Archives for October 2025

October 27, 2025 By GOQii 2 Comments

Simple Ways to Overcome Depression

Most of us tend to feel low when things don’t work in our favor. At times, we give a 100% to a task expecting something good in return. When these expectations aren’t met, we succumb to negative thoughts and depression.

Depression drains you of energy and hope. At times, it makes you feel helpless. It makes any task all the more difficult. Depression becomes a problem when it fails to pass and we don’t fight back. Feeling low is a part and parcel of life and is completely natural. But if this feeling intensifies and stretches over weeks or months, it could become problematic.

Are You Really Depressed?

It is important to identify whether we are really depressed or we are just upset. It is easy to work on it once you know for sure. If we are upset, it is just a matter of time and everything is normal. If we are in depression, the sinking feeling of helplessness, loneliness and other negative feelings can go on for weeks or months with no end in sight. Depression is unhealthy for your mind and body but you can fight it!

Simple Ways To Overcome Depression

Get Into a Routine: If you feel depressed, have a routine and follow it regularly
Start Small & Stay Focused: If you feel the work you are doing is too much, break it into small tasks. For instance, if you are unable to walk 10km at a stretch, start with 1 km and gradually increase it. Eventually, you will be able to complete 10km at a stretch
Talk to Your Friends: Talk to a friend you trust. You will feel relaxed and your thought process will change
Sleep: Depression leads to issues with sleep. We should aim for at least 8 hours of sound sleep
Eat Healthy: There is no diet that can fix depression. It is better to keep an eye on what we eat. If Depression makes you feel like overeating, then keep portion control in mind
Challenge Negative Thoughts: To overcome depression, a lot of work is mental. Change the way you think. We tend to leap to the worst possible conclusions when depressed. The next time you are feeling terrible about yourself, use logic as a natural depression treatment. Ask yourself why you are feeling this way? Is this really true? Can you do anything about it? Is it possible to let go? It takes practice to clear your mind, but in time, you can beat back those negative thoughts before they get out of control
Exercise: It temporarily boosts endorphins and makes you feel good. It may also have long-term benefits for people with depression. Regular exercise seems to encourage the brain to rewire itself in positive ways

The solution to a depression-free life is to use all the tools you can to get better. If you feel that your depression is getting worse, seek professional help. Needing additional help doesn’t mean you are weak, it is the most practical solution. It is completely possible to get lost in negative thoughts. Just remember that depression can be treated and you can feel better!

We hope this article helps you overcome depression. Do leave your thoughts in the comments below. For more by our emotional wellness expert Divya Thampi, check out Healthy Reads.

#BeTheForce

Disclaimer: The information provided in this blog is for general awareness and educational purposes only. It is not intended to replace professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider for personalised medical guidance or concerns related to your health. Images shown are for representation purposes only and may not depict the exact recommendations or outcomes.

October 25, 2025 By Vrushali Athavle 4 Comments

SWEET POTATO – Best Workout Meal

You must have heard of protein shakes and eggs as good work out meals. But, have you heard of Sweet Potatoes as a workout meal?

Well, the Sweet potato is a large, starchy, sweet tasting tuberous root vegetable which is usually consumed by people only during fast. But, apart from having it as a fasting food, the other best time to consume sweet potato is either before or after your regular ‘moderate to intense’ workouts.

Referring to my previous blog on “Pre and Post Workout meals” where I mentioned the importance of having carbohydrates before your workout to keep you energetic throughout the exercise regime and post workout to replenish the depleted stores and to help the recovery process faster, SWEET POTATO is one of the best choices. One should have approximately 100 gms of boiled sweet potatoes.

How does it work?

Sweet potatoes have natural sugar and complex carbohydrates which are slowly released into the bloodstream, helping to ensure a balanced and regular source of energy without sudden blood sugar spikes. When you consume them before a workout, it gives you a slow and steady form of energy and hence keep’s you energetic throughout the workout. Post workout sweet Potatoes help to replenish the glycogen stores which are lost during the workout.

Also, there are lots of water-soluble nutrients and electrolytes which are lost during your workouts. To replenish them, SWEET POTATO is the best choice once again. It is a treasure trove of vitamins and minerals. Let us have a look at all of them:

Magnesium: It is called a relaxation and anti-stress mineral. This clearly says that grab on the sweet potato to relieve stress (mental or physical).

Potassium: Helps in relaxing muscle contractions, reducing swellings and controlling kidney activities.

Vitamin B 6: Helps maintain healthy brain and normal nerve function. It also helps in forming red blood cell.

Vitamin C (powerful healer): This vitamin not only helps to ward off cold and flu viruses but also plays a crucial role in bone and tooth formation, digestion and blood cell formation. Helps wound healing, produces collagen which helps maintain skin’s elasticity thus keeping you young and beautiful.

Vitamin A (a powerful antioxidant): Keep’s your eyesight perfect and keeps your immune system boosted to fight against any diseases.

Vitamin D: It is crucial to maintaining your overall health as it is critical for the immune system. It plays an important role in keeping our energy levels boosted, controls mood swings and helps to build healthy bones, heart, nerves, skin and teeth and also it supports the thyroid gland to function effectively.

Iron: Necessary for red and white blood cell production

Apart from using it as the best workout food, sweet potato serves as a great choice for people who are trying to lose weight. Isn’t that great? Let’s look into it.

Sweet potato is high on fibre. Fibre is bulky and hence will occupy a lot of space in your stomach making you feel full for a long period of time, thus preventing one from overeating. i.e. You won’t feel hungry for a long time.
Sweet potato has high water content so just like fibre; water takes up a lot of room in your stomach making you feel full and will prevent overeating and snacking between meals. This will help both in your weight loss goals and will also help you prevent the weight from coming back on.
Lastly, it is low on calories, so people keeping a watch on calories can just go for it.

To conclude, include sweet potatoes in your routine and not only during the fast as it is one of the best workout meals and also helps with weight loss. If sweet potato is eaten along with its skin, which is an excellent source of insoluble fibre, it may prevent constipation and diverticulitis. It also contains soluble fibre which may help control cholesterol.

We hope this article helps you! Find more articles on fitness and nutrition here. You can also get all this information and more, directly from a GOQii Coach by subscribing to Personalised Health Coaching here.

#BeTheForce

October 24, 2025 By Trishala Chopra 28 Comments

All you need to know about pre-and post-workout supplements!

Working out and still not losing weight or recovery process is slow? Then there is something wrong with the pattern.

In conversations with my players, many a times people have told me that they have been working out for more than a year now but, it has not been effective. I too wondered what could be the reason and concluded that most people complaining are the ones who are not taking care of their pre-and post-workout meals.

In India, people focus on 3 major meals that are breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Then the 6-meal plan came into play where 2 snacks i.e. mid-morning and evening snacks were included to fill in the gap but, most who go for their workout tend to skip the most important meals which are the pre-and post-workout meal.

For me, it is as important as having my breakfast, lunch or dinner.

Now, when I say workout, I don’t mean that heavy gym workout alone. The workout can include walking or jogging as well. 30 or 45 minutes of brisk walking also requires pre-and post-workout foods. If this is rightly followed for weight loss even walking helps.

People working out in the gym are often advised to start taking supplements the moment they hit the gym. That’s okay to some extent but is it enough?

Get your facts clear with this article! I hope this helps

(1) Carbohydrates

When: – Pre and post-workout

Why?

– Carbohydrates are responsible for refueling the muscles by getting stored in the body in the form of glycogen. When the levels of glycogen reduce in the body, we feel fatigued.

– During workout sessions, stored glycogen is used up by the body to give energy.

– If carbohydrates are not taken before the workout, the stored glycogen will be completely used up and it will have no backup energy left for the body which ultimately leads to workout energy.

– Here, when I talk about carbohydrates, I am not asking you to hog chapattis or a bowl of rice. The carbohydrates taken before workout must be simple carbohydrates like fruits or fruit juices. A special sports drink can help in such cases.

– If the workout comprises of high-intensity workout for an hour, then one must take up around 4.2 grams of carbohydrates per kg workout.

– 4.2 grams is the average carbohydrate which one can take however it is different from workout to workout and person to person.

– It is always better to consult your health coach before selecting the pre-workout carbohydrates quantity.

(2) Proteins (Amino acid blend)

When: – Pre – and post-workout (pre-workout could be optional but it is must post workout)

Why?

– Here, when I talk about proteins, I am talking about BCAA blend.

– BCAA stands for Branched Chain Amino Acids.

– This BCAA blend specifically contains 3 main amino acids which are leucine, isoleucine, and valine.

– There might be a question coming in reader’s mind that there are many other amino acids then why am I focusing on these three? It is mainly because these 3 amino acids are responsible for digestion, repairing of body tissues and performing the main functions of proteins that are for growth and body building.

– For people who are looking forward to building muscles then BCAA blend becomes very essential for them.

– For others, proteins post-workout helps in repairing the muscles and tissues which have worn off during an intense workout.

– Milk is a very good option for post-workout foods.

– Foods like meat and eggs have BCAA in them which becomes an ideal post workout foods.

(3) Caffeine

When: – Pre-workout

Why?

– If you don’t want tiring workout sessions, then it is preferable to take caffeine supplement pre-workout.

– Researchers have shown that caffeine helps in improving the endurance during the workout sessions.

– When it comes to caffeine supplement, the dosage is very important because an overdose of caffeine can make you nauseous and nervous.

– 2 g in lukewarm water is the most optimal dosage.

– If you are suffering from caffeine sensitivity, then you can avoid taking this as you might get dizzy.

(4) Whey Protein

When: – Post workout

Why?

– Whey protein concentrate and isolate are best for post workout supplement because Whey helps in a quick boost in the muscle recovery and it also helps in quick muscle growth.

– Whey hydrolysate and casein helps in increasing the absorption of amino acids in the body making it an excellent post workout supplement.

(5) Vitamin C

When: – Pre and post workout

Why?

– Vitamin C supplement is usually taken to deal with common cold and cough but that’s not all.

– Vitamin C helps in dealing with the stress which could be a strenuous workout as well.

– Vitamin C is an antioxidant which helps in dealing with the metabolic stress.

– Vitamin C helps in strengthening the immune system during a strenuous workout.

We hope you found these tips on pre-and post-workout nutrition helpful for your fitness journey. Let us know in the comments below and for more personalised guidance and insights, subscribe to GOQii’s Personalised Health Coaching here. Let’s achieve your fitness goals together!

#BeTheForce

October 23, 2025 By Namrata Gullapalli 3 Comments

5 Foods That Fight Acid Reflux Naturally

I am sure that we are all a little too familiar with the term acidity or more particularly acid reflux. It is a condition that causes a burning sensation in the lower part of our food pipe. Basically, the digestive process in our stomach spills back into our oesophagus due to relaxation of the valve dividing them. As we all know, stomach juices consist of Hydrochloric Acid (HCl) – which is not good for the membranes of our oesophagus – hence, the burning sensation.

Usually such situations can be brought under control by using a base neutralizer such as baking soda, ENO, etc. But such solutions are not viable because they provide temporary relief along with a strong possibility of a worse acidic rebound. This calls for an alternate solution, a natural one preferably.

How To Fight Acid Reflux Naturally With Food

Popped Rice: It is very alkaline in nature, easy to digest and moreover absorbs the excess acid from the stomach. It is famous in Maharashtra and is called as “Salichya Lahya” which is the part of Diwali prasad. Just eat a handful of these with ‘Khadi sakhar/Mishri’ (Rock candy) or boil the lahya in water, cool the water, strain and drink. It helps with acidity. This low calorie snack absorbs the residual acid and neutralizes the stomach’s pH. Popped Sorghum (Jowar) is a decent alternative to this.
Banana: is a fruit that can be found everywhere. It has multiple health benefits and preventative abilities that many people tend to overlook. We just think that they are healthy and consume them. Their high roughage content helps strengthen our digestive system which in turn helps in prevention of indigestion. The soluble fibers present in the banana wash away the food remaining in the digestive tract. Those sticky food morsels serve no purpose except to create unnecessary acid. All this along with the added bonus of nutrients like Potassium, Magnesium, Vitamin C, Antioxidants and Phytonutrients.
Ash Gourd: This food item right here is slightly elusive. It belongs to the family of cucumbers. It’s also known as green pumpkin or white melon. The symptoms of acid reflux syndrome can be alleviated by its active principles such as Terpenes, Flavonoid C, Glycosides, and Sterols. They have antioxidant properties that help in inhibiting gastric mucosal damage. Five teaspoons of boiled ash guard along with jaggery 2 times a day is the best way to get instant relief. You can also make juice, raita or sabji.
Raisins: Despite their tiny size, raisins pack a punch full of nutrition! The fiber in it absorbs excess stomach acid. Raisins also contain minerals such as potassium, magnesium, copper and iron which help in balancing acid levels as these minerals are alkaline or basic on the pH scale. Soak 10-15 raisins in water overnight and consume them as first thing in the morning (along with the water).
Potatoes: Bland starches are a good choice when it comes to foods that are easy on the stomach linings. Potatoes contain easily digestible fiber that can help neutralize stomach acid. Potato is naturally alkaline, rich in potassium salt which helps restrict acidity. Try baked, boiled, or mashed potatoes only and strictly avoid the fried ones.

It’s always best to use the most natural and easily accessible solutions possible. The above foods not only provide relief from acid reflux but also contribute to a healthy lifestyle! Try them now if you’re facing this condition and let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

For more information on acidity and acid reflux, check out Healthy Reads or ask your GOQii Coach directly by subscribing for Personalised Health Coaching here.

#BeTheForce

SWEET POTATO – Best Workout Meal

How does it work?

All you need to know about pre-and post-workout supplements!

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