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Eat smart this Diwali!

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The festive season has begun and the excitement sees no bounds. After having loads of fun during Navratri it’s now the festival of lights- Diwali.

With Diwali comes outings, guests visit, dinner parties, etc. all of which are inevitable. More often than not we end up indulging in sweets and other sinful foods and then feel guilty for all the wrong eating, which then makes us look for some easy and quick ways to shed off those extra kilos that we gained during the festive season. But, the unfortunate part is that we end up resorting to all the wrong ways of shedding that extra weight which again has a YO-YO effect (bounce back).

I would love to share a few health tips for you which would help you stay away from this vicious cycle of bingingà feeling guiltyà weight gainà wrong methods of losing weightà weight gainà feeling guilty again

Try this-

  • If you plan to go out, don’t go on an empty stomach. Eat a small snack before you head out. Choose snacks like boiled corn, mix veggie salad, a fruit bowl, sprouts, veggie soup, yogurt with crushed nuts, whole wheat bread sandwich, etc. This will keep you full and thereby prevent binging/overeating when you are
  • If one meal goes for a toss, make sure the rest of the meals are absolutely on track. E.g. If you have a dinner party planned, make sure your meals through the day (breakfast, lunch, snacking items) are very much balanced and healthier.
  • Sip water frequently throughout the day. It will keep you hydrated and will also satiate the false hunger.
  • Pick healthier desserts- Choose dry fruits/fruits/kheer/phirni/shrikhand (you can make it using hung curd)/dark chocolates/til or peanut chikkis/dink laddoos (gum arabic)/ sheera/ date rolls/ date-walnut mithai, etc. over any other sugar-loaded sweets. Sweets made out of jaggery or organic honey are good to go. Remember, we need to take care of the portions too.
  • Choose baked food items over deep fried ones.
  • Compensate- It’s true that saying “NO” when you are offered sweets by your loved ones especially during this festive season is going to be difficult. Don’t worry! Pick one, eat it mindfully and enjoy the eating experience. Now you know what to do next. Compensate for your extra caloric intake in your following meals. More fibre (salads, veggies), good amount of proteins and lesser carbs.
  • Go easy on the alcohol. It’s a major dehydrator and contains empty calories. Choose red wine or vodka over any other hard drinks. Sangria would be the best option here (cut fruits in red wine).
  • Be a health-conscious host this Diwali. Serve snacks like dhokla, masala peanuts, unsalted nuts and dry fruits, sprout-chaat, fruit salad, idlis, baked chaklis Avoid serving soft drinks or artificial juices. Lemon water, jal jeera, flavoured milk, spiced buttermilk, fresh fruit juice would be some better options here.
  • Firecrackers are going to pollute the air. The pollutants (free radicals) have an easy access to our body as we breathe. Neutralize the free radicals by consuming adequate antioxidants through colourful fruits, berries and vegetables.
  • Last but not the least, don’t forget to work out! Workouts would kick your body metabolism in high gear, helping you burn calories faster. It’s best to get your workout done before going out for a party. The spiked metabolism would help you burn better when you eat at the party.

Enjoy the festival, stay mindful throughout and have a great time! Happy Diwali Folks!!

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10 ways to eliminate bad and embrace good this Diwali!

Diwali-Festival

It’s that month of the year when festivities start. We have just finished with Dusshera, an important Hindu festival and now we are gearing ourselves for the festival of lights-‘Deepawali’ that is around the corner. Deepawali is celebrated on the occasion of gaining success over the bad (Ravan) and the returning of goodness. Bad Qualities could be the 10 heads of Ravan namely

Kama vasana (Lust)

Krodha (Anger)

Moha (Attachment)

Lobha (Greed)

Mada (Over Pride)

Matsara (Jealousy)

Swartha (Selfishness)

Anyaaya (Injustice)

Amanavta (Cruelty)

Ahankara (Ego)

If we can eliminate the above bad qualities within ourselves, then we in all likelihood would end up being a better human being. Deepawali is a time when we celebrate the triumph of good over evil.

Today, we have modern day demons in our life, which are making our lives unhealthy and lead us towards a bad and shorter life.

This Diwali let’s get rid of the modern day and olden days demons together.

Modern Day Demons:

  1. Smoking: I do not think I need to explain what is smoking? Smoking is responsible for several diseases, such as cancer, long-term (chronic) respiratory diseases, and heart disease, as well as premature death

You can read more about this in the following Blogs:

Caution: Smoking is Injurious to health!!     —-     http://goqii.com/blog/caution-smoking-is-injurious-to-health/

Effects of Smoking on your Muscles   —–   http://goqii.com/blog/effects-of-smoking-on-your-muscles/

  1. Alcohol and drugs – Today, most of are used to late night parties- be it an office party, a birthday party, a marriage anniversary or the likes. One of the most common beverage in parties is ALCOHOL…Any celebration and there is alcohol to celebrate it with or, in other words, there is beer, vodka, champagne, tequila, rum, whisky, etc…..flowing like water does. This leads you to several diseases.

You can read more about this at following Blog:

Effects of ALCOHOL on your health..?   —   http://goqii.com/blog/effects-of-alcohol-on-your-health/

  1. Stress – Stress is one of the most understated evils of our time hiding under veils of office work, relationships and other everyday affairs. You just name any diseases and the reason behind that is stress.

You can read more about this in the following Blogs:

Avoid Stress: Lead a healthy and happy life!  :  http://goqii.com/blog/avoid-stress-lead-a-healthy-and-happy-life/

Five Simple Ways to Overcome Stress:  http://goqii.com/blog/5-simple-ways-to-overcome-stress/

How walking helps to overcome stress? : http://goqii.com/blog/how-walking-helps-to-overcome-stress/

  1. Unhealthy Eating Habits: We all know that we have to eat healthy to be fit, but how many of us follow this. Its only after we have put on excess weight and it dawns on us to find some diet plan to lose that excess weight. But, instead of doing that its better to eat healthily and follow the healthy lifestyle.

You can read more about this in the following Blogs:

Food Pyramid – Did you know? A guide to healthy eating with the Food Pyramid  — http://goqii.com/blog/food-pyramid-did-you-know-a-guide-to-healthy-eating-with-the-food-pyramid/

Snacking options to carry – http://goqii.com/blog/snacking-options-to-carry/

Moderation – 365 days – http://goqii.com/blog/moderation-365-days-clean-eaters-be-like-cant-wait-till-my-cheat-day/

  1. Laziness – There is no dearth of excuses to avoid exercises and make ourselves lazy. One does not realize that laziness leads us to a sedentary lifestyle and eventually to a shorter life.

You can read more about this in the following Blogs:

Barriers to fitness:  http://goqii.com/blog/barriers-to-fitness/

For Ladies — No time for work out? Turn your daily household chores into your daily workout  – –http://goqii.com/blog/no-time-for-work-out-turn-your-daily-household-chores-into-your-daily-workout/

  1. Denial (about our health – physical or mental): Another dangerous demon is denial. People will go to any extent to not find out about their health. Most are generally ok not getting a health check up done. This is a very dangerous behaviour. Getting regular health check-ups is imperative because many health conditions can be resolved if detected early.

You can read more about this in the following Blogs: –

Geriatric Health Maintenance-A Systematic Approach – http://goqii.com/blog/geriatric-health-maintenance-a-systematic-approach/

  1. Sleep: For a better health, you need sound sleep of 6 to 8 hours. If you spend the whole night finishing your pending tasks, which is a routine in almost everybody’s daily life then you are certainly evoking great health hazards. There are too many health related irregularities, which are caused by lack of sleep. But, if you have a proper sleep you can get rid of all your issues.

You can read more about this at following Blogs: –

Ways to improve sleep: http://goqii.com/blog/ways-to-improve-sleep/

Why and how much should your child sleep? : http://goqii.com/blog/why-and-how-much-should-your-child-sleep/

  1. Enviornment: While celebrating Diwali, we all try to burst lot’s of crackers that pollute the environment. If you breathe in such environment it will only be a health hazard for the future. After Diwali, the pollution is much large that effects the heart and brain. People with existing heart or lung diseases such as asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, congestive heart disease, or ischemic heart disease are at increased risk of admission to hospitals based on the severity of already existing problem. Given these issues, it would be nice if we use eco friendly ways of celebrating diwali and think of other ways of celebrating Diwali.
  1. Sweets and Immunity: Now a day’s all sweets contain refined sugar, which directly impact on our immunity. Sweets can be pleasurable to eat, but too much of them can negatively impact your health. Sweets tend to be lacking beneficial nutrients and are full of detrimental ones, including saturated fat, sugars and artificial sugars.

Sweet consumption leads you to Increased Diabetes Risk, Tooth Decay, Reduced HDL Cholesterol, Dieting Difficulties, Increased Crohn’s Disease Risk, Reduced Bone Strength,

You can read more about this in following Blogs: –

Eat smart this Diwali! – http://goqii.com/blog/eat-smart-this-diwali/

  1. Unsafe sex – And the last demon on our list is unsafe sex! We are a nation that’s very uncomfortable talking about sex and this has led to the state where a lot of people are ignorant about safe sex. Unsafe sex can lead to Sexual Transmitted Diseases like HIV/AIDS or unwanted pregnancies. Always remember that you must use a condom. If you don’t have one at that particular time then use other forms of contraceptives but you must remember that other forms of contraceptives do not guard against STDs. Always remember that prevention is better than cure.

So let’s celebrate this by winning over all the bad qualities–HAPPY DIWALI!

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