French Press Coffee and Regular Stretching Keep This Roxborough Dentist Going

Rupali Gaindh (left) is a dentist in Roxborough who loves Wawa sandwiches, French press coffee, and Peloton workouts. / Photograph courtesy Rupali Gaindh

Who I am: Rupali Gaindh (@rgaindhxo), 29

Where I live: Center City

What I do: I am a dentist specializing in cosmetic and preventative dentistry in Roxborough. My patients have truly become an extension of my family, and it is an honor that I am a part of their lives.

What role healthy living plays in my life: Growing up in Maine, I was constantly outside riding bikes, hiking, and playing sports. It was easy to stay in shape because I lived in a very active community. Now that I am in Philly working in a busy practice, it’s often difficult to eat healthy and find time to exercise. A game changer for me was one day when I came home feeling beyond exhausted. All I did was work and throw random meals together. I knew something had to change with my nutrition and exercise routine, so I started to grocery shop on Sundays, meal plan, and ride Peloton! I am one of the biggest pizza and chocolate lovers you will ever meet, but I’ve found that moderation is key. When I live a healthier life, I am the best version of myself.

Health memberships (and what they cost): Peloton ($40 per month subscription), Noom ($140 for a four-month subscription). On Sundays, I also order grocery delivery from Whole Foods Market — total bill for this week is $80.

Monday

Gaindh does a Monday morning workout in her apartment gym. / Photograph courtesy Rupali Gaindh

5:15 a.m. — Alarm goes off. Snooze four times. (Maybe five?)

5:45 a.m. — Do half an hour on the elliptical and 15 minutes of weights (decide to focus on arms and abs) in my apartment gym.

6:30 a.m. — Head back to the apartment. Need coffee and food STAT. Breakfast is coffee with oat milk, a smoothie (I make smoothie packs on Sunday with veggies/protein powder/fruits to save time), and a hard-boiled egg.

7:10 a.m. — I head to work with my husband, Rohin.

8 a.m. — Big swig of coffee and time to get to work!

Noon — Lunch time. I get a salad from Wawa ($5.49) with spring mix, apples, cucumbers, feta cheese, and light balsamic vinaigrette. Just as I crave more food, my assistant warms up a piece of this amazing Indian-inspired chicken she’d made. Hits the spot.

6 p.m. — I return home from work and get ready for a barbecue on my rooftop with Rohin. For that, I’d marinated chicken overnight with toasted sesame and made sweet potatoes with Hungarian paprika. The bets part? Looks like I’ll have leftover sweet potatoes for lunch tomorrow.

9 p.m. — Watch a couple episodes of Arrested Development (funniest show ever!).

10 p.m. — Head to bed — tomorrow I work evening hours so I need to rest up.

Daily costs: $5.49

Tuesday

Fish with panko and green beans. / Photograph courtesy Rupali Gaindh

7:08 a.m. — Wake up without an alarm. Heat up some French press coffee with oat milk.

8 a.m. — Head to the gym, do this awesome 25-minute treadmill interval exercise from PopSugar, and end my workout with some stretching.

9 a.m. — Take a shower and head out the door with another cup of coffee. (This time, I add some ice). For the days I’m running limited on time, I have a bowl near my front door that’s filled with apples, oranges, and bananas. Grab a banana before heading out the door.

9:10 a.m. — Call my sister, who just gave birth to the cutest baby girl, and mom to catch up. Sing “Baby Shark” to my new niece.

1 p.m. — Take a break from patient care to grab swig of coffee and chat with the owner of my practice about one of his favorite pastimes: gardening.

2 p.m. — Finish up a big case with one of my favorite patients and eat leftovers for lunch.

7:15 p.m. — I take the long way home because cherry blossoms are in season, and I need to reflect on the day and decompress — and call my dad!

7:38 p.m. — Catch up on text messages with my friends about doing the Night Nation Run [a fun run/music festival hybrid].

8 p.m. — Take a shower and stretch. Dentistry involves a lot of intense focus and muscle fatigue, so I need to stretch throughout the day to keep things limber.

8:15 p.m. — Cook green beans and fish with this yummy Parmesan/herb/panko topping.

9 p.m. — Still a bit hungry. I eat a bowl of vanilla Greek yogurt with a teaspoon of PB2 powder and berries/chocolate chips.

10 p.m. — Lights out.

Daily Costs: $0

Wednesday

Gaindh and her husband make homemade pizza. / Photograph courtesy Rupali Gaindh

7 a.m. — Wake up and make French press coffee.

7:30 a.m. — I’m sore from my workout yesterday, so I decide to take it easy and complete a quick session of restorative yoga.

2 p.m. — My morning of patients flies by! Realize I forgot my lunch at home so I pick up a Thintastic sandwich from Manhattan Bagel with turkey, lettuce and tomatoes on an everything whole wheat thin bagel.

2:45 p.m. — Craving some chocolate and remind myself I have some dark chocolate at home.

3 p.m. — Start patient care again. One of my patients shows me how to floss (the dance), and I’m finally starting to get it.

5:40 p.m. — Feeling that hump day fatigue, so I text Rohin asking what we should eat for dinner. We decide to make homemade pizza, and he goes to Trader Joe’s to pick up some supplies.

7:45 p.m. — Arrive home. I sauté some mushrooms and grate some fresh mozzarella and throw it on top of my marinara sauce base with some turkey pepperoni.

8 p.m. — While the pizza is cooking, I rinse off and stretch.

8:15 p.m. — Pizza is finished! Enjoy a glass of red wine before eating it. In an effort to not eat the entire pizza in one sitting, I make another Greek yogurt parfait and text a friend about Yoga On The Pier making its return.

9 p.m. — Watch Mexican Dynasties, my new favorite show on Bravo. (If you watch, I love the Allendes.)

9:15 p.m. — Crack open the windows and enjoy the beautiful breeze before lights out.

Daily costs: $150

Thursday

Gaindh’s last day of work before a weekend trip to visit her family. / Photograph courtesy Rupali Gaindh

6 a.m. — Wake up to the alarm. I slept the wrong way and ended up hurting my neck; I try to stretch out but think some Ibuprofen will help with the pain.

7 a.m. — I make French press coffee and hop in the shower.

8 a.m. — Start patient care wearing roller skates because today is going to be a busy day.

11:30 a.m. — Finish up patient notes and grab a turkey sandwich with sharp cheddar from Wawa, which happens to be 0.2 miles from where I work. (Very dangerous.)

1 p.m. — I get back to work and have a major craving for chocolate. Thank god someone has Rolos so I eat one, maybe two.

3:17 p.m. — Check into my flight to visit some family in Portland, Maine, this weekend.

5:15 p.m. — Finish a big restorative case at work and head to the bank to deposit a check.

6:14 p.m. — Come home. Rohin and I decide to order eggplant, dan dan noodles, and crispy dry pepper chicken from DanDan.

7 p.m. — Do a 30-minute Peloton ride with Cory, my fave Peloton instructor.

7:35 p.m. — Finish packing (can’t find any of my luggage, so I stuff everything into a tote bag), and the food is here! Rohin and I watch Fresh Off the Boat while we eat.

9:50 p.m. — Set my clothes out for the morning because I have an early start

Daily costs: $43.40

Friday

A quick breakfast at the airport. / Photograph courtesy Rupali Gaindh

5 a.m. — Wake up and take a quick shower.

5:30 a.m. — Out the door with my French press coffee in hand. Catching my flight from Newark so need to make sure I am on time.

7:40 a.m. — Sit down at a coffee shop at the airport and order a Slingshot, which is basically drinkable yogurt with almond and granola.

9:20 a.m. — After boarding the plane, the whole flight has to de-board, so maintenance can be done on the toilets. Welcome to my life!

10:50 a.m. — We finally take off, and I nap while we fly.

12:30 p.m. — My sister picks me up at the airport. We go back home, and my mom prepares my favorite lunch, pav bhaji. It’s like the Indian version of a sloppy joe.

3 p.m. — Get facials with my sister from an amazing place called Beauty Mark.

5 p.m. — Come back home and spend some time with my cute niece. After not seeing her for two weeks, I am amazed by how fast she’s growing!

7 p.m. — Eat dinner and hang out with the family. Dinner includes roti (Indian flatbread) and channa (chickpeas).

11:30 p.m. — Go to sleep and realize there truly is no place like home.

Daily Costs: $8

Weekly Totals

Weekly costs: $206.89

Homemade dinners cooked: 3 (plus another one courtesy of Mom)

Cups of French press coffee drank: 5

Workouts completed: 4

Stretching sessions done: 4

Frustrating airport experiences dealt with: 1

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