<p>There are very few blessed ones (how we hate them) who haven’t struggled with those extra kilos that refuse to leave or make a quick reappearance after a brief disappearance. Everyone who has been there has, at some point, raised their disbelieving eyebrows when dieticians or gym instructors make any weight loss regimen sound like a ‘cake’ walk. <br /><br />But what if your dietician herself were “obese” at one point and managed to not only drop those kilos, but also kept them from coming back? <br /><br />Meet Naini Setalvad. Her website describes her as a “renowned nutritionist, obesity and health consultant who has worked tirelessly to make people aware of the health and nutritional aspects of food...” Well, this introduction stands for now. But a long time ago, Naini struggled with her weight just like many others. And hers was not an easy struggle; she weighed a hundred and sixty kilos!<br /><br />“My struggle with weight started when I was in seventh grade,” she says. She went through numerous diets and dieticians, health farms, high protein shakes, even hospital stints. “Some of these routines worked for me and some did not. I managed to lose weight, but it was difficult to see the weight come back quickly and a little extra each time. At one point, I weighed an enormous 160 kilos and I could barely walk a few steps without getting breathless.”<br /><br />Journey of self-discovery<br /><br />Every attempt to lose weight left Naini grappling with various side effects, ranging from constipation, insomnia to acidity. In college, Naini pursued a diploma in nutrition and dietics, and later worked for a year at a hospital understanding the relationship between diet and disease. It was here that she was exposed to naturopathy.<br /><br />Her experience taught her that the real trick is not to starve or deprive oneself of food or go overboard and design a routine too cumbersome to follow, but to enjoy quality food in the right quantity.<br /><br />Through her own experience, she discovered the health benefits of every food group.<br />“My journey, though long and painful, was simply about the right food combinations without starving and eating familiar food,” she says.<br /><br />Naini has not only successfully managed to move from being obese and lethargic to light and energetic, but the journey had such a deep impact on her life that it spurred her into sharing her personal experience to support and guide others battling similar weight issues. <br /><br />She decided that her real calling was to “help people in similar situations and to show them that they too can regain the health, strength and vitality that we all deserve”.<br />Substitution, not starvation, is the key.<br /><br />Today, a hundred kilos lighter, Naini practises as an obesity and health consultant. <br />Her goal is not just to help people lose weight or overcome disease, but it is also to educate them and help them joyfully inculcate healthy living for the rest of their lives.<br />Naini heads ‘Health for You’, where she and her team of seven, including psychologists and social workers, help people manage diseases with diet and counselling. <br />“The trick to chart out the right diet plan is to work with everyday food and change only the food combination,” she says.<br /><br />For example, if one of her clients tells her that pav bhaji is what she craves, Naini suggests ways of cooking pav bhaji without making it fattening. “Reduce the quantity of potatoes, increase the quantity of other vegetables and use low-calorie pav,” she suggests.<br /><br />By doing so, she says her team effects a gradual change in the lifestyle of the client without resorting to quick-fix diets and drastic change in food groups. “This change is intrinsic and easy to maintain even after the short-term goal of losing weight is accomplished.” <br /><br />Naini says she dares her clients to make delicious and responsible eating a part of their routine, along with encouraging them to move their bodies as much as they can.<br /><br />Naini has also set up the ‘Health for You Foundation’, aimed at improving the nutritional status of under-privileged children. She speaks at meets organised by trusts and educational institutions to instruct children from low income homes on the importance of making healthy food choices. She is also in the process of devising healthy eating and nutrition modules for a wider audience to educate them about the right food choices to treat chronic ailments and promote overall and lasting health and wellbeing.<br /><br />“My main aim is to help people help themselves and to realise that good health is not a gift we receive, but our birthright,” Naini says. “Always remember to eat when you’re hungry and not when you are angry! And always listen to your body, never shut out any food group from your diet.”<br /><br /></p>
<p>There are very few blessed ones (how we hate them) who haven’t struggled with those extra kilos that refuse to leave or make a quick reappearance after a brief disappearance. Everyone who has been there has, at some point, raised their disbelieving eyebrows when dieticians or gym instructors make any weight loss regimen sound like a ‘cake’ walk. <br /><br />But what if your dietician herself were “obese” at one point and managed to not only drop those kilos, but also kept them from coming back? <br /><br />Meet Naini Setalvad. Her website describes her as a “renowned nutritionist, obesity and health consultant who has worked tirelessly to make people aware of the health and nutritional aspects of food...” Well, this introduction stands for now. But a long time ago, Naini struggled with her weight just like many others. And hers was not an easy struggle; she weighed a hundred and sixty kilos!<br /><br />“My struggle with weight started when I was in seventh grade,” she says. She went through numerous diets and dieticians, health farms, high protein shakes, even hospital stints. “Some of these routines worked for me and some did not. I managed to lose weight, but it was difficult to see the weight come back quickly and a little extra each time. At one point, I weighed an enormous 160 kilos and I could barely walk a few steps without getting breathless.”<br /><br />Journey of self-discovery<br /><br />Every attempt to lose weight left Naini grappling with various side effects, ranging from constipation, insomnia to acidity. In college, Naini pursued a diploma in nutrition and dietics, and later worked for a year at a hospital understanding the relationship between diet and disease. It was here that she was exposed to naturopathy.<br /><br />Her experience taught her that the real trick is not to starve or deprive oneself of food or go overboard and design a routine too cumbersome to follow, but to enjoy quality food in the right quantity.<br /><br />Through her own experience, she discovered the health benefits of every food group.<br />“My journey, though long and painful, was simply about the right food combinations without starving and eating familiar food,” she says.<br /><br />Naini has not only successfully managed to move from being obese and lethargic to light and energetic, but the journey had such a deep impact on her life that it spurred her into sharing her personal experience to support and guide others battling similar weight issues. <br /><br />She decided that her real calling was to “help people in similar situations and to show them that they too can regain the health, strength and vitality that we all deserve”.<br />Substitution, not starvation, is the key.<br /><br />Today, a hundred kilos lighter, Naini practises as an obesity and health consultant. <br />Her goal is not just to help people lose weight or overcome disease, but it is also to educate them and help them joyfully inculcate healthy living for the rest of their lives.<br />Naini heads ‘Health for You’, where she and her team of seven, including psychologists and social workers, help people manage diseases with diet and counselling. <br />“The trick to chart out the right diet plan is to work with everyday food and change only the food combination,” she says.<br /><br />For example, if one of her clients tells her that pav bhaji is what she craves, Naini suggests ways of cooking pav bhaji without making it fattening. “Reduce the quantity of potatoes, increase the quantity of other vegetables and use low-calorie pav,” she suggests.<br /><br />By doing so, she says her team effects a gradual change in the lifestyle of the client without resorting to quick-fix diets and drastic change in food groups. “This change is intrinsic and easy to maintain even after the short-term goal of losing weight is accomplished.” <br /><br />Naini says she dares her clients to make delicious and responsible eating a part of their routine, along with encouraging them to move their bodies as much as they can.<br /><br />Naini has also set up the ‘Health for You Foundation’, aimed at improving the nutritional status of under-privileged children. She speaks at meets organised by trusts and educational institutions to instruct children from low income homes on the importance of making healthy food choices. She is also in the process of devising healthy eating and nutrition modules for a wider audience to educate them about the right food choices to treat chronic ailments and promote overall and lasting health and wellbeing.<br /><br />“My main aim is to help people help themselves and to realise that good health is not a gift we receive, but our birthright,” Naini says. “Always remember to eat when you’re hungry and not when you are angry! And always listen to your body, never shut out any food group from your diet.”<br /><br /></p>
