My fitness mantra
Satish Reddy
40/ MD & COO/ Dr Reddy’s Labs
Ever wondered how busy CEOs, who maintain 70-hour-plus working weeks, manage to keep fit and beat stress? BT More asked nine really fit CEOs for their fitness secrets. This is how they do it.
How does he keep fit?
Reddy works out only 2-3 times a week. At the gym, he begins with 15 minutes of cardio, followed by 20 minutes of free weights. “I began working out regularly about 10 years ago, and besides keeping me in shape, it acts as a stress-buster,” he says, adding that he also gets a massage at a spa during or after an extended travel.
What does he eat?
“I maintain fairly standard times for food. Heavy breakfast, decent lunch and light dinners,” he says. At breakfast, it is a combination of fruit, cereal, eggs and brown bread. Lunch comprises rice, vegetable curries, lentils, yogurt and fruit. Dinners are more of the same, only lighter. And weekends are his time for bingeing—“a generous helping of my favourite Hyderabadi biryani.”
How does he de-stress?
Besides working out, Reddy says driving is a good stress-buster. “I drive myself to work every day,” he adds. He also meditates (transcendental meditation) and watches films to unwind.
E Kumar Sharma
Martin Dlouhy
39/ Managing Director/ Metro India
How does he keep fit?
Dlouhy finds walking and jogging very monotonous and boring. “I wanted something that was much more physical and challenging,” he says. So, when he relocated to Bangalore recently, he quickly found himself a personal tennis coach. Nowadays, he spends at least an hour, two or three times a week sharpening his on-court game.
What does he eat?
He tried Indian breakfast when he arrived, but quickly reverted to European alternatives of doughnuts and pastries. Ditto for his coffee which is also European. That aside, Dlouhy doesn’t really have any specific dietary restrictions, although he does go easy on spices and fatty foods.
How does he de-stress?
A keen mountain biker, Dlouhy often kits himself out in full protective gear and zips down the streets outside his swish residence at a gated community in Yemlur, off Bangalore‘s Airport Road. While he hasn’t yet had an opportunity to go truly off road, he’s open to suggestions.
Rahul Sachitanand
Rohit Narang
38/ Chairman/ Narang Group
How does he keep fit?
Narang makes it a point to hit the gym five days a week. Two years ago, he also started practising yoga. “I realised that consistent weight training had resulted in a loss of flexibility. Ideally, after a workout, stretches are recommended but due to paucity of time, I often have to skip it. But yoga helps keep my body flexible and gives me an overall lean look,” says Narang.
What does he eat?
A self-confessed sucker for dietary fads, Narang is currently following the blood group diet, which prescribes and prohibits certain foods for each blood group. So while chicken, corn and tomato are out, fish and beef are in. He also avoids fried foods, tea, coffee and does not smoke.
How does he de-stress?
Yoga not only helps him keep fit, it helps him de-stress. “It has improved my power of concentration and removes toxins from my body,” he says.
Diwan Rahul Nanda
36/ Chairman and Managing Director/ Topsgrup
How does he keep fit?
Nanda, who works out five days every week, has been into fitness since his college days. “My clients have a certain image of me as the chief of a security company—I obviously can’t be flabby or skinny. And they also expect me to have basic knowledge of providing security to people,” informs Nanda.
Which is why, apart from a black belt in Kung Fu and Jeet Kune Do, he has a doctorate in martial arts. His regime: besides weight training to keep his body in shape, he practises martial arts three to four times a week and indulges in one sporting activity—ranging from golf to rugby—once a week.
What does he eat?
While fats are a strict no-no, he limits himself to sweets once a week and also moderates his alcohol consumption. In addition, Nanda avoids red meats and egg yolks and watches his salt and oil intake like an eagle.
How does he de-stress?
He chills out once a week. “I don’t do any workouts on Sundays,” he finishes.
Tejeesh N.S. Behl
Rajiv Mehta
29/ CEO/ Puma India
How does he keep fit?
Mehta works out five days a week and looks to burn around 700 calories during his 90-minute routine that mixes both weights and free-hand sets. His routine, guided by a personal physical trainer at the gym, usually involves starting with cycling or the treadmill to warm up, followed by an assortment of exercises between 7.30 and 9 am, Monday-Friday, whenever he is in town.
What does he eat?
Over the last few years, Mehta has overhauled his eating pattern as his trainer has toughened his workout schedule. Ghee-heavy sweets are a rarity and he tries to balance as many meals as possible, especially when he is in town. On the road, he stays away from greasy buffets and dessert tables to try and keep his weight down.
How does he de-stress?
Weekends are strictly for family and friends and he is happy catching a movie or hitting one (or more) of Bangalore’s watering holes to chill out. “I work really hard for five days a week and like to disconnect from work over the weekend,” he says.
Rahul Sachitanand
Ajjay Bijli
40/ CMD/ PVR Cinemas
How does he keep fit?
Bijli watches his weight very carefully (“according to my gender, height, and age,” he says.) “I work out 4-5 times a week; and since I have more time on weekends, I tend to exercise more, but Mondays are a no-exercise day (because I need time to recover from the weekend workouts).” He runs at least thrice every week for about 45–60 minutes each, covering 8-10 km. Then, Bijli does weight training and leg exercises twice a week. “I also do stretching and abdomen exercises at each and every workout session,” he adds.
What does he eat?
Bijli eats very simple home-made meals five days a week. “My breakfast comprises an egg-white omelette with toast and tea; lunch consists of chapattis, a cooked vegetable and fresh salad. In the evenings, I take some fruits, nuts or toast and dinner consists primarily of grilled, roasted or tandoori fish or chicken,” he says, adding that he avoids carbohydrates at night.
He has also been off sweets, fried food, white bread, white rice and junk food like pizza and burger for many years.
How does he de-stress?
He switches off his mobile phone and BlackBerry. “One of my favourite ways to fight stress is to spend time with my kids. Watching movies is another stressbuster,” he says. Bijli also likes to unwind over a nice meal with friends, engage in banter and strictly keep off business.
Kapil Bajaj
Suveen Sahib
41/ CEO/ Eon Premedia
How does he keep fit?
Sahib, who admits to having a phobia about pot bellies, has, over the years, tried to go beyond gyms and racetracks —to adopt a 24-hours cycle of fitness. It includes eating right and having the right attitude. He works out at the gym every day, mostly following the stretching-cardio-weightlifting-abs routine. The gym routine, however, is aimed at keeping fit, and not at body building. He has also been into trekking for a long time and is addicted to running. “I’ll be there at the Delhi Half Marathon this year,” he says.
What does he eat?
Sahib eats light meals 3-4 times a day rather than taking Indian-style heavy meals twice or thrice a day. “I eat porridge, bananas and nuts for breakfast and sprouts and a chapatti or two for lunch,” he says, adding that he stopped taking desserts and ice-creams some years ago. “I also stopped having rice in line with my own understanding of what my body requires. I take whole fruit rather than drink fruit juices, which, I think, is a waste of a lot of fibres.”
How does he de-stress?
Sahib believes that stress is a problem only when it becomes a very negative influence in one’s life. “I like to calm myself by chanting and meditation. I also like to think: what is the worst that can happen to me? That train of thought actually leads to peace and calm,” he says.
Kapil Bajaj
Rajan Srikanth
45/ Managing Director, Asia Pacific/Mercer
How does he keep fit?
Srikanth works out thrice a week for about 45 minutes each and alternates between upper body exercises (weights) and on toning up other sections on different days. In addition to this, he does aerobics to ensure that he gets a full-body workout through the week. All this at his home gym.
What does he eat?
He starts his day with a moderate breakfast of cereals or brown bread. Being a vegetarian, his lunch is a light affair of brown rice, vegetables, and a typical south Indian spread. He likes his tea and coffee—four to five half-cups every day—but has cut out sugar from his beverages. Srikanth does eat ice-creams, sweets and fried foods, but in moderation. He finishes a moderate dinner by 7:20 pm followed by fruits for dessert.
How does he de-stress?
Srikanth likes to think that “every day is the last day of my life’’. It helps him be good to everyone, avoid hurting people’s feelings and bond with his family. And the key to de-stressing, he feels, is to eat on time.
Nitya Varadarajan
R. Chandrasekaran
50/ President and MD/ Cognizant Technology
How does he keep fit?
He makes sure that he works out at least five days every week—alternating between jogging for 45 minutes or going to the gym for an hour of workouts. Jogging is a favourite from his college days. But if he is in town, he exercises all seven days. If out on work, he works out in the hotel gym or searches for good walkways and waterfronts for a run. San Diego’s beaches, or Hyderabad’s Tank Bund stretch are his favourite spots for jogging.
What does he eat?
He does not consciously control what he eats and loves variety, but he does not over-indulge. ”Being a vegetarian helps; it keeps calories in check—for the rest, I ensure I exercise almost every day,” he says.
How does he de-stress?
His favourite mode of de-stressing is to take a nap in his car while travelling between offices and listening to music. He prefers to be on the move even in office—walking about and meeting people to ensure that he is not tied down to his desk.
