- 11 months ago
- #food
- #health
- #nutrition
Friday Food For Thought web series kicks off with UAE's leading nutritionist Rashi Chowdhary sharing the five factors that contribute to holistic living.
See more videos at https://gulfnews.com/videos
Read more Gulf News stories here: https://bit.ly/2HLJ2km
#food #health #nutrition
See more videos at https://gulfnews.com/videos
Read more Gulf News stories here: https://bit.ly/2HLJ2km
#food #health #nutrition
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00Which diet to follow?
00:04What to eat?
00:05Should I be following the keto diet or should I be following the low carbs diet?
00:10Well, so many questions floating around.
00:13Don't you worry, we have all the answers on this very platform, a brand new show by
00:18Friday magazine.
00:27Hi everyone, My Dubai presents Put For Thought in association with Aladil Trading and Waterfront
00:34Market.
00:35Well, super excited to be on this platform, guess why?
00:38Because I love talking about food.
00:40Well, my name is Pallavi and I'm super excited to be on this journey with you and joining
00:45me is our renowned nutritionist, Rashi Chaudhary, who has a column in the Friday magazine, something
00:51that you should definitely check out.
00:53And she's also guided a lot of Bollywood stars to get their ideal weight.
00:58Hi Rashi, welcome to Put For Thought.
01:01Thank you for having me.
01:02Are you excited to be on this journey?
01:03Always.
01:04Anything to do with food and health, always excited to talk about it.
01:07So let's start from the very beginning.
01:09When did it all start for you?
01:11Oh, well, I think it all started for me when I was like 13 or 14.
01:15Like all of us go through these insecurity issues.
01:17And for me, it was always about, I just want to be thin.
01:20So then when I grew up, it was about, I'm in a Punjabi family, I've only seen people
01:24being overweight.
01:25I just want to be thin.
01:26So I wanted to become a nutritionist just so all my life, I can be a certain, you know,
01:31basically be a certain weight.
01:33And I think that's where it really started.
01:34I never thought I would make an entire profession out of this whole thing.
01:38But well, here I am.
01:39It's been 15 years.
01:40You spoke about being thin.
01:41Yeah.
01:42That is something that most of the women want to do.
01:44Like you meet them, either they're talking about how much weight they've lost or how
01:46much weight they've gained.
01:47Oh, yeah.
01:48And has it ever happened to you in your life where your weighing scale was like your best
01:52friend?
01:53Well, it's never your best friend, actually, it's the best friend who backstabs you.
01:57But yeah, I think when I was in college and studying nutrition, that's when I was another
02:02friend of mine, who was like 46 kilos, and I used to be around 52, 53.
02:08And I have done every single diet back then I've done keto, dipping broccoli into like
02:13mayo and eating chicken nuggets, because I thought that'll at least get me to 48, you
02:17know.
02:18So yeah, I've been there as well.
02:19And I've dealt with those kind of insecurities as well.
02:21So I think each one of us goes through this, and I'm sure our viewers can relate to this
02:25diet.
02:26So many diets.
02:27Everybody.
02:28Food is so emotional.
02:29And all of us have emotions.
02:30And everybody can relate.
02:32So my question to you is what according to you is actually being healthy?
02:36Wow.
02:37The ideal weight.
02:38Yeah.
02:39Health.
02:40Yeah.
02:41This is so broad, right?
02:42Because being healthy is so different for everybody.
02:43Absolutely.
02:44It also depends on where you are in your life.
02:45At that point, being healthy could mean something else for someone, it could be weight, someone
02:49it could be going back to your pre-pregnancy clothes.
02:51For some people, it's reversing diabetes.
02:54But I think for me, after being in this for so many years, you know Pallavi, I think it
02:58comes down to five basic things.
03:00And if you are able to balance these five basic factors, that's when magic happens.
03:06And that's when you go from just barely surviving to thriving.
03:09And that to me is healthy.
03:10And these five factors are super simple.
03:12Tell us.
03:13It's not so glamorous, but it's your food, it's your activity, it's your sleep, it's
03:19your emotional well-being, and connection to source.
03:22I think when these five things come together, that's when we are super healthy.
03:27It still sounds a little complex, you know, if you could sort of break it down.
03:31I think let's start with food, because I think that's how you said like, everyone's just,
03:35you know, confused.
03:36Yeah.
03:37Low carb or keto or vegan.
03:38We die to follow.
03:39Exactly.
03:40Exactly.
03:41And it's important to remember that nobody knows your body better than you do.
03:44Absolutely.
03:45And experts like me can direct you, but eventually the idea is to tap into your own body wisdom
03:50and use that and, you know, reach a conclusion.
03:53So what I do with my clients is the way I direct them is, it's really simple, actually.
03:57Bring it down to three things, gut health, your hormonal profile, and your food psychology,
04:03which I think is pretty much the most important one.
04:05Right.
04:06Gut health, very simple.
04:08And I know we'll be diving into this in our second episode, but just to touch upon it
04:11quickly.
04:12Sure.
04:13Making connections between what you eat and how you feel.
04:16So for example, you eat a bowl of hummus, you're feeling queasy in your stomach, you
04:19feel gassy, it means your body is giving you a sign, don't eat it.
04:22So which means, hummus could work for someone and it might not work for you.
04:26100%.
04:27So diet, the same diet doesn't work for two people.
04:28Of course, I think we know this now.
04:29Obviously, yeah.
04:30100%.
04:31If you're someone who has skin issues, or you have acne, consider giving up dairy.
04:35You know, but if you're someone who...
04:37Which means no paneer.
04:38Yeah.
04:39No cheese.
04:40Make a note, guys.
04:41So that is obviously your gut health.
04:42Then comes to your hormones, right?
04:44You need to know where you are hormonally.
04:45I have a question for you.
04:47So does it really work when people say, oh, she's hormonal?
04:50Stay away.
04:51She's getting mood swings.
04:52So hormones do work.
04:53100%, right?
04:54Like 100%?
04:55Of course, because if you are not balanced hormonally, you'll just never know who you
04:59really are.
05:00Because our behavior depends so much on what our hormonal health is like, right?
05:03We know what it's like, PMS, and we know how we feel immediately after.
05:06So balancing your hormones is key.
05:09And then comes food psychology, which is my favorite post topic, because I think this
05:12is literally...
05:14It sorts you out once your relationship with food is sorted.
05:18It plays out in so many other places in your life, right?
05:20So what is food psychology?
05:21The way you think about food.
05:23The emotions that arise when you see a piece of cake.
05:26If you're not hungry.
05:27Because when you're hungry, you'll obviously give in.
05:28But if you have a lot of emotional stuff going on, like for example, even if you're PMSing
05:33and we have something important coming up, we have a deadline to meet.
05:36It's stressful.
05:37And then we eat.
05:38Eat without thinking.
05:39Without thinking.
05:40Because your food psychology matters so much.
05:42So I feel if you fix your relationship with food, that is the long term solution to, you
05:47know, being healthy, being the weight that you want to be, all of that.
05:50That's lovely.
05:51I'm sure our listeners are making notes.
05:53Nashi, you know, we're talking about gut health, we're talking about hormones, we're talking
05:57about food psychology.
05:59What about the sleep factor?
06:00You know, I mean, I know a lot of people I meet who sleep for a few hours and yet they
06:04look very fresh.
06:05And I know people who sleep for long hours, yet they look tired and groggy.
06:09Why is that?
06:10I am so glad you brought this up because, you know, timing your sleep is like timing
06:14your investment.
06:15This guy called Shawn Stevenson, he talks about money time sleep.
06:19Right.
06:20Now this is so interesting because what happens when we invest too much money at the wrong
06:23time?
06:24There's disaster.
06:25There's pain.
06:26But when we invest little money at the right time, there's reward, right?
06:30You get so much money back.
06:31So this is called money time sleep.
06:33And the money time sleep window is between 10pm to 2am.
06:37So this is the time where you are primed for things like your growth hormones, your repair
06:43enzymes, your melatonin is at its peak.
06:46So I don't mind if you sleep at say 10 o'clock and wake up at 3, no problem, because you've
06:50got your REM cycle.
06:51Your REM cycle is where your brain, you know, processes all the subconscious data.
06:58It's your memory forming sleep.
07:00That's when we wake up feeling, oh my God, I feel I slept like a baby.
07:03Have you heard that?
07:04I know.
07:05Yeah.
07:06Yeah.
07:07Yeah.
07:08And such few of us have that these days.
07:09And sleeping well is such a big problem, especially during 2020, when most of us are very active
07:12on social.
07:13Absolutely.
07:14So, you know, what are your tips like, you know, for people who are very active on the
07:17internet?
07:18I know people who keep their phones on, they have anxiety.
07:21Do you think these factors actually add up for you not to sleep well at night?
07:25100%.
07:26So give us a few tips so that we can get a nice good night's sleep.
07:29Like you mentioned, like, you know, like a baby sleeping in the night.
07:32So for that, it's again, the stuff is very simple, but it's hard to do when you actually
07:37start practicing it.
07:38But the first thing is get sunlight.
07:40You want to sleep well.
07:41I have about six things that I tell all my clients.
07:43First thing is get sunlight.
07:44You know, we feel only our eyes have photoreceptors, actually even our skin has it.
07:48So when I expose my skin to the sunlight, the skin absorbs it.
07:51I get a lot of daytime hormones, serotonin.
07:53Oh my God.
07:54And that is something that people don't do in Dubai, right?
07:56We're mostly indoors, in air-conditioned rooms.
07:59Exactly.
08:00And just even 10 to 15 minutes, you get the daytime hormones, that serotonin converts
08:04to melatonin, which is your sleep hormone, right?
08:07So that's the first thing.
08:08The second thing you got to do is reduce the, like how you said, you know, the gadgets that
08:14we all use, that gives out blue spectrum.
08:16Updating on social media, checking out how many likes I got on social media.
08:20All of this stuff gives out blue spectrum light.
08:22And that comes in the way of our REM cycle that I spoke about.
08:25So also, cuddle!
08:27You know, if you have a partner, then cuddle with your partner because women secrete oxytocin,
08:32men secrete prolactin.
08:33And all of this also helps with the REM cycles.
08:35So what Rashi is trying to say is that if you don't have a partner, go look for a partner.
08:38And if you don't have a partner, you can probably cuddle up with a cushion, right?
08:43I mean, yeah, there are body pillows these days and God knows what not.
08:46But the other things you can do if you don't have a partner is take an Epsom salt bath
08:53because those really relax you out.
08:56Don't overeat at night because what happens is that when you overeat, cortisol goes up
09:01purpose.
09:02And if the cortisol goes up, your serotonin won't come out.
09:05Because we want to go by the circadian rhythm, you know.
09:07So that's why it's important that post 7.30 or whatever, try and keep your foods, you
09:11know, whatever you eat, really light.
09:13So what is circadian rhythm?
09:15I'm so glad you asked this because this is so important, you know, we have an internal
09:19body clock and this internal body clock constantly coincides with the sun and moon cycle, whatever
09:24is happening outside.
09:25Our body is so beautifully designed to secrete hormones at the right time just to coincide
09:31with this moon and sun cycle.
09:33So let me explain this to you.
09:35When we wake up in the morning, cortisol and serotonin are at their highest because we
09:39want to feel good, we want to be active.
09:42So cortisol is at the highest at that time.
09:45Post that, metabolic hormones are secreted so that the digestion happens, absorption
09:49of nutrition happens.
09:50So we get energy.
09:51Then at around 6.30, the metabolic hormones turn off, giving us the cue, we need to stop
09:56eating.
09:57Of course, there are some of us who eat so much later on, but that's your cue, we need
10:01to stop eating.
10:02Post that, melatonin goes up around 8pm.
10:06Time for your gadgets to go away so that melatonin production can happen properly.
10:10Finally, at night when we are sleeping, growth hormones and repair enzymes are secreted.
10:15So we get our better REM.
10:16So you see how beautifully your hormones are secreted based on the time of the day.
10:21In the morning, you will have serotonin and cortisol.
10:24In the night, you get melatonin.
10:25But this only works if we keep up with the circadian rhythm, you know, especially during
10:29the lockdown, how many of us have messed up our sleep-wake cycles.
10:32We have.
10:33Yeah.
10:34Okay, talking about the lockdown in the year 2020, you know, we've spoken about our physical
10:38health with you.
10:39What about our mental and emotional health, you know, with hashtag emotional health, mental
10:44health, trending big time on social, let's face it, everybody wants to be mentally and
10:49emotionally fit.
10:50Yeah.
10:51So these are the factors to be considered, right?
10:53So if you could break it down, Rashi, you know, what are the points to remember to take
10:57care of your emotional and mental health?
10:59It's such a vast topic.
11:01But if I had to really cram it into three points, I think the first thing would be let's
11:05not judge our emotions.
11:07You know, we were talking about this the other day, right?
11:10If we have made being happy and being positive, it's glorified.
11:15I'm not saying I'm against happiness, but shoving your negative emotions and not processing
11:21them is not the answer to true happiness.
11:24Because this creates an internal denial pattern.
11:27And then we get in a zone where we just shove it at the back, we don't process it.
11:32And what are emotions?
11:34Emotions are energy in motion.
11:35Wow.
11:36And if you suppress it, at some point, it's going to manifest in your body.
11:40So like they say that, you know, have a good cry if you're not feeling good.
11:43Cry out loud.
11:44Crying is not a bad thing.
11:45Cry.
11:46And men need to know this as well.
11:47Men can cry too.
11:48Yeah.
11:49There's no harm in that at all.
11:50Exactly.
11:51Exactly.
11:52100%.
11:53Crying is just releasing of that emotion.
11:54Cry.
11:55Feel happy.
11:56Feel joy.
11:57Feel the things you want to feel.
11:58Because when there's radical acceptance of your emotions, whether it's positive or negative,
12:02that's when you'll be okay asking for help.
12:04Otherwise, it's going to be suppressed and it's going to come out in some way or the
12:08other.
12:09Chronic inflammation, autoimmune conditions, PCOS, anxiety, man.
12:12Wow.
12:13So next time when you look at a picture, an edited picture on Instagram, don't take that
12:17on face value.
12:18Because that is a picture on Instagram.
12:21Your life is not perfect.
12:22You can cry, you can have your lows and feel it.
12:25And Instagram is just the highlight of what we like people want to show you.
12:29Absolutely.
12:30Rashi, what you're saying is totally profound.
12:32I think it makes a lot of sense.
12:34Because I meet so many people who are struggling with anxiety these days.
12:38I think the first thing is not to judge your emotions.
12:41The second thing I've noticed is, we all have a set of core values, which are very dear
12:47to us.
12:48It doesn't depend on what the religion tells you or what your parents tell you or what
12:51you've grown up thinking.
12:52It's a set of core values that we all identify with.
12:55Now when we go by our core values, when our action matches our core value, that's when
13:00we have more emotional well-being.
13:02Because we have a sense of grip over the environment.
13:04So core value means something that I believe in.
13:07Core values is your set of things that yes, you believe in, that you will feel better
13:11off with if you go by.
13:13For example, one of my core values is being healthy.
13:16I also like being social, but that's not my top core value.
13:20So just for the sake of pleasing people, or to tell myself, oh, I'm not a boring person,
13:25or to feel like I'm not a loner, if I keep going out, meeting people, drinking, eating
13:31junk, just to fit in, I am not being true to myself, right?
13:35So don't be a people's pleaser.
13:36I mean, that's one of the ways of looking at it.
13:38Because for me, for me personally, being healthy is a higher priority core value compared to
13:44being social.
13:45For you, it could be something else.
13:47What is your core value?
13:48Being honest.
13:49Yeah.
13:50Honesty is one of your core values.
13:51So if you had to get, say, a project, which brings you a lot of money, and you had to
13:57go ahead and do it, but you knew that it's not your true way, yeah, you know, you'll
14:02do it, you'll be temporarily happy, but it won't give you that inner peace.
14:06Yeah, it won't give you that inner satisfaction, you know, so you might get a lot of money.
14:11But if you're not sticking to your core values, that's when conflict happens.
14:14And I've seen a lot of people go through conflict when they're not sticking with their core values.
14:18And lastly, the third thing I'd like to add to this particular topic is detaching from
14:24our stories.
14:25You know, we are like story making machines.
14:28Throughout our lives, there's a story playing.
14:30And most often this story or this template is created when we are young.
14:34So someone could grow up with the belief of, I'm not good enough.
14:38And then when you grow up, you play that out, you will make sure that it plays out in some
14:42way so you feel not good enough, you'll not apply for the job that you feel is a bit out
14:47of reach for you, because you just feel.
14:49So I think it's important using mindfulness will help you detach from these stories and
14:54observe them rather than play it out constantly.
14:57I think that's important as well.
14:58Amazing.
14:59So it's not really just about your physical health.
15:01It's also about your emotional health, like Rashi mentioned, don't be a people's pleaser.
15:06You know, if you feel low, feel it, feel your emotions instead of shoving a red velvet cake.
15:11Exactly, stop using food as a crutch.
15:14We use food as a crutch all the time.
15:16Absolutely.
15:17And I think that's one of the reasons that people emotionally eat, that's a different
15:20topic altogether.
15:21And we will be covering it next episode.
15:23Absolutely.
15:24So we spoke about physical health, we spoke about emotional health, we spoke about mental
15:27health.
15:28What about spiritual health?
15:29You know, more and more people, you see CEOs, you see professionals, media people, journalists,
15:35radio presenters, TV presenters, actors, actresses getting into spirituality.
15:41You see a lot of people getting into spirituality.
15:43Spirituality is the new thing.
15:44Hashtag spirituality.
15:45So if you could tell us a little bit about that.
15:48Yeah, I'd love to talk about this because I speak a lot about it on, you know, Instagram
15:52and everywhere I can.
15:53Yes, yes.
15:54And I think to me, I think spirituality is connection to source and I think this connection
15:58to source is literally the foundation for all the other four things that I've spoken
16:02about.
16:03Yes.
16:04I think this is the base.
16:05Now, here's what I believe in, this is my opinion and you know, like everyone has their
16:08own opinion on spirituality, this is mine.
16:11I think as humans, we have this horizontal existence where we sleep, we wake up, we eat,
16:19we get a job, we make money, pay the bills, we sleep, we repeat.
16:23And we keep doing this over and over again.
16:26This makes us believe that our existence or our happiness lies outside.
16:32And then we start to feel like we start chasing all these things thinking I'm going to be
16:35happier.
16:37And all of this makes us believe that power is external, right?
16:43And then something happens in our life, either we lose a loved one, or we lose a job, or
16:53you know, we...
16:54Some tragedy happens.
16:55Some challenge happens.
16:56Some challenge happens, which makes you, which takes this external power away.
17:00And then we have no choice but to move into this, lift ourselves up into this vertical
17:06existence, which I think is connection to source because there's more, you know, there's
17:10this depth, there's more meaning, there's more purpose.
17:13This connection to source makes us understand that power is actually internal.
17:19The inner journey begins.
17:20Yeah.
17:21Wow.
17:22Exactly.
17:23The inward, the inner journey begins.
17:24That's a, that's like an aha moment for me and I'm sure for our lovely viewers.
17:28And I think, again, a balance between this horizontal and vertical existence is spirituality
17:34and that's when we not just survive, but we start to thrive.
17:39Amazing.
17:40That's an amazing line.
17:41Aha moments happening on this show.
17:44Physical health is not really about eating right.
17:47It's what you consume emotionally, mentally, and spiritually.
17:50Absolutely.
17:51This journey is getting super exciting.
17:53Thanks for joining me.
17:54Thank you for having me.
17:55Thanks a lot.
17:56So guys, do stay connected with us.
17:58We'd love to hear from you.
18:00Your Insta handle?
18:01It's at Rashi Chaudhary.
18:02And my Insta handle is at Pallavi Talks.
18:05We'd love to hear from you and follow us for all the action, lots in stock for you.
18:10The woods are lonely, dark and deep, but I have promises to keep and miles to go before
18:14I sleep and miles to go before I sleep.
18:17Now, if you're thinking, why am I all profound and, you know, talking to you on a deeper
18:21level?
18:22Because this journey of being physically fit is a long journey.
18:25And you know what fun it is to have you on board on this show.
18:28My Dubai presents Food for Thought in association with Waterfront Market and Al-Adil Trading.
18:35Stay hydrated, stay fit and join us for yet another exciting episode next week.
Comments