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The 12-week Fitness Project
Lose inches. Gain health. Sleep better. In just 12 weeks. Want to get fit but don t know how to start? Let India s #1 nutritionist and health advocate Rujuta Diwekar help you. In this groundbreaking book, based on the 12-week fitness project , one of the world s largest and most successful public health projects, she will guide you step by step, giving you one simple guideline to follow each week. By the end of three months you will have transformed your habits in twelve crucial ways.The result? You ll find you have lost inches and have better sleep and energy levels, lesser acidity, bloating and sweet cravings and reduced PMS and period pain.
104 pages, Paperback
Published January 4, 2020
393 people are currently reading
1037 people want to read
About the author
Rujuta Diwekar
52 books602 followersWinner of the 'Nutrition Award' from ASIAN INSTITUTE OF GASTROENTEROLOGY, Rujuta is amongst the most qualified and sought after sports science and nutrition expert in the country and the only nutritionist to have associate membership from SPORTS DIETITIANS, AUSTRALIA. In the plethora of diet fads and fears, her voice rings loud and clear, urging us to use our common sense and un-complicate the act of eating. Having worked with people from all walks of life, of all age groups and varying fitness levels, she has fine-tuned her methods to fit the lifestyle of the urban Indian.
Her two books and the film 'INDIAN FOOD WISDOM' have been on top of the best-selling charts for more than 5 years now. Her third book on exercise 'DON'T LOSE OUT, WORK OUT' is out in the market now.
Her two books and the film 'INDIAN FOOD WISDOM' have been on top of the best-selling charts for more than 5 years now. Her third book on exercise 'DON'T LOSE OUT, WORK OUT' is out in the market now.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 86 reviews
January 22, 2020
Was a quick read. Agree with many of the things written in her books , do not fully agree with a few. I particularly don't like the way the author uses Desi language , other than that , no complaints . And I wonder why the testimonial at the end comprised wholly of women . Men too must have joined her 12 week plan ?
Anyway reading books like this makes me more health conscious.
Anyway reading books like this makes me more health conscious.
September 27, 2020
Every word of this book made me thank my Amma, Appa and Amichi for all that they have done for me. I still clearly remember how wholesome the meals from my Amichi's hands used to feel as a child. She used to wait patiently at exam centers all day, just so I can have my favorite Idly and Thakkali Chutney with her at lunch time ❤️ Feeling so immensely blessed to have had a good start to health in my life, will now try to be conscious of everything the author mentions in this book and lead a healthy life going forward as well 🙏🏽
PS: I'm so happy of Fit India movement in India. Highly recommend this book to all Indians, so relevant!
PS: I'm so happy of Fit India movement in India. Highly recommend this book to all Indians, so relevant!
October 4, 2020
I loved how the author explains various concepts and how she encourages each one of us to make healthy changes. It was like I was talking to a friend. With a crisp and witty writing style, it's a book that will definitely make you change your diet.
With well-detailed information and insights, one can easily connect with the author. I liked how information is provided by the author in an interesting way. It had FAQs, reasons, notes and guidelines that are really helpful. It has reasons too, like why we should switch to a particular food which gives us a better understanding.
With intriguing pictures, charts and facts its a book that one must definitely read. The cherry on the cake is the fitness project for kids too at the end of the book.
Overall, it's an interesting read that will help each one of us in making changes in our diet for a healthy life. Once again, I loved the writing style, the way the author expressed, felt like talking to a friend.
With well-detailed information and insights, one can easily connect with the author. I liked how information is provided by the author in an interesting way. It had FAQs, reasons, notes and guidelines that are really helpful. It has reasons too, like why we should switch to a particular food which gives us a better understanding.
With intriguing pictures, charts and facts its a book that one must definitely read. The cherry on the cake is the fitness project for kids too at the end of the book.
Overall, it's an interesting read that will help each one of us in making changes in our diet for a healthy life. Once again, I loved the writing style, the way the author expressed, felt like talking to a friend.
Read
November 27, 2020Not going to give this one a rating because I'm yet to implement her tips and tricks. I plan to follow this project and slowly inculcate it into my life. Will update here with any progress that I make.
February 19, 2020
Easy, Simplistic, Casual read. Very Common sensible tips and i would say very practical. To be frank, i am following RD's writing and loved having her advice at one place as quick reference point. The tips mentioned can be implemented right away in one's lifestyle without too much effort.This books should be read by everyone looking to adopt a healthier lifestyle.
The section mentioned for the kids is the bonus (especially from parenting point of view).
If you are looking for a healthy year ahead, or want to give some one a gift of health this year, this book is the best way to do that. Get it, gift it and follow it.
The section mentioned for the kids is the bonus (especially from parenting point of view).
If you are looking for a healthy year ahead, or want to give some one a gift of health this year, this book is the best way to do that. Get it, gift it and follow it.
January 19, 2021
A pretty nice book concerns on our choice over food, fitness and other healthy matters.
Author who is a nutrition expert has well put the guidelines to follow in 12 steps (12 weeks).
Week 1 - Eat fruits/almonds/dried raisins
Week 2- Eat ghee (1 tsp every meal)
Week 3 - Avoid using gadgets before sleep and during eating
Week 4- Eat wholesome meals (4pm-6pm)
Week 5- Don't sit for a long time, take stairs and relax your muscles
Week 6 - Excercise/Physical training
Week 7 - Eat Dal-rice for dinner
Week 8 - Eat right quantity
Week 9 - Do Suryanamaskar daily
Week 10 - Stay hydrated
Week 11 - Say no to plastic, yes to Iron vessels to cook. Heat and dont microwave
Week 12 - Three fats in your daily diet
I just highlighted the crux of every week plan. details and questionnaires are given in the book.
Really informative one!. Give a try
Author who is a nutrition expert has well put the guidelines to follow in 12 steps (12 weeks).
Week 1 - Eat fruits/almonds/dried raisins
Week 2- Eat ghee (1 tsp every meal)
Week 3 - Avoid using gadgets before sleep and during eating
Week 4- Eat wholesome meals (4pm-6pm)
Week 5- Don't sit for a long time, take stairs and relax your muscles
Week 6 - Excercise/Physical training
Week 7 - Eat Dal-rice for dinner
Week 8 - Eat right quantity
Week 9 - Do Suryanamaskar daily
Week 10 - Stay hydrated
Week 11 - Say no to plastic, yes to Iron vessels to cook. Heat and dont microwave
Week 12 - Three fats in your daily diet
I just highlighted the crux of every week plan. details and questionnaires are given in the book.
Really informative one!. Give a try
January 7, 2020
Short, crisp and to the point. Full of knowledgeable facts and suggestions while keeping on view of the Indian janta.
January 29, 2020
She always manages to make sense everytime she writes. This is my fourth book of her's and this time too, she is pragmatic as always and easy to adhere to.
March 30, 2021
Easy read. Common sense tips and fairly practical.
Giving three stars instead of five because of
1.Frequent use of mumbai hindi in the book ( it sounds suitable only when ur speaking, not reading it)
2.YouTube link adderess in the book. What can reader do with that?
Content is good, could have been written better.
Giving three stars instead of five because of
1.Frequent use of mumbai hindi in the book ( it sounds suitable only when ur speaking, not reading it)
2.YouTube link adderess in the book. What can reader do with that?
Content is good, could have been written better.
August 29, 2021
Rotating around with a big belly like a car bonnet,
moving the mobile screen up & down for no reason & eating city's spicy food, it's better than if you know how to read, plz read this book.
It’s an interesting read that would help each one of us in making changes in our diet for healthy life,
reading this book, you would understand that you are a human being, not a food machine, it emphasizes that what you have to eat is not a fancy food it must be your traditional food.
There is no point in writing my big analysis about this book or reading this analysis from you,
It's good if you read & understand book in last I would finish my short review of book with the line of Will Durant
" It is better to be healthy than to be famous".
moving the mobile screen up & down for no reason & eating city's spicy food, it's better than if you know how to read, plz read this book.
It’s an interesting read that would help each one of us in making changes in our diet for healthy life,
reading this book, you would understand that you are a human being, not a food machine, it emphasizes that what you have to eat is not a fancy food it must be your traditional food.
There is no point in writing my big analysis about this book or reading this analysis from you,
It's good if you read & understand book in last I would finish my short review of book with the line of Will Durant
" It is better to be healthy than to be famous".
May 1, 2022
A worthy, practical guide for healthy living. Taking away one star for the usual everyone-except-me-is-an-idiot attitude of the author and her penchant for pushing vernacular words every now and then.
July 10, 2024
Appreciate the desi wisdom. Not many health and fitness books tailored for Indian cuisines. Not a book I should have listened to as an audiobook, should have bought the physical copy to follow the guidelines.
September 14, 2024
I have read this book some time back. I love the holistic approach towards regular eating, sleeping, exercise, snacking habits. The focus is towards different Indian eating habit and that's why i found ot interesting and it resonated with me. An excellent read!
Read
July 29, 2023Health beyond weight loss: a fitness plan for lasting well-being
There are a lot of diet plans out there right now that promise fast results for a smaller waistline, from keto and paleo to intermittent fasting and juice cleanses. Still, most of the world’s population is getting bigger. That’s because eliminating food groups, as with paleo or juice cleanses, and restricting calories, as with intermittent fasting or calorie counting, come with huge downsides. These include poorer nutrition, and an increase in the body's natural response to calorie restriction: more hunger.
Many diets for weight loss compromise your bone density, muscle repair, and skin health — they might even affect your sleep. After all, it is easy to lose weight under extreme stress, but that isn’t fostering good long-term health and well-being – in fact, it’s doing more harm than good.
So if you’ve been looking to make lasting change in your overall fitness, this book is for you. To understand why sustainable change is so important, read on.
-
Why diets fail: the biology of starvation
During World War Two, starvation resulting from disrupted agricultural cultivation and supply chains was a near-global phenomenon. But the long-term effects of human starvation weren’t very well known. So in 1946 an American scientist, Ancel Keys, recruited healthy volunteers for a year-long study on the subject. The healthy young participants ate normally for the first three months, then for another six months they were restricted to just two meals a day to simulate starvation, along with required daily walks of several kilometers.
Within weeks of this restriction, the volunteers reported their energy levels plummeted, their muscles felt weak, and they were tired all the time. Mentally, they felt complete apathy, detached from the joys of everyday life, but were overwhelmingly obsessed with food. Even worse, they eventually thought of those around them as too fat, rather than themselves as too thin – a dysmorphia common to those with anorexia nervosa.
When the six months were over, they’d lost 25 percent of their body weight – but the long-term effects were just starting. Some participants reported that after the six months of restriction, they ate five times more than they had before. Given the study was published years later, in 1951, it also recounted how many had an increased appetite no matter how much they ate, even years later. Many participants described the study as the worst thing they’d ever experienced.
These brave participants highlighted the real costs of starvation, revealing how crash diets and poor nutrition are so damaging. From no energy or sex drive, they bottomed out, and their mental obsession with food during and after restriction set them up for continued misery.
That’s to say nothing of how far away this focus takes us from the nutritional advice we were given by our mothers and grandmothers. Traditional ways of eating a variety of foods from local sources, taking the time to enjoy them in peace and mindfulness, and enjoying the slow path to sustainable health can connect us to the land, to community, and to culture. Food can be a focus of celebration and joy, and feed us in more ways than one.
To counter the faster-is-better approach, let’s dive just a bit deeper into what sustainability means for health – not just our own, but the health of our communities and environment, too.
-
Be the tortoise, not the hare
Sustainable health must reject restrictive diets and embrace a holistic approach that doesn’t sacrifice health for some desired number on the scale. Sleep, activity, and food all play a role in overall well-being, and so fitness has to account for all three. Even more, any fitness plan has to be one that you can imagine following for life. One that you’d be happy to have your children or family to follow.
Yoga, for instance, isn’t simply getting into a pose by any means necessary, straining your muscles and joints. Think about sirsasana, or headstand pose, and how much alignment, strength, and coordination it takes to do the pose properly. Some may take a lifetime to perfect the pose, and they will derive all the benefits. They may even apply the lessons they learned from mastering a headstand to understanding many complex circumstances of life.
That’s why this twelve-week plan isn’t looking for fast results, and openly encourages a cumulative approach. Each week, simply take on one healthy new habit and enjoy the process. Make enjoyment a central feature, in fact – from exploring delicious new sources of nutrition at the farmers’ market to taking that daily walk.
If you think some of this will involve setting aside gadgets and limiting screen time to help with sleep, exercise, and more mindful eating, you’re absolutely correct. Smart phones and gadgets have become a ubiquitous source of distraction and stress. From feeling on call twenty-four/seven to fear of missing out, our gadgets can feed a negative cycle in and of themselves.
Bringing mindful awareness to daily habits, and slowly transforming them, is the key to long-term, sustainable success. This can also have the added benefit of bringing more of your presence to your family, friends, and community. Exchanging a single session of mindless scrolling for an activity like taking a walk with friends brings multiple benefits for mood and health while adding richness to your relationships.
The key is to go slowly, and enjoy the journey along the way. Not only will it encourage you to keep going, but it brings more satisfaction throughout the journey that is life.
-
One by one, change adds up
The twelve-week fitness plan is based on cumulative progress. For each of the twelve weeks, you’ll embrace a single habit, and by week twelve you’ll be practicing them all. In week three, for instance, you’ll continue the changes from weeks one and two while adding in week three’s challenge. While you might be tempted to take them all on at once, this approach isn’t sustainable, and was much less successful for many of the author’s fitness-study participants.
If you find one week you’re not able to accomplish your goal, don’t stress. Just get back on track the following week and carry on. Skipping a week might seem huge in the short term, but in the long run, study participants who kept going after short lapses still saw enormous benefits after just twelve weeks, so this isn’t all-or-nothing.
During the first week, start with breakfast – the beginning of your day. Begin with a banana or any fresh fruit, or soaked almonds or raisins, and not with tea or coffee. Just this small change in how you begin your day can bring massive benefits throughout the day. Add a glass of plain water and eat this small meal shortly after waking up. Feel free to have that cup of coffee or chai about 20 minutes later, if you still want it.
In the second week, incorporate a few spoonfuls of ghee into your diet. This wonderful and flavorful substance delivers a powerful combination of antioxidants, fat soluble vitamins like D and E, along with lipolytic effects – that is, ghee is a fat that breaks down other fat deposits. It also helps you de-stress and wake up with more energy.
During the third week, bring more mindfulness to your gadget use. Shut down phones and computers at least one hour before sleeping. Put them away for at least one meal a day as well, and aim to make all meals gadget-free by the end of the twelve weeks. Not only will eating without distraction help ease stress and help your body know when it is full, but it will also help awaken your senses to the sights, smells, and textures of your meals.
Week four takes on the timing of your biggest meal, which plays an outsized role in fitness success. Eating a wholesome meal between four and six in the afternoon can be the single most important factor in overall health. Not only is that the time of day when the body experiences the most natural hunger, but eating at this time also respects the hormonal cycles the body goes through over the course of a day, regulating them for better sleep, energy levels, and mood.
In week five, it is time to incorporate more movement into your routine. Not exercise, per se, but simple movement to complement health. Commit to taking the stairs instead of the elevator, or to adding 100 steps after dinner; small movement bursts add up, and they break up the lengthy periods of sitting that have become a staple of modern life.
-
More building blocks for change
By week six, your cumulative changes will be transitioning into real lifestyle change. It is incredibly important to keep going from here. That’s because week six focuses on adding one session of strength training to your week.
Adding lean muscle mass to your body, no matter your age, is one of the best predictors of a long, healthy life. As we get older, our muscle mass begins to dwindle, along with the strength and metabolic benefits we enjoyed in youth. Adding strength training counteracts this decline, and helps regulate our hormonal health.
During week seven, simply try eating dal rice for dinner. This staple of Indian cooking is prebiotic, meaning it keeps the gut healthy and is a natural cure for constipation. Easy to digest, it encourages better sleep quality for more energy the next day. You can find many recipes online; try it with your favorite rice to suit your taste.
This may bring up the question of how much to eat for any meal, and week eight takes on this very question with a simple rubric. During week eight, when you serve yourself a meal, first visualize how much you’d like to eat. Then serve yourself half of that portion. Take double the time you usually do to finish this portion, and then ask yourself if you are still hungry. If you are, start over at step one until you are full.
It is likely that you’ll find serving yourself less, and taking more time to enjoy it, will naturally shrink your portions over time without the feeling that you’re restricting yourself. This is precisely the point.
During week nine, commit to doing sun salutations, or Surya Namaskara, every day. Unless you’ve practiced yoga before, this might take a YouTube tutorial or a session with a teacher to begin, but the benefits of continued practice can’t be overstated – from glowing skin and stronger muscles to balanced hormones and lower blood pressure. If you incorporate only one yoga practice into your life, this is one that pays off.
In the tenth week, pay attention to hydration by increasing your water intake. You might also explore seasonal drinks or fruit snacks, like sherbet, that deliver hydration with electrolytes. Or try buttermilk to top up your vitamin B12 levels. It has the added benefit of cooling the body in summer as well.
At week eleven, it is time to take on human and environmental health. Reduce plastic by using cloth bags, and take time to heat food in iron dishes instead of in the microwave. Replace plastic film with wax cloth wrappers, and storage containers with glass. Not only will you take in fewer toxins through your food, but the planet’s health will also benefit. Even more, cooking in iron adds important micronutrients to your food, staving off lethargy and anemia.
Finally, in week twelve, bring three nutritious fats back into your diet – cold-pressed native oils from your region; coconut as a garnish or chutney; and cashews as a snack during the day or before sleep. They heighten flavor, and the variety of fats they contain delivers building blocks for healthy longevity.
-
When the project ends, the journey begins
When you’ve added all twelve building blocks to your health journey, the fun is just beginning. There are so many ways to keep modifying and adapting this fitness advice to help further your individual goals.
For instance, you can commit to trying a new fruit or vegetable every week. Eating in season and finding fresh, organic produce from local farmers is good for your body, and it brings variety to life. Growing produce in a backyard or terrace garden adds more activity and movement to your life, while helping you develop a deep personal connection with your food.
Exploring fermented foods can also unlock a world of flavor and health benefits while adding a rich source of probiotics for digestion. Heritage grains like millet, especially in winter, lift the mood and warm the body. Even finding natural varieties of salt that offer unique mineral or micronutrient benefits can make daily cooking an adventure.
The key is to keep exploring delicious and nutritious foods, pursuing activities that keep you moving, striving to be less sedentary, and becoming mindful of the distraction of screens and gadgets along the way.
You can even add in some pampering and self-care to your routine. Try massaging ghee into your feet before bedtime, for instance, as it can moisturize dry skin while delivering essential fatty acids to encourage more restful sleep. Or explore using coconut oil on your hair, scalp, and skin to keep them luxuriously soft and moisturized while nourishing them.
Doing these self-care rituals after a bath and following a yoga or exercise session might even get you craving the next session – especially if you fully enjoy the incredible feeling this routine brings to your body, mind, and spirit.
-
A lifetime of fitness and well-being goes well beyond a number on a scale, and restrictive diets actually contribute to negative health outcomes. To effect sustainable change, a fitness plan has to promote more variety and nutritious eating as well as enjoyable activity and movement, while limiting screen time and sedentary habits to promote better sleep. Taking on small, weekly goals over time transforms them into lifetime habits. Keeping the emphasis on enjoyment, not restriction, results in positive change for a lifetime.
There are a lot of diet plans out there right now that promise fast results for a smaller waistline, from keto and paleo to intermittent fasting and juice cleanses. Still, most of the world’s population is getting bigger. That’s because eliminating food groups, as with paleo or juice cleanses, and restricting calories, as with intermittent fasting or calorie counting, come with huge downsides. These include poorer nutrition, and an increase in the body's natural response to calorie restriction: more hunger.
Many diets for weight loss compromise your bone density, muscle repair, and skin health — they might even affect your sleep. After all, it is easy to lose weight under extreme stress, but that isn’t fostering good long-term health and well-being – in fact, it’s doing more harm than good.
So if you’ve been looking to make lasting change in your overall fitness, this book is for you. To understand why sustainable change is so important, read on.
-
Why diets fail: the biology of starvation
During World War Two, starvation resulting from disrupted agricultural cultivation and supply chains was a near-global phenomenon. But the long-term effects of human starvation weren’t very well known. So in 1946 an American scientist, Ancel Keys, recruited healthy volunteers for a year-long study on the subject. The healthy young participants ate normally for the first three months, then for another six months they were restricted to just two meals a day to simulate starvation, along with required daily walks of several kilometers.
Within weeks of this restriction, the volunteers reported their energy levels plummeted, their muscles felt weak, and they were tired all the time. Mentally, they felt complete apathy, detached from the joys of everyday life, but were overwhelmingly obsessed with food. Even worse, they eventually thought of those around them as too fat, rather than themselves as too thin – a dysmorphia common to those with anorexia nervosa.
When the six months were over, they’d lost 25 percent of their body weight – but the long-term effects were just starting. Some participants reported that after the six months of restriction, they ate five times more than they had before. Given the study was published years later, in 1951, it also recounted how many had an increased appetite no matter how much they ate, even years later. Many participants described the study as the worst thing they’d ever experienced.
These brave participants highlighted the real costs of starvation, revealing how crash diets and poor nutrition are so damaging. From no energy or sex drive, they bottomed out, and their mental obsession with food during and after restriction set them up for continued misery.
That’s to say nothing of how far away this focus takes us from the nutritional advice we were given by our mothers and grandmothers. Traditional ways of eating a variety of foods from local sources, taking the time to enjoy them in peace and mindfulness, and enjoying the slow path to sustainable health can connect us to the land, to community, and to culture. Food can be a focus of celebration and joy, and feed us in more ways than one.
To counter the faster-is-better approach, let’s dive just a bit deeper into what sustainability means for health – not just our own, but the health of our communities and environment, too.
-
Be the tortoise, not the hare
Sustainable health must reject restrictive diets and embrace a holistic approach that doesn’t sacrifice health for some desired number on the scale. Sleep, activity, and food all play a role in overall well-being, and so fitness has to account for all three. Even more, any fitness plan has to be one that you can imagine following for life. One that you’d be happy to have your children or family to follow.
Yoga, for instance, isn’t simply getting into a pose by any means necessary, straining your muscles and joints. Think about sirsasana, or headstand pose, and how much alignment, strength, and coordination it takes to do the pose properly. Some may take a lifetime to perfect the pose, and they will derive all the benefits. They may even apply the lessons they learned from mastering a headstand to understanding many complex circumstances of life.
That’s why this twelve-week plan isn’t looking for fast results, and openly encourages a cumulative approach. Each week, simply take on one healthy new habit and enjoy the process. Make enjoyment a central feature, in fact – from exploring delicious new sources of nutrition at the farmers’ market to taking that daily walk.
If you think some of this will involve setting aside gadgets and limiting screen time to help with sleep, exercise, and more mindful eating, you’re absolutely correct. Smart phones and gadgets have become a ubiquitous source of distraction and stress. From feeling on call twenty-four/seven to fear of missing out, our gadgets can feed a negative cycle in and of themselves.
Bringing mindful awareness to daily habits, and slowly transforming them, is the key to long-term, sustainable success. This can also have the added benefit of bringing more of your presence to your family, friends, and community. Exchanging a single session of mindless scrolling for an activity like taking a walk with friends brings multiple benefits for mood and health while adding richness to your relationships.
The key is to go slowly, and enjoy the journey along the way. Not only will it encourage you to keep going, but it brings more satisfaction throughout the journey that is life.
-
One by one, change adds up
The twelve-week fitness plan is based on cumulative progress. For each of the twelve weeks, you’ll embrace a single habit, and by week twelve you’ll be practicing them all. In week three, for instance, you’ll continue the changes from weeks one and two while adding in week three’s challenge. While you might be tempted to take them all on at once, this approach isn’t sustainable, and was much less successful for many of the author’s fitness-study participants.
If you find one week you’re not able to accomplish your goal, don’t stress. Just get back on track the following week and carry on. Skipping a week might seem huge in the short term, but in the long run, study participants who kept going after short lapses still saw enormous benefits after just twelve weeks, so this isn’t all-or-nothing.
During the first week, start with breakfast – the beginning of your day. Begin with a banana or any fresh fruit, or soaked almonds or raisins, and not with tea or coffee. Just this small change in how you begin your day can bring massive benefits throughout the day. Add a glass of plain water and eat this small meal shortly after waking up. Feel free to have that cup of coffee or chai about 20 minutes later, if you still want it.
In the second week, incorporate a few spoonfuls of ghee into your diet. This wonderful and flavorful substance delivers a powerful combination of antioxidants, fat soluble vitamins like D and E, along with lipolytic effects – that is, ghee is a fat that breaks down other fat deposits. It also helps you de-stress and wake up with more energy.
During the third week, bring more mindfulness to your gadget use. Shut down phones and computers at least one hour before sleeping. Put them away for at least one meal a day as well, and aim to make all meals gadget-free by the end of the twelve weeks. Not only will eating without distraction help ease stress and help your body know when it is full, but it will also help awaken your senses to the sights, smells, and textures of your meals.
Week four takes on the timing of your biggest meal, which plays an outsized role in fitness success. Eating a wholesome meal between four and six in the afternoon can be the single most important factor in overall health. Not only is that the time of day when the body experiences the most natural hunger, but eating at this time also respects the hormonal cycles the body goes through over the course of a day, regulating them for better sleep, energy levels, and mood.
In week five, it is time to incorporate more movement into your routine. Not exercise, per se, but simple movement to complement health. Commit to taking the stairs instead of the elevator, or to adding 100 steps after dinner; small movement bursts add up, and they break up the lengthy periods of sitting that have become a staple of modern life.
-
More building blocks for change
By week six, your cumulative changes will be transitioning into real lifestyle change. It is incredibly important to keep going from here. That’s because week six focuses on adding one session of strength training to your week.
Adding lean muscle mass to your body, no matter your age, is one of the best predictors of a long, healthy life. As we get older, our muscle mass begins to dwindle, along with the strength and metabolic benefits we enjoyed in youth. Adding strength training counteracts this decline, and helps regulate our hormonal health.
During week seven, simply try eating dal rice for dinner. This staple of Indian cooking is prebiotic, meaning it keeps the gut healthy and is a natural cure for constipation. Easy to digest, it encourages better sleep quality for more energy the next day. You can find many recipes online; try it with your favorite rice to suit your taste.
This may bring up the question of how much to eat for any meal, and week eight takes on this very question with a simple rubric. During week eight, when you serve yourself a meal, first visualize how much you’d like to eat. Then serve yourself half of that portion. Take double the time you usually do to finish this portion, and then ask yourself if you are still hungry. If you are, start over at step one until you are full.
It is likely that you’ll find serving yourself less, and taking more time to enjoy it, will naturally shrink your portions over time without the feeling that you’re restricting yourself. This is precisely the point.
During week nine, commit to doing sun salutations, or Surya Namaskara, every day. Unless you’ve practiced yoga before, this might take a YouTube tutorial or a session with a teacher to begin, but the benefits of continued practice can’t be overstated – from glowing skin and stronger muscles to balanced hormones and lower blood pressure. If you incorporate only one yoga practice into your life, this is one that pays off.
In the tenth week, pay attention to hydration by increasing your water intake. You might also explore seasonal drinks or fruit snacks, like sherbet, that deliver hydration with electrolytes. Or try buttermilk to top up your vitamin B12 levels. It has the added benefit of cooling the body in summer as well.
At week eleven, it is time to take on human and environmental health. Reduce plastic by using cloth bags, and take time to heat food in iron dishes instead of in the microwave. Replace plastic film with wax cloth wrappers, and storage containers with glass. Not only will you take in fewer toxins through your food, but the planet’s health will also benefit. Even more, cooking in iron adds important micronutrients to your food, staving off lethargy and anemia.
Finally, in week twelve, bring three nutritious fats back into your diet – cold-pressed native oils from your region; coconut as a garnish or chutney; and cashews as a snack during the day or before sleep. They heighten flavor, and the variety of fats they contain delivers building blocks for healthy longevity.
-
When the project ends, the journey begins
When you’ve added all twelve building blocks to your health journey, the fun is just beginning. There are so many ways to keep modifying and adapting this fitness advice to help further your individual goals.
For instance, you can commit to trying a new fruit or vegetable every week. Eating in season and finding fresh, organic produce from local farmers is good for your body, and it brings variety to life. Growing produce in a backyard or terrace garden adds more activity and movement to your life, while helping you develop a deep personal connection with your food.
Exploring fermented foods can also unlock a world of flavor and health benefits while adding a rich source of probiotics for digestion. Heritage grains like millet, especially in winter, lift the mood and warm the body. Even finding natural varieties of salt that offer unique mineral or micronutrient benefits can make daily cooking an adventure.
The key is to keep exploring delicious and nutritious foods, pursuing activities that keep you moving, striving to be less sedentary, and becoming mindful of the distraction of screens and gadgets along the way.
You can even add in some pampering and self-care to your routine. Try massaging ghee into your feet before bedtime, for instance, as it can moisturize dry skin while delivering essential fatty acids to encourage more restful sleep. Or explore using coconut oil on your hair, scalp, and skin to keep them luxuriously soft and moisturized while nourishing them.
Doing these self-care rituals after a bath and following a yoga or exercise session might even get you craving the next session – especially if you fully enjoy the incredible feeling this routine brings to your body, mind, and spirit.
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A lifetime of fitness and well-being goes well beyond a number on a scale, and restrictive diets actually contribute to negative health outcomes. To effect sustainable change, a fitness plan has to promote more variety and nutritious eating as well as enjoyable activity and movement, while limiting screen time and sedentary habits to promote better sleep. Taking on small, weekly goals over time transforms them into lifetime habits. Keeping the emphasis on enjoyment, not restriction, results in positive change for a lifetime.
March 12, 2020
Must read for everybody- very informative and practical.
February 10, 2020
The given instructions are very simple to follow. And much needed book for the everyone to stay healthy.
February 5, 2020
The crux of the Book is:
Food is nourishment. Food isn’t fattening, guilt is.
Resilience is much more important than weight loss.
Skinny is not a sure shot way to success.
Success comes in all sizes.
Strength, stamina and stability are the core of a workout routine. Not calories.
Eat local
Listen to your granny
Food is nourishment. Food isn’t fattening, guilt is.
Resilience is much more important than weight loss.
Skinny is not a sure shot way to success.
Success comes in all sizes.
Strength, stamina and stability are the core of a workout routine. Not calories.
Eat local
Listen to your granny
January 22, 2020
This book neatly encapsulated the 12 week fitness challenge pointers that Rujuta Diwekar has been conducting since 2018. As someone who has read all her books, I loved having them in one place for quick reference. There are actionable tips that one can implement right away in one's lifestyle without too much effort. I am glad to note that I have already most of her pointers. There is a nifty FAQ section after each guideline. The book is an easy read and must be read by everyone looking to adopt a healthier lifestyle.
January 20, 2020
Simple!
Easy and adaptible practices unlike the other weight loss regimes. This is infact a gradual change to our lifestyle which is healthy.
Easy and adaptible practices unlike the other weight loss regimes. This is infact a gradual change to our lifestyle which is healthy.
January 12, 2020
Loved it
I am fan of Rujutas books and been following her rules for healthy and fitter me. This book is indeed a good guide for everyone who wants to be healthy again.
I am fan of Rujutas books and been following her rules for healthy and fitter me. This book is indeed a good guide for everyone who wants to be healthy again.
January 5, 2020
Luckily I picked up this book in the airport on the day it released and have been hooked to it since. I’ve followed these guidelines when Diwekar ran this on Insta in 2019, and wanted a copy of these for easy reference.
Diwekar’s tips and inputs on food have always worked for me, and I love the fact that she promotes local eating. This book is a MUST read if you take your food seriously , the book gives you some tools to work with and plan your meals.
Diwekar’s tips and inputs on food have always worked for me, and I love the fact that she promotes local eating. This book is a MUST read if you take your food seriously , the book gives you some tools to work with and plan your meals.
January 9, 2020
For all those who have followed her fitness project,this book is just a quick recap but with few more FAQs which frankly even I had in mind.A quick read.I loved the examples and stories in the book.
July 3, 2020
I give this a 4 star rating and 'Loved it' tag.
Loved it because the book gave me great tips on eating right and the right way of eating. 1 star cut because the book could've been presented better. This is a good book on how to and what tips you can incorporate in your daily routines to have a long healthy life without diets.
A good read and better than just to find these 12 tips on the internet., you lose the fun that way, and the way she explains the reasoning behind each of these simple tips.
Loved it because the book gave me great tips on eating right and the right way of eating. 1 star cut because the book could've been presented better. This is a good book on how to and what tips you can incorporate in your daily routines to have a long healthy life without diets.
A good read and better than just to find these 12 tips on the internet., you lose the fun that way, and the way she explains the reasoning behind each of these simple tips.
July 25, 2021
There's nothing ground breaking about weight loss in this book. Whatever she's written is what wr Indians have been following for centuries.
The core of the 12 week program is eat healthy home cooked meals, lead an active lifestyle and work out.
The core of the 12 week program is eat healthy home cooked meals, lead an active lifestyle and work out.
November 18, 2020
To summarize the 12 week fitness project ideas are:
Week 1: Start your day with a Banana or Fresh Fruit or soaked almonds or soaked raisins and not with tea/coffee.
Week 2: Eat Ghee. Without fear, without guilt, without doubt. Add 1 tbsp of ghee to breakfast,lunch and dinner.
Week 3: No Gadgets during meal. No gadgets at least 30 to 60 mins before sleeping.
Week 4:Eat a wholesome meal b/w 4 and 6 pm. Plan for it in advance. Some options - nuts, pohs, upma, dosa, egg toast, homemade kakhra
Week 5:Move More. Sit Less. For every 30 minutes of sitting, stand up for 3 minutes.
Week 6: Start with atleast one session of strength training every week.
Week 7: Eat Daal Rice for Dinner. Cook it the way your grandmom did. Eat White not brown. Must add ghee.
Week 8: Use the mental meal map as a tool to help you eat the right quantity. Visualize how much you would like to eat. Serve yourself half of that portion and take double the time to eat the meal.
Week 9: Practice Suryanamaskar daily. Choose a fixed place at home preferably a well ventialted one. Fix a time to do it daily- sunrise or sunset are good times.
Week 10: Stay hydrated with sherbets and other seasonal drinks throughout the day.
Week 11: No Plastic, No microwave, bring back the iron kadhai. Heat, Don't microwave.
Week 12: Bring back these three fats in your daily diet.
a. Tadka in kachchi ghanni (cold pressed or filtered oils)
b. Coconut as garnishing, chutney
c. Cashews as mid meal or with milk before sleeping
Week 10:
Week 5:
Week 1: Start your day with a Banana or Fresh Fruit or soaked almonds or soaked raisins and not with tea/coffee.
Week 2: Eat Ghee. Without fear, without guilt, without doubt. Add 1 tbsp of ghee to breakfast,lunch and dinner.
Week 3: No Gadgets during meal. No gadgets at least 30 to 60 mins before sleeping.
Week 4:Eat a wholesome meal b/w 4 and 6 pm. Plan for it in advance. Some options - nuts, pohs, upma, dosa, egg toast, homemade kakhra
Week 5:Move More. Sit Less. For every 30 minutes of sitting, stand up for 3 minutes.
Week 6: Start with atleast one session of strength training every week.
Week 7: Eat Daal Rice for Dinner. Cook it the way your grandmom did. Eat White not brown. Must add ghee.
Week 8: Use the mental meal map as a tool to help you eat the right quantity. Visualize how much you would like to eat. Serve yourself half of that portion and take double the time to eat the meal.
Week 9: Practice Suryanamaskar daily. Choose a fixed place at home preferably a well ventialted one. Fix a time to do it daily- sunrise or sunset are good times.
Week 10: Stay hydrated with sherbets and other seasonal drinks throughout the day.
Week 11: No Plastic, No microwave, bring back the iron kadhai. Heat, Don't microwave.
Week 12: Bring back these three fats in your daily diet.
a. Tadka in kachchi ghanni (cold pressed or filtered oils)
b. Coconut as garnishing, chutney
c. Cashews as mid meal or with milk before sleeping
Week 10:
Week 5:
August 22, 2020
So, this book has 12 guidelines, for 12 weeks to be implemented cumulatively. I could finish it in less than an hour, might have even been a blog post. But alright.
I firmly believe a lot of things which are common knowledge are not common practice. So, I'll be practicing a few of the tips, that I believe will help me.
I am personally on a journey to lose 50 pounds, and I already have developed several habits to aid me. I do strength training, cardio, yoga, and a macronutrient focus on nutrition. I get my 8k-10k steps, I'm big on hydration. So there's a lot I'm already doing.
This book is not for people who are overweight looking to shed that extra fat off. This is for people who want to incorporate a sliiiiiightly fitter lifestyle in SMALL and SUBTLE ways.
Hence, this book was not for me.
That doesn't mean I won't try some of it, I still will. But I also take it with a pinch of salt.
Your fitness journey is YOURS. Be smart with it. Gather data, research the heck out, but in the end, implement, practice, stay consistent, and see what works for you.
Rujuta also shoos away calorie counting, or macronutrient tracking, and simply insists on your grandmother's cooking style.
My grandmother personally adds a cup of oil to upma so, I'm going to be taking her advice with a pinch of salt. xD
I firmly believe a lot of things which are common knowledge are not common practice. So, I'll be practicing a few of the tips, that I believe will help me.
I am personally on a journey to lose 50 pounds, and I already have developed several habits to aid me. I do strength training, cardio, yoga, and a macronutrient focus on nutrition. I get my 8k-10k steps, I'm big on hydration. So there's a lot I'm already doing.
This book is not for people who are overweight looking to shed that extra fat off. This is for people who want to incorporate a sliiiiiightly fitter lifestyle in SMALL and SUBTLE ways.
Hence, this book was not for me.
That doesn't mean I won't try some of it, I still will. But I also take it with a pinch of salt.
Your fitness journey is YOURS. Be smart with it. Gather data, research the heck out, but in the end, implement, practice, stay consistent, and see what works for you.
Rujuta also shoos away calorie counting, or macronutrient tracking, and simply insists on your grandmother's cooking style.
My grandmother personally adds a cup of oil to upma so, I'm going to be taking her advice with a pinch of salt. xD
May 24, 2022
12 weeks fitness project
When India's top nutrition expert gives Gyan on fitness, the world sits back and takes notes. This fitness project was Rujuta's brainchild wherein she gave tips to follow every week for 3 months on her social media channels. They were simple instructions that could be implemented by anyone. But we have complicated basic things about our food for weight loss and fad diets so much that we needed a person of Rujuta's repute to shake us up a little bit and make us follow customs which have always been a part of our kitchens and dining tables.
Rujuta has critics panning her, time and again for being too simplistic. For allowing pickles, papads, mangoes,etc for people trying to lose weight. But it's important that her tips should be looked at in totality. Following it partially won't give the desired results.
The highlight of the book for me was the guidelines given at the end for kids. Sometimes its a
daunting task to plan your kid's meal. Those pointers will definitely help you in deciding your kid's tiffin box.
The success of such self help books definitely depend on how much of it you are able to implement in your daily life. None of it is rocket science yet to be able to implement all of them will take effort. Efforts that will surely give you results.
Price : Rs 250
Publisher : Juggernaut
Author: Rujuta Diwekar
When India's top nutrition expert gives Gyan on fitness, the world sits back and takes notes. This fitness project was Rujuta's brainchild wherein she gave tips to follow every week for 3 months on her social media channels. They were simple instructions that could be implemented by anyone. But we have complicated basic things about our food for weight loss and fad diets so much that we needed a person of Rujuta's repute to shake us up a little bit and make us follow customs which have always been a part of our kitchens and dining tables.
Rujuta has critics panning her, time and again for being too simplistic. For allowing pickles, papads, mangoes,etc for people trying to lose weight. But it's important that her tips should be looked at in totality. Following it partially won't give the desired results.
The highlight of the book for me was the guidelines given at the end for kids. Sometimes its a
daunting task to plan your kid's meal. Those pointers will definitely help you in deciding your kid's tiffin box.
The success of such self help books definitely depend on how much of it you are able to implement in your daily life. None of it is rocket science yet to be able to implement all of them will take effort. Efforts that will surely give you results.
Price : Rs 250
Publisher : Juggernaut
Author: Rujuta Diwekar
July 22, 2023
#12WeekFitnessProject #RujutaDiwekar Book #34 of the year '23
This is a brief recap of Rujuta's food basic philosophy, which is our philosophy of centuries.
She emphasises on eating local, seasonal food- what mother and grandmother cooked- as opposed to insanely expensive "foreign" food. That's exactly what mummy always said- "Eat everything, but in moderation. Diets only give weakness and ill health. Focus on nutrition, eat on time, chew well, remain hydrated, be active..."
Desi ghee is good, jaggery, roasted gram, seasonal drinks like aam panna, kokam, bel, chhaas, coconut in any form... When making a dish not from your region, use the same oil/ ingredients as used by the people from that region. She advocates brown rice at night and details the benefits.
Use iron and steel utensils. Stop using aluminium and plastic in any form. If making anything sour, and can't use iron kadhai, put an iron karchhi in the cooked food for 15 minutes. Stop taflon quoted utensils...
She gives nutritional and other benefits of the food etc that she suggests. Eg, have cashew in the night with milk for sound sleep.
Don't count calories. Skinny isn't good, fitness/ strength/ flexibility etc is the goal.
Basic things that one already knows and follows, but a recap does delta course correction. I'll always recommend her books to everyone. She talks sense.
This is a brief recap of Rujuta's food basic philosophy, which is our philosophy of centuries.
She emphasises on eating local, seasonal food- what mother and grandmother cooked- as opposed to insanely expensive "foreign" food. That's exactly what mummy always said- "Eat everything, but in moderation. Diets only give weakness and ill health. Focus on nutrition, eat on time, chew well, remain hydrated, be active..."
Desi ghee is good, jaggery, roasted gram, seasonal drinks like aam panna, kokam, bel, chhaas, coconut in any form... When making a dish not from your region, use the same oil/ ingredients as used by the people from that region. She advocates brown rice at night and details the benefits.
Use iron and steel utensils. Stop using aluminium and plastic in any form. If making anything sour, and can't use iron kadhai, put an iron karchhi in the cooked food for 15 minutes. Stop taflon quoted utensils...
She gives nutritional and other benefits of the food etc that she suggests. Eg, have cashew in the night with milk for sound sleep.
Don't count calories. Skinny isn't good, fitness/ strength/ flexibility etc is the goal.
Basic things that one already knows and follows, but a recap does delta course correction. I'll always recommend her books to everyone. She talks sense.
December 2, 2020
12-Week fitness project – by Rujuta Diwekar
I love the common-sense approach that Ms. Diwekar brings to her vocation as a nutritionist. In this book, she busts many food myths that we have internalized over time. She is a proponent for eating local, seasonal and traditional food. She bucks the modern trends of diets, some of which are causing great harm to our bodies in the long term.
This book is an outcome of a study that was conducted by Ms. Diwekar and her team. The project report has been published in the international public health journal.
The book is a 12-week guide to better health. Every week a new nutrition guideline is introduced to us. The benefits of each new guideline are explained in detail. Since each week introduces small incremental changes, these changes can be easily applied to our life.
I followed the book for the entire duration of 3 months, and I can see many benefits. Having said that, I am unable to follow all the 12 guidelines all the time. Life gets in the way sometimes (that’s my excuse).
I can’t ever afford the services of Ms. Diwekar for nutritional guidance. I will just have to make do with her wonderful books on common-sense eating.
I love the common-sense approach that Ms. Diwekar brings to her vocation as a nutritionist. In this book, she busts many food myths that we have internalized over time. She is a proponent for eating local, seasonal and traditional food. She bucks the modern trends of diets, some of which are causing great harm to our bodies in the long term.
This book is an outcome of a study that was conducted by Ms. Diwekar and her team. The project report has been published in the international public health journal.
The book is a 12-week guide to better health. Every week a new nutrition guideline is introduced to us. The benefits of each new guideline are explained in detail. Since each week introduces small incremental changes, these changes can be easily applied to our life.
I followed the book for the entire duration of 3 months, and I can see many benefits. Having said that, I am unable to follow all the 12 guidelines all the time. Life gets in the way sometimes (that’s my excuse).
I can’t ever afford the services of Ms. Diwekar for nutritional guidance. I will just have to make do with her wonderful books on common-sense eating.
November 13, 2020
Pros:
-Quick Read
- author is professional and acclaimed in food and nutrition area
-Valuable and informative content
-More Natural approach than calculative
-Decent Attempt to aware the reader about marketting gimmicks in food industry
-Very practical method of portion control
-Personally, I agree to most of points but not all
-Special section for modified plan/project for kids in appendix 3
Cons:
-Topic of strength training is kept short and directs to another book of her for details. A few more pages with certain details would have been nice.
- there is no proper guideline about how, when and how much of drinking water. Actually water is least discussed item in this book.
-The book seems like it is written for only women at instances, like, the way author suggests to take help from your husband in kitchen. Appendix 2 has reviews from lots of participants from the project and all are women. Author has not mentioned it anywhere but in my opinion, the book has written with a focus towards women.
PS: Overall a good and informative read, specially for womens.
-Quick Read
- author is professional and acclaimed in food and nutrition area
-Valuable and informative content
-More Natural approach than calculative
-Decent Attempt to aware the reader about marketting gimmicks in food industry
-Very practical method of portion control
-Personally, I agree to most of points but not all
-Special section for modified plan/project for kids in appendix 3
Cons:
-Topic of strength training is kept short and directs to another book of her for details. A few more pages with certain details would have been nice.
- there is no proper guideline about how, when and how much of drinking water. Actually water is least discussed item in this book.
-The book seems like it is written for only women at instances, like, the way author suggests to take help from your husband in kitchen. Appendix 2 has reviews from lots of participants from the project and all are women. Author has not mentioned it anywhere but in my opinion, the book has written with a focus towards women.
PS: Overall a good and informative read, specially for womens.
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