Diwali Without the Weight Gain: A Dietitian's 8-Step Festive Eating Guide
Diwali is about family, lights and food, and nobody should spend it counting calories. But between mathiya, chorafali, ghughra, mohanthal and endless visits to relatives, many of us go into the festival week on track and come out of it 2 to 3 kg heavier, feeling bloated and tired.
The good news: you do not need to skip the sweets or say no to every plate. In my clinic I tell every patient the same thing: do not eat less; eat right. Here is how to enjoy Diwali and still feel light when it ends.
1. Never go to a Diwali visit hungry
Most overeating happens when we reach a relative's home on an empty stomach. Before you leave, have a small filling snack:
A handful of roasted chana with 5 to 6 peanuts
A bowl of fruit (apple, papaya, guava or orange)
A glass of buttermilk or lemon water with 2 to 3 spoons of sattu
You will still enjoy the sweets, but you will stop at one piece instead of four.
2. Pick one sweet and enjoy it properly
You do not have to taste everything on the plate. Choose the one sweet you truly love, eat it slowly, and skip the rest. A sweet you enjoy mindfully satisfies you far more than five you eat while talking.
If you are making sweets at home, try dry fruit laddoos made with dates and anjir instead of sugar, or roasted makhana and nuts in place of fried farsan.
3. Choose roasted over fried
Diwali snacks are mostly fried. Simple swaps make a big difference:
Roasted makhana chivda instead of fried chevdo
Baked or roasted khakhra instead of mathiya
Oats and nut chivda instead of sev mamra
Roasted chana and peanuts instead of bhujia
Keep a box of these at home for guests too. They will thank you.
4. Keep your regular meals light and simple
On festival days, make lunch and dinner the "balance" meals:
Lunch: a bowl of salad first, then dal, green sabji, 1 to 2 rotis and buttermilk
Dinner: moong dal khichdi with curd, a vegetable soup, or vegetable-loaded thepla with curd
Eating your salad first, before everything else, fills you up and slows down sugar absorption from the rest of the meal.
5. Drink water before you reach for food
Thirst is very often mistaken for hunger. Keep a water bottle with you and aim for 2.5 to 3 litres a day. Start the morning with 1 to 2 glasses of warm water. Green tea, jeera water or lemon water in between visits helps digestion after heavy meals.
6. Watch the hidden oil, ghee and sugar
Festival cooking uses far more oil and ghee than usual. A simple rule:
Use measuring spoons for oil, ghee and sugar while cooking
Keep it to about 4 to 5 teaspoons of oil and 1 to 2 teaspoons of ghee a day, in total
Say no to cold drinks and packaged juices; they add sugar without filling you up
7. Keep moving, even a little
You do not need the gym during Diwali. A 15 to 20 minute walk after lunch or dinner, or a few rounds of Suryanamaskar in the morning, keeps digestion working and your energy up. Walking to a neighbour's home instead of driving counts too.
8. Get back on track the very next day
One heavy day does not undo weeks of effort. What matters is the next meal. After a big festive day:
Start with warm water and soaked almonds and walnuts
Keep the next day's meals simple: fruit, buttermilk, dal, khichdi, soup
Do not starve yourself; skipping meals only leads to more cravings later
A special note for diabetes, thyroid and PCOD
If you have diabetes, thyroid or PCOD, festival weeks need a little more planning: portion sizes for sweets, timing of meals, and what to choose at each visit. Please do not stop or change any medicines on your own; plan your festive eating with your dietitian and doctor instead.
Celebrate fully, eat right
Diwali is meant to be enjoyed. With a little planning, you can eat your favourite sweet, meet everyone, and still feel light and energetic when the festival ends.
If you would like a personalised festive diet plan for your family, built around Gujarati home food and your health goals, book a consultation with Dt. Binjal Shah at nutriotherapy.com. Happy Diwali and a healthy new year!
Comments