Meal Preps & Recipes, Today

The Fantastic Health Benefits Of Drinking Coffee

Starting a new day with a cup of hot steaming coffee is a pleasure that millions of people enjoy every day. Drinking coffee is a habit so ingrained in people that they don’t think twice before consuming it at any time of the day. The truth is that coffee is much more than just a refreshing drink. Coffee is a drink that has many health benefits which are essential and necessary for your body.

Research has shown that drinking moderate amounts of coffee every day brings you many advantages. Some of the health benefits of drinking coffee are –

  1. Improves Energy Levels & Makes You Smarter – Drinking coffee makes you feel less tired and increases your energy levels. The reason this happens is that coffee contains a stimulant named “caffeine” which gets absorbed in your bloodstream and travels to your brain. There it blocks the inhibitory neurotransmitter called adenosine leading to an increase in other neurotransmitters like dopamine and norepinephrine. These two lead to an increase in brain functions like mood, memory, reaction times, and vigilance.
  2. Helps You Burn Fat – The caffeine boosts your metabolic state by 3-11% leading to the burning of fat in your body. It specifically increases the fat burning by 10% in obese people and up to 29% in lean people.
  3. Contains Essential Nutrients – It contains essential nutrients like riboflavin [vitamin B2], pantothenic acid [vitamin B5], niacin [vitamin B3], potassium, manganese, and magnesium that your body needs.
  4. Lowers Risk of Type 2 Diabetes – In this condition, you have high blood sugar levels caused by a reduced ability to secrete insulin. Studies have shown that drinking coffee regularly gives you a 23-50% lower risk of contracting this disease. Each cup of coffee you drink reduces this risk by around 7%. Isn’t that wonderful?
  5. Protects You from Alzheimer’s Disease – It is the most common neurodegenerative disease in the world and leads to dementia in people over the age of 65 years. Studies show that drinking coffee gives you a 65% lower risk of getting Alzheimer’s disease.
  6. Lowers Risk of Parkinson’s – It is the second most common neurodegenerative disease in the world and afflicts millions of people every year. Drinking coffee regularly lowers the chances of you getting this disease by as much as 32-60%.
  7. Fights Depression – Studies show that people who drink 4 or more cups of coffee every day are 53% less likely to commit suicide. Women who do the same have a 20% lower risk of becoming depressed. This is great news as depression is fast becoming an urban epidemic all over the world.
  8. Lowers Risk of Certain Cancers – Coffee protects you against two types of cancer: colorectal and liver cancer. Coffee drinking reduces the chances of colorectal cancer by 15% and liver cancer by 40%.

Your Friendly Drink

So your daily coffee keeps fighting for your good health every day even as you are busy with your work and responsibilities. There are different types of coffees so you can choose the one you like. The next time you sip coffee from your mug, please remember that it is your friend for life!

Meal Preps & Recipes, Today

6 Healthy Alcoholic Drinks That You Can Drink!

The thought of drinking alcohol immediately brings to mind images of drunkards sprawled out on the streets, patrons stretched out in bars, people getting high and spoiling a good party, and drunks indulging in dangerous driving. This kind of excessive drinking and its aftermath is very bit extreme without a doubt. However, it doesn’t have to be like this. A little alcohol in measured amounts at the right time is good for your health. Surprised? It’s true!

A Little Amount is Good

Drinking alcohol in moderation brings you several health benefits like reducing the risk of you developing and dying of heart disease, opening up the arteries to your brain thereby reducing the risk of ischemic strokes, and reducing your risk of developing diabetes. Binge drinking is an absolute health hazard but having healthy alcoholic drinks like red wine, tequila, rum, rose wine, champagne, and whiskey in moderation will do you a world of good.

  1. Red Wine – It contains antioxidants like catechin, resveratrol, epicatechin, and proanthocyanidins which reduce the oxidative damage in your body. They prevent cancer, heart disease, inflammation, blood clotting, and increase your lifespan.
  2. Tequila – It helps in digestion, controls blood sugar, encourages weight loss, helps you sleep, is a probiotic, numbs pain, and is even good for bones. So take a few shots in the night and see the positives accrue.
  3. Rum – Drinking rum is a good idea because it keeps scurvy at bay, contains very little carbohydrates or fats, restricts the formation of artery blockage, acts as a blood thinner, increases the HDL [good] cholesterol in your body, reduces the chances of heart attacks, and decreases muscle pain. Here’s the killer benefit: it even increases the average lifespan of a person by 2-5 years!
  4. Rose Wine – This drink is ideal if you want to spend a relaxing evening with your family or friends after a long day at work. It contains polyphenols that prevent atherosclerosis, which is a major factor leading to heart disease. It increases weight loss, helps in digestion, removes toxins, and also prevents urinary tract infections.
  5. Champagne – It improves your heart health, keeps you mentally sharp, has very few calories, makes your mood positive, lowers your risk of diabetes, and can even prevent dementia. Here is the best part: It increases your sex drive!
  6. Whiskey – It helps in fighting cancer, lowers the risk of dementia, lowers the risk of you suffering from heart disease, has no fat, carbs, or sugar, and is the perfect antidote for your cold. Back in the 1920s in America whiskey was stocked in pharmacies as a medicine and not as liquor! It was considered to be a tonic!

Time to Get Drunk!

So having an alcoholic drink and getting a bit tipsy is good for you. It relaxes you, makes you feel warm and fuzzy, and spruces up your life. Take these alcohol drinks in measured quantities and have a good time. Letting yourself go will take you a long way!

Meal Preps & Recipes, Today

Take The Keto Challenge For Weight Loss

Are you tired of carrying around the extra weight that you have accumulated in your body? If you are that’s great news your good health. Being aware of your excess weight is the first step towards leading a healthy, happy, and wholesome life.

Why Excess Weight is Dangerous for You?

Being overweight and obese is very dangerous for you as it is the reason why you might end up suffering from illnesses like type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, strokes, cancer, osteoarthritis, fatty liver disease, kidney disease, and for women even pregnancy problems. This is why you must immediately begin your efforts to lose all that extra weight you are currently carrying.

What is Keto Diet?

This is why you must switch to a “keto” diet immediately. A keto diet is a very low-carb, high-fat diet that involves drastically reducing your carbohydrate intake and replacing it with fat. This puts your body into a metabolic state called “ketosis.” Then your body starts burning fat for energy and turns fat into ketones in your liver thereby supplying energy for your brain. A keto diet also reduces your blood sugar and insulin levels.

This means you have to say a big no to foods like sweets, sugar, corn, potato, beetroot, bakery products, fruits, and processed foods.

  1. No Sweets – It makes you consume fewer calories and thus helps you lose weight. Avoid foods like junk foods, sugary foods, sodas, colas, salad dressings, ketchup, sauces, and sweets so that you can reduce the sugar intake in your body.
  2. No Sugar – Replace high sugar foods with healthful options so that you can get all the needed minerals and vitamins without the added calories. You should avoid sugar by reading product labels, avoiding simple carbohydrates; avoiding artificial sugars, avoiding soda, specialty coffee, and sweetened tea.
  3. No Corn, Potato, & Beetroot – Corn increases belly fat so avoiding it is a good decision. Potatoes are not a good food if you are looking for a permanent weight loss. It makes your body slow down its metabolism and burn fewer calories making it very difficult to initiate and maintain weight loss. It is commonly believed that drinking beetroot juice helps you lose weight but there isn’t enough scientific evidence to support this belief. Hence avoid beetroot as it contains a very high amount of sugar.
  4. No Bakery Products – Bakery products like pastries, cookies, cakes, and white bread contain a lot of added sugar which can spike your blood sugar levels. They lead to a 40% greater risk of gaining weight and obesity.
  5. No Fruits – You should avoid all high-calorie fruits when you want to lose weight like avocados, grapes, dry fruits, bananas, and mangoes.
  6. No Processed Foods – Processed foods are full of chemicals, are addictive which makes you crave more of it. They contain a high amount of calories and sugar which are terrible for your body when you are trying to lose weight. So avoid them like the plague!

Less is More!

So avoid these foods strictly and watch your weight machine as it gives you the happy news that you have been waiting for. If you start working out also you will quickly shed those extra pounds that have been such a drag on you. So less of you mean more of a healthy you!

Meal Preps & Recipes, Today

Must-have High Fiber Fruits

Fruits are truly precious gifts from Mother Nature. Not only are they delicious to eat at any time of the day they are nutritioushealthywholesome, and lip-smacking as well. They also bring you tons of benefits. It’s not for nothing that we have plenty of motherhoods describing the benefits of fruits like “An apple a day keeps the doctor away” and “Bananas are nature’s natural flushing agents.” You just can’t go wrong by picking up a fruit and digging into it anytime your stomach grumbles out of hunger.

A Plethora of Goodness

Fruits are a source of many vital nutrients such as potassiumvitamin C, and folic acid while being low in sodium, fat, and calories. They also do not contain cholesterol. Best of all they are loaded with dietary fiber which reduces blood cholesterol and lowers the risk of contracting heart disease. Fiber also facilitates good bowel movement eliminating problems like constipation and diverticulosis. Eating fiber-loaded fruits also leave you with a feeling of fullness.

Some of the fruits which are high on fiber content are passion fruitavocadosguavasraspberriesblackberriespomegranateskiwifruitpears, and oranges.

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  1. Passion fruit – It prevents constipation and keeps your gut healthy. It slows the time taken to digest your food which prevents blood sugar spikes from occurring. It also lowers the risk of heart illnesses, obesity, and diabetes.
  2. Avocados – They prevent constipation, lower the risk of colon cancer, and help maintain a healthy digestive tract.
  3. Guavas – Eating them facilitate healthy bowel movement and prevent constipation. They also reduce the duration and intensity of diarrhea.
  4. Raspberries – They do not raise high blood sugar levels and lower blood sugar in your body and improve insulin resistance. They reduce the chances of fatty liver disease as well.
  5. Blackberries – Their high fiber content reduce cholesterol, control blood sugar levels, facilitate regular bowel movement, help reduce weight, and provide fuel to feed healthy gut bacteria.
  6. Pomegranates – They help in digestion and are also good for your heart. For people who love junk food, a steady diet of pomegranates goes a long way in fighting their ill effects.
  7. Kiwifruit – They are excellent for improving digestion and they contain a proteolytic enzyme called “actinidin” that helps break down protein in your body.
  8. Pears – They lower the levels of LDL [bad] cholesterol in your body directly contributing to your heart health. They also lower the chances of you contracting cardiovascular disease.
  9. Oranges – The main fibers found in them are cellulose, pectin, lignin, and hemicellulose that improve digestive health, cholesterol levels, and aid weight loss.

Eat Them Up!

Consuming these fruits give you a wealth of benefits with virtually no side effects. These fruits are easily available in your nearby supermarkets and grocery stores which always stock them. Consuming these fruits will surely prove fruitful for you!

Meal Preps & Recipes, Today

6 Natural Detoxifying Foods

Even though you are busy with your work, personal, and social life you must take time out to care for yourself and your body. You need to detoxify your body at regular intervals so that you can maintain a fit and healthy body at all times. You don’t have to go to a hospital for that. You can safely and effectivelydetox your body in the comfort of your home by consuming the right foods.

Where Do Toxins Come From?

Toxins come from a variety of places like the air, water, pesticides, contaminated animals and fish, and can also be absorbed through your skin. Personal care products like shampoos, perfumes, make-up, and lotions contain toxins that are harmful to your body. Some toxins come through your food supplements, toothpaste, and medications since most of them contain gelatin.

Toxins damage our bodies in multiple ways. They poison our enzymes which then don’t work properly, displace structural elements rendering our bones weak, damage your internal organs, damage DNA which increases the rate of aging and degeneration, adversely modify gene expression, and interfere with our hormones and cause imbalances.

Help is Near

Luckily Mother Nature has given us natural detoxifying foods like lemon, turmeric, grapefruit, broccoli, ginger, and water that we can consume and detox our body. They are all easily available at your nearest supermarket and don’t cost much.

  1. Lemon – It contains the antioxidant vitamin C which fights disease-forming free radicals and also is beneficial for your skin. It helps restore the body’s pH balance and benefits your immune system.
  2. Turmeric – It increases the production of important enzymes that detoxify your blood even as it goes to your liver by breaking down the toxins.
  3. Grapefruit – It flushes out the toxins from every part of your body and the vitamins and minerals in it speed up the cleansing process. They work well as a detox diet.
  4. Broccoli – It contains nutrients such as gluconasturtiin, glucoraphanin, and glucobrassicin which neutralize and remove undesirable toxins. You will feel lighter in body and more able to cope with stress.
  5. Ginger – It stimulates the processes of digestion, circulation, and sweating in our body thereby cleansing it. It also removes toxins from your liver, colon, and other organs.
  6. Water – Freshwater cleanses the toxins from our vital organs and flushes the natural pathways of our body through which the toxins are removed. It also helps the liver do its function better.

Fight the Good Fight!

Keeping your body free from toxins becomes easy when you consume these foods in the right measure. You will feel energetic, fresh, fit, and healthy and face your problems with renewed vigor. The best part is that you get to choose your anti-poison!

Fitness, Today

Enjoy The Benefits Of Running

The word running brings visions of highly trained athletes sprinting in competitions or enduring long distances to finally breast the tape but that’s not all running is. Running is a pleasurable activity that all of us can do easily at any time that is convenient for us. Running or jogging brings great benefits to people who do it, doesn’t cost a thing, and does not require any infrastructure. All you have to do is make up your mind, put on your running shoes, and get going.

Running and jogging use kilo-joules, takes effort from your heart, lungs, and muscles and are forms of “aerobic exercise.” The word aerobic means “with oxygen” and means any physical activity that combines oxygen with blood glucose or body fat and produces energy.

Multiple benefits of running –

1] Reduces Risk of Heart Disease – It decreases your risk of heart disease by 35-55% straightaway. It prevents the formation of blood clots in your arteries and blood vessels and also supports blood flow, lowers blood pressure, and cholesterol levels. Running strengthens the walls of your heart thereby increasing its overall efficiency.

2] Improves Brains Function – Running keeps your brain healthy even as you age, fighting against the disruptive effects of time. It improves your working memory, ability to focus, and task switching ability especially when you are adults. Running increases the levels of neurotransmitters in your brain like norepinephrine and serotonin which gives your brain the ability to generate new neurons keeping it young and more efficient.

3] Boosts Metabolism – Running stimulates your body metabolism positively, helps you burn more calories rapidly, and may even suppress your appetite temporarily post your workout session. So you can eat the healthy foods you like but still keep your body is fit at all times.

4] Improves Lung Function – Running regularly improves the conditioning of the diaphragm and your intercostal muscles, which lie between your ribs, better enabling you to inhale and exhale. Strengthening your diaphragm can increase your endurance capabilities and lower fatigue. Taking deeper breaths use more air sacs in your lungs allowing you to take in more oxygen to feed your muscles.

5] Strengthens Immune Systems – It boosts the number of white blood cells [WBCs] and antibodies increasing your immunity and fighting diseases. It also increases your body temperature to fight off infection and prevent bacteria from multiplying.

6] Strengthens Joints & Bones– It makes your bones, muscles, and cartilages stronger. The cartilage cushions your joints while muscles support joints making them less vulnerable to injuries.

You Better Run!

Running brings all these benefits and is a fun activity to do even as you breathe in more hungrily and improve your health. So welcome the sunshine and run every day. A little running every day will take you far!

Fitness, Today

Are You Burning Enough Calories Everyday?

You have the right and the obligation to keep your body fit at all times. That means a planned diet, healthy food, and lots of exercises. Or else you will end up weighing more than you should and be categorized as obese. The obesity rate has skyrocketed all over the world and is among the biggest impediments to a safe and healthy life today.

It Takes Hard Work

You can keep your weight well under control provided you burn up enough calories every day. To do that you must burn up more calories every day than the number you take in. This way you create a calorie deficit in your body and keep your weight optimum. Some activities that help you in burning calories are biking, sex, pole dancing, sunbathing, and weight training. 30minutes of these activities will enable you to have that lean and fit body that everybody will notice and admire.

Biking – When you bike you use your muscles and they start utilizing the oxygen you breathe in to convert sugar, fats, and proteins into adenosine triphosphate [ATP]. ATP is the fundamental molecule that supplies energy to the cells in your body. The more intense and focused your biking is the more calories you burn.

Sex – The intimacy you share with your partner affects your weight. Healthy sex burns more calories in men than in women and it is tough to think of a more pleasurable way to burn those calories regularly. So hopping in your sack regularly with your partner is great for your continued health.

Pole Dancing – Though most people associate pole dancing with women this form of exercise dates back more than 800 years ago to India where men indulged in the traditional sport “Mallakhamb.” It was performed on a wooden pole. Pole dancing is an excellent way for women to burn calories as it gives several benefits like weight loss, greater flexibility, stronger muscles, stress relief, and improved mental health.

Sun Bathing – The less vitamin D you have the more is your weight. So the solution is to increase vitamin D in your body and the best and enjoyable way is to simply bask in the sunlight. That’s right. If you put in 30 minutes of skin exposure to sunlight every morning it will go a long way in keeping your weight under control.

Weight Training – Lifting weights is a great way to burn those excess calories in your body. You don’t have to be an Arnold Schwarzenegger to work out at the gym. Lifting modest weights for 30 minutes will do wonders for your body even as the weighing machine gives you the good news. Take the help of your gym trainer.

Let Them Burn!

Just do these activities and see how much better you feel. You will feel energetic, happy, and confident knowing that you are burning enough calories to keep your body healthy just the way you want it. Get started today!

Fitness, Today

The Tussle For Building Muscle

You have to physically struggle to build muscles in your body. There is simply no way around it. Whether you work out at your gym or home or in open-air good vigorous exercise is hugely beneficial and essential for developing and maintaining strong, lean, and powerful muscles. Equally important is that you have to provide proper nutritional support to your body otherwise you won’t get far.

Why Muscles Matter?

The primary function of our muscles is to enable movement as they are the only tissue in our body that contract and hence provide movement to the other parts of our body. They also are responsible for the maintenance of our posture and body position and have to work relentlessly for all 24 hours of the day.

Some easily available foods that help in muscle building are oats, cashews, oils, potatoes, chia seeds, and hemp seeds.

Good for Muscle Building

Oats contain a healthy combination of fiber, carbs, proteins, vitamins, and minerals and are low in calories making them ideal for building muscle. Try oats with milk or even include them in your salads. Cashews are loaded with protein that your body needs for energy that will enable you to exercise. The protein is also required for rebuilding muscle tissue and for creating new cellular compounds that your body needs.

Several cooking oils help boost muscle strength, improve your body’s range of motion, and give other benefits as well. Use oils such as coconut oil, fish oil, canola oil, and krill oil for cooking and reap their benefits even as you keep your focus on building strong muscles by exercising regularly. You would well to eat potatoes as they are rich in carbohydrates which provide energy to your body. They are critical for muscle growth and recovery. The best part is that you can eat them in a variety of dishes both before and after your workout.

Chia seeds may have taken some time to get popular with people but they are really good for muscle building. They are full of minerals like iron, magnesium, and potassium and also rich sources of calcium, fiber, and omega-3 fats. You need not be a bodybuilder to consume these seeds as these days many people including runners and cyclists are taking them for their muscle tending properties.

Try hemp seeds in your diet as they contain protein which has 9 different types of amino acids that help in building muscle mass. They also help in reducing your body weight which should be sweet music for your ears.

Get That Lean & Trim Look

Having a healthy muscular body makes you look good and feel good about yourself as well. You feel wholesome and full of vitality. Consuming healthy foods to build your muscles is both rewarding and necessary. Get the ball rolling today!

Fitness, Meal Preps & Recipes, Today

Workout Snacks That Work For You!

You are absolutely right in having made up your mind to devote some quality time to your body and mind by working out at the gym. You could go to the nearest gym and pump iron in the company of like-minded people or workout at home. Either way working out will do wonders for your health and overall fitness.

You must pay extra attention to the food you are consuming both before your workout and after it. Here are some healthy, nutritious, and tasty foods that will help you in getting and maintaining a lean and trim body.

Pre-Workout Snacks

You should consume foods like raw eggs, fruit smoothies, granola or fruit or nut bars, oatmeal with fresh fruits, and banana-peanut butter toasts to improve your workouts.

Raw eggs are good for your body as the egg white provides proteins while the yellow yolk provides minerals, vitamins, and healthy fats. Pre-workout proteins help in improving your muscle performance and recovery. Fruit smoothies are easy to digest and keep you alert during your workout. Add ice so that they keep you hydrated during your workout and to increase your strength and endurance.

Granola or fruit or nut bars are loaded with protein, carbs, and fiber which fuel your muscles and also keep you energetic and fill you up. Try oatmeal with fresh fruits as they provide long-lasting energy and settle in your stomach easily even as the fresh fruits quickly hit your bloodstream and get you going with enthusiasm.

A few slices of wholesome bread with peanut butter and banana give you both proteins and carbs that your body needs. The proteins help muscle growth while the carbs give you extra energy.

Post-Workout Snacks

Now that you have finished your workout it is important to consume snacks like nuts, Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, protein bars and shakes, and boiled or scrambled eggs. They help you in getting energetic and fresh and are good for recovery.

A fistful of nuts like almonds and walnuts would help you in refueling your body. They contain protein, fiber, and healthy fats that keep your stomach from growling till your next real meal. Go for Greek yogurt as it contains protein and calcium that improve your post-workout recovery.

Consume low-fat cottage cheese as they give you proteins for muscle-building and carbs for boosting energy. Their extra water content keeps you hydrated longer. Protein bars contain protein and fiber which give you instant energy. Try avoiding the heavily sugared varieties.

Boiled or scrambled eggs improve the protein-synthesis process in your body. Make sure to include the egg yolk because it contains several nutrients that are beneficial to you.

Make a Start Today!

Make a food plan to consume these foods in a measured and methodical way and see how it gives you amazing results. You will look forward to hitting your gym and giving it your best. A healthy and fit body is the best gift that you can give yourself!

Meal Preps & Recipes, Today

Must-have High Fiber Fruits

Consuming high fiber fruits regularly is sure to bear fruits! Really! A planned and healthy intake of selected fruits will do more good for your body than you can imagine. High fiber fruits cut your LDL (bad) cholesterol, promote weight loss, lower blood sugar levels, are good for your digestion, fight constipation, and help you feel full. With so many benefits and of course, they taste great how can you not possibly include them in your diet?

Eat Them Raw

Some of the high fibers fruits which should surely be in your shopping list are passion fruits, avocado, guavas, raspberries, blackberries, pomegranate, kiwifruit, pears, and oranges. We know you are tempted to drink their juice but you should eat the whole fruit raw. That’s when you fully get the benefits of these wonderful fruits.

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A Plethora of Benefits

Passion fruits are low-calorie, high fiber fruits that benefit insulin sensitivity and maintain ideal blood pressure so they are perfect for inducing weight loss. Avocados help in decreasing obesity, heart disease, diabetes, and overall mortality while at the same time giving increased energy, healthy hair and complexion, and also lowering your overall weight. This is exactly what your body needs! Guavas are low on calories so they aid weight loss and make you feel full. Not only that they also boost heart health, lower blood sugar levels, have an anticancer effect, boost your immunity, and also relieve painful aspects of menstruation.

Raspberries and blackberries must be at the very top of your high fiber fruits shopping list as they are immensely beneficial to you. They are sources of vitamin C and E as they help in healing wounds by producing collagen and several neurotransmitters. They help in better brain functioning, improve heart health, help in preventing cancer, and improve eye health. Pomegranates fight chronic inflammation in the body and help in preventing dreaded illnesses like cancer, heart diseases, obesity, Alzheimer’s disease, and type 2 diabetes.

Kiwifruits contain antioxidants like vitamin C, lutein, and choline which remove harmful free radicals from the body. They also aid in combating problems like kidney stones, cancer, constipation, and give you healthy skin, sound sleep, and optimum blood pressure. Pears boost heart health, lower the risk of diabetes, offer anticancer properties, and promote gut health. Be sure to add oranges in your diet plan as they help lower weight, maintain optimum blood pressure, give heart health, fight diabetes, and give you soft and glowing skin.

A Better Lighter You!

All these fruits are available easily, help in keeping your weight down, and give you a healthy body even as you dive deep into the passions that consume you at work and home. Eat them whole and raw as far as possible and enjoy all their manifold benefits.