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Healthy Heart Diet: 8 Steps to Prevent Heart Disease

Prevent Heart Disease 2The heart plays a very vital role in the well-being of an individual. It supplies oxygenated blood to all organs of the body and also carries nutrients, fuel, hormones, and other components.

Its tremendous work pressure is never-ending but meritorious. But sometimes, just because of negligence and ignorance, we cannot pay attention to the well-being of our hearts. Lack of proper diet, eating fried foods, inactive lifestyle, smoking, and infection give rise to malfunctioning of the heart.

How Can You Prevent Heart Disease?

Changes in lifestyle and modification of diet are the key factors in improving the functioning of the heart and its long life. By following these 8 simple steps, you can have a healthy heart to lead a healthy life!

1. Include more Fruits, Vegetables and Whole grains

Prevent Heart DiseaseFruits & vegetables are rich in vitamins & minerals and low in calories. They also keep a check on cholesterol levels as they are very rich in dietary fiber. A diet rich in dietary fiber maintains weight as well as the gut. You need to select whole grains over refined grains as whole grains are rich in complex carbohydrates and control blood pressure and are good for the heart. Include quinoa, broken wheat, barley, oats, and whole wheat flour.

2. Keep a Check on Foods Containing Sodium

Sodium plays an important role in elevating blood pressure, increasing the risk of heart disease. Limiting salt intake is very important as in every meal, sodium is introduced and the total count increases unknowingly.

Canned food, pickles, chutneys, sauces, soups, and market mixtures are all loaded with salt and increase the total intake of salt. It’s always advised to keep an eye on evening snacks too, which are generally filled with biscuits, cookies, and mixtures.

Salads and fruits should be taken without salt and as these are rich in potassium – which can help to keep sodium on the lower front. The habit of table salt should be discouraged.

3. Choose Healthy Fats

Healthy fats should be an integral part of a heart-healthy diet. One should limit fat intake to 2-3 tsp per day including visible and non-visible fats. Butter, mayonnaise, and cheese can be replaced with homemade healthy spreads.

Poly and mono-unsaturated fats are good choices over saturated fats but all should be taken in limited amounts as all fats are high in calories. Nuts, seeds, and olive oil are good choices.

4. Make Portion Control a Habit

Portion ControlQuality and quantity both are important while having meals. Portion control is very important as it maintains and controls calories and weight. Utensils are selected for portion control and all food groups should be included to make it a balanced diet.

5. Never Skip Breakfast

Skipping breakfast and having unhealthy foods for breakfast is not at all good. As breakfast is the first meal of the day, it should be healthy and should contain a combination of proteins & complex carbohydrates. Skipping breakfast lowers the metabolism and makes the next meal heavier.  A healthy breakfast makes a healthy heart and mind too.

6. Choose Low-Fat Sources of Protein

Try to incorporate protein in every meal as it maintains weight and as the body is made up of protein, the requirement of protein is more. Pulses, seeds, and nuts are good low-fat sources of protein and should be included in daily routines.

Toned milk & milk products are preferred over whole-fat milk to keep a check on cholesterol levels. Lean meat, poultry, fish & eggs are also some of the best sources of protein that can be taken.

7. Menu Planning Should Be Done Prior & Keep One Day for a Treat

A menu can be made so that all options are at your doorstep and you don’t need to think daily about what to have in meals. Include all veggies, fruits, pulses, grains, nuts, seeds, milk & milk products.

Any one day, you can add a little cheat meal so that overindulgence will not happen and your taste buds will get satisfied as a little fun is important as well.

8. Set a 30 min Physical Activity Goal

To maintain proper functioning of the heart, one should do daily 30 min of physical activity that could be anything including brisk walking, yoga, cardio, or strength training. Walking is an overall exercise that improves blood supply, improves lung capacity and is also good for the gut. Take out 30 min of time for walking either in the evening or morning.

The above points, if kept in accordance with daily routine, will make the heart stronger and happier for a long period of time. If your heart is happy, you are happy!

If this article helped you, let us know in the comments below! Find more tips on living a healthy life here. If you want to make these habits a part of your daily life and need help, reach out to a GOQii Coach by subscribing to Personalised Health Coaching here.

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Lose Body Fat by Changing What You Eat

lose body fat

There are many of us who lead demanding and hectic lifestyles which are marred with extensive working hours, early mornings and late nights. In fact, late-night shifts affect our eating patterns a lot!

Due to erratic working patterns, processed foods, instant food items and junk food are in trend as they are easy to carry and can be ordered or eaten anywhere! People don’t carry home food as much and always eat food at work in a hurry, knowing that they are gulping their food without chewing.

If we pay a little attention to what we are eating and how we are eating it, it makes a big difference. The statement, “Lose body fat by changing what you eat” holds true in this context.

Can You Lose Body Fat with Food?

First of all, you have to see the natural foods around you which have the capability to help you lose body fat. Try including some of the following option in your daily meals.

  1. Whole Grains: contain a good amount of fiber and as they are complex in nature, they release carbohydrates slowly in the body. They need energy from the body to breakdown and in turn, help you lose fat. So, include brown rice, whole wheat flour, rolled oats, Ragi, Jowar, and Bajra over refined flour like maida, suji and white rice.
  2. Pulses & Legumes: are an excellent source of fiber and vegetable protein. Protein gives you a feeling of satiety which stops you from overeating and decreases your total calorie intake resulting in fat loss. Choose whole pulses like white & black chana, cow pea, kidney bean, sprouts and have them in at least two meals.
  3. Vegetables & Fruits: are excellent sources of fiber and are low in calories. They require a lot of energy to breakdown and some fibers don’t digest in human bodies. They need to be excreted and absorb fat from the body while doing so, thereby reducing fat and cutting down total calorie intake. Have at least 2-3 servings of fruits & vegetables. Their way of cooking can be changed like sautéing, steaming, baking, shallow frying, or roasting instead of deep-frying.
  4. Healthy Fats: can be obtained through nuts, fish & seeds to improve omega 3 fatty acid which is anti-inflammatory and helps in controlling visceral fat accumulation. Cut down your intake of all types of visible fats such as butter, ghee, oils and avoid refined oils. Instead, use soybean oil, sesame oil, mustard & groundnut oil.
  5. Water: increases the metabolism of the body by flushing out toxins and cleansing the liver. The best part? It has zero calories. Drink at least 2-3 litres of water a day.
  6. Tea: Replacing your tea with green, turmeric or lemon tea and avoiding or minimizing visible intake of sugar [1tsp of sugar (5gm) = 20 calories] helps you lose weight.

Meal timings are also crucial in shedding extra fat. This is because the metabolism of the body slows down as the day progresses. That’s why late-night eaters are prone to weight gain. Low calorie and nutrient-dense food can be chosen by late eaters.

Chewing your food properly also increases the rate of absorption of nutrients and avoids extra accumulation of fat. Practicing mindful eating i.e. eating by paying attention and noticing each sip or bite, tasting your food, teaches you to control your hunger and actually helps in weight loss.

We hope these tips help you lose body fat. For more on how adjusting food habits can help you lose weight, ask a GOQii Coach for guidance by subscribing for personalised health coaching here: https://goqiiapp.page.link/bsr

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Easy and Effective Tabata Routine For Beginners

effective tabata routineWhen it comes to getting active and losing weight, people generally get confused about where to start. So, let’s look at this effective Tabata routine which is simple and easy. TABATA (also called Tabata protocol) is a type of HIIT (high intensity interval training). It originated when a Japanese Scientist Dr. Izumi Tabata and his team from The National Institute of Fitness and Sports at Kagoshima, Japan were working on the fact that shorter high intensity workouts followed by a shorter period of rest can impact the body better rather than longer periods of continuous workout.

The structure of programme is like: 

  • Exercise hard for 20 seconds
  • Rest for 10 seconds
  • Complete 8 rounds

A combination of any exercise can be used in Tabata. It targets a wider range of muscles and helps in burning fat during and after workouts. 

Three major health benefits of this Effective Tabata routine are:

  1. Helps in burning more fat in a shorter period of time
  2. Helps in increasing endurance
  3. As it is high intensity training, it needs to be focused & attentive, thus, increases efficiency.

Before You Begin, Keep in Mind:  

  • A beginner has to first check his/her flexibility, efficiency and endurance before picking up the sets of exercises
  • Make sure to complete a dynamic warm up before you begin this easy and effective Tabata routine.
  • You can choose a group of 3-4 exercises for a week and then add some other exercises one by one depending upon your stamina.
  • Don’t do exercises in a hurry. Rather do it in proper posture and manner.
  • Always keep a stopwatch with you.

Exercise To Include In Your Tabata Routine  

There are basic 10 exercises which you can include in your Tabata protocol when you are planning to start. These are:

  1. Burpees: Toughest among all exercises and increases endurance, strength & power. It is most effective but for a beginner can be placed at last.
  2. Lunges: Can be included in beginners protocol & difficulty level can be increased once you are comfortable in traditional lunges.
  3. Jump Rope: It is an effective and portable form of exercise and can be included in the beginners list.
  4. Squat Jack: It combines two bodyweight exercises which are squats and jumping jacks. Can be safely included in the list.
  5. Tabata Sprints: It starts with 20 seconds of sprints followed by 10 seconds of walking, jogging or rest.
  6. Push Ups: One of the most simple and familiar exercises which can be included in the list.
  7. Super man: This will strengthen the back and core muscles and can be included in the list.
  8. Plank jack: These are simple. The difficulty level can be increased at one’s comfort ability.
  9. Mountain Climbers: Very effective for legs and most suitable for beginners.
  10. Windshield Wipers: Easy to do and can be included in the list and variations can be done later.

From the list above, you can choose any 4-5 exercises and start practicing according to the Tabata protocol and always start with high energy and not in a hurry.

For more effective workouts and to learn more about fitness, check out Healthy Reads or tune in to our live, interactive classes on GOQii PRO, where our experts will guide and motivate you in real time. Book a class now from the GOQii App.

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Can You Die From Pneumonia? 6 Serious Complications You Should Know

pneumonia

Pneumonia is an infection of the lungs which can be caused by bacteria, fungi or a virus. It can range from mild to life threatening – when you require medical intervention at the earliest. When the air sac of one or both lungs are filled with some fluid or pus, it leads to inflammation which causes chest pain while breathing, cough with phlegm or pus, fever, chills and difficulty in breathing. Newborns upto 2 years of age and older people above 65 yrs of age are more prone to pneumonia as their immunity is not strong enough to fight the infection.

Types Of Pneumonia 

There are four types of Pneumonia.

  • CAP (Community Acquired Pneumonia): It is a type of pneumonia that occurs outside the hospital or other healthcare facilities and is caused by bacteria, bacteria like organisms, fungi or a virus like COVID-19 as well.
  • HAP (Hospital Acquired Pneumonia): This type of pneumonia occurs during a hospital stay and can be serious as the person is already sick.
  • Health Care Acquired Pneumonia: This type of acquired pneumonia occurs when patients stay for a long term in hospitals or go to outpatient clinics for dialysis or chemotherapy.
  • Aspiration Pneumonia: This type of pneumonia occurs when you inhale food, liquid, saliva or vomit in your lungs and that causes an infection and it also occurs when there’s a brain injury.

What Are The Complications That Occur? 

Even with treatment, some people with Pneumonia, who have other health ailments, suffer complications. Here are some of them: 

  1. Bacteremia: When infection is caused by bacteria, it travels down to the bloodstream and can lead to septic shock that lowers the blood pressure and the heart cannot pump blood into the organs and organs may stop working altogether. So, if you are having symptoms like fever with chills, low blood pressure, stomach upset, fast breathing with a fast heart rate, you need to consult a doctor immediately.
  2. Lung Abscesses: Sometimes, due to pneumonia, pus pockets are formed in the lungs and give rise to fever, fatigue, weight loss, loss of appetite and coughing. This basically happens when a person is having bacteremia, gum disease, weakened immune system and regular intake of alcohol.
  3. Pleural Effusions, Empyema and Pleurisy: There are two types of layers surrounding your lungs called pleura. One from the outer side and one lines the part of your chest where the lungs sit. They help the lungs to move smoothly when one breathes. Sometimes, pain occurs while breathing and this is because the pleura swells and sometimes a fluid forms in between the layers and that is known as PLEURA EFFUSION. And if the fluid gets infected it leads to EMPYEMA.
  4. Respiratory Failure: With pneumonia, your lungs get infected and they will not be able to transfer oxygen to organs and won’t be able to get rid of carbon dioxide from the body which leads to this condition. Symptoms are fast breathing, irregular heart rate, anxiety, fatigue, losing consciousness or bluish tint on your skin, fingertips or nails.
  5. Kidney Failure: It’s not a common complication of pneumonia but when you are having bacteremia or septic shock, your heart may not be able to pump enough blood to your kidneys and they might stop functioning. Chances of kidney failure are high if it is coupled with other metabolic disorders.
  6. Heart Failure: Chances of heart diseases are higher if you have pneumonia as the heart may not be able to pump enough blood and oxygen as the heart itself doesn’t have enough supply. 

All the complications of pneumonia are not to be taken casually. If you experience any of the above symptoms or complications, seek medical help immediately. You can also track symptoms such as low blood oxygen, low blood pressure, increased heart rate and high body temperature with Smart Devices from GOQii. Tracking these symptoms early can help you avoid any unnecessary complications and get medical assistance on time.

We hope this article helps you. For more on Pneumonia and other medical conditions, check out Healthy Reads or ask your GOQii Coach directly by subscribing for Personalised Health Coaching here: https://goqiiapp.page.link/bsr

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