By - Dr. Panchali Moitra (Woman and Child nutrition Expert)

We subconsciously wish for miraculous solutions to keep extra kilos at bay, but remember its highly improbable that diet books or health clubs will help you to lose or maintain weight, unless we are determined to do so yourself. The single most important factor for losing weight and attaining optimum nutrition is correct conditioning of mind.

Excuses for not eating healthy are plentiful - business lunches, having to eat out, stressed out at work, holidays, kitty parties, etc. In the rush to satisfy daily hunger and desires, we have subconsciously agreed to succumb to unhealthy eating and lifestyle choices.

So, here am I to try assisting you in finding perfect ways for eating healthy in not so perfect world…

There is always something positive that can be done for our health. Maybe it's eating an extra fruit a day, maybe it's cooking a food a different way, or maybe it's (trying) a new food that's out that we didn't know much about because of all the ethnic influences. What it takes is just a little effort and trust me, making an effort to eat healthy does not mean abandoning our lives!

To make it easy for aspiring healthy eaters, lets try putting together the most common obstacles that get in the way of good nutrition and find ways to overcome these road blocks.

Obstacle 1 - Too busy to eat healthy or find time for exercises

Solution - is not to find more time but to work with the schedule we have. The minutes spent in visiting fast food or choosing vending machine options could be used towards time to visit grocery stores, where you can pick up prepared, low fat dressings, ready to eat meals, cut fruits and vegetables (which can be later just stir fried and had with a sauce or gravy of your choice), canned soups, low calorie, unsweetened biscuits and high fibber cereals.

1. Cook a larger portion of foods during weekends, and refrigerate them, so that they can be used on weekdays. Nutritionally, they might be slightly weaker than freshly prepared home foods, but definitely a better choice than processed foods

2. Maintain a discipline, as per your eating habits are concerned. It's better to set an alarm for mealtimes. Even if you're short of time or engrossed in a chore, don't skip meals; allot a particular time to eat.

3. Try not to do anything else while eating - reading, watching TV or talking while eating usually lands us up in eating more than required. Separating hunger from appetite (craving) is sure to help us tame our next snack attack.

4. Keep handy snacks around, such as fruits, dried fruits, nuts, salads, wheat biscuits, khakras, roasted chana and wheat sandwiches.

Obstacle 2 - Fussy Eaters!!! Hate the smell of health foods. Just can't eat fruits or drink plain water - need carbonated beverages to quench thirst. Sounds familiar?

Solution - Try to expand your horizons. Try not letting your tongue rule your mind and body. Add topping of your choice to make high fibber biscuits interesting. You might not like apples - try having pears or melons.

Find it difficult to prepare brown rice, try mixing brown and white first or prepare the rice with different herbs and vegetables.

Obstacle 3 - Couch Potatoes/Sedentary and desk job workers -

After a day's hard work, we all love to sit in front of TV or just listen to music, lying on our sofa sets. We love our TV shows, and can't think of a better way to relax after a hard day's work. Yet studies have found a strong relationship between television-watching and obesity. Perhaps it's because TV viewing is a sedentary activity. Or maybe it's because people tend to eat mindlessly in front of the screen. If you're sitting there [in front of the TV], and you rip open a bag of potato chips, it's very easy to end up eating the entire bag of chips and not really think about what you're doing, because your main focus is not on what you're eating, but on what you're watching.

Solution - Sit with a plate of salads or a bag of popcorn. Try playing with your kids or going for a walk with your spouse. They will not only relax your senses, but also improve your personal relations.

Obstacle 4 - Kitchen phobes - don't know, how to cook a healthy meal?

Solution- No problem!!! No need to take any special low cal cooking courses. Start by avoiding ghee on your rotis, having a glass of vegetable juice in the mornings, substitute fruit juices with fresh fruits(whole), try making salads crunchier and healthier by adding sesame seeds or peanuts, instead of butter or cheese sandwiches, have coriander chuntney, etc. Simple, isn't it?

Choose a change that you can make today and move towards a healthier tomorrow.

Remember, Healthy eating does not mean dieting to the point of starvation nor does it mean eating less burgers and drinking less colas. So, while eating less unhealthy food is a good idea, make sure your body gets the nutrients; it requires for staying fit. Healthy eating is not a prerogative of the elite but a privilege which everyone can enjoy, so lets eat healthy and be healthy.