If there is one thing the pandemic has taught us, it is that we need to take better care of our health. As soon as the news of the virus spread, our grandmothers and mothers started feeding us with five soaked almonds a day and the dreaded glass of kadha which helps to boost immunity and prevents infections. My grandmother was keen on making us drink freshly-prepared amla juice each morning on an empty stomach and well, for the longest time, we did. This shift of focus towards health, fitness and diet was also seen in the form of body transformations of people in the last one year.
People created their own mini-gyms at home and made use of household items to replace gym equipment. I remember when I was going to the gym in the pre-pandemic phase, my trainer would tell me to control my diet along with exercising since it is 80% diet and 20% workout as per his knowledge. Naturally, when you are working out or performing daily chores, you tend to lose out on the water in your body and therefore, it is recommended to drink 8-10 glasses each day. Recently, the old Hindi cinema actor Bhagyashree shared her weight loss tips on Instagram. Take a look.
Source: Bhagyashree Online/Instagram
In the video, the actor talks about the various ways in which the body loses water content during several activities and how important it is to keep the body replenished. While drinking water is the best way, there are plenty of other sources of hydration that can be included in your diet. She mentions about eating water vegetables like bottle gourd, cucumber, tomatoes, cabbage, lettuce, spinach and even zucchini. These vegetables also have dietary fibre which is useful for regulating insulin levels. Not only this, since they are low in calories, they aid your weight loss journey too.
Thinking of switching to water vegetables? Here are some easy recipes to include in your diet.
1. Bottle Gourd Curry
Bottle gourd, which is also known as ghiya in Hindi, is a nutritious water vegetable that is a great summer food. You can make a spicy and tangy bottle gourd curry with curry leaves, urad dal, ginger and garlic. This flavourful curry can be paired with boiled rice or roti.
2. Cucumber Raita
Dahi or yoghurt is a common side dish during midday meals. Instead of eating plain dahi or a boondi ka raita, whip up the dahi and add some juliennes of cucumber to it. Season it with salt and black pepper and you are good to go.
3. Tomato Pappu
This is a tangy and flavourful lentil dish made from red gram dal and ripe tomatoes. The dish is spruced up with onions, green chillies, curry leaves and mustard.