Opening Doorz Editorial | April 11, 2018
Dr Aditi Govitrikar on her workout routine, eating habits and spiritual quotient…
Workout Routine
I believe in a healthy body, resides a healthy mind. As a medical doctor, psychologist and wellness counsellor: I like to practice what I preach and look after my body. I am mindful of my flexibility, strength and stamina and see to it that I take care of these three components. To incorporate all these, I do a mix of yoga, weight training and functional training. On average, I work out thrice a week. Occasionally, I swim or go for walks in nature. The trick is to keep active throughout the day. Sitting is the new smoking; it has been found that sitting for a long period of time increases mortality. I make it a point to stand up and stretch or walk to get water or do some errand after every 40 minutes of sitting. I set goals for myself every month and work towards achieving them; be it for my body or my mind.
Eating Habits
I am a vegetarian. I believe in eating healthy and in moderation. My diet consists of salad and fruits. I have a light breakfast, mostly idli, dosa, poha or sometimes fruits with a cup of sugarless tea. I have a ragi roti, bowl of veggies and dal for lunch. Sometimes I have a salad. In the afternoon, along with a cup of tea, I have a light snack of sprouts bhel or baked soya chips. Dinner is a soup with stir-fried veggies and a little tofu or paneer. Occasionally, I have dalia khichdi. If I go out, I select healthy options. If I feel hungry, I munch on nuts or a fruit or a glass of buttermilk. I listen to my body but don’t fill my stomach fully. The trick is to chew slowly. Today, we eat in a rush and aren’t aware of how much we eat. I have also seen people eat the same quantity they ate when they were 20 years old; one needs to reduce the food intake as one ages as our metabolism slows down and we become less active as we grow older. Having said that, I don’t believe in starving!
—Dr. Aditi Govitrikar.
Spiritual Quotient
I have been practising yoga with pranayama for many years. I am an ardent Vipassana practitioner. A combination of these has led me to become mindful and aware of myself and my surroundings. Today, the stress levels are very high. I find refuge in positive thinking and mindful thinking. As I have studied Positive Psychology course at Harvard, I realized and have implemented the measures and activities from my toolkit for myself and my clients. I have seen tremendous success. My endeavour is to improve the happiness quotient of our beautiful nation which ranks a deplorable 133rd on the World Happiness Index this year. Last year and the year before that we were ranked 128.
(Dr Aditi Govitrikar is a model, actress, qualified psychologist, wellness expert and counsellor. She has her own private practice.)
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