How many calories will one burn after walking 5 km daily?

I received this query

My answer

Let us not count calories in this case.

A 5 km walk every day will brighten up your day, your mood, your health, your energy levels, you are bound to have great health from inside out.

And, this itself is beyond any calories you can measure:)

what is harmful to your health

Understanding what is harmful to your health is important too.

Coke/ Pepsi or their diet version is bad for your internal health.

And, yes, it can seriously damage internal organs. I just read a full story on this (real case).

I have seen some people can't eat food without this, and then they say we workout.

A workout is different, and eating slow poison is different.

Hope you understand.

Another tip to get you through the full day fast

Another tip to get you through the full day fast

Some prefer to keep a proper fast without even touching an ounce of water.

So in this situation, you should prepare yourself a day before.

Drink enough amount of water the previous day to help you stay hydrated on the day of fast.

Also, it is advisable to replace tea and coffee with lemon water, coconut water, etc. to help you stay calm during the day of fast.

Since the no water fast is kind of tough, and if you never kept that before, we advise you follow this practice.

Happy fasting!

If you are suffering from Diabetes

If you are suffering from Diabetes

A lot of packaged food comes with extra sugar.

Extra sugar not 5 to 10% but its way beyond our body could manage.

Sugar in large amounts can drive insulin resistance and also other serious conditions like Diabetes 2 or Heart diseases.

If you consume foods like

Diet Colas
Aerated Drinks
High Energy Drinks
Ice Creams
Ketchup
Sugar-free (even more harmful)
Juices

These foods are unhealthy and should not be consumed or occasionally.

Make fresh versions at home.

Prefer fresh lemon water rather than diet colas.

Buy fresh fruits rather than packaged juices.

More coming up in my video.

Why is breakfast important?

Interesting read...

Brain: “Hey blood, how much glucose is left?”

Blood: “Um…let me check….uh oh….only enough for 15 minutes may be.”

Brain: “Damn, that’s not good. Hey liver, anything in your reserves?”

Liver: “As always, yes. I’ve learnt to save, you see. I can help, but for not more than 45 minutes.”

Brain: “Phew! I hope my owner can consume his breakfast by then. Until then, emergency alert! Save everything and use your resources economically.”

This is exactly what happens inside your body every day when you wake up.

After the brain sounds an emergency alert, the hormone named cortisone introduces a mechanism that lets the cells in your body open up to let out proteins.

These proteins pass through the liver and generate blood glucose.

This process continues until you eat your breakfast.

So the bottom line is that people who skip their breakfast are eating their own cells/muscles.

This leads to loss of muscle and loss of brain activity.

This further leads to a lower metabolism rate.

So when you finally have your lunch, all the food is accepted as an excess and is considered as fat reserves.

Your body stores all the food as fat in order to use it in emergency situations.

And while all this happens, your brain, that is supposed to be taking intelligent decisions, is just trying manage an emergency situation and damaging your body in the process.

Hence, never ever skip your breakfast!

Nurture your body in the morning with a healthy breakfast and it will nurture you back with good health, energy and a steady mind.

The power of the journal

The power of the journal

What gets scheduled gets done.

When you write your goals down in a diary, it has a great power to remind you and to help you stay on track.

Kids are often told and reminded again and again to write down today's homework in a diary.
Why?

One of course so that parents get to know about it.

But kids remember it too when they write it down, and that's the power of writing.

When you make a journal and write down your meal schedule and your exercise schedule, it reminds you of your goal, and you tend to do something about it.

A lot of business coaches tell you to make a journal.

This tactic works quite well in health and diet.

Maybe you schedule every Sunday evening for the upcoming week.

I make my monthly exercise schedule to keep me on track.

Yes, I have to work hard to keep myself on track.

When you feel low or stressed

When you feel low or stressed

Indian women are a lot more emotional, so they tend to think more, and sometimes that leads to overthinking.

Whenever you feel you are getting into the trap of thinking and overthinking, try to walk around for 5 to 10 minutes.

Movement is great therapy and has a brilliant effect on mind and body.

You can choose to walk in your home or office.

Go for a small walk in nature.

Nature is a great healer and nothing's better than that.

You owe yourself

You owe yourself

One hour a day of self maintenance.

It can include

Reading, writing, meditating, yoga, exercise, painting, or cooking.

But, you owe it to yourself.

One hour is 1/24th of your day.

That's less than 5%.

It matters, it really does.

Make it count. 

Calcium absorption - the real worry?

Calcium absorption - the real worry?

If calcium absorption is your worry, they consider the following options

1. Take your calcium supplement along with your meals

2. Do not more than 500 mg at one time

3. Include calcium-rich foods like milk, soybeans, oranges, okra (bhindi), almonds, spinach, sesame seeds.

4. Along with calcium, you need to have the right amount of vitamin d, magnesium, and vitamin k.

5. Sources of vitamin d are sunlight, mushrooms, soy milk, cheese.

6. Sources of magnesium are dark chocolate, cashews, green leafy vegetables, flaxseeds, pumpkin seeds, kidney beans (rajma).

7. Sources of vitamin k2 basil, cabbage, mustard, ladyfinger, cucumber, carrots, chilli powder, clove

Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin

Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin

People these days are Vitamin D deficient.

The reason mostly lies in our diet and lifestyle.

We have almost stopped eating good quality fats.

Earlier our meals had a good amount of ghee and oils.

Now we run away from oils and ghee is a big no.

Because you think it is fattening.

It is not.

Eating ghee regularly is the key to weight loss.

Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin, it means, the body will absorb this vitamin in the presence of good quality fats.

If you are popping pills or soaking in sun the whole day, it won't increase your vitamin d levels until your body has the required amount of fats.

Best Vegetarian Sources of Omega 3

Best Vegetarian Sources of Omega 3

Non-vegetarian can easily get their dose of Omega  3 from Fish.

Vegetarians should not ignore this nutrient from the diet, as it an essential fatty acid, good for skin, bones, heart.

It has many amazing benefits for mind and body.

1. It can fight depression and anxiety
2. It can improve eye health
3. It can promote brain health during pregnancy and early life
4. It can reduce symptoms of metabolic syndrome
5. It can fight inflammation
6. It can fight autoimmune diseases like diabetes
7. It can improve mental disorders
9. It can fight age-related mental decline and alzheimer's disease
10. It may help prevent cancer
11. It can reduce asthma in children
12. It can reduce fat in your liver
13. It may improve bone and joint health
14. Omega 3 fats are good for your skin

Vegetarian Sources of Omega 3 are

1. Mustard Seeds & Oil
2. Flax Seeds
3. Chia Seeds
4. Walnuts

Get strong bones

Get strong bones

Your health should be the utmost priority.

But, sad to see for some people health is not even on the list, it is simply in the dreams.

I am saying this because when it comes to taking action towards the health, towards eating right, time to exercise, they very easily postpone it for tomorrow.

Your life, your choices, you might have other urgent priorities in life, but I am just reminding you that every time you put things off for tomorrow you losing an opportunity to build your health.

In this blog, I am suggesting few ways to build strength in your bones, and it will be extremely beneficial in your 40's and beyond, and will save you from unnecessary aches in bones and joints.

1. Exercise: Try Strength Training, Yoga (It should be challenging). Brisk Walking.

The right exercise is must for all age groups.

2. Lead an active lifestyle

The more you stay active on a day to day basis, the more you will retain the strength in your bones.

When you stay active, you build strength.

When you are sitting for a longer period, you are losing strength.

3. Eat a balanced diet

Your diet should have enough carbs, protein, and fats.

4. Get your vitamins and minerals in place

All these essential nutrients should be adequately present in your diet - Vitamin C, Vitamin K, Omega 3, Zinc, Vitamin D.

5. Go in sunlight

Most of the Indians are not getting enough sunlight. Living indoors has kind of become an addiction because there are enough activities we are engaged indoors.

Go party outdoors, soak yourself in the sun. 

10000 steps a day

10000 steps a day

Walking is a great physical activity.

It does not count as exercise, but it has amazing benefits for mind and body.

I literally can walk for an hour non-stop, I would do so because you feel amazing and fresh in mind and body both.

It immediately takes away your stress.

As we are leading a more sedentary lifestyle and depending more on technology, fitness applications and devices, have a minimum goal for about 10000 steps a day.

It makes for about 5 miles a day which is the utmost essential on a daily basis. And, it is a bare minimum.

If your goal is weight loss then please make thrice the efforts:)

Flex as you age

Flex as you age

The flexibility of the body helps you bend easily, move easily, rotate easily if you see dancers moving in all possible directions from their body is flexibility.

The flexibility of mind helps you see things from different perspectives, and it helps you understand life in a better way.

But, alas, as you age, you lose the flexibility of mind and body both.

You have seen a child doing all movements he will do it quite easily, but after 40 you try to bend, it is becoming difficult.

The very basic test of flexibility is - stand straight, legs together, and now try to touch your hands to the feet.

If you can do this good, try further, try to touch your torse to the legs.

That will be too much if you have never done yoga before. 

Reduced flexibility can also lead to poor balance.

Although joint flexibility decreases with age, the fortunate news is that flexibility can be improved across ALL age groups with proper flexibility training.

Range of motion can be improved with as little as 4 weeks of regular stretching 2 – 3 times per week.

In addition to increasing range of motion and functional capacity, flexibility exercises have been shown to improve posture, stability, and balance.

Regular flexibility exercise can reduce the likelihood of injuries, prevent low back pain, knee pain and reduce muscle soreness.

The only way to keep this body in good condition

The only way to keep this body in good condition is to use it.

Now we also have lifts at residences.

It is so easy to deny the opportunity to walk and use the easiest possible way.

Thankfully earlier we never had a lift, and thankfully now are modern so we have a lift at our home too.

What a proud feeling?

Yes and no.

Because it is what leads to poor health.

Anyways walk more, sit less.

Get up and do your own work at home.

Use less help from others if you want to stay super healthy.

It is the only way possible to keep this machinery function at an optimum level.