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Body cleansers: Liv-kid!

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Our body is well-equipped with 2 sturdy cleansers which work day in and day out to clean the dirt that we pollute our body with- Liver and Kidney! They are like colonial cousins, having one function common- body detoxification.

Liver and kidney are our body’s ‘care-takers’ who constantly strive towards keeping the body healthy by protecting it from the external invaders that intoxicate our body and make sure our body runs smoothly. Instead of reciprocating the good things they do for us, we end up troubling them even more by loading our body with more and more toxins.

Liver is the second largest organ of the body (after skin) and its primary function is body detoxification and secondary is fat metabolism. It keeps the body clear of junk which can otherwise pose a risk of diseases. Little do we think about liver’s state when we gorge on that pizza/burger or any other refined food and drinks (including alcohol). Sugar is the top most useless substance that is known to slow down the liver. Continuous exposure to junk/alcohol/drugs and medicines, makes our liver appear like a terrible porous sponge that needs to be wrung out.

You probably have a burdened liver if you have –

*A frequent headache

*Fatigue

*Poor concentration

*Allergies and rashes

*Itchy eyes,

*A bitter taste in the mouth.

While liver ensures effective excavation of toxins, kidney ensures efficient filtration of the by- products of the proteins and some minerals like sodium, potassium, etc which otherwise can pose a toxic threat to the body. Any glitches in kidney can affect its function of filtration, causing these substances to build up in body. Uric acid, creatinine, urea are few of these by-products which when accumulated in body can hamper our health.

Few early symptoms of a troubled kidney include-

*Blood pressure fluctuations

*Water retention (edema)

*Urinary problems

*Fatigue

*Skin rashes/itching

*Metallic taste in mouth (due to urea build up)

*Nausea and Vomiting

This requires a fix! Rather than wait for these symptoms to proceed into a full blown disease, we need to take some preventive measures to halt the progression.

A liver and kidney cleanse can sort it all out. A regular cleansing of the two will not even let you go through these off-putting symptoms, but in fact will make sure we keep these organs hail and hearty.

To flush these organs-

  • Stay off from animal products twice a week including eggs, chicken, red meat, seafood.
  • Up the fiber content of your meals through green veggies, nuts, whole grains- Ragi/ jowar/ whole wheat/ bajra/ brown rice and legumes.
  • Go fruity- Enjoy the natural colours through oranges, sweet lime, guava, pear, papaya, berries, etc. Cranberry, pomegranate, and blueberry juices are known to enhance kidney function.
  • Enjoy vegetable smoothies made out of beetroot, celery, carrots, cucumber.
  • Keep the enemies away- Saturated fats (bakery items, red meat, butter, mayonnaise, etc.), refined sugar and alcohol.
  • Go easy with caffeine (tea/coffee) as that’s another toxin liver and kidneys have to deal with.

Water is their best friend! 2 liters or 8 glasses are not enough to cleanse these burdened organs. 3-3.5 liters of water (12-14 glasses) is what we need to keep them sparkling fresh.

Regular flush out of liver and kidney will not only treat but, will also keep us miles away from headache, fatigue, abdominal discomforts, skin problems, etc. An added advantage of cleansing is, when the liver is freed of toxins, it reduces its efforts of detoxifying the body and it can then focus better on its next function of fat metabolism, resulting in a faster breakdown of fat.

Don’t just keep your body clean from the outside; take care of it from within too.

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Snacking options to carry

healthy-snacks

How often do you crave to eat something between meals or after meals and do not have anything on your desk? According to me, one should include healthy mid-meals in to their daily routine in order to boost the metabolism and getting constant supply of energy, nutrients etc. Having said this, the next question is what to eat? What are the healthy options that are easy to carry or make at home quickly as most always crib that time to eat, I am between long meetings etc …

You will be surprised that there are several snack options that are easy to carry and also make quickly

Here are the some easy to make and carrying options ;

Kale chips ( 1 medium cup)

Tuna/salmon+ wheat thins

Peas+Boiled corn ( 1 medium cup)

Mini Pancake (one in number)

Boiled eggs (2-3 in numbers)

Edamame beans with Lemon + pepper ( 1 medium cup)

Black bean salsa with tortilla chips

Spiced up hummus with pita bread

Tabbouleh with Pita wedges

Sweet Potato hummus with whole wheat pita

Low fat yogurt with fresh herbs + oregano

Chopped salmon salad ( 1 cup)

Chickpea dip with bread

Sun dried tomato with artichoke dip

Banana bread with walnuts and flaxseeds

Corn dip with tomato and basil

Chicken salad ( 1 plate)

Yogurt with Oats/berries ( 1 serving)

Handful of nuts (almonds,walnuts, raisins)

Dried apricots + dates ( handful)

Soya nuts (handful)

Mixture of seeds ( flax seeds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, black and white sesame seeds)

Fruits ( 1-2 in nuumbers)

Wheat bread sandwich ( 2 slices)

Whole wheat wraps (1 in number)

Unsalted pop corn ( 1 medium cup)

Granola bar (1 in number)

Carrots /cucumber sticks + hummus ( 1 medium cup)

Vegetable juice ( 250 ml)

Crab berries+ peanuts (handful)

Banana+ 1 tablespoon of peanut butter

Peas+ boiled corn +spices ( 1 medium cup)

Mini Pancakes ( 1 in number)

Soya milk ( 200 ml)

Skimmilk ( 200 ml)

In India some local eating snacks to carry along :

-Roasted unsalted chana (whole Bengal gram) ( handful)

-roasted unsalted peanuts (handful)

-boiled sprouts ( 1 medium cup)

-peanuts jaggery chikki ( 3-4 in numbers)

-spiced up idli pieces  ( 1 plate)

-Dhokla ( 3-4 medilum pieces)

-Khakra ( 1-2 in numbers)

-Buttermilk ( 250 ml)

These snacks are easy to carry, and when it is with us we will be reminded to eat them and ultimately it is a healthy swap over unhealthy eating. This can be incorporated in the mid morning or mid evening snacks. Avoiding meals may lead to over indulgence in your next meal, decreases metabolism and does not meet up with the daily requirement of nutrients.

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Exercising Too Much – Think Twice

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Is too much exercise bad for you?

Many once have got on to the fitness path think that if they do too much of exercise they will achieve their goals faster. Is this true let’s find out?

It is always said that too much of good is also not very nice, including exercise. Too much of exercising is actually damaging.

Everyone believes that “Exercising is good for him/her, and that more exercising is considered better…”, this is a myth. The fact is that too much exercise could actually harm you rather than benefit you. In the excitement of doing too much exercise one does not realize they can harm themselves. You will end up facing problems related to physical and emotional conditions such as injuries, bone loss, muscle loss and sometimes even heart failure.

Adequate amount of exercise helps you to build good muscles. Then you become an “exercise freak”, same like the eating disorder. And, eventually you get devastating results.

You lose weight, yes, but not the way you should– your body goes into starvation mode and releases cortisol (Cortisol is produced by the adrenal glands in your body when you are under stress. Cortisol will increase production of a neurotransmitter called neuropeptide Y, which can increase cravings for sweet or starchy foods – bad for health and fitness).

Increased cortisol inhibits any fat metabolism and breaks your muscle mass — your body basically starts eating itself. So instead of becoming a lean, mean fitness machine, you find you’ve less strength and also a weakened immune system.

Make no mistake about it, regular exercise is probably is the biggest factor in living a long and healthy life (not discounting healthy eating).

Here are several ways to tell that you’re working out too hard or Effect of too much Exercise can lead to:

  • Dizziness
  • Trouble breathing or maintaining a conversation
  • Disorientation, foggy mental processing
  • Rapid heart beat
  • Dehydration
  • Injuries
  • Loss of lean muscle mass
  • Heart failure in the absence of proper nutrition. Your heart is a muscle and over exercising could weaken it, leading to potential failure
  • Weakened immune system
  • Cessation of menstrual cycles, a condition known as amenorrhea
  • Research shows that many female athletes who over train begin to experience bone loss that apparently can’t be reversed if the amenorrhea persists long enough.
  • Sleep disorder
  • Eating disorder such as anorexia
  • Irritability, depression and low self esteem

Here is a checklist which will help you judge on your own if you are doing too much exercise:

  1. Make up for one missed workout by doubling it the next session
  2. You will force yourself even when you don’t want to
  3. When you over eat, you prefer to exercise to burn all extra calories
  4. You set the intensity of your exercise based on your food intake
  5. You might feel guilty when you miss your exercise session
  6. You become very upset if you miss a workout
  7. You always have a fear that you’ll gain weight if you miss the exercise session for a day
  8. You will miss the pleasure during exercise
  9. You can’t bring yourself to take a day off from exercise

So the next time you go to exercise stop worrying. Just have fun and enjoy your workout.

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Indulge: Eat Without Feeling Guilty!

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Ever since I have started health counselling, I have met at least 8 out of 10 people who go through a guilt factor after having eaten foods that they love the most.. Some of these people literally hate themselves for having done that. For most of these individuals an  outing/ family occasion/weekend/holiday means more worry about weight and less enjoyment.

Some of them miss meeting their friends and have stopped living their life because they don’t want to indulge while they are out.

Are you one of them?

If you are then, you must know that worry puts you and your body through stress and stress releases a hormone called cortisol which in turn promotes fat storage in our body. It increases the heart rate and breathing too. All of this can make one sick.

Cortisol makes you depressed and creates an imbalance in the biochemical reactions of the body. If you are worried about your health and weight, you must also be aware of the connection between the body and your mind. Our emotions share biochemical links with our digestive, nervous, endocrine and the immune system.

You must keep your negative thoughts and guilt away, else it will add up to stress. Your body will not be able to digest the food when you are very stressed! It’s like trying to stop a bull when he gets out of control.  It’s just a’int going to happen. Everyone has one weakness in food it could be a brownie, an ice cream cake, cheese cake, Pizzas, burgers and the likes that can make you go off track. For me it’s the brownie cake and oh yes how can I forget Pizzas! If one keeps feeling guilty about these foods one in a way then guilt is going to take the pleasure out of eating.

I would say eating without guilt is the key to keeping yourself healthy. It’s about enjoyment, spending time with family and at the same time having a balance  in everything you do. One should not worry unless you know you are eating extra everyday.

You must remember that there are no bad foods, there are just poor habits.

If you can form good habits over a period of time, eventually you will build a healthier you and start eating in moderation without guilt.

Here are some tips to eat guilt free and keep yourself in shape:

* Eat a bowl of salad before heading for a dine out as it will add on to the fiber in take, so while you enjoy family favorite, fiber will help you keep full for longer time.

*Enjoy your favorite food, savor it, eat mindfully, slow eating will automatically lead to portion control.

*Hydrate your body cells well, the craving for junk might be just that your body is thirsty.

*Moderation is the key.

*Don’t forget to add greens along with your favorite food.

*One meal or one food doesn’t make you healthy or unhealthy, worry is less healthier.

* Emotions are important, try to build good connect with people around you and contribute to the society, that will help you keep yourself positive and increase your serotonin levels. (The feel good hormone), in a way you are doing good to yourself while doing good to others.

*Remember a workout is not about just going to gym, it’s about doing what you love, it can be  dancing, chasing dog,washing car,gardening, cycling, have a life out of weight loss.

*Sleep well it will help restoring mind and body.

* Emotional eating due to stress is a part of life, try to reduce it by getting into hobbies, if you are finding it difficult to manage, relaxation techniques like breathing,meditation and yoga will help,feel good about yourself,live this moment, try to focus on present.

*Try adding food instead of subtracting and starving yourself, eating at regular interval helps your body boost metabolism.

*Slurp your juicy favorite fruits in the first half of the day when you are going to party out.

*Try switching from beer/diet sodas to wine.

*Go walking when the weather’s nice and you are looking pretty, enjoy the wind that shall make you move.

*Share your meals with your partner/friend so that you don’t stuff yourself.

*Don’t worry if you overeat a little, make sure of regular exercise and balancing out meals.

I would say shed off the guilt and move on!

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