Archives for September 2016

September 30, 2016 By Ruta Satam 1 Comment

Joy of giving

Have you ever realized how elated you get when you give? Giving is indeed one of the best investments an individual can make towards achieving genuine happiness. True giving comes from the heart, with no expectation of reciprocation. It is manifested with kindness and generosity and there is no substitute for this ‘Good Karma’. It just makes you feel good.

This month we celebrate the festival of giving also popularly known as the “Joy of Giving” festival. The festival begins on Oct 2^nd– the birthday of our father of our nation MK Gandhi and continues till the 8^thof October. Being the season of giving, I call upon one and all to share love and spread happiness in the lives of those who are far away from these pleasures. Let’s share our happiness with those lesser privileged people who ask nothing but love.

There are various ways in which you can participate in this festival. You can participate by sharing your Old clothes with people who require the most. GOQii has partnered with Ratna Nidhi Charitable Trust for this drive.

With this drive we would be helping RNCT to distribute usable garments to the poorest of the poor of all ages. To ensure that it reaches out to more and more needy people, RNCT will further distribute the collection to grass root organizations and institutions working with the underprivileged group of society across the country.

How do we participate in this drive?

-Communicate the ‘Joy of Giving’ message in your office, society, family and friends

-Inform us if you are interested to organize this collection drive in your office or society

-If you have a collection that weighs more than 20 kg, a pick-up will be organized for the donation material

-Your garments will then be sorted as per age and gender, repaired if required, ironed, folded and packed

-The sorted collection will be sent to orphanages, Old age homes, institutions working with street children or tribal or women’s help centres

Let the goodness begin

To know more about the drive mail us your queries at ruta@goqii.com

It’s not how much we give, but how much love we put in to giving ~ Mother Teresa

September 28, 2016 By Gitanjali Bahl 3 Comments

Choose the right activity to stay fit

Who does not like to look good and fit? Everyone does. Off late you are also finding many who are conscious about wanting to be active. Many are obsessed with losing weight. All are aware that these changes will not occur overnight and hence exercising is very important.

Exercising regularly is one of the healthiest things you can do for yourself. It lowers your risk of serious health problems, including heart disease, diabetes, stroke and high blood pressure. It can also tone your figure and improve your sleep. Not only is exercise good for your body, it’s also good for your mind, mood and memory. Walking, doing household chores, climbing the stairs, playing a sport or dancing the night away are all good examples of being active.

Being physically active has other advantages such as easing depression, relieving stress and anxiety, enhancing one’s self esteem and improving one’s overall outlook towards life. You don’t have to spend long, boring hours in a gym to reap these benefits. Whatever your age, health limitations or fitness levels, you can develop an exercise program that’s fun and rewarding and fits well within your life parameters.

If you’re not ready to commit to a structured exercise program, think about physical activity as a lifestyle choice rather than a single task to check off your to-do list. Look at your daily routine and consider ways to sneak in an activity here and there. Even very small activities can add up over the course of a day.

Having said the above, making the right choice of exercise goes a long way in helping one be fit. Making some random choice of exercises can prove to become a deterrent towards you getting fit.

Let me sight few instances of wrong choice of exercises-

1) A person who is on the extreme heavy side ( Overweight) should ideally not op for running as an exercise as it requires to expend more energy and also running will put undue pressure on the joints which will lead to joint damage and injuries.

2) An osteoporotic man who is over 50 years old going to gym to lift weights. Though it is commendable that he is trying to stay active at his age but, lifting heavy weights despite osteoporosis is just straining the joints further.

Another important aspect to take care is never overdo it.

Research has shown that mild to moderate activity is enough to change your life for the better. You don’t have to sweat buckets or run a single step. Moderate activity means:

That you breathe a little heavier than normal, but are not out of breath. For example, you should be able to chat with your walking partner, but not easily sing a song.
That your body feels warmer as you move, but not overheated or very sweaty.

Therefore, making the right choice of exercise is a must.

The factors that are essential for choosing exercises:

-Purpose of exercise

-Age to perform exercises

-Weight

-Interest to exercise

-Medical condition if any

-Daily Routine to be able to spare time for exercise

-Daily Nutritional intake

Always, remember gym is not the only option for one to exercise and stay active. There are exercises that can be done at home, office or a park in the outdoors depending on your interest and purpose.

You can stay Active

-By going for a simple walk

-Brisk walking

-Yoga

-Simple strength and Stretch exercises like push-ups, planks, abdomen exercises that can be done at home

-Aerobics

-Cycling and Hiking

-Play a sport such as Badminton, Tennis, or any other sport

-Play with your kids

-Dancing

-Martial Arts

-and Running

Once you know the purpose to stay active you can automatically choose the right exercise for yourself. Consider all the factors and accordingly make a choice. Preferably if you can get a professional advice before starting on any exercise regime.

September 27, 2016 By Leah Burkhart Leave a Comment

The Foods all Nutritionists agree are ‘Good For You’.

We all love reading about the latest trending super food. Whether its Acai berry, Maca powder, or cacao nibs…we wanna know what’s going to up our metabolism or give us that boost of energy we are absolutely itching to have again.

Well folks…let the drum roll begin. Because the REAL super food category of the hour is not some fancy-named upgraded coffee bean or a concoction of some super vitamin made in a lab somewhere.

It is…..

Plants. Specifically fruits and vegetables (Background applause!!!)

Wait….how come you’re leaving? Wait! No…seriously! they are SUPER good for you!

I know, I know. It’s WAY snazzier to imagine that the secret ingredient is some hidden oil or seed or fruit buried at the bottom of Indiana Jones’ cavern. We want the food to be a singular holy grail. But, that is just not the way of it.

No – I’m afraid your mother, and her mother before her and HER mother before HER knew what they were talking about when they said simply “eat your vegetables.”

We have the evidence to prove it. Here are just a FEW examples of the tangible benefits researchers have uncovered about eating more vegetables.

Those who eat more fruits and vegetables (at least 8 servings per day) are 30 percent less likely to have heart disease. (https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/what-should-you-eat/vegetables-and-fruits/)
Those who eat more fruits and vegetables (specifically 8 servings or more) report greater levels of happiness and emotional satisfaction. http://sciencenewsjournal.com/eat-fruit-veggies-happy/
Eating fruits and vegetables is associated with better weight loss and management outcomes:https://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/nutrition/pdf/rtp_practitioner_10_07.pdf
Eating a high concentration of fruits and vegetables are associated with a reduced risk of cancer:http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/causes-of-cancer/diet-and-cancer/how-healthy-eating-prevents-cancer
Those who eat as few as five servings of fruits and vegetables every day tend to live longer. http://nutritionfacts.org/2015/09/17/how-much-longer-do-fruit-and-vegetable-eaters-live/
Eating fruits and vegetables can even improve your sex life:http://www.huffingtonpost.com/knowmore-tv/8-ways-eating-fruit-juice_b_9872488.html

So if you’re looking for the newest, latest and greatest super-food, you really need no look toward the dark corners of the Bermuda triangle. It’s right in front of you at your local farmer’s market.

September 21, 2016 By Anusha Subramanian Leave a Comment

Working towards your Health goals

For the last couple of months I have been talking to GOQii players and tracing their journey to health and fitness. While doing so I realized how important it is for one to share their goals and their personal progression with others.If not for anything it’s simply a great ego booster and a motivator for the person to do much better going forward.

Working towards a health or fitness goal? Sharing your goals—and your progress!—with others can make a huge difference in how successful you are along the way. Research proves it. According to studies published in International journals, strong social circles can be very effective in combatting obesity and helping individuals succeed. It has also been proven that those who have shared their weight goals with their friends on social media have lost weight as compared to those who have kept their goals to themselves.

So what is it that makes one to achieve their goals easily if broadcasted?

Sharing Your Goals…Creates Accountability
Telling your family, friends, and colleagues about your goals creates the opportunity for someone to ask you about your progress down the road. And, knowing someone might be checking in can help you stay on track. If you have a coach or a personal trainer it becomes even more difficult to skip a day of training or chat on your diet. That constant watch over you to get healthy and fit will only help you in the long run.

…Provides Positive Reinforcement
Positive reinforcement is defined as the process of recognizing and rewarding a desired behavior in an effort to encourage its continuance. Getting a pat on your back is always encouraging and give you a sense of self-worth and in this case it is nudging you to be healthier and a fit person. Positive reinforcements like “great job” and ‘keep up the good work’ helps you to alleviate any self-doubts that you may have about yourself and your ability to perform well. In other words it will only help you to stick to your health and fitness goals.

…Strengthens Your Support Network
Sharing your goals and receiving support from your social circle, encourages others to share and get support too—it’s a positive feedback loop, says Steven Ledbetter, an expert on behavior change and co-founder of Habitry. “Talking about your goals in a common space where you feel safe, creates an intentional community—you share values, like living your healthiest life possible, and help each other live up to those values,” says Ledbetter. The more you share, the stronger your community becomes, and the easier it is for everyone to reach their goals.

GOQii Can Help!

The GOQii app’s ‘Social’ section helps you connect with other players and share your experience and stories. Also the GOQii active Sunday’s are great enablers for players to share each other’s stories and health goals with each other and motivate each other to achieve those goals. So what are you waiting for, let’s get started.