How Tamarind Changed the Life of 42-Year-Old Obese Mother of Three

She lost 90lbs drinking only this miracle juice.

Kikai and I have been friends since last year’s annual Rotary Club convention. She’s a Filipino woman with a heart of gold. Kikai is a professional chef and mother of three. She has cooked alongside Houston’s famed chef Carlos Rodriguez. The food industry has experienced her passion for cooking and catering services.

Every year she would serve the club snacks as a support to the community. Some might say that was been strategic in her advertising because she’s a chef, but her kindness has worn more hearts than her food. If you needed a friend during an emergency, Kikai was one to leave everything she was doing when called upon.

However, I was drawn to this precious woman after I learned we shared a similar body-shaming story. When she shared her story on how she went from 116 kg to 75 kg, I marveled. As someone who used to be overweight, her story resonated with me.

I started visiting Kikai’s house more often. I learned some cooking tips from her. She taught me how to marinate meat and fish with vinegar to get the flavor out and to peel ginger with a spoon to prevent wasting the flesh.

One of her special dishes is “Salmon Sinigang.” The first time she served me the soup, I was taken aback by the sour taste. I also noticed she always cooked the soup with salmon head. I thought it was a regular soup so I didn’t make anything out of it.

Kikai cooked the soup very often and gradually, I fell in love with the soup. When I asked her for the recipe and why she loves cooking this particular soup more than any other soup. She said it was because of a special ingredient that helps her stay in shape.

The tamarind plant gives a sour taste. When cooked with salmon the taste is exquisite. I avoid eating too much fish because it upsets my tummy. But the Sinigang na Salmon doesn’t. Maybe it’s because of the tamarind plant and vegetables she uses to prepare it. I could eat three plates of the soup and not purge.

I also found out that Kikai doesn’t just cook tamarind in salmon, she drinks it as juice and sometimes as a smoothie. I’m not a fan of sour fruits but I can take bitter ones without a problem. When Kikai shared how the tamarind plant changed her life, I got hooked.

The first time I heard of tamarind was in a story by Dr Preeti Singh. Since then, I have been on the lookout for the plant but I couldn’t find it in the stores. Now I order it through Kikai. She gets hers shipped from the Philippines by her relatives.

Shedding those pesky fats has never been easier and stress-free.

After I achieved my weight loss goal and lost 40 pounds, I quit keto dieting. Since then, my weight control has been rough. Sometimes I’m fit, sometimes I’m out of shape. Although I have a regular workout routine, I’m always looking for alternative fitness remedies that won’t cost me time and money. And it looks like I hit the jackpot this time.

Kikai became overweight after her first baby. With the new responsibilities of a mom, Kikai found solace in food. A box of candy was never too far from her hand. If she was feeling edgy, she would dump a bar in her mouth.

Her kitchen was her safe place. She loved to bake and cook. It was a better distraction to keep her mind away from everyday anxiety. It didn’t help that her baby fussed a lot. Sometimes her neighbour would come to check if the baby was sick because of his loud cries.

Kikai gradually withdrew from her friends. She would sit in front of the TV all day with cookies and ice cream right beside her. After six months, Kikai could barely recognise herself in the mirror. She was diagnosed with celiac disease and that was her breaking point.

She decided to do something about her weight starting with cutting out gluten. Since she had a wheat allergy her decision to go gluten-free was much easier. At this time her weight was 136 kg. She figured there was nothing to lose.

Kikai would drink a cup of tamarind juice twice a day which helped slow down fat production. Tamarind contains hydroxycitric acid, a compound known to suppress hunger and reduce the production of cholesterol.

Within a week she started drinking tamarind juice, and Kikai lost 10 pounds. She wasn’t doing any exercise and had only cut gluten from her diet. The miraculous result prompted her to include tamarind in her diet.

She customised her meals and used tamarind powder as spices in soups, pizza, casserole, spaghetti and sauce. She said the fresh pulp tasted better in seafood soups because it eliminates the sugar taste and brings out the sour flavour than the dried form.

She prefers making tamarind smoothies with other fruits, but she would always add lemon to spike up the flavor. She ate more creamy cucumber soup with fresh yoghurt and tamarind until she tried salmon with tamarind in soup and fell in love with it.

Not only did she get the benefits of tamarind from the soup, but she also got more minerals and zinc in her body from the salmon. After three months post-pregnancy, Kikai had lost all the pregnancy fat she accumulated.

She felt younger and more confident in her skin. She was no longer depressed, and her anxiety disappeared. She also realized that her sexual desire had gone up. Her body was flooded with hormones and ready to get into the sheets any time of the day. Even while she was breastfeeding her baby, she would get aroused.

At one point, her husband got worried and suggested they see a doctor. The doctor assured them it was normal for new moms to have high or low libido.

However, they found high levels of estrogen and serotonin in her blood which are responsible for arousal, lubrication and relaxation.

Kikai didn’t follow a specific diet or workout plan. She didn’t pay for an expensive membership at the gym or go to extreme lengths like walking 10k steps a day to lose 90 pounds. She chose to eat healthy for a balanced and happy life.

Now tamarind is a staple in Kikai’s meals. She cooks the soups for her family but reserves the smoothies and juice for herself.

Most people think weight loss is about dieting and exercising. But from my experience, keeping a healthy lifestyle — drinking water frequently, eating all types of food but in small portions and staying active through walking or jogging can guarantee a stronger and healthier body.

At the end of the day, your overall well-being and happiness are what matters.

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