Diet Diaries

Wake-up time and exercise routine: 7 am; I do some walking and swimming

Breakfast: Before leaving home at 7.15am,I only drink a pack of juice. Around 9.30 am,I eat at the college canteen,picking from options such as vegetable sandwiches,idli chutney and the likes,along with a glass of milkshake or fresh fruit juice

Lunch: I get tiffin at my paying guest room. It is generally rice,dal and a vegetable

Snack: I eat a fruit or binge on ragi biscuits

Dinner: I again get tiffin,which is similar to lunch but with three chapatis instead of rice. On weekends,I hang out with friends and we end up eating out

Dietician’s advice: Replace juice with fresh fruits and avoid sandwiches. Instead,have complex carbs such as poha,upma,idli,uttapa or muesli with milk. Use almonds and walnuts as fillers between breakfast and lunch. Add salad in lunch. You can carry a carrot or cucumber or tomato slices from home. Have curd or buttermilk to ensure good protein,calcium and B-complex. In the evening,drink a glass of milk or soy milk and eat one fruit with roasted peanuts or chana

Name: Sushil Kumar,68

Profession: Social activist,General Secretary at National Society for Clean Cities

Wake-up time and exercise routine: 4.30 am; exercise for one-and-a-half hours every day. Some days I walk eight kilometres,some days I cycle 15 kms or play badminton

Breakfast: First thing I do is to drink water. I then take one cup of ginger masala tea with milk and sugar. Immediately after exercising,I eat one banana,two biscuits and half-a-cup of tea. At 9.30 am,I eat idli,dosa or upma

Lunch: At 1:30 pm,I eat one sabzi,which is either a leafy vegetable or beans or roots like carrots or beet. I eat very little rice with dal,curd and a green salad

snack: In the evening,I drink either a cup of tea or coffee with a small bowl of mixture

Dinner: Four chapatis and leftover sabzi from the morning at 8.30 pm smoking/ drinking: I am a social drinker but don’t smoke at all Dietician’s comments: Breakfast and lunch are going fine. Milk tea can be replaced with plain milk as tea makes the calcium unavailable. Have nuts and dry fruits such as dates and figs as fillers. Evening snack could be roasted makhanas,murmura chiwda,boiled corn,or khakra with peanut chutney and a fruit. Incorporate proteins in dinner in the form of dal,pulses,soya,cooked sprouts and tofu. You need to eat more carbs like chapati,rice or bhakri at lunch. Drink one cup of milk with turmeric at bedtime

Name: Manjusha Shete,46

Profession: Designer,Kantha Creations

Wake-up time and exercise routine: 6 am; I do yoga and walk for 30 minutes

Breakfast: I start the day with a glass of warm water. After half-an-hour,I have a cup of tea with two biscuits. After my walk,I take a light breakfast of muesli,poha or upma with a cup of milk

Lunch: At 1.30 pm; usually one chapati,a vegetable and salad. Some times,it is rice and dal

Snack: I take a cup of tea with some biscuits

Dinner: At 10 pm. I eat chapati or bhakri with green vegetable,sabji and sometimes rice. I love vegetarian food but I eat fish or chicken once in a week

smoking/ drinking: Neither

Dietician’s advice: The diet is good but it can be more nutritious and balanced with a few fillers. Breakfast should always comprise complex carbs such as oats,muesli,poha,upma,along with egg,paneer or tofu for protein. Include salad in each meal to add fibre and vitamins. Instead of refined products such as biscuits,have low-calorie snacks such as murmura chiwda,roasted makhanas or plain khakra. Eat early dinner