for it. And once I have had a full meal then, I do not feel like another meal at night when the rest of the folks sit down to dinner. I simply have a glass of milk or something light. Its only when I want to indulge my taste buds, do I snack on the chiwda or ladoo. But since I do not do it when I am hungry, I usually can stop after a bite or two. I enjoy the taste but don’t end up stuffing myself with it. Do you feel satisfied with eating junk when you are hungry? If not, it’s best left for those in-between times. 6) Share: I am reminded of a friend of mine who used to always tick me off. Sangeeta – why are you passing your plate around before even tasting the thing? There’s hardly any left for you! Anyway, all this does not mean that you starve yourself. Fact is that I eat plenty but at the same time I practise what I have stated above. As my sister discovered one day. It was hardly anytime after lunch when I announced I was going to have a small snack. I do not eat a whole lot in one go, but have smaller meals. I usually feel hungry every 2 hours and have a fruit or something to keep me going for the next two hours! Find out what suits you best. Disclaimer: I am not a diet consultant or qualified nutritionist. I am not a doctor at all. Whatever I have written above is from personal experience. Before altering your diet or lifestyle, consult your doctor.
She was always concerned that I ate too little. Fact is, its not nice to not ask your friends plus its nice to see them enjoy it. And I have discovered it has it’s pluses in other ways too. It just gets ingrained in you to be polite even when you are hungry and you are served your favourite food. I love the movie Mr India and have watched it many times. In one of my favourite scenes, they show Sridevi offering friendship and food to the hungry little girl Tina but Tina does not jump at the food. She instead looks at Anil Kapoor who nods. Once she has his approval, she moves forward and accepts Shridevi’s friendship and the box of samosas. Then too, she does not take one and pass the box to the other hungry kids, but instead takes the box around herself. Wonder if I could show such maturity, manners and magnanimity in such a situation?
