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Komal Jethmalani |374 Answers |Ask -Follow

Dietician, Diabetes Expert - Answered on Mar 21, 2022

Komal Jethmalani is a practising dietician and nutritionist with over 26 years of experience.
She specialises in weight loss and diabetes management.
Jethmalani has completed her MSc in food and nutrition from SNDT University and trained at Jaslok Hospital.
She is a NDEP-certified diabetes educator.... more

Question by jyoti on Mar 21, 2022Hindi

Dear Komalji,
I would like to lose weight and become fit.
I have tried to go on a soup diet once a week and a fruit diet once a week (two days gap between these two diets). But I feel very hungry and am unable to maintain these diets.
How can I be successful?
Please advise.
Jyoti

Ans:

Fad diets are nutritionally deficient and can cause muscle wastage. This can lower your immunity and lead to a deterioration in your health.

To be successful in your fitness goal, you must follow a balanced diet with adequate macro and micro nutrients.

Focus on protein intake and avoid sugary foods, chocolates, fried and fast foods, aerated drinks, savouries, etc.

Adopt a regular physical exercise regimen to build lean mass, drink lots of water and sleep well.

DISCLAIMER: The answer provided by rediffGURUS is for informational and general awareness purposes only. It is not a substitute for professional medical diagnosis or treatment.

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Yoga, Naturopathy Expert - Answered on Oct 05, 2021

Question by Shalini - Oct 05, 2021Hindi

Dear Roopashree, I have two cases where I need your help. 1. My daughter, who is 16 years old, was a state level swimmer until two years ago.At that time, her diet and exercises were at a very different level.She suddenly decided to quit swimming. This led to weight gain and she became 60 kg; her height is 5.2 feet.She then started some exercises, watching YouTube, etc, and went into self-starvation mode in order to reduce weight.We didn’t realise that she started throwing food. It continued for months while she doubled her exercise to twice a day.As a result she not only lost 15 kg in a year, but it also stopped her periods for a year now.Can you help us with this problem?2. For myself, I am 44 years old, height 5 feet, weight 60 kg and a big belly.I like to eat spicy food so maintaining just soup based diets becomes difficult beyond a day or two.Can you guide me on what diet programme I should follow to reduce 7 kg in next five months?I have a family occasion coming up in Feb 2022, for which I want to be ready.Shalini Shukla

Ans:

Let me tackle this individually.

Let’s look at your daughter first.

We often define health by weight. While it is certainly an important factor, body functions -- whether hormonal, digestive and/or nervous -- are equally, if not more, important.

Given the major shifts in your daughter's routine, both during her swimming days and workout days, her body must be going through a lot. And let’s not forget the hormonal changes happening during this age.

I would suggest that she takes a mental break from thinking about diet and exercise for at least 2-3 months.

This does not mean she should overeat and not do basic physical exercises. Instead, opt for a balanced diet (lots of fruits and less of grains and processed foods).

Include a little physical activity (not workouts) but more playful activities. Light walks or basic jogging, yoga or any other sport of her choice like badminton, etc, will keep the body remain active without stressing the hormones.

She can also start basic pranayama (deep breathing exercises) to balance her energies and lower stress levels.

As far as her menstrual issues are concerned, I would suggest you meet an ayurvedic practitioner. They will identify if there is any possible imbalance of the elements and recommend ayurvedic medicines if required.

Shalini, let’s look at your concerns now.

A big belly can be due to many reasons -- excess fat retention, water retention, bloating, etc.

You should focus on addressing the root cause and not on weight loss through strict dieting.

I suggest you follow some basic principles of food intake, starting with a detox for your stomach.

Have a glass of petha (white pumpkin) juice (recipe here) in the morning. Avoid eating anything else for an hour. Do this for a month.

Avoid fried food and restrict non-veg and heavily processed foods during this period.

You can eat a full meal, but avoid eating after sunset.

Spices can be therapeutic as well as harmful, depending upon consumption.

If you practice yoga, then do Kapalbhati pranayam for 5-10 minutes in the morning.

Half an hour after your meals, go for a stroll.

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Komal Jethmalani |374 Answers |Ask -Follow

Dietician, Diabetes Expert - Answered on Dec 02, 2022

Question by Anonymous - Dec 02, 2022Hindi

Dear Komal, I am 45 and weigh 89 kg. I don't have diabetes or any heart condition. I am on a diet for the past 10 months. I have lost three kilos so far but I don't enjoy the food I eat. I love to eat a bit of junk and street food but my dietician says No. I walk or run at least 45 minutes in a day. Pls help.

Ans:

Eating healthy within the nutritional requirements is the need for a balanced diet.

You need to focus on complex carbohydrates and fibre-rich foods like whole wheat grains, vegetables, fruits, etc; high protein foods like low fat dairy products, pulses and legumes, nuts, soya, eggs and lean meat to increase your immunity and endurance; and low fat and low sugar foods.

Coupled with a regular regimen of cardio and weight training exercises, it will help increase your lean mass and lower body fat.

Consistency and regularity in following these guidelines will enable you to attain a healthy body.

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Komal Jethmalani |374 Answers |Ask -Follow

Dietician, Diabetes Expert - Answered on Feb 18, 2023