Tabla de contenidos para Lose weight with the Anti-inflammatory Diet en Living Without Inflammation

Anti-inflammatory diets have long been a popular and effective way to live a healthier life. Physical ailments are reduced and, in what feels like a magical interaction, the anti-inflammatory ingredients provide a daily life-giving boost that makes your body healthier and stronger. What most people don’t realise is that this type of diet also has another potential: it can reduce your body’s fat stores in the healthiest way possible. And it’s this quality that we’re giving you a comprehensive introduction to here. So, get ready to dive into your new lifestyle – complete with a cornucopia of flavourful recipes and everything you need to boost your motivation and reach your goals. Enjoy the issue!…

Anti’ means against and ‘oxidation’ means oxygenation. The term ‘antioxidants’ thus reveals some of the abilities of these substances. Among other things, these microscopic nutrients protect the body’s cells from oxygenation and the unnecessary destruction it causes. People have been aware of this effect for many years, and various industries use antioxidants extensively in health-promoting products. If you use skin cream, you may have noticed that antioxidants are an extremely popular ingredient in moisturisers, because when these substances penetrate the skin, they prevent cell fatigue and thus wrinkle formation. At least, that’s what the manufacturers promise. The food industry also uses antioxidants – for example, in cold cuts, which stay fresh for longer after a shot of ascorbic acid or other antioxidants. Even in the combustion engines of fossil-fuelled cars,…

An anti-inflammatory diet, health and weight loss all go hand in hand for those with excess belly fat. By lowering inflammation in the body while cutting calories and maintaining a comfortable level of satiety after meals, you achieve a long-term result that not only removes excess kilos, but also optimises your body’s strength and resilience. And that’s important for a body that needs to get rid of inflammation-producing fat tissue. Some of the most important nutrients in an anti-inflammatory diet are marine omega-3 fatty acids, often referred to as fish oils, found in fish, shellfish, roe, seaweed, algae, plankton and krill. The biochemistry behind the effect of omega-3 fatty acids on the immune system is complex, but simply put, they work by affecting the number of immunity-regulating substances in your…

GINGER Ginger’s primary active ingredient is gingerol, which helps strengthens your immune system. The recommendation here is 2-4 grams of ginger daily, equivalent to fresh ginger half the size of your thumb. This amount is large enough to deliver a noticeable effect while avoiding side effects through overconsumption. How to add ginger to your daily diet: You can make tea or shots from small cut pieces of the root. Use twice the amount recommended above, as you’ll only wash about half of the active ingredients out of the flesh and into the drink. Alternatively, blend the ginger in a smoothie or chop it roughly, mix it with a little honey and ingest it as a healthy (and spicy) mouthful. If you find it difficult to fit ginger into your daily…

If you want to eat your way to anti-inflammatory strength and weight loss, deviating from the diet doesn’t make a lot of sense. Your body is best served by nourishing it with healthy, strengthening foods every day. Like good sleep habits, good eating habits work best if practised consistently, even on weekends. It’s just that your mind may not be geared up to rigorously follow the plan every day of the year. Can I fast at the same time? Fasting is a popular way to improve health and lose weight. Plenty of research indicates that occasional fasting benefits your health. Whether you’re guaranteed to lose weight is more questionable because it depends entirely on how you behave during non-fasting days. Many studies have followed people who fast for health or…

NOTE! If you have a medical condition that makes you doubt whether your body would benefit from a lot of walking, speak to your doctor before embarking on the programme. Often the solution can be to take it easy and spend a few weeks or even months training yourself to be able to walk for a full hour without experiencing any unpleasant aftereffects from the exercise – and then you can start the programme. The fact that most people can tolerate walking is down to the simple fact that it’s our natural form of movement. This programme includes both regular and more strenuous walks. Regular walking can easily take the form of strolling to the supermarket, walking to and from work, and other daily activities. It’s also fine to combine…

In terms of burning calories per minute, your everyday activities obviously don’t compare favourably with running, aerobics, strength training or other intensive forms of exercise. On the other hand, they work over a longer time frame, because they slowly burn calories day in, day out. For example, if you choose to stand up at your desk, you burn around 35 extra calories per hour. At first glance, this may not sound impressive when you need to burn 7,000 calories to lose a kilogram of body fat. But if you stand up for just one hour a day for the 300 or so days you go to work in a year, this small adjustment adds up to a total of 10,500 calories burned, which is enough to lose 1.5 kilograms of…

Dwelling on what’s not going well just lowers your mood. WANT TO Do you genuinely want to achieve change? Your ‘want to’ – the desire to lose weight with an anti-inflammatory diet – is already defined and hopefully strongly embedded. But let’s take a closer look at your motivation. Do you want the change so badly that you’re prepared to put in the effort? It’s important to articulate and nurture what is driving your decision. You can reinforce your motivation by considering the benefits right now while you’re reading these words or by talking to friends. You can also try writing down your dreams, desires, ideas and motives. Your weight-loss journey depends on how deep your motivation is, what fuels it and whether multiple goals can help reinforce your ‘want…

CEVICHE It’s almost magical that you can cook fish using nothing but lime juice. SERVES 2 MARINADE ½ hot chilli1 small red onion½ handful of fresh corianderJuice of 2 limesZest of 1 organic lime1 tsp acacia honey*½ tsp saltFreshly ground pepper200 g/7 oz fresh cod fillet½ can artichoke hearts in water50 g/1¾ oz radishes100 g savoy cabbage*1 avocado½ handful of fresh coriander DRESSING 1 tbsp olive oil25 g/1 oz baked hazelnuts (see page 141) Thinly slice the chilli and red onion, then roughly chop the coriander. Add lime juice, finely grated lime zest, honey, salt and pepper and then mix (squishing in a freezer bag works well). Use a sharp knife to cut the fish into 1 cm or ¼-½ inch cubes. Mix the fish with the marinade (in the…

If you want to lose weight, it’s important to make room for the calories in fish by cutting back elsewhere in your diet. Inspired by research, combined with real-life experiences, we recommend a daily intake of three to five grams of omega-3 fatty acids from marine sources. If you are relatively small in stature, you can lean towards the lower value, while larger people should aim for five grams a day. Or 35 grams (around 1¼ oz) during the course of a week. This is a considerable amount, far above what the average person consumes and several times above the officially recommended dose. However, this does not change the fact that it is the right amount if you want to maximise the effect of fish’s golden oils. This also applies…

Proteins are relatively difficult to digest, which means that protein-rich meals stay in the stomach for an especially long time. To put it in layman’s terms, the proteins almost clog up the stomach, meaning the other parts of the meal also stay there, often for several hours. Studies also show that the body uses a lot of energy to metabolise proteins. For every 100 calories of protein you eat, 25 calories are burned by the body in metabolising them. In practice, the body only absorbs 75 per cent of the calories from protein. In comparison, it utilises up to 99 per cent of the calories in fat and 95 per cent of those in carbohydrates. Increase fish, eggs and seafood An added bonus of increasing protein is that it’s a…

Did you know that 350 grams of broccoli contains the same number of calories as just 100 grams of cooked rice – or two small pieces of chocolate? If you like to fill your stomach, it makes sense to eat stacks of vegetables, because their calorie count is negligible. So if you like large portions, try replacing the carbohydrates from bread, pasta and the like with big platefuls of vegetables. That way, you can keep eating until your stomach feels agreeably full after each meal. The low calorie count is one of many arguments in favour of prioritising vegetables. Another equally important reason to eat more veg is the high fibre content. This almost indigestible plant residue really proves its worth in the gut and is one of the best…

From an anti-inflammatory perspective, it’s wrong to eliminate fat from your diet because your immune system needs it. The right fats are incredibly restorative and help drive inflammation from your body, which may sound a bit strange when we know that too much fat, especially in the area around your belly, has the opposite effect. However, fat isn’t just fat. There’s the kind that’s unhealthy for the body in large amounts, and then there’s the kind that contributes to the strength of your immune system. What both types of fat do share is the large number of calories they contribute, which is where fat awareness comes into play. Mediterranean miracles Choosing whether to eat fat isn’t a one-size-fits-all decision, as there’s a huge difference between what you find in roast…

The problem with achieving a sense of fullness is that it often goes hand in hand with a lot of calories. For example, if you eat a fatty dish, there can easily be 300-400 calories in 100 grams. Most people don’t experience fullness until they’ve eaten 300-500 grams of food, meaning calorie control becomes tricky with energy-dense dishes. The obvious solution is to reduce the energy ratio of meals so that your portions contain fewer calories. Vegetables are an excellent choice. They can be eaten in large, belly-filling quantities without the calorie count going through the roof. In particular, vegetables such as cabbage and green beans, with their firm texture, fill the stomach and are ideal for replacing more calorific foods, such as pasta, bread, rice and potatoes. You can…

Eat a series of light meals, five to six, spread throughout your day’s waking hours with about a three-hour break in between. This will ensure a steady flow of energy and protect you from both overeating and dips in your blood sugar levels. It will also allow you to add extra healthy ingredients to your daily diet. This could be probiotic yoghurt and berries in the morning, oily fish and vegetables for lunch, fruit and nuts in the afternoon and olive oil and cabbage in the evening. You should be able to add a light snack in the morning and/or late evening. It’s more difficult – but not impossible – to create an optimal diet if you only have a few meals each day. The goal is to avoid eating…

One of the biggest challenges when trying to lose weight is creating a sufficient calorific imbalance between what we eat and what we burn so that the body starts to draw on its fat stores for fuel. The task is made harder because many ingredients that play an essential role in the anti-inflammatory universe are highly nutritious. But don’t worry: you’ll succeed as long as you follow the instructions. Although nuts, salmon, olive oil and other anti-inflammatory goodies are packed with calories, it’s possible to get them all in without breaking your calorie limits. For example: An average, largely sedentary 70 kg woman burns just over 2,000 calories per day as she goes about her daily life. If she wants to lose weight, she must ensure she eats less than…

Perform the three exercises in a loop, moving from exercise to exercise, separated by half-to-one-minute breaks. Repeat the entire loop three times. EXERCISE 1 PRESS-UPS WITH LEGS RAISED Lie on your stomach with your hands on the floor directly beneath each shoulder. Place your feet and lower legs on a low chair, sofa or other raised surface. Tighten your core as you raise and lower yourself. Repeat 10-15 times. TIP The more of your lower leg you rest on the chair seat, the easier the exercise is. If you can’t find a suitable elevated surface, you can do the exercise with your knees on the ground. Fitness centre variation: Bench press on an incline bench. EXERCISE 2 BENT-OVER ROW Stand with feet shoulder-width apart and knees slightly bent. Hold a…

You won’t be the first or last person to view yourself as a victim when starting an anti-inflammatory diet, or to curse the fact that you struggle to control your weight, are forced to say no to all manner of delicious food and find exercising a constant battle, but by adopting a positive mental attitude and consciously recognising all the upsides, you can make anti-inflammatory weight loss manageable and even attractive. The first step is to accept that you are entirely responsible for your success and that your achievements are directly linked to whether you see yourself as a victim or victor. By accepting that you are truly the master of your own destiny and 100 per cent responsible for your choices, you ensure long-term success. While victims wait for…

Hale & hearty SCRAMBLED EGGS WITH CHILLI AND VEGETABLES SERVES 2 100 g/3½ oz broccoli1 handful of fresh spinach1 spring onion½-1 hot chilli*4 eggsA pinch of salt*Freshly ground pepper2 tbsp olive oil TOMATO SALAD 2 large tomatoes2 tsp olive oilA pinch of salt2-3 tbsp finely chopped chives BONUS CARBS For example, a slice of toasted seeded rye bread Finely chop the broccoli and spinach. Slice the spring onions and chilli very thinly. Whisk the eggs with the salt and pepper, then stir in the vegetables. Heat the oil on a medium-high heat in a large frying pan. Fry the egg mixture for 2-3 minutes, stirring until the egg is firm and the vegetables are tender but still crisp. Cut the tomatoes into quarters, drizzle with olive oil, a little salt…

GREEN CRISPBREAD MAKES MULTIPLE SERVINGS 150g/5½ oz carrots1 handful hazelnuts*1 handful kale1 handful fresh spinach3 tbsp chia seeds3 tbsp coarse rolled oats2 tbsp wholemeal flour2 tbsp olive oil1 tbsp freshly grated ginger* FOR THE TOPPING ½ tsp flake salt* Cut the carrots into smaller pieces and place in a food processor along with the hazelnuts. Blend until finely chopped. Add the remaining ingredients and blend until everything combines into a consistent dough. Preheat the oven to 125° C/250° F/Gas Mark ½ (top and bottom heat). Roll out the dough between two sheets of baking paper using a rolling pin. The dough should be rolled thinly enough to fill an entire baking tray of approximately 30 x 40 cm (12 x 16 inches). Remove the top layer of baking paper. Sprinkle…

FIVE TASTY LITTLE TREATS Sometimes you just can’t live without a sweet treat. These little treats take the cravings away without breaking the calorie budget. Enjoy them as a well-deserved weekend treat. CHOCOLATE FONDUE MAKES 12 STICKS 2 slices of seeded rye bread*25 g/1 oz dark chocolate, 70% DUKKAH 50 g/1¾ oz of nuts such as almonds, walnuts and/or hazelnuts1 tbsp sesame seeds1 tbsp poppy seeds1 tsp ground ginger½ tsp ground cinnamon Finely chop the nuts and mix them with the seeds and spices to form a fine dukkah – an Egyptian mix of nuts and spices. Toast the mixture in a dry frying pan over a medium-high heat for about 2 minutes until golden. Melt the chocolate in the microwave or in a bain marie. Toast the rye bread…