A Healthy Diet and Regular Exercise makes you Fit and Beautiful You Are What You Eat

To be healthy, beautiful and fit is everybody’s dream. The first step to achieve this is to believe in the principle that YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT. Eat healthily and beautifully and you will be healthy and beautiful.

What is healthy eating?

To eat healthily means to eat 3 regular, balanced meals - breakfast, lunch and dinner, daily and to make sure that each meal is a combination of carbohydrate and protein foods. Meals should include cereals like - whole wheat bread, rice, chapati, ragi ball, jowar, bajara roti’s, oats, etc. The cereals must be combined with a protein food like – dhals and pulses – channa, rajma, moong, etc. Milk/curds, eggs and non-veg. are also good sources of protein. In addition to this cooked vegetables and raw salads must be included. Fruits are best eaten as a snack at 11am and 6pm.

Then we have added sugar, which is not taboo, 2-3 tsp of sugar a day is permitted if one is not diabetic.

Finally we come to fats and oils. The whole secret of fitness and weight control rests on this - how much oil is consumed daily and how much fatty foods are eaten in a day.

The normal requirement is 2-3 tsps oil per person, per day. On maintenance of weight one may indulge on richer food (fatty food) once or twice a week. But the biggest problem we have today is that fat rich foods are consumed on a daily basis in our homes. The reason is we can afford it and it is faster and easier to cook with more oil or we want to buy food from restaurants, as women are tired from work and don’t want to cook. Restaurant food is oily and tastier to eat. Before long children get addicted to it and it becomes a way of life.

Those who want to lose weight please note that there is only one treatment for weight loss. When you break a leg there is only one treatment, you put it in cast and immobilize it for 6-8 weeks. If you want to remove excess fat from your body you have to immobilize fatty food from entering your mouth for 12-13 weeks or 90 days. (Fatty foods are – cream of milk, cheese, paneer, ghee,butter, all fried food, nuts, coconut chutney, cakes, pastries, chocolates, mitai, icecream, red meats and mayonnaise). If you strictly avoid this list of food for 90 days, you could lose up to 8-10kgs in this period. Then on maintenance of your weight loss you are permitted to eat from this fatty food list once a week.

Another major reason for an overweight and unhealthy body is a change in life style. Our ancestors walked at least for 20-40 minutes daily to the market or even, to visit a friend. Transportation had not developed and could not be afforded. Also children spent much time at school on the play ground and playing on the streets thereafter. Today we don’t walk anywhere; it is into and out of cars, autos, buses and sitting at tuitions or in front of the T.V and computer after school or work.

This is one of the major causes of obesity as well as other disease like B.P, heart disease, diabetes, etc. which are seen at young ages like late 20’s and 30’s

Everybody from 5yrs upwards must ensure that a regular exercise pattern is fixed in your daily routine. Today a 25-30 min walk must be taught and practiced as regularly as teeth brushing and bathing.

Finally do resolve to drink plenty of water 2.5-3 liters/day. Here again as one does minimum walking one does not feel thirsty. Also there are too many fizzy drinks and packed juices stocked in stores and our refrigerators and children definitely prefer these to water. Each bottle, 300ml equals 7 tsp of sugar, which will make you fat, spoil your skin and ruin your teeth. So please choose plain, clean water which will keep you fresh and beautiful.

Walking - 20-30 min 6-7days/week

Water - 2-3 liters/day

Diet - Very strictly avoid Fatty food to lose weight

       - Careful to eat fatty food only once ortwice a week to maintain weight.

      - Eat 3 regular balanced meals daily and eat plenty of whole cereals, pulses, salads and fruits to give you more FIBER.