Hindustan Times (Gurugram) - Hindustan Times (Gurugram) - City
SWEET FESTIVITIES, THE HEALTHY WAY
With Ganeshotsav on, nutritionists and dieticians share the importance of having healthy food while enjoying the festivities. Experts suggest easy ways to stay fit during celebrations
The festive season has officially begun. Soon after the ongoing Ganeshotsav, Dussehra and Diwali celebrations will take over, and Christmas and New Year will follow. And we all know that festivities involve gorging on sweets and seasonspecificc delicacies. While it’s okay to enjoy and celebrate, it is definiitely not okay to strain your boody with excessive festive eeating.
Expeerts share that planning a well-enriched diet before we’re deep into the festive season will help follow it better.
A HEALTHY BREAKFAST
What is of utmost importance is that you must start your day with a power-packed breakfast. A healthy breakfast will keep you away from over indulging through the day. Dietician Delnaaz T Chanduwadia says, “Choose breakfast cereals that are high in fibre, as they’d help you tide through the day without scrupulous snacking.”
Dietician and nutritionist Heena Ansari points out that festivals are the best time to create a schedule. She adds, “[Starting now] during Ganeshotsav, one can make a disciplined schedule such as waking up early morning. Begin your day with a healthy and balanced breakfast such as oats, cereals and fruits. This will keep you fit for a longer period of time during the festivities.”
WHAT TO AVOID
As we are into the festive mood, we tend to eat a lot of sweets as offerings are presented as sweets. Dr Aarti Bhalerao, nutritionist, says, “It is important to maintain moderation in intake of sweets. Focus on healthy offerings so that you, too, consume the same. As a host, plan your
meals and prasad with lots of antioxidant-rich foods such as dishes that include walnuts, fresh fruits, and almonds. This will help create a balance.”
Dietician Apoorva Saini suggests staying away from fried snacks, sugar syrup containing desserts, creams, motichoor laddoo, etc. One should learn the skill to say no to unhealthy foods during this festive season.
RECOMMENDED FOODS
This really depends on the clinical status but for a healthy individual, include fresh fruits, curd, dry fruits, and steamed modak, which can be enjoyed in moderate quantities. Saini adds, “Sweets such as besan laddoo and ramdana laddoo with dry fruits are rich in protein and also include limited amount of saturated fat. So they are better options. Puffed rice laddoo is another low-calorie option.” Chanduwadia adds, since we cannot eliminate the sweets from the Indian festivities, we should try to make healthier versions with all the options available.
FOCUS ON EXERCISE
Walking as an exercise should be encouraged along with cardio such as brisk walk, generalised stretching, etc. One may also opt for simple yoga in the morning. Chanduwadia, adds, “One’s exercise schedule should not change because of a festival. It is important to follow your exercise regimen even more strictly if you want to consume all the goodies during this festive time. Eat wise. Be consistent with workout. Festivals are not licenses to skip workouts. A good balance of weight training along with cardio is always the best choice.”