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How To Stick To Your New Year Resolutions!

new-year-resolutionsA new year has begun and with it, it’s once again time to make new resolutions. We’re sure a lot of you have already penned down your New Year resolutions. But what are these new year resolutions? More often than not, they are promises we make to ourselves or near and dear ones to kick one bad habit and imbibe a good change for a better future.

New Year Resolutions Could Be:

  • Weight loss
  • Get fit and regular exercise
  • Eating healthy
  • Joining a yoga class
  • Giving up smoking
  • Quitting excessive alcohol consumption
  • Playing a sport

Largely, I have noticed that most resolutions are around health and lifestyle. What is difficult, though, is sticking to the resolution made. It’s not easy to keep the enthusiasm going week after week, especially when you have never played a sport or been active in the past. It’s not easy to maintain the same motivation levels throughout the year. Discipline is hard to come by. Most people don’t feel motivated enough and give up within a few days. It takes focus, planning and determination to stick to resolutions made. It takes the same amount of time to change a particular habit.

Tips To Stick To Your New Year Resolutions 

Golden Rule: Make your goal achievable and do not aim for goals that are too difficult to achieve

  • Once you have decided on your achievable resolution, write it down. Writing it down makes a greater connection between your thinking self and doing self. This makes the resolution more real than when it is only in your head.
  • Change one behaviour at a time. Replacing unhealthy behaviours with healthier ones requires time.
  • Fitness cannot be your short-term goal.
  • If you want to eat junk food, think about the benefits you will derive from it. It’s the same as thinking before making any financial investments. Occasionally, you can include a piece of Pizza or a burger but not daily.
  • If you are looking to reduce 20 kg, then achieve the target by reducing 2-3 kg a month. It is not practical to lose 20 kg in 2 months because it took years to accumulate all that fat and it will only go away slowly.
  • If you want to quit smoking and you are smoking 20 sticks a day, then reduce it gradually. You cannot stop immediately because it will take some time for your body and mind to adapt to the change.
  • If you intend to start working out, doing yoga or any other activity in the morning, then begin with 3 days a week instead of 7 days a week.
  • For working out, most have the issue of waking up early. Try to start at a time comfortable to you. If you wake up daily at 8 am but plan to start working out at 5 am, then it will seldom happen because your circadian system will take time to adjust. Instead, try to wake up at 7 am, which is practical, and you will continue for a long time.
  • Be positive while thinking about your achievable goal. Instead of saying, “I cannot do something,” say “I feel much better doing this.”
  • Always tell your near and dear ones about your resolution and seek their support to successfully achieve your goal.
  • Review your progress and reward yourself for the first target achieved

Lastly, do not wait for anything. Every day is a new day. Start working on your resolution immediately. As the saying goes, “Whatever you want to do tomorrow, do it today and whatever you want to do today, do it now!”

Go ahead and work on your New Year Resolutions. If you have already penned them down and want the right guidance and motivation, reach out to an expert by subscribing to GOQii’s Personalised Health Coaching here.

#BeTheForce of 2025!

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10 Resolutions You Can Make In 2025 For A Healthier YOU!

10 resolutions for a healthier youIt’s that time of the year when most people start to ponder over their New Year resolutions. Every year, millions of people make New Year resolutions but 80% fail to keep them going through the year. It’s hard to keep up the enthusiasm going month after month after you’ve set goals for yourself, but it’s definitely not impossible. Most of us strive for unrealistic goals that are difficult to accomplish after a while. This year, let’s be different! Pick one of the following worthy resolutions, and do your best to stick to it.

Top 10 New Year Resolutions For A Healthy You 

  1. Eat breakfast: A healthy breakfast refuels the body after a whole 10-12 hours of previous night’s dinner and gets the metabolism going. It helps one concentrate better throughout the day and increase productivity.
  2. Stress Less: Stress on a daily basis takes a toll on physical and mental health. No matter what the job is, day to day affairs can lead to a lot of stress. Pent up emotions can not only create feelings of distress and promote destructive behavior. So make a New Year resolution to de-stress yourself by getting adequate sleep, exercising, meditating and following your hobbies.
  3. Improve posture at work: Prolonged use of the computer, sitting at one place for hours together can cause muscle aches and discomfort. This routine on a daily basis, through years of work, can lead to permanent damage. Follow these steps to correct your posture at work. Don’t forget to take a break, or several one or two minute breaks every 20-30 minutes, and a five minute break every hour. This will ensure that you do not strain your muscles.
  4. Get an annual health check up: Scheduling an annual routine check up for all your family members is a thoughtful New Year gift. Discuss your general health related queries and need for undergoing some preventive screening tests.
  5. Get adequate and good quality sleep: I know it is difficult to keep your hands off your mobile devices at night but believe me, late night usage of gadgets is one of the main reasons for low quality and inadequate sleep. Make a New Year resolution to keep all electronic devices out of the room and pledge to sleep soundly for 7 hours at least.
  6. Practice mindful eating: Don’t make your body a garbage bin. Every time you put food in your mouth, ask yourself – “Is this healthy?” Mindless eating can lead to a lot of calorie consumption and can add up to an extra of 600 calories daily to your diet. The next time you are tempted by a dish, when you are not actually hungry, have a list of other healthy/nutritious substitutes to try instead. Divert yourself by drinking a green tea, taking a stroll, have a quick chat with a co-worker, or simply drink a glass of water!
  7. Avoid crash diets: Diets that promote large amounts of protein and fat, like low carb diets, might help you lose weight but the effects of these are short term. Finally, NO pain – NO gain is an ideal weight/fat loss plan which must include regular exercise in addition to a wholesome diet. Remember no crash diet can be substitute for a healthy diet.
  8. Cut back on carbonated beverages: Believe it or not, consumption of fizzy carbonated drinks is on a fall in the United States and surprisingly on the rise in the Middle East and Asia. It’s an alarming call for us to re-write our habits. Ditch the carbonated drinks this year and replace them with healthier options like fresh lime water, coconut water, chamomile tea, green tea and of course our desi Shikanji! Water is your best bet on any given day. For a little change, add up just enough juice to change the color along with an orange or a lime!
  9. Practice Deep Breathing everyday: After a tiring day, do you prefer lying on the couch and watching TV? But for good relaxation, what you need is a mentally active process which leaves the body calm and focused. Deep breathing is free and can be practiced anywhere. The key of course is focused breathing. Just 5-10 minutes of your day for deep breathing will reduce anxiety and reduce stress. Deep breathing increases the supply of blood to your brain and releases relaxing hormones, which promotes a state of calmness.
  10. Exercise Regularly:  The New Year is an amazing time to kick-start a new fitness plan – so as long as you create one you can stick with, you’ll be fine! Here’s how you can build a good workout plan. If you need guidance and motivation, subscribe for a GOQii PRO class within the GOQii App – where you’ll be guided by experts in real-time.

We hope these New Year resolutions help you get healthier! Do let us know which resolutions you’ve planned for 2025 in the comments below.

#BeTheForce

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Easy and Effective Tabata Routine For Beginners

effective tabata routineWhen it comes to getting active and losing weight, people generally get confused about where to start. So, let’s look at this effective Tabata routine which is simple and easy. TABATA (also called Tabata protocol) is a type of HIIT (high intensity interval training). It originated when a Japanese Scientist Dr. Izumi Tabata and his team from The National Institute of Fitness and Sports at Kagoshima, Japan were working on the fact that shorter high intensity workouts followed by a shorter period of rest can impact the body better rather than longer periods of continuous workout.

The structure of program is like: 

  • Exercise hard for 20 seconds
  • Rest for 10 seconds
  • Complete 8 rounds

A combination of any exercise can be used in Tabata. It targets a wider range of muscles and helps in burning fat during and after workouts. 

Three major health benefits of this Effective Tabata routine are:

  1. Helps in burning more fat in a shorter period of time
  2. Helps in increasing endurance
  3. As it is high intensity training, it needs to be focused & attentive, thus, increases efficiency.

Before You Begin, Keep in Mind:  

  • A beginner has to first check his/her flexibility, efficiency and endurance before picking up the sets of exercises
  • Make sure to complete a dynamic warm up before you begin this easy and effective Tabata routine.
  • You can choose a group of 3-4 exercises for a week and then add some other exercises one by one depending upon your stamina.
  • Don’t do exercises in a hurry. Rather do it in proper posture and manner.
  • Always keep a stopwatch with you.

Exercise To Include In Your Tabata Routine  

There are basic 10 exercises which you can include in your Tabata protocol when you are planning to start. These are:

  1. Burpees: Toughest among all exercises and increases endurance, strength & power. It is most effective but for a beginner can be placed at last.
  2. Lunges: Can be included in beginners protocol & difficulty level can be increased once you are comfortable in traditional lunges.
  3. Jump Rope: It is an effective and portable form of exercise and can be included in the beginners list.
  4. Squat Jack: It combines two bodyweight exercises which are squats and jumping jacks. Can be safely included in the list.
  5. Tabata Sprints: It starts with 20 seconds of sprints followed by 10 seconds of walking, jogging or rest.
  6. Push Ups: One of the most simple and familiar exercises which can be included in the list.
  7. Super man: This will strengthen the back and core muscles and can be included in the list.
  8. Plank jack: These are simple. The difficulty level can be increased at one’s comfort ability.
  9. Mountain Climbers: Very effective for legs and most suitable for beginners.
  10. Windshield Wipers: Easy to do and can be included in the list and variations can be done later.

From the list above, you can choose any 4-5 exercises and start practicing according to the Tabata protocol and always start with high energy and not in a hurry.

For more effective workouts and to learn more about fitness, check out Healthy Reads or tune in to our live, interactive classes on GOQii PRO, where our experts will guide and motivate you in real time. Book a class now from the GOQii App.

#BeTheForce 

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High Intensity Interval Training and Its Benefits

HIIT and its benefitsYou’ve likely come across the term HIIT in recent years. High-Intensity Interval Training is an exercise routine that many people swear by to get optimal results! While there may be some confusion about what HIIT entails and who should do it, we’re here to clear things up!

What is High Intensity Interval Training?

HIIT, or High-Intensity Interval Training—also known as Sprint Interval Training or High-Intensity Intermittent Exercise—is a workout designed to aid in fat loss and increase stamina.

In this routine, a person performs a burst of high-intensity exercise (like sprinting for 30 seconds) followed by a short burst of active rest (like walking or jogging for 30 seconds) for a total of 4-5 minutes. You then take a minute or two of rest and repeat the same pattern with different exercises.

The main focus of this routine is continuous movement, alternating between high and low-intensity exercises. HIIT is suitable for all ages and can be done 4-5 times a week for best results.

It’s advised to start with a 1:1 ratio of high to low intensity—30 seconds of high intensity followed by 30 seconds of low intensity. As you progress, you can increase this ratio to 2:1.

Benefits of HIIT

  1. Quick Workout For Busy Individuals: HIIT workouts can range from 10 to 45 minutes, combining one or multiple exercises. It’s the perfect workout if you’re short on time but still want effective results. You can burn up to 500 calories in a 40-45 minute session, depending on the exercise and ratio chosen.
  2. Fat Loss: HIIT quickly raises your heart rate to the fat-burning zone and keeps it there, as there’s no rest. This provides excellent fat-loss results in a short period compared to traditional cardio, and the results are noticeable.
  3. Increased Endurance: This routine is highly effective for building stamina, even if you start at lower speeds. Many who practice HIIT have noticed they can run longer and faster after consistently following the routine.
  4. Improved Brain Functioning: Research conducted at various institutes has shown that following a HIIT routine for some time can lead to the following changes that enhance brain functionality:
    • Increases neuron count
    • Improves cognitive function
    • Reduces nerve stiffness and inflammation
    • Promotes new blood vessel development in the brain
  1. Better Physical Performance: Research from the University of British Columbia revealed the following benefits of HIIT compared to traditional, moderate-intensity workouts:
    • Enhanced stamina
    • Greater endurance
    • Boosted metabolism
    • Increased speed and agility
    • Higher peak power

As we can see, HIIT is more than just a popular method for fat loss; it also improves essential aspects of both mental and physical performance. You can add HIIT to your current workout or try it instead of your usual cardio routine for a week.

Here is a Quick HIIT Routine You Can Follow  

  • Jumping Jacks – 1 minute
  • Squats – 1 minute
  • Spot Running – 1 minute
  • Squats – 1 minute
  • Jumping Jacks – 1 minute

Rest for 1-2 minutes, then do 2-4 sets depending on your fitness level.

Was this article helpful? Did we miss out on any facts? Let us know in the comments below! For more on fitness and workouts, check out Healthy Reads.

To workout with an expert, you can join our live, interactive, online classes on GOQii PRO, where our certified fitness experts will guide you on the correct form and posture in real time, while making sure that you are well motivated! You can book a class now from the GOQii App.

#BeTheForce 

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