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December 8, 2021 By GOQii Leave a Comment

Increase Productivity At Work & Improve Health With This New Challenge

How was your experience working from home? While it did seem like a good break, the unexpected shift of remote working presented some issues that were difficult to deal with. Along with maiming profits, delayed appraisals, curbed salaries, increase in time spent doing work and disrupting respective corporate cultures, COVID-19 also impacted employees in ways they didn’t bargain for.

Problems Faced While Working From Home

Detachment & Isolation: Whichever industry you work in, a workplace gives you a sense of shared purpose and connection. With lesser opportunities of bonding and interaction while working from home, team members began to feel more isolated and disengaged from their workplace. No amount of video conferences can fix this feeling of detachment and isolation.
Loss of Focus: While some enjoyed an isolated space where they could concentrate on their work, most didn’t have a remote space they could comfortably work from. Distraction by family members, pets and other factors caused more stress and lack of focus.
Mental Health Issues: Given the state of affairs during the early onset of the pandemic and the subsequent lockdown, it was easy to get stressed about the future. Feelings of fear, anxiety, sadness and frustration were common across all age groups. Working from home made it difficult to reach out to colleagues and friends for support. In a study we conducted, we found that around 43% Indians were plagued with depression. A number that only saw an upward trend. “Anxiety is one of the symptoms of depression. Most people are anxious on various counts. For some it is about not having a regular routine as they did in normal times,” says Divya Thampi, an Emotional Wellness Coach on GOQii Play. To read more about the impact of COVID-19 on mental health, read the report here.
Overwhelmed With New Tech: We already use a significant amount of apps and softwares daily. In the business landscape, everything is driven by data and tech. Adaptability aside, the sudden onset of the pandemic and the subsequent remote working scene forced us to work with new tools for scheduling, conferencing, managing, etc. faster than before.
Feedback, Recognition & Guidance: During pre-lockdown times, it was easy for a manager to step up to your desk to share positive feedback or guide you. In a remote working environment, this form of interaction has suffered greatly. Lack of feedback, recognition and guidance can make one feel further isolated, doubt their skills or lose confidence in their work.
Health & Wellbeing: Disruption of routine also meant that people were tied down to their couches, beds or desks at home with little movement. Those walks after lunch, chasing trains and any little movement we had while we worked from the office were tossed out the window. Eating habits also suffered and with work hours extending for some, sleep suffered greatly – only adding to stress.

At GOQii, we believe that a healthy employee is a happy employee and a happy employee is a productive employee. Sadly, that was not the case during the lockdown. In view of these issues which are quite persistent even now, what can corporations do to motivate their employees, build team spirit, foster bonding, improve health and increase productivity?

GOQii Corporate Challenge

What if we told you that there was a fun way to build team spirit, improve health and performance at work? The GOQii Corporate Challenge – an inter-corporate health challenge, can be the solution you’ve been looking for.

It’s a 60 day engagement program, starting from 13th December to 10th February, where corporates can get their employees to participate on an individual, team and corporate level. The challenges will consist of a 30 day steps challenge and daily social media spot challenges (where you can win daily prizes) – all tracked by a live leaderboard.

The program also consists of daily fitness sessions i.e. 150+ sessions in 60 days starting with Yoga, Mind and Body sessions at 7 AM, Health Talks at 3 PM and High Intensity Workout sessions at 7 PM.

What’s more, at the end of the GOQii Corporate Challenge, 1 in every 4 players stands a chance to win exciting prizes such as hotel stays, luxury watches, smartphones, gadgets and exclusive merchandise.

A little bit of healthy competition like this, can definitely ease the strain left by COVID-19 and build team spirit while most of us return to the office!

If you’re keen on participating, sign up your corporation for the GOQii Corporate Challenge to take advantage of exciting rewards – the best one being good health!

#BeTheForce

November 27, 2021 By Anusha Subramanian 1 Comment

How Kaushik Dey Went From Simply Working Out To Living A Healthy Lifestyle

Being healthy encompasses many factors. While it involves working out, it isn’t just about working out or being active. You have to also look at other parameters such as nutrition, sleep, managing stress, et al. In fact, even introducing new habits and tweaking existing ones can do wonders for your health. All of this might seem difficult to manage by yourself, but when you get the right guidance from a certified expert, it can really change your life – as experienced first hand by our Player, Kaushik Dey.

Lifestyle Before Joining GOQii

Kaushik Dey is a 40 year old engineer who works for a Public Sector Unit based in Delhi. Since 2011, he has been involved with the Yog Organization and practices Yoga on a daily basis.

“Being active was part of my life, prior to GOQii. But, what GOQii did was help me prioritize my activities and diet practices,” says Kaushik Dey.

In 2017, he was given a basic GOQii Tracker as a gift with which he also got a free 3 month coaching subscription. While going through the instruction manual, he got to know about the GOQii Ecosystem and personal coaching.

Making Small Changes and Introducing New Habits

Currently, his coach is Dr. Naina Sudarshan. She regularly takes updates and shares articles and exercises, guides him with his exercise routine and helps him if there are any issues.

“Personal coaching helped me understand what I was not doing right. It helped me understand diet and exercise the right way. Personal coaching has been the game changer for me,” says Kaushik Dey.

He also says that interacting with his GOQii Coach on a daily basis has taught him how to manage his health the right way by adding new habits at regular intervals. Apart from Personal Coaching that helps Kaushik keep a watch on his diet, exercise, stress levels and sleep, he says that he has also benefited a great deal from GOQii Play – the interactive video coaching feature within the GOQii App and by gathering a lot of information from GOQii Blogs.

“I used to run regularly and then I developed Plantar fasciitis. Coach Sheetal Tiwari guided me to improve my health through Yoga classes on GOQii Play. Coach specifically mentioned some exercises that helped me a lot, otherwise I was seeking medical help such as pain injections”.

Kaushik alone doesn’t derive the benefits of GOQii, but his 10 year old daughter also exercises with him regularly. Kaushik has been a regular on GOQii PRO for the last 6 months and has taken an extended 1 year subscription. He is joined by his daughter for the GOQii Pro classes and he says he exercises with Coach Urvashi and Parwage Alam to name a few. Kaushik proudly says that his daughter is probably the only kid who is a regular on GOQii Pro.

This April, he and his entire family were affected by COVID-19. While the first 5 days were tough, from the 6th day onwards he started practicing yoga and exercise in quarantine. His GOQii Coach helped him tackle the situation well. Having a healthy lifestyle helped him and his family a lot. Everyone is fit and fine now. Kaushik says that it is due to GOQii that they were able to manage themselves well and fight COVID-19 successfully. It is during this time that he took a couple of doctor consults from the GOQii App.

“GOQii is a part of my life,” says Kaushik. He further adds that GOQii’s personalized coaching helped him manage his exercise routine despite his stressful public sector job.

Kaushik believes that GOQii is a good platform and has been actively advocating it to his friends, colleagues and society members. “Consistency is key. GOQii has inspired me to be more active and manage my time well. I will continue to be on the GOQii Platform as it is doing noble work. If you are a fitness freak and GOQii is with you, you can make a difference in your fitness routine and see the changes just like I did.”

What Does Dr. Naina Sudarshan Have To Say About Kaushik Dey?

Kaushik has been an active GOQii player for more than 3 years now and I have been his coach for about 2.5 years. His goals were to lose weight, reduce fat percentage and cholesterol levels while maintaining his health.

Though Kaushik is a self-motivated and active person, his diet and shift work were major hurdles for his goals. But I can’t remember a day Kaushik has not updated me about his diet and activities including the days he had to go through COVID-19 this year. His regular updates helped me go into small details in his diet and correct them every day.

I was also able to follow up with his daily activities like yoga, GOQii PRO classes, tracking his sleep and stress levels. During his time with GOQii, he was able to reduce about 4-5kgs of weight, lower his body fat percentage as well as cholesterol levels. I am sure over these years he has learnt a lot through GOQii on how to maintain his health.

Currently, he is guiding his family, including his two children, by motivating them to be active. He proves that a balanced diet, mindful eating habits, staying physically active and living a healthy lifestyle is not just limited to an individual with a specific health goal, but it’s equally essential for everyone in the family.

Does Kaushik’s journey inspire you? Want to make a lifestyle change? Subscribe for personalized coaching now and crush your health goals with the help of a GOQii Coach: https://goqiiapp.page.link/bsr

To see how others have benefitted from using GOQii, read more user stories on Healthy Reads.

#BeTheForce

September 18, 2021 By GOQii 1 Comment

Recover and Reclaim Your Health – Yashas Ranganath User Journey

More often than not, we find ourselves moving passively through the world revelling in all it has to offer and more. Wading way beyond moderation in the beauty of excesses till the consequences of our actions pile up. Lifestyle diseases are caused because of indulgence in unhealthy habits, something that one of our players Yashas Ranganath found out first hand. How did he manage? How did he recover? Let’s find out!

Life Before GOQii

Yashas Ranganath, an IT professional from Bangalore led quite a normal life. He used to eat, drink and do whatever he pleased, paying no attention to health and fitness. His physical activity was almost nil and he paid no attention to his lifestyle to even make a change.

In 2016, he was diagnosed with hypertension and diabetes. He was also admitted to the hospital for a severe migraine attack and put under medication for both. His health only got worse with time. In September 2018, he was hit by a stroke due to a cyst in his left brain. This left the right side of his body completely paralyzed.

Enter GOQii

Initially, Yashas Ranganath had joined GOQii in 2015 when he was exploring the market for a good fitness tracker. He chose GOQii as he was intrigued by the personal coaching feature. However, he says he completely wasted that subscription and did not take it seriously at all.

In December 2018, after 50% recovery from the paralysis, he began thinking about making lifestyle changes. He turned to GOQii and renewed his subscription. He says that his life took a complete positive turn after that!

Making a Positive Lifestyle Change

Yashas’ goal was to get all his vitals under control and completely recover from paralysis. His GOQii Coach advised him to completely stop the consumption of oil, sweets, salt, junk food and all types of processed food. He was also asked to stop eating maida and consumed bottled beverages. From a foodie, he had turned into a monk – eating to live and not living to eat. But his sole focus was recovery and he was ready to give up on everything.

His daily routine became structured in terms of eating habits, activity and sleep:

He wakes up at 4 in the morning to leave for work at 6:30 AM. He eats his breakfast and lunch at work – both are customized to his requirement.
His breakfast consists of upma, poha or idli. For Lunch, he eats 2 cups of rice with salads and vegetable curry.
Dinner consists of chapatti with a curry.
His coffee intake is limited to 1 in the evening and he eat fruits as mid meal snacks.
Under the rare occasion when he eats out, he manages to customize his food.
He exercises for 2 hours a day, doing what his physiotherapist suggests along with numerous stretches recommended by his GOQii Coach. He concludes this with 15 minutes of meditation.
He has also started cycling and performs Yog Nidra at night.

After following this routine, Yashas says that he feels no cravings at all and doesn’t even get tempted after seeing other enjoy different delicacies. He enjoys his current lifestyle modifications.

What Changes Did Yashas Ranganath Experience?

When he joined GOQii in 2018, his weight was 75kg, HBA1C was above 8 and blood pressure was 200/170. He now weighs 63kg. His vitals improved drastically too with his HBA1C at 5.4, blood sugar – fasting at 80-90 mg/dl and postprandial at 80-100 mg/dl. Blood Pressure is 130/80. He is on minimal medication, feels more active physically and positive mentally. He has also made a 90% recovery from his stroke.

“You have to get hit before your eyes are opened and then you change in ways you never thought you could,” says Yashas.

His wife and parents are overwhelmed with his recovery. He attributes the change in his lifestyle to his GOQii Coach and says her contribution has been 100%, constantly guiding him on what to eat and what not to eat. Yashas has also explored the features on the app like Play and watches videos as and when he finds time.

Recently, Yashas Ranganath spoke to our Founder & CEO Vishal Gondal about his recovery and journey with GOQii. You can watch the entire episode of GOQii Health Talks here:

What Did His GOQii Coach Have to Say About Him?

“Yashas is one of the most disciplined player I have ever seen. He has been very regular in following
all the habits formulated for him. After the treatment of his stroke and during recovery, he used to suffer from episodes of hypoglycaemia in between. He used to feel dizzy and uncomfortable. Slowly, we started making him have small and frequent meals with portion control. We started millet based meals for better glycaemic index and on the side, he was doing his physiotherapy as well. All of which contributed to his lifestyle change.”

Yashas Ranganath made a positive lifestyle change, what about you? Subscribe to personalized coaching now to get healthier with GOQii: https://goqiiapp.page.link/bsr

Do check out more inspiring stories on Healthy Reads and #BeTheForce

September 2, 2021 By Kusum Soni 1 Comment

The Power Of Black Tea For Immunity

A powerful immune system not only prevents the attack of any foreign invaders like bacteria, fungi, viruses, parasites but also can protect against degenerative diseases like cancer, heart disease. There are many beverages that can support a healthy immune system and black tea is one of them. The health benefits of black tea have been attributed to it’s decent amount of polyphenols and a wide range of flavonoids—particularly thearubigins, theaflavins, flavonols and flavones. These phytochemicals have shown antimicrobial, anti-viral, antioxidant, anti-carcinogenic, anti-mutagenic and anti-inflammatory activities.

Black tea has beneficial physiological effects like the prevention of atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease by easing inflammation and supporting the flexibility of blood vessels, which can reduce risk of high blood pressure, heart attack, stroke. Researchers at Harvard University have found 10 times more virus-fighting interferons in the blood of people who drank black tea in comparison to people who drank placebo beverages. The researchers attributed this to an amino-acid, L-theanine found in ordinary black tea.

Various studies over the years have also linked drinking Black Tea to reduced risk of certain types of cancers, and increased number of immune cells, antioxidants that protect cells against free radical damage. The antimutagenic effect is well documented for the black tea polyphenols, namely theaflavins and thearubigins and attributed both to the inhibition of the oxidative DNA damage as well as, considerable literature demonstrates their inhibitory effect on the tumor cell proliferation. Latest research also suggests that these polyphenols even affect the balance of gut bacteria that enhances immune functions, encouraging short-chain fatty acids formation that support liver’s function.

Tea drinkers have shown lower levels of the stress hormone, cortisol, after an exposure to a stressful situation. Stress can suppress the immune response of the body. Thus, indirectly by managing stress, tea again improves the effectiveness of the immune system.

Tips To Include Black Tea In Your Diet

Infused Tea: Add 3-5g or one black tea bag into a cup. Fill to the top with 85-90c boiling water and steep for 3-5 minutes. Remove the tea bag or strain and serve hot or over ice.
Optional: You can add half a cup of fruit pieces into a one-quart Mason jar with tea and, later cover and let the fruit steep for another ten minutes in hot infused tea, after removing the tea bags.
You can add some lemon juice or crushed ginger or a pinch of cinnamon to infused black tea for additional antioxidant activity and flavour.
Japanese researchers have found that even gargling with black tea extract twice a day was less likely to catch flu by flushing microbes trapped in the throat area.
Inhaling boiling water mixed with Black Tea can facilitate the clearing of the passages towards the lung and facilitate the removal of bacteria/viruses trapped around the nasal area and opens a pathway for the Theaflavins to reach the lungs and protect it from infection.

Word of Caution

Adding milk may diminish the disease-fighting potential of the tea as various studies have not observed the beneficial effect of black tea consumption on the risk of coronary heart disease in subjects consuming tea with milk.
Avoid having tea with meals due to the presence of Tannins, an anti-nutritional compound, which has inhibitory effects on absorption of protein and certain minerals from food like, Iron, copper, sodium and aluminium.
Do not drink tea close to bedtime as another compound in tea called Caffeine could keep you from falling asleep.

Don’t miss on physical activity, adequate sleep and Dietary Diversification, that is, include a variety of food in your diet ranging from whole grain/pulses to coloured fruits/vegetables, nuts and seeds, lean meats, to add a wide spectrum of vitamins and minerals and antioxidants in diet, to enhance body’s disease-fighting capabilities.

Enjoy your cup of tea 1-2 times a day in snack time away from meals. We hope this article helps you. Do leave your thoughts in the comments below. For more immunity-boosting tips, check out Healthy Reads or tune in to our experts on GOQii Play.

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

Stay safe, boost your immunity and #BeTheForce!