Working on my Fitnesse

Disclaimer: The Nestlè Fitnesse 14-Day Program isn’t the newest diet regimen on the block. By now, you’re probably already familiar with the drill: For two weeks, simply replace two of your meals with a bowl of Nestlè Fitnesse wholegrain cereal, while making sure that your third meal is a balanced one. The TV commercials promoting the cereal brand’s diet program are a variation of the same story, one that most women can relate to: A woman tries on a swimsuit in front of a mirror and after being unsatisfied with her reflection, she goes on the 14-day diet program. As promised, her waist shrinks in the promised amount of time and by the end of the advertisement, she’s gleefully frolicking in a two-piece on the beach. However, what the TVC doesn’t show is how she gets through the program.

Please don’t get me wrong I love Nestlè Fitnesse cereals and all three variants are on regular rotation at our house. In fact, in place of potato chips, I munch on the honey-coated wholegrain flakes while watching TV. But to eat two bowls of the cereal twice a day, every day for two whole weeks? My brothers (and my former college student self) are the only people I know who can eat cereals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. But any fitness expert will tell you that variety is the spice of life mixing it up is the key to successfully sticking to any diet. 

Unfortunately, for people like me who are seriously lacking in the culinary department, coming up with creative ways of cooking healthy dishes is a challenge I don’t even try to win. I’m more interested in the finished product, not the process. So when Nestlè Fitnesse invited me to Top of the Citi, the popular fine dining restaurant headed by chef Jessie Sincioco, I was totally in because I take every chance I get to eat at Le Soufflè at the Top of the Citi. However, instead of the heavy, buttery French fare I had come to associate with the place, I was greeted with … bowls of fresh fruit and Nestlè Fitnesse cereal. “This can’t be chef Jessie’s work,” I thought. But as if defying logic, there they were alongside bowls of nuts and dried fruits in the private function room of my beloved Top of the Citi. Slightly depressed, I nursed a bowl of fruit while munching on dry cereal.

Once all the media guests arrived, the program officially started with 30 minutes of zumba because in addition to the 14-day program, Nestlè Fitnesse advocates a well-rounded and healthy lifestyle that includes fun physical activity. A word on that experience: Before coming to this event, I had been living a blissfully sedentary lifestyle not even moderate physical activity for me. After the first two rounds of figuring out how to shimmy my hips, jazzing my fingers, and doing my best approximation of the cha-cha-cha, I had to sit out the next two rounds. Once I caught my breath, I joined the last one. Needless to say, I was probably not the best spokesperson for zumba, but I still had enough fun to forget about worrying that I lacked body coordination.

The burning on my thighs after couldn’t have been for naught, though. Once everyone took a seat, grabbed a towel, and spritzed a little facial mist on, lunch was promptly served and it was … cereal. Not in the way I usually had it, though. We were served a three-course meal created especially for us by chef Jessie (yay), but the big surprise was that each meal was prepared with Nestlè Fitnesse cereal. I have to say, even before taking a bite, I was impressed.

A cereal buffet with add-ons of fruits and different kinds of nuts a la degustation greets guests at the Nestle Fitnesse affair.

When I thought of going through the 14-day program, it never occurred to me that I didn’t have to eat two bowls of cereal a day if I didn’t want to there are other ways of going about it. The first course was the Nestlè Fitnesse & Fruits with mesclun greens in raspberry vinaigrette dressing. I’ve always liked a bit of crunch in my salads, and the cereal was a pretty clever replacement (or addition) to walnuts and pistachio nuts. I wish I had an intuitive enough palate to figure out how to make that vinaigrette. The next plate made me glad that I didn’t choose to give up meat (or anything, for that matter) for Lent because it was a Baked Whole Wheat Crusted Chicken Supreme in chimichurri sauce. Surprisingly, Nestlè Fitnesse cereal is a pretty great alternative to breaded chicken. You would think cereal coating would be soggy, but then again, it added a nice crunch to the chicken.

Reaching the tail-end of the meal, I was interested to see chef Jessie’s take on dessert, which was a mango yoghurt cheesecake with Nestlè Fitnesse honey & almond crust. Maybe all that zumba was to make up for the cheesecake calories, I thought. I’ve never met a cheesecake that didn’t make me regret my entire existence. Arriving in diet-friendly slivers, the yoghurt-based cheesecake was as light as mousse and the crunchy Nestlè Fitnesse crust made me want to swear off Granola crust forever. Unlike my previous visits to Top of the Citi, I didn’t leave feeling overindulgent and repentant.

Perhaps if I describe the dishes in detail and ask really nicely, I can get Mom to cook the same meals for me. If that works, hello, gleeful frolicking in a two-piece!

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Nestle’s Anne Tupag, Joi de Jesus, Restie Maranon, Tanya Salazar, Jovy Lee, and JP Bayangos

Attend the Nestlè Fitnesse Shape Up Night featuring the Manila’s top Zumba Fitness instructors on March 31, 6 p.m. at the NBC Tent in Bonifacio Global City, Taguig. To gain free access to the event, guests must present a proof of purchase of any Nestlè Fitnesse variant and present it at the entrance or opt to purchase Nestlè Fitnesse products at the event.