5 Weight Loss Myths Every Indian Aunty Believes In

While you think of ordering another pizza, you must hear my story. It is about a girl who ate nearly 40 pizzas in four months, sat on her work desk all the time and got fat. While it was very easy for her to put on ten kgs, losing that weight turned out to be a herculean task.

And the work on weight loss is still going on. That girl is me, and I am the one who is struggling every day to get fit and try to fit into my old clothes. But this has been even more difficult since the time I moved back home for there are swarms of aunties that visit my house every day or another.

While indulging in some gossips with these aunties is sometimes fun, telling them about your endeavor to lose weight is something you must never do. In case, you give this secret away by mistake, these are some weight loss myths you will be introduced to.

1. Gym is a time bomb

“Beta, if you go to a gym, you might lose weight. But you will gain the double when you stop going to the gym.” 

First of all, going to gym is a good way for a change of scene, you get to meet new people, feel and get healthier. So, why would you ever want to stop going to gym unless you’re in some financial crisis?

Second, is it so difficult to understand simple science? Come on! If I can get it, even a donkey can understand. Why can’t they? To lose weight, you would have to burn more calories than you take. When you go to the gym, the whole process is catalysed, and, therefore, you lose weight. But when you start taking more calories than you consume once again, you would obviously get fat. What’s so bad about it?

How can anyone expect to go to the gym for a month, lose weight and then never put on that weight again?

2. Chicken is bad food

“Beta, eating non-veg food is all fine, but it will make you fat”. 

Eating Aloo paranthas will make you fat, not chicken. Oh yes! If you’re planning on gulping butter chicken every day, you’ll get fat. But then chicken won’t be the culprit. It would be that butter, cream and oil that would go into the dish.

No matter how many times you try to bust this weight loss myth, you’re bound to fail. Yes, chicken has lean proteins that doesn’t add up to those flabs you’ve around your body but then who cares what’s the truth?

Whatever those aunties say is the right thing to do.

3. 10 Minute walk a day & you can get fit as Deepika Padukone

“Beta, have you seen Sharma auntie? She has got so thin. All she did was walk for ten minutes every day. You should just do that, and you’ll lose weight. No need for gym shym.” 

If a ten-minute walk could have made me lose weight, I would have looked even thinner than Deepika. I wonder how they stop thinking of the two dogs I walk every day for at least half an hour.

4. Household work and hello weight loss

“Beta, you must mop the floor everyday. You will be thin in no time.”  

Yes, it is a good physical exercise. It is tough to sit down and mop the floor. But I doubt it would be enough to make me lose 25 kgs that I carry around as the extra weight on my body.

But household work isn’t the only thing mentioned here. According to these aunties, making food, washing utensils, clearing off the clutter… all adds up to weight loss.

Isn’t that what cardio is? If this can work, then why cycling, running on treadmill and gymming are a waste of time?

5. Ghar ka Khana means no gym Jana

“Beta, just eat regular homemade food, and you will get thin.” 

If they had said this for something like maintaining good health, I would have agreed. But isn’t there difference between maintaining weight and losing weight? Like does that word even exist in their dictionary – weight loss?

While I am sick of hearing these weight loss advice/myths from the Indian aunties, I urge you to share your stories with these bubbly, usually overweight aunties who love to share weight loss advice with us. 😉