Check out 16 Return-To-Work Programs In India For Ambitious Women Like You!
A woman talks about her journey with food, how she learnt about nutrition and finally fell in love with her kitchen.
Do you love your body? Are you eating the right food? Do you stop when you are full?
Is spending time in the kitchen a waste of time and a useless activity?
As a young woman, I had always associated any form of food with becoming fat. My notion was – if I eat, I would become fat. For me, food didn’t mean nutrition. It didn’t mean something which I could enjoy. Indulgence was a sin. Food was equal to a monster. All my life I wanted to lose weight. Right now too, if someone asks me, unintentionally my answer to the questions above will be YES!
In the past, I had done crash diets and undoubtedly had lost unwanted weight. But in the long run, I did not manage to maintain the desired weight. In one of the crash diets, I remember I had completely stopped the intake of milk to lose weight, without thinking as to where my body would get that lost calcium and protein from. My knowledge about nutrition science was almost zero. The result of not getting proper nutrition was my deteriorating health, frequent headaches, lifeless hair and weakness.
Moreover, I would associate the kitchen with people who were not educated and I thought that they uselessly spent time cooking and eating and putting on extra kilos. I thought instead, they should spend their time in reading or learning any new skill.
Lately, as I am aging I can see my body change. It needs balanced diet, proper nutrition, which is only possible by – firstly awareness and then by eating healthy timely meals.
Lately, as I am aging I can see my body change. My stomach can no more digest heavy, oily curries with papad followed by sweets at night. It needs a balanced diet, proper nutrition, which is only possible by – firstly, awareness and then by eating healthy timely meals. Now, I have realized the value of healthy food that gives us nutrition. Gradually, I have understood my body and its reaction towards certain foods.
Before, I would just call the nearby departmental store and order a few veggies (we are vegetarians). Without much effort, I would simply cook anything and finish off my kitchen duty. The worst scenario was when I would without guilt, order ‘take out’ from a nearby restaurant so that I could invest my time in reading or watching movies or something (I thought) more productive.
I spend my time intelligently in the kitchen I get ample time to indulge in my hobbies and other activities.
Now, my new perspective towards cooking is to do smart grocery shopping and spend quality (yet short) time in the kitchen. Now I enjoy buying veggies from the local farm market and systematically storing them in the fridge. Every week I plan my family’s meal that includes a lot of veggies, fruits, milk, nuts, grains etc. Just because I spend my time intelligently in the kitchen, I get ample time to indulge in my hobbies and other activities. The lesson I learnt was to sit and plan my meals and think before I enter my kitchen.
In short, now I have learnt:
Finally, the last step I took was to educate myself about food and nutrition. I am pursuing two online courses now –
Woman in kitchen image via Shutterstock
Meenu believes in enjoying little things in life. Very social but at the same time could sit at home on a weekend and read a book instead! read more...
Women's Web is an open platform that publishes a diversity of views, individual posts do not necessarily represent the platform's views and opinions at all times.
Stay updated with our Weekly Newsletter or Daily Summary - or both!
People say that women are the greatest enemies of women. I vehemently disagree. It is the patriarchal mindset that makes women believe in the wrong ideology.
The entire world celebrates International Women’s Day on March 8, 2024. It should be a joyful day, but unfortunately, not all women are entitled to this privilege, as violence against women is at its peak. The experience of oppression pushes many women to choose freedom. As far as patriotism is concerned, feminism is not a cup of tea in this society.
What happens when a woman decides to stand up for herself? Does this world easily accept the decisions of women in this society? What inspires them to be free of the clutches of the oppression that women have faced for ages? Most of the time, women do not get the chance to decide for themselves. Their lives are always at the mercy of someone, which can be their parents, siblings, husband, or children.
In some cases, women do not feel the need to make any decisions. They are taught to obey the patriarchal system, which makes them believe that they are right. In my family, I was never taught to make decisions on my own. It was always my parents who bought dresses and all that I needed.
It is shameful that in today's world too, women are abused and even killed for giving birth to a girl, and the infant's life is also of no value.
Trigger Warning: This deals with domestic violence, suicide, and violence against women, and may be triggering to survivors.
I am so glad that the esteemed courts are now giving the much-required verdicts regarding certain ideologies that were not at all entertained earlier. I mean we all have studied this much biology at our school level and it is our duty (our generation) to educate our elders about it.
Why someone have to lose a life to bring such awareness to the society. Delhi High Court gave this judgement concerning a case that filed by the deceased daughter’s parents against her in-laws. She committed suicide as she was harassed and tortured for dowry and giving birth to two daughters.
Please enter your email address