Keep it simple: How to plan your daily diet amid a hectic work schedule

"Where there is a will, there is a way. Following a balanced diet is probably the easiest," says Dr. (Mr) Kiran Rukadikar, bariatric physician, obesity consultant and founder of DietQueen. "Indians generally eat homemade food including roti, sabzi (vegetables and salads), dal, rice, non-veg, milk and fruits, that cover almost all essential nutrients," he adds.

Now, this sounds simple and may be good news for those scratching their heads over maintaining a balanced diet for taking in adequate nutrients. Amid a hectic work life, it has become a common trend for people skipping their daily meals or indulging in unhealthy eating habits, while all the time worrying about their intake of protein, carbohydrates and fats. This leads to a number of diet plans, which remain unfollowed and a switch to nutrition supplements as an alternative to dietary intake of such macro and micro nutrients.

As dietician Vidhi Chawla, founder of Fisico Diet Clinic, says, it is first important to understand the concept of balanced diet, which can help an individual overcome nutrition deficiencies, stress, diseases, and can give an individual the instant boost and rejuvenation needed to carry out the daily tasks. "Pre-planning your diet can be beneficial because a balanced diet is a key to good health and a conscious effort has to be made by an individual to take care of the macronutrient (carbs, fats, and proteins) intake," she adds.

According to the experts, the amount of calories required by an individual mainly depends on their age, height, gender, blood sugar levels, working conditions and others. On an average, middle aged Indian men roughly will require 1800-2200 calories, and women 1500-1800 calories. These calories are to be supplied from three essential macro- nutrients:

1. Carbohydrates: 55-65 percent of calories

2. Proteins: 20-25 percent of calories

3. Fats: 15-20 percent of calories

How many times do you eat in a day? When to eat? And what to eat? These are some of the fundamental questions people find themselves looking for an answer.

Experts Rukadikar and Chawla provide a guide you need:

1. One can follow Rukadikar's E8 Plan (E stands for eating, eight times a day)

2. Eat three major meals - breakfast, lunch and dinner - the quantity of which should be in decreasing order. Make sure your large meals are balanced, including veggies for vitamins and minerals. Try carrying homemade food for lunch, if it's an extremely busy schedule one can consume or carry fruits.

3. Twice a day one can have a cup of tea or coffee along with some biscuits or snacks (If overweight, avoid fried foods). Evening snacks can include milk or fruits.

4. Thrice a day eat fruits (fresh or dried), and dry fruits in a day. Carrying these items in your bag, car, and also keeping a stock in the office will make it easy to eat and follow.

5. Make sure you consume small and frequent meals and have dinner on time. Heavy foods must be avoided after 8 pm.

6. Avoid having sugary items, overeating in the office and consuming lots of caffeine or tea.

7. Try planning your day in advance, try waking up early and have a heavy breakfast.

8. Keep a check on your junk food intake and mark it on the calendar as to how much junk you are consuming. Try keeping only healthy food in your kitchen and fridge so as to opt for only good foods when you experience hunger pangs.

9. Chawla stresses on maintaining a good psychological relationship with food and understanding its importance to the point that everything should be balanced and nothing should be consumed in excess.

Necessary foods one can consciously include in their meals:

Adding seasonal fruits and dry fruits in your daily diet can provide you with a good amount of instant energy, vitamins and minerals. One can also consume curd or yoghurt, buttermilk and skimmed milk during lunch or evening snacks.

Chawla says variety is the key to providing ample amounts of nutrients to the body. Foods like quinoa, oats, bananas, sweet potato, beetroot, kidney beans, chickpeas can give one essential carbohydrate. For proteins, consume eggs, milk, cottage cheese, almonds, yoghurt, fish and lentils. For vitamins and minerals you can include a good amount of fruits and vegetables and finally, for healthy fats, one can include avocados, chia, nuts, flaxseed and olive oil.

Be careful with your protein shakes and supplements

Experts say a balanced diet can be adequate enough to cater to the body's protein requirement and one does not need to depend on protein shakes for it. Under circumstances wherein an individual needs to resort to such alternatives, it is important to consult a doctor to understand the consumption amount and period.

It is crucial to understand that supplements in the form of powders or pills can never replace dietary intake of essential nutrients. It is a common mistake that people rely on products and crash diets ignoring the natural food eating habits; these can have undesirable effects in the long run including higher levels of fats in the body and a gradual decrease in the appetite.

Being mindful during the upcoming festive season

After a month-long festive season of August, people are gearing up for upcoming festivals in September and October starting from Ganesh Chaturthi. One cannot refrain from consuming sweets and heavy traditional delicacies during such celebrations; a stable meal plan thus goes for a toss during such days.

While there's no harm in enjoying such meals, sweets and snacks, Rukadikar says people suffering from diabetes and heart diseases and those who are overweight must avoid too many sweets or fried foods. One can stick to homemade sweet dishes or snacks. Additionally, eating fruits and salads in good quantities can reduce your excessive carvings for festive foods.

"Balancing is very important and don't let one cheat meal spoil your entire day. If you are having one cheat meal or having too many sweets, try keeping the other two meals healthy. Try eating moderately and don't overload. Mainly, one just needs to be more mindful during the festive season as to what they are consuming," adds Chawla.

Also read: Clarion call for brinjal: Mumbai chefs share easy recipes to turn the vegetable into a delicious treat