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Cashew Nuts & it’s benefits

cashew-nuts

Cashew nuts are favourites of all. It’s a nut that is easily available and used for all occasions. It can be carried in your pocket and popped into the mouth as and when you feel hungry as the fat content in it keeps you full for a longer time and refrain you from snacking on unhealthy refined foods.

A fruit that is native to Brazil was brought to India by Portugal explorers and today it’s widely grown in the coastal areas.

Despite it being a healthy food, people are often scared of consuming cashew nuts because it is considered to be high on fats and hence not to be eaten often. Especially those suffering from any kind of heart ailment keep cashews away.

I would say these are all myths and would like to clarify that Cashews are safe to consume from a health perspective. It consists of healthy mono unsaturated fatty acid, Oleic acid which helps to lower bad cholesterol LDL and increase the good cholesterol HDL.

Cashew nuts also consists of some of the B complex Vitamins like Pyridoxine, Pantothenic Acid, Riboflavin& Niacin. All these play a major role in the metabolism of Carbohydrates, Proteins & Fats. Alongside it has individual health benefits such as Pyridoxine helps to protect the heart by inhibiting cholesterol deposit.

Niacin helps against Dermatitis- a skin infection, Pantothenic acid helps relieve your stress and gives you good skin & hair. Riboflavin prevents acne and gives you healthy eyes.

Cashew nuts have benefits in abundance so why would you want to keep it aside? It is high on calories but, as one should work on the quantity and timing and you will gain a healthy heart, good skin, healthy eyes and anti-stress properties.

Cashews are best to be had as a snack. Roast them and have about a fistful in between the meals, pre or post workout, during or after a trek or game.

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7 Minute Workout

chair-dips-easy-women

Most of us are busy these days with no time left in hand to do regular workouts or any other daily activities. What do you mean by workouts? Spending an hour in gym or doing something on your own to be fit and healthy.

I have seen many people doing workouts in gym and spending hours there but, is it really worth it?

Getting into shape does not require spending hours in gym, FAD diet plans or using state of the art equipment. In fact, our own bodyweight is all you need to effectively exercise and achieve the shape you want. Bodyweight training works and it is inexpensive and convenient too. Let’s not make Work pressure as our excuse and find out a time either in the morning or evening for just 7 min workout.

7 min workout is a high-intensity interval training workout that includes prolonged endurance training which provides many of the fitness benefits in much less time. It directly targets the overall fitness. It helps in increasing metabolic rate. While doing the workouts your body releases the endorphin which helps to reduce stress.

This workout does not require equipment and you can use your own body weight, a chair and a wall, etc.

To burn the most amount of fat in the shortest amount of time, the following moves are best-

  1. Jumping Jacks- This classic cardio move is a great way to warm up and it beneficial for heart and lungs. It improves strength and endurance, increases the metabolic rate and burns calories.
  1. Wall Sit- Who needs a chair when there’s a wall? Wall Sits are great in working out the two groups of muscles in your thigh. Repetitions of Wall Sits would naturally give you thighs that can withstand prolonged strenuous activities.
  1. PushUp – Doing Pushups allow you to provide a full body workout, allowing you to access many muscle groups at once. You can work the quads, hamstrings, calves, chest, shoulders and arms all at the same time with a few pushups. You will notice that performing push up reps regularly will help you get a more toned chest, shoulders, forearms, upper arms and wrists. It stimulates the metabolism and blood circulation, allowing you to burn more calories throughout the rest of your workout.
  1. Abdominal Crunch – Crunches works on the rectus abdomen muscle. It is mainly just a core working exercise and burns less calories comparatively but, they move in a controlled manner, flexing and releasing the core muscles thus helping to build the abs.
  1. Step up onto Chair – This exercise is great for targeting your quad and gluteus maximus muscles, giving you strong, powerful legs.
  2. Squat – Squat exercises are great for a total lower body workout. They effectively work most of the major muscle groups of the butt, hips and thighs. Squats are also a versatile exercise. Squats engage the core muscles of the body. The result is a tighter, flatter abdomen and a stronger lower back.
  1. Triceps dip on Chair – It is a triceps-strengthening and a most effective body-weight exercise. Dips target your triceps, the muscles on the back of your upper arm.
  1. Plank – The plank exercise helps to strengthen midsection, upper-body and lower-body muscles along the front of your body. Planks also strengthen inner core muscles that support your joints. It helps in reducing belly fat, reduce back pain. At a time, it works on all your core muscles.
  1. High Knees running in place – This is a nice warm-up. It is a great practice for runners and athletes to improve running form and develop lower body muscles. It also enhances your strength, speed, balance and flexibility. It provides you more energy, burns calories, builds muscles and enhances blood circulation.
  1. Lunges – The lunge is an easy-to-learn, safe and incredibly effective exercise. Lunges target the quadriceps, but involve additional muscles, including the glutes, hamstrings, calves and core muscles, making them an important exercise for toning the lower body.
  1. Push up and rotation – This exercise is great for building shoulder stabilization and strengthening your entire core. Don’t let your hips drop when you go into side rotation. Try to keep everything in a straight diagonal line throughout.
  1. Side Plank – It works your entire core, but particularly targets an often weak muscle called the quadratus lumborum. It helps to reduce risk for lower back pains. It improves your balance and structure.

The exercises should be performed in rapid succession, allowing 30 seconds for each with 10 secondss rest in between and proper warm up and stretching required.

Here you have to give only 7 mins to your health which is equal to 0.5% of your day to your body and you are done with your workouts.

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WORKOUTS IN A 10 SQUARE FEET AREA

 

burpeeOne of the biggest reasons for not exercising is largely due to lack of time and not being able to make it to the gym. Reasons could be varied such as dislike to visit the gym and lift weights, especially for women. Well, it’s not necessary for you to go to the gym, you can work out at your own home, office cabin or at any place which is just no more than 10 square feet in measurement.

Yes , you heard it right. You can do your complete body workout in just 10 square feet area. Let’s have a detailed look at the different types of training you can do in a little place.

  1. You can do aerobic (cardio) exercises with your own body weight and also with a very basic equipment like a skipping rope.

You can do exercises like jumping jacks, mountain climbers, burpees, high knees, spot jogging, spot jumping, hot feets etc. These are few of the very basic and effective exercises to raise your heart beat up and build cardio vascular strength. Per session you can select 3-4 exercise as a part of the session and can do each exercise for 15-20 seconds and then take 5-10 seconds of rest between each exercise.

  1. You can do strength training with your own body weight or basic equipment like resistance tube or a pair of dumbells or barbells. You can do free hand body weight exercises like squats, jump squats, wall squats, push-ups, supported push-ups (on your knees), tricep dips on a chair or on the floor, leg raises , lunges, leg extensions on chair. Also with a pair of dumbbell or barbells or with resistance band you can do bicep curls , triceps extensions, shoulder presses, rowing , squats, lunges etc.
  2. You can do a specific core workout session which includes exercises to be done for lower back and abs. Core session is extremely important. Exercises like back extension, superman raises , child pose, cat & camel thrust , pelvic raises will strengthen and stretch your lower back. On the other hand, exercises like crunches, bicycle crunches, leg raises, scissor kicks, flutter kicks, planks, side planks etc. will work on your abdominal muscles.
  3. You can do stretching exercises, yoga, power yoga and different types of breathing exercises. Stretching exercises, Yoga, power yoga and breathing exercises will improve your flexibility and burn fats as well. Yes, that’s right. Oxygen burns fats, so the more you focus on breathing exercises the more you burn fat and keep your cells healthy by providing oxygen to your body.

These are the exercises which you can do in a very small place like 10 square feet area and, can still focus on your overall fitness by improving strength, stamina and flexibility. You can plan it well according to your schedule and do each of these variety exercises at least once in a week.

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Anabolic Steroids v/s Dietary Supplements – All you want to know

suppliments

We often hear people talking about “supplements” and “steroids”. We hear about how “protein powders are harmful to health as they contain steroids” and how people are hesitant to take vitamin supplements as they are “pills” and treat them like medications.

But, do people really understand what are anabolic steroids and dietary supplements? The answer is no. Large sections of the society are still unaware of the use and need of taking dietary supplements and anabolic steroids.

What are Anabolic Steroids and Dietary Supplements?

Anabolic Steroids: Anabolic steroids are synthetic (man-made) substances similar to male sex hormone, testosterone. The term “anabolic” means “growth”. Here, it refers to growth in muscle mass. Steroids are performance enhancing substances which cause an increase in muscle mass and physical strength. Some common examples of anabolic steroids include Androstenedione, Dehydrochloromethyltestosterone (Turinabol), Methandienone (Dianabol), Methyltestosterone (Android), Nandrolone (Durabolin), Oxandrolone (Oxandrin), Oxymetholone (Anadrol), Stanozolol (Winstrol).

Dietary Supplements: Dietary supplement is any product which is consumed orally and which contains dietary nutrients intended to supplement the diet. Dietary supplements may include amino acids, vitamins, minerals, herbs or other botanical ingredients (except tobacco), substances like enzymes and metabolites (glucosamine, creatine, alpha-lipoic acid, Coenzyme Q10).

Dietary supplements can be extracts or concentrates and may be available as tablets, capsules, softgels, gelcaps, liquids and powders. They are also available in the form of nutrition bars.

Dietary supplements cannot be categorized as foods or drugs and hence, they are not regulated by the FDA. Dietary supplements are regulated under DSHEA (Dietary Supplement and Health Education Act) passed in the US in 1994. DSHEA defines dietary or nutritional supplements as “a nutrient, a formulation, or some compound that is drug-free or natural”.

Use and abuse of anabolic steroids: Anabolic steroids stimulate growth in tissues, especially bone and muscles. They also increase the production of RBCs (Red blood Cells). Anabolic steroids can be taken orally, are injectable or are used externally. Anabolic steroids are used in the treatment of many medical issues such as delayed puberty in boys, sexual dysfunction in men, breast cancer in women, weight loss in HIV, osteoporosis, anemia, endometriosis and other conditions involving hormonal imbalance.

Now, Anabolic steroids are also abused at large. Some athletes’ may abuse anabolic steroids to build muscle mass, prolong endurance and enhance performance. Anabolic steroids are converted into testosterone in the body, beyond normal levels. This leads to some serious side effects like dramatic increase in muscle mass (Greater Anabolism), Organ damage (Liver disease, kidney disease, heart disease), impotence, gynecomastia (fat deposition on the chest due to increased estrogen levels causing abnormal breast enlargement in men), severe acne, hair fall, oily skin, stunted growth and height in teens, shrinking of testicles, azoospermia (absence of sperms in semen), menstrual irregularities in women, excess facial or body hair and deeper voice in women, irritability, increased aggression, mood swings, depression or suicidal tendencies, high blood pressure, alterations in cholesterol and other blood lipids, risk of viral and bacterial infections due to use of unsterile injections.

Anabolic steroids are also addictive. They make the user and abuser physically and psychologically dependant on them.

Use and benefits of dietary supplements: Nutritional or dietary supplements are, in simple words, foods in a concentrated form. Nutritional deficiency is the root cause of many diseases. These days, chronic diseases are on a high and are striking people at a much earlier age. Air and water pollution, overuse of chemical fertilizers and pesticides in agricultural practices, genetically engineered seeds, and depleted nutrient content in the soil are all responsible for the poor nutrient quality of the fruits and vegetables available in the market today.

The advantage of taking dietary supplements is that they provide adequate quantity of superior quality of nutrients, they give a specific combination and quantity of nutrients required at a particular time in a day and they make it convenient for the body to be supplied with all the essential nutrients.

Who all need to take dietary supplements? Dietary supplements are safe enough to be consumed by all of us. They are concentrated foods that help in building our immune system keeping us away from various diseases.

The modern day fast-paced lives, fast-food culture, increasing stress levels, deteriorating quality of fruits and vegetables are all the reasons for anyone and every one of us to turn to dietary supplements for attaining optimum health. People who are into intense exercise regimes, sports enthusiasts, athletes, competitive bodybuilders are the ones who need dietary supplements to repair the wear and tear in their body, grow and maintain healthy muscle mass, enhance their functionality and improve the immunity of the body. Also, Vegetarianism and veganism sometimes makes it difficult to get nutrients like complete proteins (with all the essential amino acids) and B12 vitamin .

But, simply consuming dietary supplements just for the sake of taking them is not right. Even natural substances can cause undesirable side effects, especially when taken in high doses. There are other things too, that go into building healthier bodies. They are, having an active lifestyle (adequate exercise), healthy eating habits and maintaining a positive state of mind. Finally, it all boils down to body, mind and soul connection.

The confusion between Anabolic Steroids and Dietary Supplements: There is a general fear that supplements may contain anabolic steroids. Due to the ignorance amongst the public and media hype, people easily confuse dietary supplements with anabolic steroids. Anabolic steroids are drugs that abnormally increase testosterone levels in the body whereas, dietary or nutritional supplements are concentrated forms of naturally occurring food nutrients like proteins, carbohydrates, omega 3 fatty acids, etc. Anabolic steroid use is prohibited by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

The bottom line is that Anabolic Steroids and Dietary Supplements are worlds apart. Use them wisely, use them safely and you will benefit from them. Or else, “too much of anything is bad”!

Ps Note: Before starting on any dietary supplement or Anabolic Steroid its better that you consult your doctor

From Terminal Illness To Complete Wellness! Ananda Mukherjee Health Story

As we observe World Cancer Day under the powerful theme ‘United by Unique’ (2025-2027)**, we are reminded that every individual’s journey with cancer is distinct, yet united by shared resilience, hope, and the collective fight against this disease. This theme places people at the centre of care and their stories at the heart of the […]