Most of us have made some resolutions for this year which we are hoping against hope that we’ll be able to follow through. Most resolutions that people make involve improving most aspects of their lives; with the most common being those related to dieting, eating healthy (having a balanced and healthy meal plan) and exercising.

What is concerning is the frequency with which people usually back off their resolutions soon after the year stops being young, primarily because the resolutions weren’t feasible in the first place or because they weren’t incorporated smoothly into daily routines.

This holds especially true for resolutions on dieting, exercise, and healthy eating, both of which need a certain degree of planning, discipline and effort to follow sincerely and throughout the year. A very effective way of doing so is to prepare a balanced and healthy meal plan. The intent is to create a personalised food plan that would set realistic goals and action steps, making it easier to stick to the prescribed diet and achieve health goals.

To get you started on that meal plan, Dr Dana Al-Hamwi, dietician and nutritionist at India Gate, shares her insights on the matter.

How to Achieve a Balanced and Healthy Meal Plan

Make the plan realistic

An ideal meal plan should above all be holistic and feasible, in terms of including the staple food items of the region, taking into consideration climatic conditions, dietary and social restrictions. This will ensure that healthy eating becomes a part of daily life, followed the whole year round – establishing a path to physical fitness, mental well-being and an overall healthy lifestyle.

Don’t forget the Water

Adequate intake of water is imperative. The diet should incorporate leafy vegetables and fruits, and other ingredients with high water content such as rice, chia seeds, quinoa and more. Avoid food high in salt and caffeine content as these ingredients dehydrate the body.

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Meal timings

The frequency and timing of meals is also important to incorporate into your healthy meal plan. It is better to have small meals at regular intervals rather than having 2 big meals a day. The old adage of ‘Breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a pauper’ is more than just a homily, containing the distilled wisdom of our elders. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day and should never be skipped. Try and have your meals at the same time every day.

Break a sweat

Exercise is the other pillar of a fit and healthy body. People aiming to lose weight often make the mistake of focussing on their diet, without engaging in any exercise or fitness activity. This approach doesn’t yield the desired results because when you ingest a lesser quantity of food, your brain automatically goes into starvation mode, slowing down your body’s metabolism rate, as a result of which your weight remains at the same level. Starting a physical activity concurrently with your diet will provide the dual benefits of lower calorie consumption and boosting your metabolism rate, enabling you to reach your weight targets faster. Also, muscles require more calories to function, wherefore the more muscle mass you gain, the faster you lose weight.

30 minutes of daily exercise of any activity or form that you like is sufficient. It is important that the activity be regular and moderately intensive.

Have a positive and optimistic outlook on life, which will help in reducing stress. Meditation or indulging in your passions are good stress-busters.

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Some dos and don’ts when it comes to dieting and planning a balanced and healthy meal plan are:

Limit intake of salt, sugar, soft drinks and sweetened drinks
Add healthy fibre sources to the daily diet, such as Quinoa and brown rice
Increase the intake of fruits and vegetables
Eat fish twice a week, especially oily fish
Cut down on saturated fat
Add 1 tablespoon of Flax and Chia seeds to your daily diet
Try healthy cooking habits using basmati rice. Basmati rice has a low glycaemic index compared to other rice types, which means once digested it releases its energy slowly keeping the blood sugar levels stable.
Particular foods support a healthy lifestyle and they should be factored into a healthy meal plan. These can include foods like spring artichoke (Folic acid-Vit B+C) which is good for liver health, summer berries (Lycopene-rich in anti-oxidant), watermelon (Carotene water), Yoghurt (Probiotics), autumns whole grains, quinoa (high in proteins), broccoli (high in antioxidants), winter oatmeal (healthy fibre), cauliflower, pumpkin soup, and sweet potatoes among others.

Particular care must be taken during the seasonal transition months, such as the advent of summer in June, and September when summer transitions into winter. During such times, regulate your water intake to remain sufficiently hydrated and eat high protein foods like quinoa.

I hope you’ll find these tips useful in designing your personalised and balanced healthy meal plan for the year.