The chef, who took the fitness route when his "love for food started to show" on his body, is promoting a fit life in which nutrition is key.
"It's not about dieting or eating less, it's about eating right, healthy and natural. In the everyday three meals, we overdo protein or fat. It has to be a balanced diet, because our bodies are designed that way," Chef Ajay told life.
He is currently associated with the Get A Life Fitness app, a wellness aggregator targeted towards corporate employees.
His fitness mantra for the stressed lot of corporate warriors? "When it comes to corporate life, I know there is stress, I know there are targets to be met, but 15 minutes of workout is important. If you are working for long stretches on your corporate ventures, every hour, get up and have a cup of green tea or just hot water, instead of having tea or coffee. When something is stressing you out, know that it's just a job."
Personally, the chef swears by some easy lifestyle tricks that helped him shed 20 kilograms
"Start small. I started to avoid white sugar, and instead adopted raw sugar or jaggery. I took fruits before my meals. I started to use cold-pressed oils because they are good for our body. Today, labelling is just a joke. I ate fresh produce and did not touch processed food. Every week, I fast a day that helps to shed off the extra."
After two decades of being a chef, what have been his major takeaways?
"Seeing multiple levels, crossing multiple hurdles and then coming to a place where you still can't say you have arrived is a good feeling. Every day is a new day, a new challenge, and you keep accepting that and moving forward. What I leave home with is a desire to learn more, always stay hungry.
"I have realised that when I put myself in the other walks of life, that being a chef helps you to understand life in a much wider spectrum. We deal with food, with perishable things, and people. If I talk to MBA students, I realise I have used most of the management techniques in my cooking. I am a much more wholesome person as a chef, and being a chef widens your horizons as a person,"
Asked about his top culinary trends for 2020, Chef Ajay says that chef-driven restaurants, and those focusing on healthy, vegan, organic foods will pick up, and so will eating in and cooking in-house.
( With inputs from IANS )