My mother is gifted with extraordinary culinary talents. We love her cooking as much as we love they way she takes good care of all of us.

This might have been the reason why my father has grown huge over the years, especially around the tummy.

Recently, I have observed that although my daid still earts voraciously, he is gradually losing that extra bulge. I asked my mom about it and she just smiled. Over a cup of coffee, she shared with me her secrets. I would like to share it with you , too.

Mom said that dad needs to lose weight as he is into his mid-life age wherein diseases like diabetes, arthritis, stroke, and cancer are lurking around the corner and ready to strike upon a person who is not diet conscious. So she made changes on his diet without him knowing it. She also encouraged my dad to join her in some physical activities on weekends.

Mom began using wholegrain in her baking instead of white bread. According to her, wholegrain bread contains more fiber which makes him full for a longer time. He cuts back on his calories.

Whenever my father takes her to dine at restaurants, mother said she eats all the pre-dinner rolls without my father noticing it. If she can’t help it, she would request the waiter to exchange the butter with vinegar and olive oil.

Since my father is fond of bringing a sandwich to work, she prepares it without the bread. Dad loves lettuce so she makes this the sandwich base rather than bread. She fills it up with slices of tomato, cucumber (with the skin on), celery and mix it with slices of either apple, mango, or avocado or whatever is in season. When he requests for meat, my mom uses chicken meat without the skin. If dad insists on having bread, and sometimes he gets away with it, mother used wholegrain bread.

On weekends, mom would request dad to help her in the garden. She would pretend to be in pain in the arm, or back, so she could ask him to weed grass or dig soil or just plain relocations of flower pots, and even mowing. These sort of let him burn lots of calories and are good for emotional and physical health.

Oftentimes, my mom encourages my dad to play basketball with my youngest brother or badminton with my younger sister, or play tennis with me. All that and more, dad burns a lot of calories by playing the sports.

Engaing in physical sports or taking regular exercises and taking proper diets have enormously helped my dad to lose weight. He was able to manage the pressure and stress at work. According to mom, stress causes production of hormone cortisol which forms fats and round the belly and risk of heart disease. Exercise regulates the hormones that’s why dad lose weight eventually, mom added.