Taking the right steps

Thomas Alva Edison had rightly said: “The doctor of the future will not prescribe medicine. Instead he would recommend a diet and lifestyle to prevent diseases in the first place.” Lack of exercise can lead to illnesses like heart attack, diabetes, fatigue, strain... Regardless of how busy one’s daily life is, everyone must set aside 45 minutes atleast everyday, for exercise. “You don’t realise what you have until you’ve lost it. That’s the case with fitness,” says celebrity fitness expert Kunal Gir.

Rakul Preet

Rakul Preet’s fitness habits:
• Wake up to black coffee with ghee.
• Weight training at least 4-5 times a week.
• Avoid processed and packaged food.
• Target getting 7 hours of sleep a night.
• All food diet, high in protein, veggies and good fats.
* Cheat meals are usually void of junk food. They have more quantities of cleaner home cooked food.

Akun Sabhrawal

‘I run marathons’
Fitness is one of the most important aspects of daily living. It not only improves and maintains good health, it also improves one’s mood, happiness and emotional health. It teaches life skills like will power. I run two full marathons (42.2 km) every year with a competitive timing of under four hours. I go on long distance rides once a week. 

— Akun Sabhrawal, Civil Supplies Commissioner

‘My daily drug: 45 mins of high intensity workout’
At nearly 42, I am now the fittest I have ever ever been in my life. Till three years ago I was, like most women I know — always trying a new diet, hating to workout...  Before I hit 40 I was determined to get into shape and I discovered what I call my ‘daily high’ at F45, Jubilee Hills. A quick 45 minutes of high intensity interval training — alternating between cardio and resistance training. This is now my daily drug.

I now do 40 kg deadlifts, 20 kg squats, box jumps, can hold a two minute plank and my fitness goal for this year is to do a pull up! I don’t diet! I eat what I want: guilt free. I go for my class 5-6 days a week. I make a time for it no matter how packed my day is.  My advice for women my age: eat sensibly, exercise daily at a gym or preferably a group class, don’t smoke, enjoy a glass or two of wine occasionally, get seven hours of sleep and drink lots of water. Do this consistently and you cannot go wrong! And if you falter in between, get up and begin again tomorrow.  It’s not just about losing weight, it is about a healthy heart, a strong back and building what’s most important for old age — the muscles in your body to carry you through it!

From someone who has tried it all, I can vouch that low carb, high fat, juice or other such fad diets are the worst idea.
— Sabina Xavier, entrepreneur

Rajiv Trivedi (2nd from left)

‘Fitness should be a family activity’
Awareness about health and fitness is certainly on the increase. Everyone wants to be healthy and fit. Health and fitness should be a family activity to make it more enjoyable. Being a fitness freak, I have taken up special initiatives to spread awareness about it. My long-distance cycle yatras would certainly encourage several people not only in the police community but also in the general public to take up cycling and keep themselves fit.

— Rajiv Trivedi, Principal Secretary, Home Department, Telangana