Weight-watchers, go back to grandma's kitchen to beat the fat and stay fit

Obesity is an epidemic and, as bestselling author Yuval Noah Harari warned the world, "For the first time ever, more people die from eating too much than from eating too little"

The average urban dweller is a thousand times more likely to die from binging at McDonalds and drinking Coca Cola than from being blown up by Al Qaeda. This was a line from bestselling author Yuval Noah Harari's collection, Sapiens and Homo Deus, in which he predicts how the biggest challenges in the past, such as famine, plague and war, have now been replaced by obesity and lifestyle diseases. He continues: “For the first time ever, more people die from eating too much than from eating too little.” 

Obesity has taken epidemic proportions, and the one thing many are worried about, is not whether there is abundant food to feed the planet, but whether to eat or not to eat, what to eat and how much to eat. Suddenly the whole world in investing in getting slim and losing weight. However experts advise that instead of understanding why we are fat, we ought to be more concerned about why we aren't fit and what we can do to become so. Embracing a holistic approach towards health will automatically lead to getting rid of fat, and weight loss can become a by-product of your journey towards well-being. 

Eat local, ditch the exotic

According to Mumbai-based celebrity nutritionist Rujuta Diwekar, “There is a multi-billion-dollar weight-loss industry preying on a simple fact—fear and confusion about what to eat. Let’s look at two of the simplest and time-tested tools we can use whenever we are in doubt about feeding ourselves right. “Lower the food miles, better the food.” Food miles is the distance fruits, vegetables and other items travel from where they are grown to your plate. In simpler words, eat what grows around you, eat what is in season and eat by cooking food in regional recipes. So out goes the kiwi, the dragon fruit, the quinoa, and in comes the sitaphal (custard apple), the chiku, millets such as jowar, bajra and ragi, and rice. She also talks of the grandmother test: Did your grandmother eat this stuff when she was your age? If she didn't, then you can safely avoid it, no matter the latest ‘research’ is promoting as great for the heart, blood circulation or whatever. Food is genetic medicine and the kind that your ancestry has eaten for centuries is your best bet. So ghee and not olive oil, poha/upma/idli/ dosa/parantha and not oats/cereals, and such like.

In fact Diwekar scoffs at the practice of counting your kilos on the weighing scale and says, “To lose weight you have to gain weight, that is, lean body weight -- the weight of your bones and muscles. Most of us lose 2-4 kg of muscle every 10 years. Women, especially after 30, lose muscle from the thighs and gain intramuscular fat rapidly." She says this continuous and progressive loss of muscle and bone density can be reversed with exercise. But not just any exercise, but a structured exercise. One that includes strength (weight) training and follows some basic principles of exercise science.

Celebrity chef and food entrepreneur Sanjeev Kapoor bats for “fresh, seasonal and local foods” as best for weight management. “There is no perfect shoe that fits all. Weight gain is personal and so is weight loss. For weight loss, foods with lower calorific values combined with higher physical activity works best." he says.

Beyond the diet plan

Mindful eating also helps in overall well-being. “There is nothing ideal when it comes to diet except for the fact that whatever you eat, you must enjoy every bit of it. However, for an Indian body, Indian food is the best. The one cooked in an authentic Indian way, just like our grandmothers used to prepare it. Chutney should be flattened and ground on the silbatta (stone pestle) and not in a mixer-grinder,” says lifestyle coach Sudanshu Rai. 

Lifestyle also plays a major influence in weight management and along with a good diet, physical activity should be integral to your routine. Yoga adds up significantly to holistic health. According to Rai, “Sustained physical activity with frequent changes in the exercise module, especially yoga such as Surya Namaskar and Bhastrika, combined with weight training, may bring in quick results.” 

Helping people identify the right food for themselves is an entire industry of nutritionists and dieticians who "design" diet plan “ideally suited to your genetic, metabolic and hormonal pattern.” They claim that if you follow your body pattern, you will remain healthy and disease-free for the rest of your life. It seems to be working and diet consultations are catching on like wild fire. Take the case of 30-year-old Mitali Deshmukh, a resident of Kharghar, Navi Mumbai who lost nine kg in three months by subscribing to an online consultation. She says she gained 24 kg during pregnancy. “I was 52 when I conceived and reached up to 76 kg till the time of delivery,” she says. Her consultations with a famous dietician helped her get back to her pre-pregnancy life and physique. Says Deshmukh, “Not only did it give me back my physique, but it also gave me more confidence than ever before, as I achieved something that I earlier believed was impossible.” She feels fabulous about shifting from size XL to Medium.

"We spend so much time researching cars, watches and other luxury goods. If only we spent some time thinking about the nutrition quotient of our food, we would be better off," says Aditi Malik, founder of Conscious Food. “Processed food is widely available and is relatively cheap. Similarly low-cost empty foods is also a factor. The focus needs to shift from the cost of food to the quality. We need to remind ourselves that food is for nutrition and must give our body what it needs to renew, strengthen and repair. Eating local, eating fresh, eating chemical-free organic stuff helps keep obesity and other lifestyle diseases at bay.” 

Globally acclaimed authority on food wisdom, Michael Pollan, is dead against packaged foods. The author of seven books, including Cooked, Food Rules, In Defense of Food, The Omnivore's Dilemma and The Botany of Desire, all of which are New York Times bestsellers, says that anything grown on a plant is good for the body. Anything coming from inside a plant (factory-made) is bad for the body.

The fact is the world is overfed but undernourished. All we need to do is not eat less but eat right.

Diet consultation costs with some of India’s popular nutritionists

Ishi Khosla

• Three-month package of five consultations with Khosla herself: Rs 15,000;
• Three month-package of 12 consultations with Khosla, plus diet plan: Rs 28,000;
• Six-month package with 24 consultations: Rs 50,000

Dr Shikha Sharma, NutriHealth 

Online services, video call, voice call/no interaction.

• Three-month package with nutrition diet plan based on body type, prakriti analysis, personalised diet plans, free recipes: Rs 17,000;
• Six-month: Rs 25,000;
• One-year: Rs 35,000

Rujuta Diwekar

• Three-month package (Weekly dedicated interaction sessions with your designated nutritionist. All meal plans supervised by Rujuta): Rs 1,90,000; 
• Six-month package (A monthly interaction with Rujuta, and weekly interactions with the designated nutritionist. All meal plans designed by Rujuta): Rs 5,20,000
• Twelve-month package (Twice a month interactions with Rujuta. All meal plans and follow up sessions with Rujuta directly): Rs 10,40,000

Luke Coutinho, Mumbai

For people residing in India: 

• Three-month package: Rs 53,100 
• Six-month: Rs 94,400; 
• 12-month:  Rs 1,77,000

Nandita Shah (Sharan-Mumbai, Coimbatore)  

• Online/phone single consultation (One-hour phone or Skype call): Rs 2,500;
• Online/phone consultation for four weeks (One-hour phone or Skype call plus one 15-minute call once a week for remaining weeks) Rs 5,000; 
• Face-to-face consultation with three months' support (Delhi only): Rs 13,000

Michael Pollan' food rules 

Best-selling author Michael Pollan says everything he's learned about food and health can be summed up in seven words: "Eat food, not too much, mostly plants." Here's how:

• Don’t eat anything your great-grandmother wouldn’t recognize as food.
• Avoid products with ingredients that are unfamiliar, unpronounceable, more than five in number or which include high fructose corn syrup.
• Avoid products that make health claims. 
• If it came from a plant eat it; if it was made in a plant, don’t.
• Shop the peripheries of the supermarket and stay out of the middle. 
• Eat lots of plants in the form of fruits, vegetables (especially leafy greens) and whole grains. 
• Eat small amounts of meat, treating it more as a flavouring or condiment for the plants.
• It’s not food if it arrived through the window of your car.
• Eat like the French, or Italians, or Japanese, or Indians or Greeks…a traditional diet of real foods.
• Regard non-traditional food with skepticism.
• Don’t look for the magic bullet. The key to healthy eating-and to safe and healthy weight loss – is to eat a variety of nutritious foods in moderation.
• Pay more and eat less. Eat food of a higher quality and in less quantity. Eat from smaller plates and glasses.
• Eat meals at the table not at the desk or in front of television.
• Stop eating before you’re full. Eat when you are hungry, not when you are bored.
• Try not to eat alone.
• Eat slowly and enjoy your food–it should be pleasurable. Serve a proper portion and don’t go back for seconds.
• Limit your snacks to unprocessed plant foods (fruits, vegetables, nuts).
• Don’t get your fuel from the same place your car does.
• Treat treats as treats. There’s nothing wrong with special occasion foods once in a while.
• Leave something on your plate.
• Cook. It is the only way to control what you’re eating.
• Break the rules once in a while. All things in moderation, including moderation.