Archives for August 2019

August 31, 2019 By Anusha Subramanian 1 Comment

“I Made a Positive U-Turn In My Life” – Aurobindo Saha

He is 40 years of age, 5 ft 4 in and weighed 88kg with high cholesterol, high blood pressure and was a pre-diabetic. He was a sure shot recipe for disaster. But, as they say, better late than never! The first thing Aurobindo Saha did was that he quit smoking. He realized it was just a matter of saying ‘I Can’. Soon thereafter, he started an exercise routine and the result of all the hard work is that today he has lost weight, he is a runner and he is a positive example for others! Let us hear his story of transformation in his own words.

Quoting from the movie The God Father II, “Good health is the most important thing. More than success, more than money, more than power”. We human beings, who are so insignificant in the entire universe, however, claim ourselves to be the most intelligent living beings, forget this very fact. What a pity that is.

My story was somewhat this – 5 years ago, I weighed 88kg and had all the possible medical issues such as high cholesterol, high LDL, high blood pressure, getting nearly diabetic – not the best combinations one can have. However, I came to my senses sooner and quit smoking first. I quit not because of these medical issues but one day, I just decided I had enough of smoking. This is when I got the feeling ‘I Can’.

I soon started to exercise and lost some weight. But, I was unable to sustain the momentum, the routine I had started and sprung back to weighing 90kg with a blood report that guaranteed me a heart attack any day. My doctor only told me ‘come back to your senses’.

Running with the Manhattan Skyline in the background

Coming Back to My Senses

This is when I started thinking seriously about what could I possibly do to reverse my situation. I came across GOQii as the ‘manna from heaven’. I needed an overhaul of my present self and needed a complete lifestyle change assistance and GOQii seemed like the perfect fit. Earlier, I had a pedometer but that did not help. For a drastic lifestyle change, a step-monitoring machine like a pedometer and regular fitness band can help to some extent, but the most important help you can get is from the person who guides you in your everyday routine.

Running in the Swiss Alps

This is where technology meets human. GOQii provided me with a coach who hand held me through the journey from October 2016 onwards. Today, I am clearly a much healthy person having lost weight, using the fitness band and following my coach’s advice. Occasionally, I go in for a Doctor Consultant as well to show my blood reports.

With GOQii and my Coach’s expertise and help with nutrition charts, exercise and cardio workout suggestions, constant motivation, vigilant monitoring of what I am eating and when I am sleeping, I am happy to say that I made a positive U-turn in my life.

I run not only to keep myself fit but also to feed my soul. As a traveler, I run where I get a chance and with every run, I build everlasting memories of raw, natural beauty experienced in places across the globe. Each step in these runs brings me closer to the goal of living a healthy lifestyle.

Aurobindo’s Medical chart

I now weigh 69kg, my cholesterol, LDL, HDL, sugar level and BP are all normal. Initially, I reduced 20kg in 5 months of being on GOQii.

What Did Aurobindo Saha’s Coach Say About Him?

“Achievement is impossible without dedication!”

These words aptly describe Aurobindo Saha. His dedication and excellent willpower have always enabled him to achieve great milestones in areas of health and other areas of life as well. His health journey started with a health goal of weight loss, reduction of cholesterol and blood pressure. Thanks to his motivation, we could achieve much more than what we had planned.

The mere weight loss came along with a host of other lifestyle changes such as improved water intake and sleep quality, timely meals, regular exercise, etc. His doting efforts to log in his daily activities, food and water enabled me to keep a close watch on his lifestyle. With his readiness and enthusiasm to learn and inculcate new habits, he has managed to achieve milestones that will have a lasting impact on his life. I salute his dedication and brilliant self-control!

We hope Aurobindo Saha’s journey inspires you! If you want to share your journey to a healthier you with GOQii, click here and fill the form!

#BeTheForce

August 28, 2019 By Pradnya Shinde Leave a Comment

Should You Go Grain-Free?

In the past few years, imperical evidence emerged, coaxing us to stay away from all the foods we enjoyed so much in order to live a strong, healthy and disease-free life. Now, along with sugar, fats and diary, you even have grains joining the list of dietary outcasts. How did this happen? Is it necessary? Let’s find out if you should go grain-free!

What is Grain-Free?

Have you ever thought about skipping rice, chapati or your favorite rotis for losing weight quickly? Ever skipped all grains which includes wheat and its products, corn, rice, jowar, ragi, and bajra? That is called going grain-free. It is when you eliminate all grains from your diet.

If you have followed a specific diet like Keto or Paleo, you know that they involve skipping grains. Another reason people avoid grains is the discomfort in digesting them. The specific known culprit is Wheat! But there is hardly any reason enough that suggests grains are unhealthy or promote weight gain.

Are There Any Benefits of Going Grain-Free?

The immediate benefit of going grain-free is that you will notice some weight loss and reduction in bloating. 80% of dry matter of grains is carbohydrates. Reduced intake of excess carbohydrates helps in reducing weight quickly as it also reduces water retention. Hence, skipping grains makes you feel light. It works for short-term weight loss.

However, if you want to go for long-term weight loss, skipping grains might not be such a great idea as it may lead to nutritional deficiency. Whole grains are a major source of Vitamin B in our diet. Restricting it for a long time may lead to deficiency and cause problems. Going grain-free is not for every person. You can get the same benefits by skipping sugar and processed foods. For long term weight loss, go for grains!

What to Watch Out For!

If you are insistent on going grain-free, then plan your diet in such a way that you can cope with the vitamin loss. For instasnce, include green vegetables in your diet. You can go grain-free for a specific period but avoid going long term. Remember that eating whole grains is good for your heart and it reduces the risk of cancer as well.

If you are skipping grains due to digestive discomfort, then take the IgA anti-gliadin antibodies test to see if you have gluten sensitivity followed by endoscopy to check for celiac disease.

Gluten is a protein present in wheat and it will cause you discomfort if you have gluten sensitivity or celiac disease. If you have either of these conditions, avoid wheat, rye and barley. You can safely eat other grains.

To sum it up, you can enjoy eating rice, idli and parathas in moderation. Avoid refined cereal!

We hope this article helps you come to a conclusion on whether you should go grain-free or not! Do let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

#BeTheForce

August 24, 2019 By GOQii 2 Comments

Win a Backpack Within 1 Day in the India Health Quiz

If you have been actively participating in the GOQii India Health Quiz, you are well aware of the awesome rewards and the points required to claim them. Recently, we came across a user who was able to win a Backpack within 1 day. Sounds impossible? It isn’t.

Let’s see how this user won a backpack within 1 day!

Doing the Math

If the target points required to win a backpack is 500, then ideally you will have to play 10 quizzes and get all the answers right. But you only begin with 15 keys to participate in the quiz. It is possible to not get all the answers right or even get eliminated in the first round.

There’s a possibility that you might have to play around 20+ quizzes. So how exactly did this player get more keys?

Collecting Keys

A new player begins with 15 keys. To get more, this player engaged in the various activities required to earn more keys. He began with completing his 6000 steps target and collected 4 keys.

He then proceeded to take the HRA test within the app to earn an additional 10 keys. This brought the total number of keys he possessed up to 29, which meant he could play 29 quizzes. He also went on to invite 2 of his friends to download the app using his referral code. This gave him 10 additional lives as well.

Playing and Claiming a Backpack

Once he was geared up with everything he needed, he played 21 quizzes. He scored:

50 in 4 quizzes
30 in 7 quizzes
15 in 4 quizzes
5 in 6 quizzes

This brought his total points to 500. During the course of the quiz, he lost some lives but was able to win a backpack within 1 day using this technique! Although he was informed that the backpack would reach him within 2 weeks, he was happy to receive it within 6 working days.

That’s it! Winning a backpack in the GOQii India Health Quiz is that easy! If you put your mind to it, nothing is impossible.

Try using this technique and let us know if you were able to win a backpack in the comments below! There’s a live quiz every 30 minutes and lots of opportunities to earn keys and lives every day!

What are you waiting for? Invite your friends, complete your tasks and #BeTheForce in the GOQii India Health Quiz.

August 17, 2019 By GOQii 2 Comments

Climbing the Peak of Good Health | Abhay Chaudhary User Journey

“Every mountain top is within your reach if you just keep climbing” – Barry Finlay

If you know what being a Software Engineer is like, then you’re definitely familiar with the erratic work hours, the long spans of time for which you’re glued to the desk and the body pains that come along with it. If you know what this feels like, you might have a few things in common with our Player Abhay Chaudhary.

All Work. All Stress. No Play

When he began working, Abhay Chaudhary rode a bike to work every day. This coupled with spending nearly 7-8 hours on his seat created a lot of back pain problems. He had also suffered a shoulder injury in 2012.

His physiotherapist advised him to stop carrying a heavy bag while travelling on his motorbike. He was also asked to exercise regularly. To top this off, he was a workaholic who never took a vacation. Couple this up with irregular eating habits, low water intake, lack of sleep and you know you’re heading for disaster.

In 2015, after he changed his workplace for which he would have to travel 15km daily. This prompted him to take his health and fitness a little more seriously. It was not until the following year that he decided to take time out for himself every year without fail and increase his stamina and fitness levels as well.

Climbing to the Next Level

In 2016, a friend gifted him a GOQii. That year, he set his health goals as wanting to improve his stamina and endurance for running, playing badminton and wanting to go on Himalayan treks. His GOQii Coach guided him on his nutritional intake and the physical activities he’d have to perform.

He was asked to drink warm water with lemon or jeera to flush out toxins. His coach advised him to eat mid-meal snacks which usually consisted of fruits. He had to consume fruit or dry fruits before his workout. Junk food intake was reduced to twice a week at the most.

To increase his protein intake, he was asked to include a boiled egg, grilled chicken and protein bars which were purchased from the GOQii Health Store within the GOQii App.

On the exercise front, he began with core and leg strengthening exercises. Tabata Workout in the morning for 20 minutes became a ritual to rev his metabolism and cardiovascular fitness. He had to perform Pranayama every day for 10 minutes to increase his lung capacity.

On weekends he started with running, initially without weights and then gradually he moved up to using a weighted backpack – 8kg, then 10kg and finally 15kg. He also practised yoga to strengthen his back and core. As Abhay didn’t prefer going to a gym, he used bands and dumbbells for resistance and weight training.

To the Peak of Good Health and Beyond

Thanks to all his efforts and the changes in his lifestyle, Abhay Chaudhary ran his first 10k run within an hour in 2016. After this experience, he felt more positive. He felt like everything was possible and within his reach. He kept this momentum going by completing another 3 half marathons. Currently, he is a part of a group that does 10k charity runs on the last Sunday of every month.

All the weekend training that he did with 8-10 kg backpack eventually paid off with him starting to go on Himalayan Treks.

His first trek to Saurkundi Pass in Manali at an altitude of 12,900ft. Though he didn’t find the trek very difficult, he said it was an enriching experience. On this trek he realized that he wanted to do more trips such as these where he was cut off from the world with no connectivity, laptop or mobile – just nature, his trekking buddies and himself! He says trekking is rejuvenating since he connects with new people, understands their lifestyle, and shares wonderful experiences.

His second trek was to Hamta Pass in Manali at an altitude of 14,000ft. During this trek, he got to know about the mountaineering course. His guide gave him information to some popular institutes offering this course.

In 2018, he did the Goechala Trek in Sikkim which is at an altitude of 15,000ft. A lot of his friends dissuaded him from doing this trek as it was considered dangerous and difficult. However, he was determined. He wanted to overcome this trek and successfully completed it.

Clicked by Abhay Chaudhary during a rock climbing session

Soon after, he signed up for the Nimas Basic Mountaineering Course, Arunachal Pradesh in April 2019. He completed the 28-day course which tested his physical endurance as well as theoretical knowledge with flying colours.

Abhay Chaudhary and GOQii

He attributes his increased awareness towards a healthy lifestyle, the right information on health, his improved stamina and positive attitude to his GOQii Coach. He appreciates his current GOQii Coach who rigorously follows up with him on his diet and exercise. His GOQii Coach stops him from indulging in unhealthy eating and keeps motivating him to push harder towards his goals.

Apart from his GOQii Coach, he religiously follows Coach Aliya Imran’s class on GOQii Play for cardio. He also follows Yoga Specialists Nishtha Bijlani and Bhumika Uniyal for yoga, Marathon Expert Parwage Alam for running and Coach Tufail Qureshi for Fitness related topics. He finds their classes to be informative and helpful.

For now, he believes himself and GOQii to be inseparable and we couldn’t be any more excited to have him with us on this journey towards a healthy India!

Do you have a story you’d like to share? Click here and our team will reach out to you!