Godrej Memorial Hospital in partnership with IIT Bombay Startup HaystackAnalytics launched 'India’s first comprehensive genome sequencing test recently' in Mumbai, which screens more than 150 conditions and genetic traits including debilitating diseases like cancer, diabetes and Alzheimer's. Chhavi Mittal Hussein, digital creator and co-founder, Shitty Ideas Trending, who has herself successfully battled cancer, was a guest. The Telegraph caught up with Chhavi on living a healthy and mindful life and how she sees life in a new light.
These new advancements are a boon, right?
I think amongst everything that technology has to offer, the advancements which we see in the fields of medical science, I feel they are the best because, as long as the person is healthy, everything else can keep going on. I was at the Godrej Memorial Hospital the other day and I saw this amazing genome mapping programme. It's a test that can determine if a person is prone to about 150 different medical conditions, which is amazing because these conditions could be cancer or diabetes or hypertension or related to anything in your body. You have the control to change your lifestyle and make some changes in your diet and routine and be prepared for it and maybe even completely avoid it.
How has your approach to health changed over the years?
I think health is the most important thing because if you don't have good health, there's nothing else that you can enjoy. The idiom 'Health is wealth' is something that I have understood the hard way. Before I was sick, my priorities were work and my kids, my career. I have always been hardworking but that was the only thing I was doing at that point. Now, I feel it is important to take care of little little things which contribute to good health. What time you eat, what kind of food you eat, how often you eat out, how often you eat home food, when you are eating home food, are you concentrating on the macros and micros... I have started doing that. The importance of sleeping on time, and waking up on time, all these things have made a lot of difference in my lifestyle and I have started giving them a lot more importance now.
Do you see life in a new light now?
Absolutely. My whole perspective towards life and priorities has changed.
What have you cut out from your life?
Late-night parties are something I have absolutely cut out. If I have an occasion that I want to celebrate, like a birthday, I do a brunch rather than a late-night party. Binge drinking is something I have absolutely cut. I was never a regular drinker, but binge drinking is something that I did experience. Eating out has reduced a lot. There was a time when one meal was always outside. That evening snack when you are sitting in the office and you have nothing to eat, you always end up ordering from outside. Then dinner gets late. I always carry something with me to eat in the evenings and my dinner happens around 7pm and I go to bed early.
What have you included in your life?
Meditation is something that I have included and also consuming salad with every meal. I have reduced my caffeine intake and increased my water intake. When I feel like drinking something, I make sure I include nariyal paani and nimbu paani. I have introduced healthy oils, nuts and dry fruits. I was not much of a fruitarian but I have started including fruits too.
Tell us what you love doing in the gym.
Gym is a time I connect with my body in the purest way possible. I don't see what's happening around me. I am completely connected with the insides of my body and concentrating on what the muscle is telling me. I crave and enjoy that connection. What I love doing the most is weight training because in my opinion, if you do it correctly, it has the least chance of having an injury. Everything is in your control. There are no sudden movements and also you see better effects of weight training because as a woman, once you cross your 40s you lose three per cent of muscle mass every year. To continue to have muscle mass, it is important to do weight training. I love it! If you continue to do weight training and have an X amount of muscle mass in your body, you do not put on weight easily. Your metabolism is high and your general fitness is better.
And, hate?!
Okay, this is going to sound so wrong, but I hate people in the gym! (Laughs) If I had the money, I would have a private gym. That is the only disconnect that happens between my workout and me, a machine has to be shared or music has to be changed or I have to wait for somebody to finish. Probably I am being selfish here, but if I could, I would work out alone with my music.
Your kids keep you on your toes, right?
I think you will not understand what motherhood is till you actually become a mom. For me, being a mother changed me as a person. It was a new birth for me, the first time I became a mom. It was an opportunity for me to unlearn everything that I had learned in life and learn the importance of the little things all over again. Motherhood also makes you really patient and makes you understand what love is. Till the time I became a mom, I thought I knew love, but I did not. The love you have for your kids is so selfless that no matter how much they irritate you, you never stop loving them. That is the most beautiful thing about being a mom. It makes you a better human being in all aspects.
What’s your conversation with yourself every night before you hit the bed?
What am I doing in the gym tomorrow?! (Laughs) I gym just for myself.
What is your mantra in life, now?
The most important person for you should be you yourself. Self-love is the most important thing. What you are doing, is that making you happy, is what you need to ask yourself before you say a 'yes' or a 'no' to something.