A flight-plan for fitness

Exercise to stimulate, not to annihilate. The world wasn't formed in a day, and neither were we. Set small goals and build upon them." Madhu Sudan will impress you in the first meeting.
With a job that requires him to be off the ground for over 15 hours a day, body clock going through at least two to three time zones in a day and jetlag being the most dreaded word, Madhu is an inspiration to most. "I only focus on being fi t. The six-pack is a blessing, and well, not so much in disguise," he opens the conversation with a wide grin.

You are what you eat
"If health is your objective," Madhu says, "you should try to get most of your calories from whole foods." He adds: "They are unprocessed, unrefined and reflect what nature intended. What goes into your mouth ends up replacing cells somewhere in your body hours later.

Whole foods give you high levels of vitamins, minerals, enzymes, antioxidants and fibre. Your body needs naturally nutrient-dense food. Eating foods that are as close to nature as possible will give your body a steady supply of nutrition to carry out all its metabolic needs."

Being a pure vegetarian, it's difficult for Madhu to get the right amount of protein for the body. Hence, he recommends protein shakes for muscle growth and recovery. "There are enough vegetarian protein powders in the market and most products legally sold have the green label which indicates that the ingredients are 100 per cent vegetarian."

We're all similar, but differently so
It is one thing to get inspired by that Greek-God lookalike in your gym, but a completely different story to blindly ape what he is doing. Madhu believes that "most fitness enthusiasts fail to see what that guy does outside outside the gym". Says he: "It's not just inside the gym that one sculpts his abs.
What you do while you are not sweating it out at the gym is equally important. Each of us has a diet that works best for us individually. It is this metabolic individuality that regulates how our body responds to various diets."

He also cautions against recklessly following diet books. "When you pick up a diet book off the shelf, and start following the plan, many of us fail to see that the author is actually shelling out advice based on what worked for them. The truth is that it may work for you, perhaps make you feel and look great, or it could have a completely detrimental effect on you," says Madhu.

Burst the personal bubbles
Dieting is not starving, says he emphatically. "It is sheer blasphemy. It is a regulated lifestyle that makes you fit." And how does he fight temptations that come as part of his job-staying and eating at some of the best places in the world?

"One never becomes fat or loses all the weight in one day. I have my cheat days. I do dig into a bowl of ice-cream at times, but then I compensate for all such indulgences with an extra hour of working out." In his words, "Live life, but not always king-size please!"

Go on a fat-loss diet
"If you have a high body fat percentage, the abs won't show, no matter how much you work. Your diet must have higher protein intake, moderate fat and moderate complex carbohydrate. You should cut out all excess simple sugars, lower your dairy intake and eliminate excess saturated fats.

The majority of your dietary fat should come from essential fatty acids (omega-6 and omega-3)," Madhu suggests. His secret to feeling fuller? "Take two glasses of warm water before every meal. Also, after water, I love green tea. It is rich in antioxidants and helps detox your body."

Madhu believes in the good ol' adage: 'Great abs are made in the kitchen, not in the gym'. In other words, eating fewer calories equals losing fat. "You should create a mild caloric deficit when dieting. It means you should be using more calories than you are taking in from your diet. This way, your body gets the extra calories it needs from fat stores (hopefully).

I say hopefully because if you drop your calories too drastically, your body may prefer to use muscle tissue for energy instead of fat. This is why many people who go on fad diets look so soft.

They lose almost as much muscle mass as fat with those drastic diets." A keen learner, Madhu also plans to do an online course on personal training. The bottom-line, he says, is motivation. "If you wanna fly, you got to give up the shit that weighs you down." Point noted!

Madhu's tips for fitness on the move: You can go without food for long, but going without water-which constitutes 70 per cent of your muscle mass and 60 per cent of your total body mass-will leave your muscles looking anorexic. Bursts of intense bodyweight exercises, with small resting periods within the realm of an abrupt 20-30 minute workout, not only saves time but is also the best way to burn fat to reveal your abs. A bit of fine-tuning with the plank, crunches, leg raises and side leg raises in your hotel room will make those abs drool worthy. The five key ingredients for guaranteed success are 80 per cent diet, 17 per cent workouts, 1 per cent patience, 1 per cent dedication and a pinch of perseverance.