Count Your Calories at CCA Podium and Nadine Tengco

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Weight loss has been an ongoing battle for me since time immemorial. At certain points of my life I tried going to the gym, taking pills, dieting — all with minimal results or no success at all. The most successful attempt was for the last 2 years where I had to control my food intake to a point of starvation. I lost about 20lbs. and shed 4 inches off my waist. But now I’m starting to gain weight and that is really frustrating. So when the opportunity to attend Nadine Tengco‘s 350 Calorie Plates for Weight Loss class at the Center for Culinary Art Podium, I immediately said yes.

I know that my weight loss regimen is not a healthy one and Chef Nadine confirmed it as I listened to her lecture. I learned new and interesting facts, like how the body works and the calorie needs. It is recommended not to go beyond the minimum calorie intake for the body to function normally. Women can go as low as 1,200 calories while men cannot go beyond 1,400. Using these figures as basis, the 350 Calorie Plate Weight Loss Program was created, where one can have a meal thrice a day with 350 calories to consume a total of 1,050 calories and have snacks twice a day that contains 200-400 calories to arrive at the acceptable calorie consumption. This definitely involved healthy eating, making sure that one gets to consume enough nutrients to sustain the body’s needs. I realized that starvation is not an effective weight loss strategy because the brain can cause the body to enter the survival mode and store more fat and become obese. Now that’s a scary thought knowing that I skipped meals several times to avoid gaining weight.

All my knowledge about weight loss was corrected, as the celebrity fitness nutritionist shared more of her knowledge to the class which was attended by fellow bloggers and the Biggest Loser alumni. Towards the end of the session, we were grouped and assigned to prepare meals based on the 350 Calorie Plate recipes. The group I was assigned to prepared meals for dinner — Chicken Tikka (142 Cal), Black Rice Tabbouleh (160 Cal) and low-cal Baba Ghanoush (53 Cal), all totaling 355 calories. We also prepared Zucchini-Bean Dip and Vegetables Crudites (189 Cal) which is a suggested snack. After putting on our apron and toque, we were ushered into CCA’s kitchen where all the ingredients are waiting to be washed, chopped, mixed and thrown into the fire.

I enjoyed every moment at the kitchen at CCA Podium. I love the fact that I’m using tools used by professionals. Learning to prepare the food and realizing it’s not that difficult was very encouraging as well. Suddenly I became a blender expert as I took care of pouring in ingredients to the machine as we prepare the dips. It was also gratifying to have cooked delicious food that even Chef Nadine complimented. Awesome!

CCA‘s 350 Calorie Plate for Weight Loss is a 5-hour class consisting of lectures, demo and hands-on cooking and plating. There are 3 series to choose from: diabetic weight loss, heart healthy weight loss, and the one we attended, the detox weight loss. Despite the lack of sleep because I went straight from my shift, the class is worthwhile. It’s also a good investment for those who plan to enroll.

Chef Nadine Tengco is one of the secrets behind the weight loss program of the Philippine franchise of the Biggest Loser. She was responsible for developing healthy menus and coaching contestants of the said reality show and is also the current fitness-nutrition consultant to The Sexy Chef, The Philippine Olympic Commission and Sexy Solutions by Belo. It’s good to know that I’m learning from an expert who has proven herself in the country.

To start learning from the expert, enroll in a 350 Calorie Plate Weight Loss class now. All  courses are conducted at the CCA Culinary School and Market Cafe at the 5th floor of The Podium in Ortigas Center, Pasig City.  CCA Podium is a market cafe, culinary school and events place in one and is a nice place to learn to cook, hang out and enjoy good food. They can be reached at telephone number 509-3466 or visit their website at www.cca-manila.com.