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The next step in weight loss

Written by Staff Reporter

Thursday, 25 February 2010

Last week I talked about achieving long term weight loss. I described how choosing slow release carbohydrates, in the form of brown rice, whole wheat breads and pastas and whole oats, can keep us satisfied for longer and help to regulate our blood sugar levels. This means we are a lot less likely to crave sugary snacks. But what else can we do to put a halt to those darn sugar cravings that play such havoc with our weight?

When you think about your day, think about your three meals, breakfast, lunch and dinner, as individual entities in their own right. Each meal should therefore contain thre items. Firstly, each meal should consist of some form of slow release carbohydrate, as described above.

Secondly, the meal should have some form of protein. There has been quite a bit of research done into the benefits of eating more plant or fish based protein (i.e. beans and lentils, nuts and seeds, oily fish) rather than eating animal based protein such as meat and dairy.

An example is rather than just having porridge for breakfast, how about sprinkling some nuts/seeds as well. I’ve chosen the below recipe to show how you can even put protein and carbohydrates into the one pot. Find about the third item next week!

Spicy Lentil Soup

1 tablespoon fresh grated root ginger
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon chilli powder
2 teaspoons curry powder
2 teaspoons ground coriander
2 red onions chopped
1 parsnip chopped
2 sticks celery chopped
4 small carrots chopped
100g split red lentils (wash well)
100g long grain brown rice
2 pints boiling water

In a warm (not hot) saucepan warm through ginger, cumin, chilli powder, curry powder and coriander for a few mins. Add vegetables, give a stir and sweat for 10 mins, adding a little water, before adding the lentils and rice. Bring to boil and then simmer.

Cook for 40 mins (keep an eye on the pan as the lentils soak up the water, you don't want it to cook dry). Add more boiling water if necessary. Only season with salt and pepper if necessary. Remove from heat and liquidise using a hand held blender.

To find out more about how my Mind and Body Detox event coming up on March 6th can help with weight loss, contact me on 086 8179964 or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

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