Weight & Diet

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Beauty agony aunt Bharti Vyas gives advice on your weight and diet related problems

If you would like Bharti to help solve your beauty problems,
you can write to her at:
Bharti Vyas/Your Beauty
24 Chiltern Street
London W1M 1PF
Alternatively, you can email: bharti@blackbeautyandhair.com or visit www.bharti-vyas.com

NICE AND LIGHT
In the past six months I have tried to lose weight but find it very difficult. Any suggestions on getting me lighter for the New Year?
It’s great that you have decided to take control of your weight, as excess weight can affect your general health. What a lot of people do is start a diet without first clearing their gut, so the nutritional food you are eating is not absorbed into the body. In Ayurveda, we very much look at balancing the body by ridding the body of any gunge. According to Ayurveda, we should cut out wheat from our diet at least once every five years for 12 weeks. They are both allergens, but wheat in particular contains gluten, which is a thick stodgy substance that gunges up the gut. Stick to it for 12 weeks and you will see an increase in your energy levels, weight loss but more so inch loss, which makes you look slimmer. Cut out bread, biscuits, cakes, wheat-based cereals and pasta from your diet and replace with rice and potatoes, plus lots of vegetables. Also try cutting down on red meat, as it is hard for the body to break down and drink at least one glass of water for every hour you are awake. At the end of 12 weeks you can introduce wheat slowly back into your system.
WATER WORKS
Even though I’m overweight, I feel the heaviness comes from me retaining water. What treatment can I have to make me feel human again?
I have developed the BVM Skin Refresher treatment (£125). It starts with a deep full body salt scrub and microdermabrasion on the face which exfoliates the skin and stimulates blood and lymphatic circulation. This is followed by a full body friction massage with coconut oil. Coconut oil is extensively used in Ayurveda to generally boost all systems of the body. It is a great antioxidant as well as helping reduce weight. It contains short and medium-chain fatty acids that help in taking off excessive weight by increasing the body’s metabolism. The friction massage helps stimulate the lymphatic system and reduce puffiness. The treatment then ends with a massage, using a fat mobilising serum. Clients have reported feeling uplifted and lighter after the first session, and in time with a healthy diet, you will see your weight drop. Visit www.bharti-vyas.com or call 020 7935 5312.
CHUBBY CHEEKS
I am on a diet and have lost a stone, but I still feel my face looks as chubby as it did before. Can I do anything to speed that along?
Unfortunately, a fleshy jawline can blur the definition of the face and can often wrongly signal ‘fat’. Massaging along your jawline can help prevent stagnation occurring and will help tone and release trapped toxins. It will also help release a lot of tension held in this part of the face, which can otherwise lead to headaches and mental tension.

To help tone, try this facial exercise: Rest one elbow on a firm surface and cup your chin in the palm of your hand. Push your chin into the palm of your hand. Push your chin in the palm, which should resist the pressure. Hold for a slow count of five. Then repeat five times and do it every day.
HEALTHY BONES
I took your advice and decided to cut out dairy from my diet and I do feel better. However, I am worried the reduction in my calcium intake will affect my bones.
Remember that milk is not the sole source of calcium and that there are many other foods that will provide a high source. These include tinned sardines and pilchards, parsley, leafy green vegetables like broccoli, spinach and watercress, dried figs, soya flour, almonds, sesame seeds, curry powder, dry mustard, canned salmon and eggs. To initially clear your system, you only need to completely cut dairy out of your diet for 12 weeks. Thereafter, you can bring it back into your diet, but just cut down your intake.