Mixed-up ( Healthy you challenge )

        I had been off the radar for an insane amount of time…that doesn’t mean I budged from the goal…
I did all that I could do most of the time….had healthy meals whenever possible….but work has been so overwhelming that we ate out at alarming intervals…though we picked the healthiest option available..but exercise suffered…..late night working and extensive traveling took their toll…though I didn’t put on any weight….I missed the high and the muscle tone exercise gives….the confidence…the well being feeling….
      Its getting back to normalcy now….and we are back to our workouts more regularly….
After the session today we had an impromptu chat with our trainer ( now a friend too) G.
As usual…I went on sulking that I need to lose weight ……….
Here is an excerpt from the conversation.

G : Hey, from the next time pick up heavier weights since you are comfortable with the current set.

ME : yeah, I’d want to…since I have flabby arms…. bat wings ….
      (actually my upperarms are disproportionate with the rest of my body…the fat always rests on
      them….its in the family..even while I was painfully thin this relation continued…frightening
      me from donning sleeveless tops)

G : Just work on them…since thats the only area you really need to tone up.

ME : Hey, I need to lose here and here and here ……

G : No, for me all is ok except the arms…

ME: Oh no….I need to lose more…

G : well since am a friend let me honestly tell you something…you look good this way….and if you lose more…I feel you will not look as good as now….thin doesn’t suit everybody….and each one is different….

ME : ?????

G : yeah, not all look pretty when thin, and you are healthy….not fat….

   After this talk….I had been thinking about it….Well, I am currently a few pounds extra… am neither fat nor slim….a little over average….being an Indian I have my curves…and I need to tone up…..the tyres,handles,muffin top dont ever look good….
   Its all together a different point that now-a-days anything other than anorexic is considered overweight in India ( courtesy: magazines,media) and I might be obese from their angle :)
     I am healthy and fine now…but  want to lose weight and I fret a lot about it…I want to tone up and wear all the lovely clothes I wish to…I have never admitted this to anybody other than S,my husband…and he bears with all my sulking…..and comforts me all the time…such a sweetheart he is.  
    But this bothers me quite a lot….Is the weight bothering my mind rather than my body ?
Should I be happy that am fit and fine though not slim ? And as everyone around me says…Do I look good this way ? But I dont think so….. I have always told myself….Rupa,you  can only look good when you are slim…..
    Am happy, sad, confused…all at the same time…..its an identity crisis…..and am pouring this out to all you guys since you my friends are familiar with this side ….and I feel extremely comfortable sharing it with you all……

 

Retrieve Life

I had come across a wonderful and informative article recently and since then had been wanting to share its valuable information with you all. I felt it will be  useful for all my friends at the “Healthy you challenge”.
      My mom  is an avid believer of home remedies and we as a family always try to keep chemical medicines as distant to us as possible. This naturally passed on to me and now I follow the same principle. We strongly believe that

       ” If we keep on eating wrongly,No doctor can cure us;
        if we eat rightly,No doctor is needed”

     We all know that the best way to lead a healthy life is to ”Eat Right and Exercise Well”. I have read this list of Super-foods and their medicinal values and couldn’t wait to post it here. Though many of these benefits are known to all of us,it doesn’t hurt to brush them up again. ….. I am a lacto-vegan, so that explains the absence of certain foods….

Heart problems : Flax ,Walnut,Figs,Pomegranate,Oliveoil,Peanut,Oats,Garlic,Soyabean,Spinach.

Blood pressure  :  Walnut,Figs,Peanut,Apricots,Drumstick leaves (MOORINGA OLIFERA),Pomegranate, Soyabean,Spinach.

High Cholesterol : Walnut,Figs,Oats,carrots,papaya.

Diabetes : Flax powder,Figs,Cinnamon,Olive oil,Oats,Drumstick leaves,carrots,Fenugreek,Soyabean,papaya,
                  Watermelon,Muskmelon.

Cancers  : Walnuts,Figs,Soyabean,Tomato,Pomegranate.

Paralyses : Walnut.

Memory booster : Walnut,Flax,Spinach.

Women problems : Figs,Flax,Ginger,Coriander,Soyabean,Amla (Indian gooseberry)

Body,Knee pains : Guggul,Olives,Ginger,Pumpkin seeds.

Boosts Immunity : Flax,Oats,Nigella seeds,papaya,Basil.

Acidity,Indigestion : Isabgol (psyllium seed husks),Flax,Radish,Ginger,Garlic,Coriander,Cucumber,Papaya.

Facial cleansing :   Rub a slice of cucumber or papaya for all face related problems.

Palpitation : Figs,Almonds,Spinach,Oranges,Bananas,Oats.

Dental problems : Amla(Indian gooseberry)

Hyper-Thyroid: Figs,Almonds,Spinach,Oranges,Bananas,Oats.

Hair Fall : Plenty of Oats.

For good sleep : One banana & two teaspoons of honey in warm milk 2-3 hours before sleep.

To stop vomitting : Basil juice helps stop vomits immediately.

                       WEIGHT LOSS THERAPY WITH NEGATIVE CALORIE FOODS

  All foods have some calories. No food is completely negative calorie food.But the overall effect of certain food in our body is that of negative calories. They are foods which use more calories to digest than the calories the foods actually contain.

For Example : A piece of dessert consisting of 400 calories may require only 150 calories to be digested by our body, and the net gain of 250 calories is added to out body fat.So if you eat 100 calories of a food that requires 150 calories to digest,then you have burnt an additional 50 calories simply by eating that food. Thus,the more you eat,the more you lose weight.
         There are large number of foods that combine low calories,delicious taste and excellent negative calorie properties. So no more starving : Eat these, lose that extra fat and get slim naturally. Here they are :

Walnut,Figs,Guggul,Soyabean,Olives,Peanut,Ginger,Radish,Carrots,Cucumber,
Garlic,Papaya,Spinach,Amla,Asparagus,Apple,Beets,Berries,Broccoli,
cabbage,Mango,cauliflower,Celery,Chilli,Pineapple,Zucchini,lettuce,
Onion,Lemon,Turnips,Orange,grapefruit.

           All fresh fruit,Nuts,Sea foods,vegetables,Whole grains etc are good for health,but the super-foods listed here have medicinal value along with their strength. So eat and enjoy them ! And always remember “Health is the best form of investment”.

A Special Day !

     This is a special post…special since its my birthday today and am  on top of the world with all the extra attention and lovely wishes….Am really feeling like a Queen (Are you listening/reading Hanlie)This is extra special since its the first after marriage and am loving it with S..he had wished me zillion times till now and am sure it will go on….Oh, I have a lovely husband.Touchwood!
   And another reason for this one to be absolutely special is the “Healthy you Challenge ” and support from all you wonderful people…its amazing and oh so inspiring…I’m loving it !
I feel so good when I effortlessly slip into all my clothes…yeah, you got it right…I’ve lost a few inches…I dont know how many but I know that I did lose some….and I haven’t got on to the scale since we are not able to find a decent one at the Aerobics studio and S and I will never get one for ourselves..its way too stressful…so I am not bothered about the number…am enjoying this loss which I feel, the rosy cheeks after the workout and the new energetic,confident and enthusisatic me ….so the scale will have to wait…
      Today morning when I put on my new dress I have noticed that its comparatively loose….since I wore it in the trial room last time…Oh, that feeling…its more than million presents…and S said the same too…and I bought this new dress three weeks ago…..so these 3 weeks were indeed good.
     We have decided to eat out today…c’mon I dont want to cook on my birthday  and while at lunch I noticed that both S and I are invariably and unconsciously choosing healthy options….its just happening as a way of life..we are not pushing ourselves…its just that we are used to it by now…and I have no cravings whatsoever….now what else can be blissful than this…and here today for the first time ever I am going to post a picture of myself on this blog…for all your wonderful people…I shall come out with a more detailed b’day post tomorrow…about the day and happenings, surprises…
      This picture is randomly shot by S with his mobile phone at lunch today …..while we were waiting for our main course…I have a great fancy and weakness for side silhouette’s (click for the actual size) ….I find them endearing and irrestible…..and I won a NSV for myself…my b’day treat….truly on cloud nine

Mix of sorts (Healthy you challenge update)

Mix of sorts

Thats precisely what my past week had been….I missed checking-in last week since I was caught up with a flu and didn’t do anything substantial to write about…foodwise or even exercise wise…but we didn’t breach or drift from healthy eating except for a few cookies one evening….somehow the same junk food which I earlier craved for (though very occasionally) doesn’t excite me anymore….It feels good.And then, since the past 4 days there have been tiny warts on my scalp and ouch, they hurt and itch….S and I were worried and visited the doctor immediately…the medication didn’t help too…and over the past 2 days a couple of them surfaced on my back and near the ear….I called my mom and discussed this with her…I always do this whenever I fall sick…she always comes up with accurate home remedies which nurse me back to health in no time…and this time too it worked…All my mom said is it must be the changing weather and the heat inside the body….so drink buttermilk,tender coconut water,watermelon juice… I had a water melon at home and immediately sprung into action…that was yesterday and voila, today morning they hurt less and are subsiding at a frantic pace….it feels so good…and I decided to stop the medication….it anyway served no purpose…its incredible… I mean my mom never goes wrong with these therapies…and I am always bowled over…its prodigious that she knows her child through and through though we live  so far ….mom’s are ever wonderful…they are truly angels on earth…I love you mom…and miss you …
         Am fine now, S and I are back to our routine and are enjoying our workouts…..and my standoffishness with the scale continues….but today morning somehow I broke the resolve and treaded over it….and it showed 2 different weights…the 2 times I tried and it was crazy….S also ventured…just to check its authenticity and his number was even more bizarre…so we realised that its untruthful and moved on….I love it when S does these affectionate things for me…..they mean a lot…he was sure that with the number it showed me..I’d be depressed…so he set foot and then declared that its kooky..if it weren’t for him I would have been sulking the whole day….mourning over the number….he is a real darling…am blessed to have him….Love you S

“Healthy you Challenge” Week 1

This is my first week after I took up this challenge and am extremely glad I did.It feels wonderful..all your support and warm words please me immensely….am truly delighted….if exercise is physical well being …all the love that comes from each one of you does wonders in the mind…Thank you one and all for everything….else I would have pushed off into an oblivion and grown unresponsive….and all this couldn’t have happened without S, my husband, my anchor.

As you all know,S and I had started exercising and enrolled ourselves in an aerobics studio…and we have completed 7 hours of training till now.

And the verdict : I lost   1 Kg ( 2.2 pounds )    Woohoo…..my first step….

I didn’t check-in the post on tuesday since I wanted to weigh in…and since we dont have a scale at home ( we dont intend to have one too, it gets addictive), I had to wait for today’s morning session and I weighed in at the studio…..
I expected to have lost a couple of kgs but the scale revealed only one. But it still feels good….my estimate of a couple of kgs is because I have been feeling extremely light…So I thought I would have lost quite some weight…..
Anyways…something is better than nothing especially for a beginner like me….it keeps up the joyous spirit and motivates me to carry on.

Diet wise…we have been eating healthy as usual..and we now watch the portions too

Breakfast : Cornflakes with milk and fruit
Lunch      :  rice and vegetables/lentils, plain youghurt
Snack      : Carrots
Dinner     : Phulka with vegetables ( we want to replace this with wholesome soup) and buttermilk

..but Offlate I realised I also need to keep a check on my carbohyrate intake…so I will twist these a little for the coming week..
And coming to Non-scale victories, S and I are having a rollicking time reckoning them. Its a beautiful period…where in we notice those little changes in each other, complement,feel tickled…and are prodigiously happy and delighted for each other.
      Few of our NSV’s  :

•  My collar bones slowly and shyly  debuting after a long exile
•  My clothes fit me much better compared to what they used to
•  The twinkle in my eye and the pink cheeks after I work out
•  S and I feeling energetic and concentrated throughout the day
•  S’s tapering cheeks….he’s always full of life and is a stunner…Love you S
•  And I just love my stable shoulders…their droopy days are now history.
   

Hope each one of you had a great week…doesn’t necessarily have to be related with weight-loss…after all we have jumped on the bandwagon with zest and vigour, and success is sure to come soon to each one of us and there is no looking back….Happy working out ! Folks.