Advantages of Fruits and Vegetables

Some strategies to get you on your way to ideal weight…

Lifestyle plays an important role in maintaining an ideal weight. Instead of burning away inches with a single pill, concentrate on these few strategies to have an ideal weight.

Record everything that you are eating
Keeping a record of what you are eating helps in managing your weight. It actually tells you how much you are eating. It can tell you what unhealthy diet you are having in your day to day life. It can motivate you to achieve your goals. Few steps in this are:
- Decide how detailed you want your food journal to be.
- Record everything. Do not even miss the sauces, gravies and even a small thing that you eat.
- Service sizes should be specific while noting them in the food journal.
- Include the time interval and food groups.
- Maintain the food journal for two weeks to get a consistent record.
- Maintain a record of physical activity.
- Every food has a calorie and nutrition content. Keep a knowledge of that.

Be more active
- More calories should be burn than consuming.
- At least 60 minutes of workout daily is necessary to keep yourself active. Workout can be a walk or any other physical activity.
- Exercise will keep the weight off.
- Exercise will also take a large amount of weight off the abdomen.
- Besides walking, some other ways to be active are swimming, dancing or biking.

Goals set should be reasonable
The key to successful weight control is to set goals that are specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and track-able. Setting an unrealistic goal will lead to your disappointment. The focus should be on making performance goals rather than outcome goals.

Triggers should be identified
There are always some factors that are responsible for making you overweight. These factors should be identified and accordingly changes should be made.
- You should be honest with what you are eating.
- Sometimes, eating is related to the mood of the person. Identify the cause of eating by:
1. You tend to eat more sweet when you are depressed over something.
2. Is there any kind of pressure which is making you eat more?
3. Is the environment trigger over eating?
Try to do:
- Are you really physically hungry?
- Say no to extra calories.
- Distract yourself from your desire to eat.
- Direct negative energy into a positive energy.

Watch out for foods that you eat
- Reduce the caloric consumption which means choosing the foods wisely.
- Reduce food high in sugar or fat.
- Say no to junk food.
- Favor fruits, vegetables and whole grain products.
- Select foods that are low in energy density.

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Some quick tips for maintaining good health…

There are a lot of things one can do to get to a good healthy body. You can have a whole book dedicated to tips for maintaining a good health, but in today’s fast paced life, everybody looks for a summary rather than a whole novel. What we will try to do in this post is to look at some of the most common issues that can affect health and provide suggestions on how to overcome these issues.

- One of the major problem that a person face now-a-days is falling hair. Protein is very essential for maintaining good hair. To reduce hair fall, including good quality protein like soyabean or egg whites in the daily diet is very important. Also, taking vitamin B12 and consuming Brewer yeast tablets can help in reducing hair fall.

- Diabetes is getting so common now-a-days. Every second person is suffering from this disease. There are some simple tips that one can do at home to treat diabetes. One teaspoon of jamun powder or fenugreek seeds(methi) in the morning helps to reduce diabetes. Maintaining a good and healthy lifestyle is the most important measure that needs to be taken if one wants to get rid of this disease. Consumption of excess fat from your diet will improve the body’s insulin resistance.

- Constipation is another problem that people are facing now-a-days. To a greater extent, today’s lifestyle is responsible for an irregular bowel functioning. Consumption of junk food is increasing and also the stress level of the human being. Some simple tips to control constipation is to drink plenty of water daily and reduce the caffeine intake. Daily exercise which included walking for at least 45 min to 60 min is important. Also, include fresh vegetable juice in your diet.

- Dull skin can be a fairly common issue now-a-days. Some simple ways to address this issue is by ensuring that you drink enough water and fluids during the day to keep your skin hydrated. Drinking fresh vegetable juice and eating multiple servings of green vegetables and fruits during the day is also required. This needs to be supplemented with adequate amount of proteins, vitamin E and omega 3 supplements.

- To improve cardio vascular health, daily exercise which may include walking for atleast 45 min to 60 min at least 4-5 times a week is very important. In addition to walking, yoga and some breathing exercises three times a week reduces any kind of stress. In your diet, include one or two tbsp of roasted flaxseeds as it helps to increase the good cholesterol levels in the body.

- To improve metabolism, the most important tip that can be followed is eating during the first hour of having woken up. Walking is also very important to improve metabolism. Protein digestion asks the body to burn more calories and hence increasing the metabolism. So, include protein in your diet.

- To increase energy and immunity, instead of taking three big meals like breakfast, lunch, dinner, eat small frequent meals. It improves the digestion and keeps your body energetic. Include vitamin B12 supplements and wheat grass juice at least three to four times in a week.

- Discomfort during menopause is very common. To reduce it, include soya supplement in your diet as it mimics the estrogen function in the body. Also, include vitamin B6 as it prevents bloating.

What are some healthy foods that also taste good? Include these foods in your diet….

Good taste does not always mean unhealthy food. Even some healthy food can bring good taste. It is not always that healthy food needs to be bland. Some foods that are healthy yet tasty.

- Green Tea
It is healthy and reduces the risk of cancer, regulates cholesterol, eases arthritis pain, boosts immunity, weight loss, fighting allergies and infections.
- Oats
It fights against heart disease, high cholesterol, regulates blood sugar, blood pressure and bowel movements.
- Eggs
Eggs increases concentration, maintain weight, helps in brain development, strengthens eye sight as they are rich in protein, minerals and vitamins.
- Broccoli
It helps to maintain blood pressure, prevents osteoporosis and common cold. Broccoli is very nutrient rich. It is also assumed that it helps in prevention of cataracts, tumors, diabetes, ageing, arthritis.
- Yogurt
Yogurt has lot of good bacteria. It helps in treating gastro-intestinal problems as well as it helps in preventing osteoporosis and regulates blood pressure.
- Spinach
It is rich in not only iron but many vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients. It protects heart, keeps the brain young and active.
- Salmon
It is rich in omega 3 fatty acids and an unbeatable sea food. It helps in fighting heart disease and protects joints, improves mood and treat some eye problems.
- Tomatoes
Lycopene, a constituent of tomatoes is an antioxidant and it is associated with the prevention of cancer and heart disease.
- Flax seed
It is a good source of fiber, omega 3 fatty acid and is a natural laxative. It helps in lowering bad cholesterol.
- Wheat grass
It helps in cleaning the liver, increases the level of hemoglobin, increases immunity, purifies the blood and improves digestion.
- Walnuts
They are very good for brain, heart, mood, bone health and weight loss as well as they help in fighting gallstones, insomnia, diabetes.
- Pumpkin
It is high is antioxidants, vitamins A, C, K and E and it is a good source of magnesium, iron and potassium. The seeds helps in preventing osteoporosis, prostate problems.
- Strawberries
These are antioxidant and have cardiovascular benefits, regulates diabetes and helps in fighting cancer.
- Bananas
These are rich in potassium and fiber. It helps in having healthy digestive tract and maintains healthy bones.
- Oranges
They are good source of vitamin C. It helps in asthma, kidney stones, high blood pressure and helps in lowering cholesterol.
- Blueberries
They have highest antioxidant content. They are rich in vitamin A, B complex, C and E as well as in copper, selenium, zinc and iron. It fights against ageing, heart ailments and belly fat.