Porridge lover seeks weight-loss options
Dear Donovan,I was reading an article online about cornmeal porridge. I’ve loved porridge from when I was younger, but the article was saying that I can’t lose weight while drinking porridge. I am 38, 5 foot tall, and 180 lbs. My BMI is 31 — that’s obesity. Can you tell me some things that I can eat, please. I sit and do schoolwork online so the weight is coming on.
I must tell you I grew up on cornmeal porridge and I, too, like cornmeal porridge. Even now, I drink cornmeal porridge at least once per week.
I would say it is possible to lose weight while drinking cornmeal porridge. However, other factors would also have to be considered. For example, what meals are you having along with it? If you are having other meals with rice, flour, and ground provisions, then weight loss might be harder.
However, let us say you are having cornmeal porridge with soups and salads, then the chances of weight loss might be greater. Another factor to consider would be, how is the cornmeal porridge made? Do you use condensed milk, coconut milk, sugar or raisins in it? How much of it are you drinking? An eight-ounce serving would be better than a 32-ounce serving, for example.
Also, how often are you drinking cornmeal porridge? All of these factors will determine whether you lose weight or not.
The fact is that cornmeal porridge usually has a large amount of calories and if you’re not careful it can hinder your weight loss. But it is not impossible to lose weight while drinking cornmeal porridge. The simple thing about weight loss is that it usually happens if the calories are reduced. So if you incorporate cornmeal porridge into your diet and your diet is adjusted so that the calories are fewer than before, then weight loss can take place.
I wish you had told me what you are currently eating. In addition, from what you’re telling me, you’re also not getting much, if any, exercise. This is not good.
If you want to lose weight your calories will have to be fewer than what you were consuming before. You will have to make some changes in your diet and I would also suggest you start doing some exercises.
Overall, I would suggest that you start your diet programme by doing portion control. This means you are mainly focusing on how much you are eating. The aim is to get down to eating half of what you were eating before. In doing this you could cut your usual breakfast portion in half. In addition, lunch could also be cut into two portions and one portion used for dinner.
The overall aim is to reduce the calories consumed so that the body can use up some of the reserved fat. Maybe after a week or two of doing portion control you could try and make your diet healthier. This you can do by incorporating more fruits, vegetables, vegetable juices, light soups, salads, whole grains, yoghurt, etc. In addition, you could also try and eliminate or reduce fried foods and white carbohydrates such as flour, rice and sugar. Also, oily foods should be reduced or eliminated from the diet.
In addition, you need to put some exercise into your programme. Exercise is very important to reduce calories, as well as to improve your health. I would also suggest that at the start of the programme you do a nine-night detox programme. This you can get a professional to help you with.
Good luck.
We will answer your weight-related questions
Are you struggling to lose weight or just need some advice on living a healthier life? Tell us about your health issues and we’ll have nutritionist and wellness coach Donovan Grant answer t hem for you. Grant has over 12 years’ experience in the fitness industry and is the owner of DG’s Nutrition and Wellness Centre, 39 Lady Musgrave Road. Call him at 876-286-1363. E-mail questions to clarkep@jamaicaobserver. com.
