Health

Wake up early to kill weight

Swathy · July 14, 2010 · Leave a Comment

Waking up early is a big hindrance for many people in the way of healthy lifestyle. Some people can just not wake early. I am not commenting on anyone because you can count me in. I try so hard and sometimes, I am able to do it but most of the times, my routine gets disturbed and I end up sleeping till 11 or 12. It sounds heaven for some who do not get time for themselves. But, in the long run, it is really hell. But, I have observed that waking up early makes me happy, keeps me relaxed all day long and my day goes well overall.

Waking up early does not really mean getting up at 4 or 5 but you can make a routine to get up regularly at 6 or 7. If it is not possible for you to do that right away, decrease your sleeping time by half an hour. Go to bed half hour early and wake up early. This way you would have an established schedule. Waking up early actually acts as a stress buster because your body feels good. And, you get to breathe purer and fresher air which does a lot of good to your body. If you do some deep breathing exercises, that would be even better for your system as you would be giving your body an overloaded dose of oxygen which will kick start your day. Actually, waking early is also great for your skin and hair too. And, it is a great boost for your self-confidence too. Actually, if you do anything out of ordinary or something which you have been trying to do and failed many times, it acts as a stress buster and confidence booster. So, try to do one thing better every day which will improve you overall.

Today’s Habit: Try to wake up early than your regular routine and do some deep breathing exercises in the morning.

Procrastination Increases Stress

Swathy · July 13, 2010 · Leave a Comment

Our lifestyles have become so hectic and busy that our stress levels are always on the high. But, you know what, if you are a person who procrastinates any work, I have news for you. Procrastination is a major cause of stress. If you are really afraid of doing any task, do it and get done with it. After doing that task, you will have a major boost of self-confidence which is actually worth working for. I know how it feels to do a work when you really do not like doing.

And, I am really embarrassed to confess that I have been procrastinating one of my work since three years!! I know it sounds really foolish, especially, when you do not have any other alternative. But, it is not that I did not want to do the work. Ok, may be, yes. The main reasons of my procrastination are lack of deadline, lack of pressure, extreme laziness, lack of passion for that work and fear of failure. In short, you can say that I am really low on self-confidence right now. But, I have come to realize and would really want to advise everyone who think of procrastinating a work even for a day that please do not. One day is equivalent to procrastinating indefinitely because you will never feel like doing a work which you do not like. But, I have come to realize that it slowly builds on stress. And, excess stress can even lead to depression and nervous breakdowns.

So, for everyone, leave the idea of failure and forget that there is anything like relaxing for a day when you have work. Get on with the work at hand. If you do not like it or are afraid of doing the work, break it down into chunks and deal with those chunks one by one. Everyone part of the work which gets completed will make you feel good and better and of course, the work you are supposed to finish is nearing the closing line. So, be optimistic and start from today. Trust me when you start getting on with the job, you will start enjoying your work too.

Today’s Habit: Do your work today itself. Do not leave for tomorrow.

Fasting for better Health

Swathy · July 10, 2010 · 1 Comment

Have you ever tried fasting? I know many people do it for religious reasons. Many people tend to refrain from it also because they can’t stay hungry for a whole day. But, apart from the religious reasons, there are scientific reasons also for holding fasts. Regular or weekly fasts are actually supposed to be really good for your system. If you are one who observes weekly fasts, you might have noticed that your body feels more livelier and you feel good. Your mood gets rejuvenated. This is just one of the effects of fasting.

Regular fasting is good for detoxifying your body. Not eating anything for a whole day helps your body to feel rested especially your digestive system and also helps your body to clean up the toxins and regulate the functioning of other organs of the body like liver, kidneys and other parts. The metabolic process also slows down apparently to give your body a little rest. So, rejuvenation also accompanies the fasting ritual. Other positive effects of fasting include improved immune system, efficient protein production, reduction in body temperature and improves the healing process of the body. So, you can also expect anti-aging effects from fasting too. Due to lack of proper nutrition, the body breaks down the fat reserves in the body so a controlled fasting routine would also help in weight loss. And, it also helps in increasing the life span of the person.

Thus, a weekly observed fast can help to clean your body and make it better. But, a prolonged fast is actually very harmful for the body and all the positive aspects would become negative actually. So, in case you are planning on a crash diet or anything, I would like to warn you that it would not actually help you in anyway. While observing fast, you need not starve your body completely. You can have fresh fruits, fruit juices and other nutritional liquids as they would also fulfill your nutritional needs for the day. Eating and drinking light fruits and fruit juices will be good for your system. That would include citrus fruits, kiwi, avacado, figs, berries, cherries, litchi, apple, water melon and other light foods. You can also take fresh homemade soups made from spinach, cabbage, carrot, tomato and any other veggies you prefer. I would advise you to avoid heavy fruits and foods like bananas, dairy products, mango, papaya, dry fruits and nuts, any heavy vegetables like potato, chocolates and other junk food too. You should also avoid intake of salt and sugar. Choose a particular day in a week and make it a regular routine to avoid eating any solid food on that day. Some people observe fast by not eating anything in the day time and eating in the evening.