Since there’s a lot of emphasis on “eat fewer calories and burn more calories,” anything labeled “low-calorie” is automatically considered “weight loss friendly,” and “low calorie” breakfast cereals, muesli, granola, etc., which usually have a high amount of sugar, raise blood sugar rapidly, eliciting a sharp insulin response, which means you would feel hungry quite soon, once insulin causes blood sugar to slump. For a majority of people, breakfast is the most exciting meal of the day and it should rightfully be a nutrient-dense meal. The first meal of the day should help you kickstart the day on a healthy note. A heavily-processed cannot be considered healthy just because it claims to be low in calories; please do not swap it for traditional breakfast options like idli, dosa, paratha, dhokla, poha, etc. Among these, poha is perfect for busy bees because it is easy to make and would appeal to every tastebud and palate. The best thing is that you can have poha for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and as a snack too. All said and done, if you are trying to lose weight, let’s find out if poha is good to shed extra pounds or not?
Why you Should Pick Poha over Processed Breakfast Cereals?
There’s no doubt that when you have hardly any time in the morning to prepare breakfast, pouring out cereals into a bowl from a packaged box would seem time saving and convenient. But is it healthy and weight loss friendly? Breakfast cereals have empty calories, with very low nutrient profile. Some of these cereals are high in sugar, have added flavour, artificial color, GMO and synthetic products. You would be compromising on nutrients when picking them over traditional breakfast options like poha, dhokla, idli, dosa. Poha, as we mentioned above, is an easy-to-make breakfast recipe that can also be the most exciting meal of the day and an awesome way to jumpstart your morning.
Listing out ways poha can be made weight loss friendly:
1. Poha is made from beaten or flattened out rice, and the amazing thing is that you can get red rice variant as well with the goodness of fiber, B vitamins, iron, zinc, magnesium, calcium, and other nutrients. The red variant also has anthocyanins, a group of antioxidants with anti-inflammatory and anti-obesity properties!
2. Wait, there’s more – you can take the nutrient level of poha several notches by adding peanuts (for protein), and spices. From kanda poha to tomato poha – the list of variations you can make with this easily available and inexpensive ingredient is endless. Garnish with coriander leaves, curry leaves. With a dash of lemon, let your tastebuds dance with delight.
3. You can also add all kinds of veggies into poha – green peas, carrots, beans, capsicum, cauliflower, potato, corn, onion, broccoli, and even tomato, and convert poha into a wholesome meal. Green chillies, ginger, grated coconut – poha can accommodate these metabolism-boosting ingredients too.
4. Poha with dahi/yogurt makes a great combination to boost weight loss. Dahi/yogurt is a good source of calcium and healthy bacteria, aids in digestion, boosts metabolism, and keeps the gut bacteria happy.
5. It’s a light breakfast, lunch, dinner option – easy to digest.
6. It’s a gluten-free option.
7. There are less than 200 calories in one cup of prepared poha.
With so many benefits that come along poha and no elaborate meal planning required, poha should ideally be a staple meal even in your weight loss diet. Most importantly, if weight loss is on your mind, you should check out the amazing diet plan on the Rati Beauty app.
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