Soni Thakur, Author at GOQii

September 27, 2021 By Soni Thakur 2 Comments

Do Your Muscles Turn Into Fat When You Stop Weight Training?

Being indoors for this long has given people a lot of time to do some research. If you have been researching fitness, weight training and muscles, I’m sure the thought of – “will my muscles turn into fat if I stop weight training” has crossed your mind. While you might watch your fitness levels, maintain a healthy weight and improve strength, etc, it is equally important to understand what happens once you stop weight training in order to preserve muscle mass.

What Do Muscles Mean?

Muscle is a tissue in animal bodies. Their main purpose is to help us move our body parts. When a muscle is activated via exercise, it contracts, making itself shorter and thicker i.e. it grows in size.

When you exercise, your body does not create new muscles. Instead, your existing muscles grow larger and stronger.
With regular exercise, muscles also develop more mitochondria (this is where biochemical processes of respiration and energy production occur in the cell). The result is larger and more muscle mass.
When you stop weight training/adopt a sedentary lifestyle, then the increased blood flow previously needed to fuel your cells during exercise is no longer required, so your body begins to contract and reduce the size of your capillaries. As a consequence, muscles shrink and decrease in mass.

Points To Consider

Muscle cells and fat cells are different structures and are not interchangeable at all. They will become smaller and weaker if you stop weight training because they lose muscle mass. Although, it will not happen in a short period of time as the process of losing muscle mass is slow and gradual which may take 4-6 weeks. Fat may be produced if your diet provides your body with more calories than required based on the activity levels you maintain.

You can preserve and maintain your muscle mass by keeping yourself active. By active I do not mean hitting the gym everyday but by just walking in between breaks, using the staircase instead of the lift, stretching your body every 2 hours, walking while being on a call instead of just sitting at one place, walking after every meal whether it’s your main meal or just snacks in between and obviously by eating a well- balanced healthy diet.

Keep an eye on your protein intake because the protein requirement of your body is directly associated with building and losing muscle mass as well. Don’t overtrain as this can also lead to decreased muscle. Leaving weight training alone should not be blamed for decreased muscle mass. 40-45 minutes of exercise 5-6 days a week is recommended and 1 day should be dedicated for rest and recovery.

We hope this article helps you. For more useful information on muscles, strength training, etc. check out Healthy Reads or tune in to LIVE workout classes by experts on GOQii Pro within the GOQii App.

To get these tips directly from your GOQii Coach, subscribe for personalized coaching here: https://goqiiapp.page.link/bsr

#BeTheForce

September 21, 2021 By Soni Thakur 2 Comments

Reasons Why You Are Not Losing Weight!

Has your scale been stuck at the same number? And no matter how hard you try, it does not move an inch? During a time like this, it gets difficult to stay motivated to get rid of the weight we’ve been trying to lose, despite working out and eating healthy. There could be certain other factors at work here which are preventing you from losing weight. Let’s understand them!

Factors That Prevent You From Losing Weight

You Are Not Eating Enough: Our body requires fuel in order to keep working. It’s like a car – you can’t run it without enough fuel. The same goes for our body. You can’t expect your body to function efficiently or lose weight while you’re starving. Eat within a calorie budget as eating less or eating more can both be the reason why you aren’t losing weight.
Compromised Gut Health: Eating food is only half the story of good nutrition. How that food is absorbed and digested is the other half. If your gut is not healed and healthy, then it can be one of the strongest reasons for you not being able to lose weight.
Less Supply Of Fat To The Body: Fats are important for the absorption of certain vitamins and also for optimal functioning of our brain, heart and body cells. Choose plant based fats like walnuts, almonds, olives, avocados, flaxseeds, etc. as they contain the healthiest types of fatty acids.
You Are Stressed: Chronic stress releases cortisol, which in turn raises blood sugar levels and this again triggers the pancreas to release more insulin and more insulin means more sugar to the cells which gets stored as fat.
You Aren’t Sleeping Enough: When you sleep, your body is in the recovery stage with the help of certain hormones. If you are not sleeping enough, then your body’s first priority is to fight inflammation instead of helping you lose weight.
You Are Overtraining: Indulging yourself in rigorous workouts for more than an hour every day without rest creates inflammation in the body and the body goes into stress mode – which is again not in the favour of weight loss. Aim for only 45-60 minutes exercise for 6 days a week followed by 1 day for rest and recovery.
Your Vitamin D3 and B12 May Be Low: Studies have shown that deficiency of any of the vitamins can cause weight gain too. In fact, several studies investigating the effects of vitamin D on weight loss suggested that it could suppress the storage of fat cells and effectively reduce the fat accumulation in the body. So, make sure to keep your vitamin D3 at an adequate level. Vitamin B12 is often associated with weight loss because of its ability to boost metabolism and provide lasting energy.
Your Thyroid May Be Underactive: When a person’s thyroid is underactive, metabolism goes down very slow due to certain changes in the body. So losing weight will be slower as compared to a healthy individual.
You May Have Food Sensitivity: In several studies, it has been found that nearly 70% of people are dairy intolerant and 30% have gluten sensitivity. If a person with any of these consumes dairy and gluten-rich foods, it leads to inflammation and the body heals that first. This hinders weight loss.
Your Meals Are Not Balanced: Losing weight is all about eating a well-balanced diet by including complex carbohydrates, proteins, healthy fats, and fibres in order to nourish your body with all the essential nutrients. You may lose a good amount of weight by going low or high on one or the other food groups but that happens for just for a short duration of time and is going to hamper your metabolism in the long run.
Expecting Too Much or Being Unrealistic: Setting an unrealistic goal and bounding your body within a time frame will increase your stress levels. Set a goal which is not only for losing weight and going back into your desired shape, but is also a holistic approach which should have a time period which is more realistic and not a quick magical expectation. If you have not gained this weight in a month or two, how can you expect to lose it in such a short period of time?

We hope this article helps you understand why you are not losing weight. You can additionally consult with a GOQii Coach or a GOQii Doctor by opting for a personalized coaching subscription or sign up for GOQii Transform – a personalized weight management program. You can read more about it here: https://store.goqii.com/transform-weight-program

To read more articles on weight loss, check out Healthy Reads.

#BeTheForce

August 12, 2021 By Soni Thakur 4 Comments

How To Boost Metabolism & It’s Importance

You’ve heard the word “metabolism” or the phrase “boost metabolism” a lot either in general conversation about health or by a GOQii coach but have you thought about why it is so important? Metabolism is the sum of chemical and physical reactions in our body or the amount of energy or calories our body burns to maintain vital functions. Raise your hand if you know it is important for weight loss but did you know that it has other functions as well?

Why Is It Important to Boost Metabolism?

It works in 2 processes i.e. catabolism and anabolism which are the buildup and breakdown of substances, whether it is digestion of food or the elimination of food, if these two processes are disrupted by any means then you can imagine what health issues we might face.
The better your metabolism, the more calories your body will burn and it will be easier to drop pounds.
It is important for the biochemical process of combining nutrients with oxygen to release the energy the body needs to function.
There are certain metabolic diseases and disorders like diabetes, thyroid (hypo/hyper), phenylketonuria (PKU), etc. that can be caused when the metabolism fails or decreases/increases than the body’s requirement. Although reason for these metabolic disorders is not just one but it is the reason and these are complex, but who wants to experience the pain of not losing weight, being obese or struggling daily with any other big or small issue caused due to the ups and downs of metabolism.

How Can We Boost It?

Let’s understand certain ways in which we can boost metabolism

Protein: Eating more protein can boost metabolism to burn more calories.
Mixing up certain exercises: can help us burn more fat by increasing metabolic rate.
Water: If your body is dehydrated, then your metabolism may slow down as your body needs water to process calories.
Eating small, frequent meals: like a small snack every 3-4 hours keeps your metabolism going.
Adding spices: like green/red chilies, pepper, garam masala, etc. have natural chemicals that can kick your metabolism into a higher gear.
Recharge with organic green tea: Research suggests that drinking 2-3 cups of green tea may push the body to burn 17% more calories during moderate intensity workouts.
Eat enough calories: Eating less calories than our body’s requirement may give us quick results but this can cause your metabolism to slow down and that in turn, can make you gain more weight and create imbalance issues.
Get plenty of sleep: Sleep disruptions or not getting adequate sleep has been known to have harmful effects on our metabolism.
Manage stress: It has been seen that when we are continuously under stressful conditions, our body releases cortisol (stress hormone) which in turn affects our metabolism.
Keep a check on B vitamins: as they play an essential role in the metabolic rate. So, make sure to meet your body’s requirement of B vitamins by including foods like eggs, bananas, orange juice, peas, spinach, whole grains, baked potatoes, etc.

All these points might sound difficult, but trust me we can make it happen with just small changes in our diet and lifestyle. It does not require inclusion of any costly, fancy food products. We hope this article helps you boost metabolism and make a positive lifestyle change. Do leave your thoughts in the comments below!

For more on metabolism, gut health and digestion, check out Healthy Reads or tune in to LIVE sessions by experts on GOQii Play.

Get these tips directly from your GOQii Coach by subscribing for personalized coaching here: https://goqiiapp.page.link/bsr

#BeTheForce

June 16, 2021 By Soni Thakur Leave a Comment

These Mushrooms Can Help You Boost Your Immune System!

As a kid, I used to wonder why we eat these umbrella shaped things. It is for a frog to hide themselves when it rains (something I saw on a cartoon show). One day, out of curiosity, I asked my mom the same question to which she replied, “Frogs stay in the water only, so they don’t need to hide themselves when it rains. So, it’s left for us to eat!” Obviously, she was not aware of its nutritional benefits at that time. As a nutritionist, now I understand the numerous health benefits that Mushrooms offer along with it’s property to boost immunity.

When we have an infection or disease, our immune system regulates to battle the infection and it works without any break. Hence, it is crucial to boost it on a daily basis so that it does not get exhausted and thankfully, Mushrooms can help this cause. While all edible Mushrooms provide you with essential nutrients, below are some that are nutrient dense and packed with Antioxidants, Beta Glucan, certain Vitamins and minerals that makes them a heart healthy choice to boost your immunity.

Types Of Mushrooms & Their Benefits

Shiitake Mushrooms: These are one of the popular ones as they are a rich source of Fiber, Vitamin B and are low in Calories. They are native to Japan. However in India, it can be found in an Indian Super market too and have been in the limelight for their immunity boosting properties.
Oyster Mushrooms: They’re one of the biggest edible Mushrooms. It gets its name due to having a similar appearance as an oyster. They are an excellent source of essential Vitamins and Minerals including Niacin, Riboflavin, Vitamin B6 and Thiamine. Along with boosting immune function, it also lowers cholesterol and boosts heart health.
Enoki Mushrooms: are also known as ‘Golden Needle Mushrooms’. They are widely available in the Indian supermarket. The healthy Amino acids present in them serves to improve the immune system and is also used as a remedy for hypertension, high cholesterol and liver disease in Asian culture.
Reishi Mushrooms: They support the immune system because they may support the body’s natural response to occasional stress by supporting the endocrine system.
Chaga Mushrooms: help in the formation of Cytokines protein that regulate the immune system. They also stimulate WBC’s (White blood cells) which are essential for fighting harmful bacteria or viruses.

All these varieties are like unsung heroes. So now that you know how they help, include them in your diet along with other food sources to boost your immunity! They are quite versatile and can be added to your soup, sauteed with other vegetables, sandwiches and you can pickle them too – the possibilities are endless!

We hope you enjoyed reading this article. Do let us know your thoughts in the comments below! For more on foods that boost immunity, check out Healthy Reads or tune in to nutrition classes by experts on GOQii Play.

To get these tips directly from your GOQii Coach, subscribe to personalized coaching here: https://goqiiapp.page.link/wssu

Eat healthy & #BeTheForce