There is a lot of talk around healthy food these days. People are talking about lowering their intake of oils, fats, junk & fast food, which indicates on the rising consciousness toward eating organic. Even in terms of diet plans, there are various things that many health food gurus are suggesting, that is, FODMAP diet plan, Atkins diet, Caveman diet, Fat flush diet, etc. To start with, what is healthy food? Healthy food is referred to the food that leaves a positive impact on our body. In this context, the famous saying of "You are what you eat" stands absolutely correct.
It is said that very edible commodity has some or the other health benefit or constraints, which support the above statement that food affects our body. Its pros and cons depend on three questions: what, when and where.
Although healthy eating can be fairly simple, the mushrooming of various diet plans and diet gurus have created the great confusion among many. To a layman, these trends often create distractions rather than providing a solution to his queries. Please keep one thing in mind that every body type is different and operates differently, which can be based on your lifestyle, daily work routine and, of course, eating habits.
(Also Read: Healthy Diet Tips: 5 Dietician-Recommended Foods To Eat For Healthy Living)
Healthy diet should be planned carefully.
There are four things that are extremely important for healthy lifestyle and fall under 'MUST DOs'...
1. Balanced Nutrient Diet: It is important that every meal should have balanced amounts of nutrients, i.e., the right proportion of carbohydrate, fats, proteins, fibre, etc. Whether it's our main meal or a snack. For an easy evaluation and understanding of a plate, it should have 50% vegetables, 25% starch and 25% healthy protein. Please note that fats are important for our body-it is just that we need to differentiate between healthy and unhealthy ones.
2. Quantity of Food and Interval: It is important that we take smaller and frequent meals. If you involve your body in consuming smaller meals every 2.5 hours, then the body is continuously working to burn those calories, which in turn is going to increase your metabolism. The high metabolism rate will take care of your fat deposits and will break down that extra food giving you the right energy that your body requires.
3. Exercise: A number of diet plans will suggest you easier ways to reduce fat deposits by advising you not to exercise much. But, it is imperative to do at least a 45-minute routine dedicated to simple cardio exercise. It can be a brisk walk, cycling or any other cardio.
4. Biodynamic Produce: I would certainly recommend everyone that eating organic is not enough and one should follow biodynamic farmed produce. Biodynamic is not complicated, it is all about going back to the basics of farming. There are seasons and geographies for every produce to grow, and hence the consumption patterns should be based on them. Biodynamic fruits and vegetables are easily available in the local marts.
Also Read: Weight Loss: Add These Protein-Rich Snacks To Your Plant-Based Diet
Include all healthy foods in your diet.
Top-five Myths of Nutrition Science and fall under 'DON'Ts'...
1. Egg yolk is unhealthy: It is considered the healthiest available ingredient on Earth. Just imagine that egg yolk has all the nutrients to take care of an upcoming life.
2. Excessive protein is bad for bones - High consumption of protein initiates excretion of calcium from bones, but regular consumption of higher proteins reverses the process.
3. Fats are not healthy - The past decade saw an epidemic of heart diseases and a few studies have floated around indicating that fats are unhealthy. However, it is a proven fact today that our anatomy requires saturated and healthy fats.
4. Dieting will help lose pounds - Dieting without proper knowledge can be a disaster. If you want to lose weight, you need to increase your metabolism and in order to do that the first step is to increase your number of meals and reduce the size of each meal.
5. Refined products are easily digested - It is true, but not the complete truth. Refined products like sugar, salt, flour, etc., do not have any required nutrients, and give only calories. In addition to this, they affect our metabolism adversely. They have high fructose content, which helps gain fat in a rapid manner.
I merely discussed a few pointers above and believe me, that the list is probably endless. While that being said, you need to start following the above healthy daily routine and only once you are following the above routine you should be looking to opt for a diet plan per your need, which suits your body type and daily routine. Please note that if a plan has worked well on one of your acquaintance, it doesn't give any certainty that the same plan will work wonders on your body as well.
About Chef Gautam Chaudhry:
Having started his career with the Radisson Group, Chef Gautam went on to work with The Oberoi's before heading to Tanzore Restaurant & Lounge in the very glamorous Beverly Hills, USA. He came back to India and rejoined the Radisson Group briefly. He followed this with a long and successful stint with the Hyatt Group
Chef Gautam had ventured into “Demiurgic Hospitality”, which operates various cloud kitchens, restaurants and catering division under the banner “The Catering Inc.”. He is as well the operating partner in “Giant Foods LL”, a catering company based in Dubai and an operating partner in “38 Barracks”, an army themed restaurant in Connaught Place, Delhi.