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Healthy Eating: Sauerkraut (Fermented Cabbage)

sauerkrautNothing is more important and essential than maintaining immunity and proper gut health. If you are seeking good immunity and gut health, you should definitely try this Sauerkraut recipe. While it originated in China over 2000 years back, it is very popular in Germany. It’s basically chopped cabbage that undergoes anaerobic fermentation and gives you major health benefits. It can be a side dish to your main meals or you can add it to your meats and sandwiches.  

What You Will Need: 

  • Raw Cabbage – 1
  • Mason Jar – 1 (750 ml to 1 L)
  • Pink Salt or Normal Salt –  1-2 tbsp

How To Prepare:

  1. Take a medium sized cabbage and remove the outer leaves and keep them aside. Cut the cabbage into 4-5 pieces and remove the white core.
  2. Shred the cabbage or chop it in a food processor. We need it really thin and finely chopped.
  3. Take a big mixing bowl, add the cabbage to it.
  4. Add the salt. Salt will stop the breathing of any unhealthy micro-organism and will start the formation of lactobacillus bacteria which will help us in this fermentation.
  5. Mix the cabbage and salt well with your hands for a few minutes and then keep it aside for 7-10 min to allow the brine to ooze out. Let it set in the bowl.
  6. Pound the cabbage for a few minutes to allow any more liquid to ooze out, hit it well.
  7. Take a glass jar which is clean, freshly washed and pack the cabbage very tightly.
  8. Clean your hands and start keeping the cabbage in the jar. After adding some, take a wooden spatula or glass and push it in to avoid any air pockets between the cabbages. Repeat the process till the cabbage is over.
  9. Now, take the outer cabbage leaf and tuck it over the cabbage kept in the jar just like you are covering it hard to not allow any air.
  10. Next, add the brine we collected after mashing the cabbage, leave the top 1 inch of the jar free, do not pack it with brine tightly.
  11. Close the lid of the Mason jar (it is okay to close the jar not very tight so that the cabbage can breathe) and keep it in a bowl, there are chances of liquid oozing out after fermentation starts.
  12. Keep this for 3 days and then you can refrigerate and eat it. It should be a bit yellow and tangy.

Highlights of the Sauerkraut Recipe 

  • Eat this with every meal to improve digestion and add in good microbes.
  • It has a very long shelf life and a great way to boost immunity.
  • 70-80 % of your immunity is located in your gut and hence, it is very important to keep an eye on what you are eating. This is the best probiotic, just like curd, to help you with it.
  • Sauerkraut is enriched with nutrients, minerals and a lot of fiber. Apart from boosting immunity and digestion, it can aid weight loss, helps in stress reduction, improving brain health, may reduce risk of cancer and promote good heart health.

We hope you enjoy this Sauerkraut recipe. Do try it out and leave your thoughts in the comments below. For more healthy recipes, check out Healthy Reads or ask a GOQii Coach by subscribing for personalized health coaching here: https://goqiiapp.page.link/bsr

Eat healthy and #BeTheForce 

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Why Maintaining Gut Health is Important

Maintaining Gut health
Ever heard of the phrase, “You are what you eat?” What if we were to tell you that you are not what you eat but what you digest?” It’s no surprise that almost all diseases begin in the gut. The maintenance of ‘Microflora’ (balance of good bacteria) in the gut is crucial for good health, immunity and even the prevention, healing and recovery from serious diseases like cancer.

Your intestines (gut) contain pounds of good bacteria whose job is to help with the absorption of nutrients from the food you eat. The good bacteria determines the strength of your immunity, regulates weight loss, recovery, healing, colon health, toxicity in the body and several other functions.

As per our India Fit Report, we found that ‘gut health’ is an area of key concern among users. Issues such as acidity, indigestion, constipation, and bloating have seen a steep incline since last year.

Some of the key finds include:

  • 29.6% of India has acidity issues
  • 30.10% women suffered from acidity & indigestion compared to 29.40% men
  • People from Bhubaneshwar (40.2%) and Indore (35%) suffer the most from acidity and indigestion issues
  • More doctors are actively prescribing lifestyle improvements (nutrition, exercise and sleep)

This raises many concerns about India’s health and nutrition. For a healthy lifestyle and to achieve health goals, you need to take care of your gut health first!

Here are a few tips that will help you maintain a strong and healthy gut

  • Include good fiber in your everyday routine which should include raw and cooked vegetables with 2-3 fruits
  • Add a natural probiotic like curd in your diet
  • Walk and get moving, reduce the sitting time through the day
  • Maintain good water intake to flush out toxins and even aid passage of stools to reduce constipation
  • Learn to chew your food thoroughly and not eat on the run

We hope this article gives you a better insight into gut health and how to maintain it. Do check our IndiaFit Report for more insights.

For more articles on gut health, check out Healthy Reads. For tips on how to improve your gut health, speak to a GOQii Coach now by subscribing for personalized health coaching here: https://goqiiapp.page.link/bsr

#BeTheForce

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Suneeta Mane Goes From Stagnant To Unstoppable!

Suneeta Mane

Health conditions arising out of lifestyle or hormonal imbalances can seem like a death sentence. These health conditions not only affect your wellbeing but also your mental health and it can seem like a bottomless hole you can’t crawl out of. But that’s not true. If you are determined, you can not only crawl out of your predicament but go way beyond that to serve as an inspiration for others. Our Player Suneeta Mane is a shining example of what you can achieve with consistent efforts, determination and lifestyle changes! 

Life Before GOQii

Suneeta Mane is a working professional based in Mumbai. As she works for a large corporation, her job is quite stressful. Along with the work-related stress, she also struggled with stagnant weight, inch gain, fatty liver, acidity, constipation, skin irritation, acne, bloating and hypothyroidism for which she was under heavy medication. She was also trying to manage her PCOS. 

She first encountered GOQii when a friend requested she gift him a tracker. “I was also keen on getting one tracker for myself but, I guess, I was not ready then,” she said. “In 2017, I was diagnosed with Hypothyroid and was put on 50mg Thyronome tabs. But this thyroid created havoc in my life – it came with additional problems like acne, fatigue, constant irritation and I found my overall health deteriorating. Medicines gave me temporary relief, but after that, the symptoms would erupt again. I had never eaten a tab for any minor ailment either. I hate consuming tabs but here I was – I had to eat tablets if I wanted relief. To add to all this, my work is also stressful. I had to do something to normalise my life. So after a year, I joined GOQii in 2018.” 

Making Lifestyle Changes and Going Beyond! 

When Suneeta Mane subscribed for personalized health coaching, her immediate goals were to lead a healthy lifestyle to improve her condition, get rid of medication and get back to normalcy. Her GOQii Coach Yogita Sharma prescribed alternative methods, a diet plan and some “me time” which would help her relieve stress. 

“Slowly within a month’s time, I began finding relief. The Acne had reduced as well. The best part about GOQii is that the problems in my health were being addressed from their roots,” she said. 

Her GOQii Coach Yogita Sharma suggested very basic lifestyle and dietary changes which included: 

  • Timely meals and portion control 
  • 3 hour gaps between dinner and sleep 
  • Fermented Rice and/or vegetable juice in the morning
  • Combination of Cardio and Strength workout 
  • Being active throughout the day 
  • Consuming at least 4L of water a day 
  • Including more fibre in meals along with a high protein diet 
  • Meditation, gratitude and affirmations along with yoga 

With a few more lifestyle changes, Suneeta Mane began seeing positive results. She also claims to be a die hard fan of GOQii’s Emotional Wellness Expert Divya Thampi. She watches one of her videos everyday on GOQii Play. She says, “Divya Thampi’s sessions on Mental Health have really helped me in bettering my mental health as well as my personal development. Her sessions on stress management, setting realistic goals, etc. have been very useful!” 

Apart from lifestyle changes and her interactions with her GOQii Coach, she also took Doctor Consultations and says that they were fantastic. She had once developed an allergy and the GOQii Doctor prescribed simple suggestions that helped her instantly. 

The Results Of Her Dedication & Determination 

Over the period of 4 years, Suneeta Mane managed to lose 6 inches around her waist and now weighs 56kg. As per her latest reports, her Thyroid levels are well within range and she doesn’t suffer from Fatty Liver any more. 

Constipation, Bloating and Acidity issues are no longer there and she has no issues related to PCOS. Her skin is also clearer. Her overall energy levels have improved and she feels fresh throughout the day. Apart from major achievements in physical health, she also said that her mental health has improved significantly and she has a new positive outlook on life. 

  • Her achievements during this time are uncountable. Some of them include: 
  • 8 days trek in Kedarnath (whereas before, she had only started with 2km walks) 
  • Trekking the Sahyadri Hills in Maharashtra 
  • Indulged in 300ft rappelling near Malshej Ghat 
  • Won 2 beauty pageants while competing against women as young as 18 years while she was 33. She says that no one could guess her age. The most recent one being around December 2021 – Fashion Icon – it was held in Thane. 
  • Prior to that, she won the title of Maharashtra’s Goodwill Ambassador in October 2021. As a goodwill ambassador, she had to raise 1 Lakh – but she managed to raise INR 1.10k for Delhi based Ladli foundation and this fund was used towards building more awareness about Menstrual Hygiene. 

Giving Back To Society 

That is not all to her, as she and her brother also run a social organisation named after her mother. It’s called Pad-Mini Foundation and it’s based out of Airoli in Navi Mumbai. They have been investing in this organisation with their own money. 

The foundation works towards Sanitary Napkin awareness and distribution, skilled based classes for underprivileged girls and women in and around the Airoli Slums. According to Suneeta Mane, “Skilled courses makes one financially independent, even though they do not get education, also menstrual hygiene is a must for women.”  

From our interactions, we have learned that Suneeta is not just a name, she is “Unstoppable Suneeta” as time and time again, she has proved herself. With every event she has bounced back stronger, with an even stronger zeal to learn and try new things.

She says that the GOQii ecosystem is a perfect gift to give! All the coaches have been great, and her current Coach Yogita Sharma has been super helpful. Recently, she spoke about her Healthy Story at length with our Founder & CEO Vishal Gondal as a part of GOQii Health Stories. You can watch the entire conversation here: 

Well, we hope Suneeta’s Healthy Story inspires you to beat the odds, get motivated and make a positive lifestyle change! For more inspiring stories, check out Healthy Reads. 

To subscribe for personalized health coaching and get the right guidance and motivation from an expert, click here: https://goqiiapp.page.link/bsr

#BeTheForce 

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How To Boost Metabolism & It’s Importance

boost metabolismYou’ve heard the word “metabolism” or the phrase “boost metabolism” a lot either in general conversation about health or by a GOQii Coach, but have you thought about why it is so important? Metabolism is the sum of chemical and physical reactions in our body or the amount of energy or calories our body burns to maintain vital functions. Raise your hand if you know it is important for weight loss but did you know that it has other functions as well? 

Why Is It Important to Boost Metabolism? 

  • It works in 2 processes i.e. catabolism and anabolism which are the buildup and breakdown of substances, whether it is digestion of food or the elimination of food, if these two processes are disrupted by any means then you can imagine what health issues we might face.
  • The better your metabolism, the more calories your body will burn and it will be easier to drop pounds.
  • It is important for the biochemical process of combining nutrients with oxygen to release the energy the body needs to function.
  • There are certain metabolic diseases and disorders like diabetes, thyroid (hypo/hyper), phenylketonuria (PKU), etc.  that can be caused when the metabolism fails or decreases/increases than the body’s requirement. Although reason for these metabolic disorders is not just one but it is the reason and these are complex, but who wants to experience the pain of not losing weight, being obese or struggling daily with any other big or small issue caused due to the ups and downs of metabolism.

How Can We Boost It? 

Let’s understand certain ways in which we can boost metabolism  

  1. Protein: Eating more protein can boost metabolism to burn more calories.
  2. Mixing up certain exercises: can help us burn more fat by increasing metabolic rate.
  3. Water: If your body is dehydrated, then your metabolism may slow down as your body needs water to process calories.
  4. Eating small, frequent meals: like a small snack every 3-4 hours keeps your metabolism going.
  5. Adding spices: like green/red chilies, pepper, garam masala, etc. have natural chemicals that can kick your metabolism into a higher gear.
  6. Recharge with organic green tea: Research suggests that drinking 2-3 cups of green tea may push the body to burn 17% more calories during moderate intensity workouts.
  7. Eat enough calories: Eating less calories than our body’s requirement may give us quick results but this can cause your metabolism to slow down and that in turn, can make you gain more weight and create imbalance issues.
  8. Get plenty of sleep: Sleep disruptions or not getting adequate sleep has been known to have harmful effects on our metabolism.
  9. Manage stress: It has been seen that when we are continuously under stressful conditions, our body releases cortisol (stress hormone) which in turn affects our metabolism.
  10. Keep a check on B vitamins: as they play an essential role in the metabolic rate. So, make sure to meet your body’s requirement of B vitamins by including foods like eggs, bananas, orange juice, peas, spinach, whole grains, baked potatoes, etc.

All these points might sound difficult, but trust me we can make it happen with just small changes in our diet and lifestyle. It does not require inclusion of any costly, fancy food products. We hope this article helps you boost metabolism and make a positive lifestyle change. Do leave your thoughts in the comments below! 

For more on metabolism, gut health and digestion, check out Healthy Reads or get these tips directly from a GOQii Coach by subscribing for personalized coaching here: https://goqiiapp.page.link/bsr 

#BeTheForce 

How Ruta Pandya Managed Ulcerous Colitis & Arthritis With Lifestyle Changes

We’ve always spoken about how you can manage lifestyle diseases with minor tweaks to your habits. But sometimes, it isn’t enough. Especially when one condition leads to another. Our player Ruta Pandya suffered from a condition called Ulcerous Colitis and a series of other medical issues which she battled for years. After fighting an uphill […]

Suneeta Mane Goes From Stagnant To Unstoppable!

Health conditions arising out of lifestyle or hormonal imbalances can seem like a death sentence. These health conditions not only affect your wellbeing but also your mental health and it can seem like a bottomless hole you can’t crawl out of. But that’s not true. If you are determined, you can not only crawl out […]