What should you eat to lose weight?

Eating healthy is a key to an active life. It sometimes becomes difficult to choose a particular diet plan as you are not too sure about what to eat that will help you lose weight. The best way to lose weight is to eat natural foods which help in maintaining your waistline than processed foods which promise the same. Following is a list of 5 very basic natural foods which help you lose weight and also takes care of your health:

Broccoli

Broccoli is one of the most effective foods which can help you lose weight. It contains several micronutrients and phytochemicals which aid in weight loss by breaking down fats. Broccoli is rich in dietary fiber, minerals, and vitamins and low in calories and yet satisfies your hunger. You can eat it raw, cooked or as a healthy snack. Add this green vegetable to your regular diet and hasten your weight loss process.

Oats

Oats is a healthy addition to your diet as it high on nutrients and fiber. You should include it in the regular diet for at least 4 times a week if you want to lose weight. You can customize your serving to add more nutritional value to your meal. Avoid sugary toppings as they are high in calories and do not promote weight loss. Do not consume oats with added flavors or any other synthetic ingredients.

Apples

Apples are low in calories and rich in fiber. It is a perfect snack which is sweet and satisfying at the same time. It not only helps you to lose weight but also effectively controls your blood cholesterol. Apples contain antioxidants which have a lot of health benefits other than aiding weight loss. Fresh apples are considered to be even more effective in this regard.

Cabbage

Cabbage contains only 17 calories in a serving and is one of the best foods for weight loss. You can cook it in olive oil and season it with herbs and add it to your regular diet. Cabbage also helps fight cancer among its other beneficial qualities. It reduces your calorie intake and also satisfies your appetite. It also acts as a natural detox and works wonders for your overall health.

Black beans

Black beans are one of the most satisfying proteins which you can consume during weight loss. They are rich in fiber and protein and keep you full for a long time. They contain soluble fiber which helps you fight cholesterol problems. The insoluble fiber in black beans maintains your digestive system and regulates the bowels.

Fruit yogurt

You can see visible results if you cut down your overall calorie intake and supplement it with yogurt in your regular diet. The calcium in yogurt restricts the production of cortisol and controls your appetite. Yogurt also contains amino acids which contribute in burning fat. You can add fruits like blueberry or aloe vera to your yogurt to make it a tastier and healthier snack.

Whole bean salad

Whole bean salad is simple to prepare and is a very healthy snack. It is filling and keeps your hunger pangs at bay. You can put bell peppers and sweet corn to add flavors and toss it in olive oil to keep it healthy.

What should you eat to lose weight?

One of the most important aspects of staying healthy is to keep your body hydrated by drinking enough water. When it comes to drinking water, we stress on purifying it but do you ever stop to think about how you are storing your water? The vessel in which water is stored in not only contains it but also interacts with it and influences the chemical elements in it. In the old days, water was stored in earthen matkas but today, water bottles have become more popular. These bottles are commonly made of glass or plastic both of which can be harmful in the long run. Instead, Ayurveda suggests the use of copper vessels to store water. Here are a few reasons for this.

Plastic vs Glass vs Copper

One of the chemical elements present in all plastic bottles is Bisphenol A or BPA. This chemical has been linked to a number of diseases including cancer. They also contain a number of other toxins that are gradually absorbed by the water inside the bottle. Exposure to BPA when pregnant can lead to a woman giving birth to an underweight baby. This chemical can also affect the development of the brain and behaviour. Disposable mineral water bottles should never be reused for this reason. Plastic bottles also absorb odors and tend to leak after repeated use.

The glass is an inert material and hence when used to store water, does not influence it in any way. The two things you should look for, if you choose to buy glass bottles is that they are lead and cadmium free. However, glass bottles are not cheap and have a tendency to crack or break. Once broken, these bottles cannot be reused.

Copper also influences the chemical balance in the water. However, this does not harm the body in any way, but in fact, has a number of benefits. Copper acts as a natural sterilizer and has an oligodynamic effect on water stored in it. It has the ability to destroy a number of harmful pathogens that are commonly found in water. Copper is an element needed by the body and drinking water stored in a copper vessel supplies our body s daily copper requirement. 

Copper can also help regulate cholesterol, heart rate and blood pressure levels. Copper has also been associated with an ability to regulate thyroid functioning, ease joint pains, improve fertility, heal internal wounds, help in hemoglobin synthesis and in maintaining the proper acid-alkaline balance in our bodies. A copper bottle may seem a little expensive when you buy it but there is no chance of breakage. Hence, if handled properly, a copper bottle can last a lifetime. 

From the given arguments it is clear that using a copper vessel is the best way to store water.

Plastic Vs Glass Vs Copper - Which Type Of Vessel Should Be Used To Store Water?

Osteoporosis is a condition of porous bones that makes your bones weak and fragile. There are 3 thing you can do to avoid falling prey to Osteoporosis:
*Consult your doctor to figure what's the optimum amount of Calcium you should be taking. Pregnant women, for instance, need more calcium than normal people.
*Take Sun-bath daily to ensure adequate amount of Vitamin D for your body. There are other sources of Vitamin D too. Consult your doctor to find out what are those sources and what's the right amount.
*Regular exercise is extremely necessary for good bone health. Make a plan and stick to it

3 Important Things to do to Avoid Osteoporosis

Whether you are running out of time or just not hungry in the morning, missing a breakfast is equivalent to a grave crime. It is particularly a big mistake if you are aiming to lose weight or avoiding gaining weight. The metabolism rate slows down while you are asleep for conserving energy, and it invariably requires a power-packed energy to restart the metabolism with a forceful vigour. Therefore, the sooner you fuel your body with a healthy breakfast, the better it is.

When should you eat?

In a report published by National Weight Control Registry, it was declared that about 78 percent of successful dieters have a wholesome breakfast every morning. The ideal time is within an hour from when you wake up because you are more plausible to eat more than needed in the latter half of the day if you do not eat anything in the morning. This will lead to unwanted weight gain and other health troubles. Furthermore, eating a moderate meal in the morning improves cognition and mood as well.

If you are not able to eat immediately after you wake up, you must at least eat something wholesome within one hour. Eating early can keep your blood sugar and insulin levels under control while boosting your metabolism. When you are waiting too long to have the first meal of the day, you will develop a habit of opting for food rich in fats and bad carbohydrates and lower in nutrient content owing to irresistible hunger.

What should you eat?

Before breakfast 1 glass of water is necessary for cleaning of stomach. The ideal first meal of the day must include a balance of carbohydrates, protein and healthy fat. It is advised to abstain from high sugar foods like cookies, pastries, donuts or sugary cereals. Instead, you can look for hard-boiled eggs, proteins, brown bread, oatmeal, muffins and fruit juices. You must also have a cupful of green tea with a few drops of lime juice squeezed over it. This will help in detoxifying your body and bring out your skin's natural beauty and glow.

Why You Should Eat Breakfast Within an Hour of Waking Up?

According to the preconceived notion, drinking alcohol is harmful to the body. It is partly true. Drinking alcohol is harmful to the body, but only in huge proportions. In fact, despite popular belief, drinking alcohol is also good for health.

Here are 8 alcohols that are secretly keeping you healthy:

    Beer: The most common alcoholic drink, beer is loaded with antioxidants called phenols. This protects you against suffering from heart diseases. Beer also lowers the risk of acquiring high blood pressure and helps maintaining it.
    Red Wine: Apart from being a classy drink and having the same benefits of beer, the additional brownie points of red wine is that it helps in increasing life span by generating longevity genes. It also increases good cholesterol and reduces bad cholesterol in the body.
    Ethanol: Ethanol reduces the risk of wear and tear in the brain neurons. Any damage to the neurons may lead to Alzheimer's or dementia. Hence ethanol helps to prevent any harm to the brain cells.
    Vodka: Vodka helps in clearing bad breath as the high alcohol content kills all bad odour bacteria present. It also helps to reduce stress and disinfect wound. It improves the health of the skin and stimulates hair growth. Toothache is also another issue which Vodka can work wonders on.
    Whisky: Whisky helps to numb throat pain when it is gargled in a mixture with warm water. It stimulates weight loss. Whisky also helps in preventing dementia. Other benefits of this drink that it prevents diabetes and cancer. It also helps to keep the heart healthy, increases the level of good cholesterol and terminates blood clots. Whiskey is believed to be one of the healthiest drinks among the alcoholic beverages.
    Tonic: The combination of gin and tonic is very useful while treating malarial infection as it contains quinine; which is used for the treatment of malaria.
    Brandy: Brandy is one alcoholic drink which is full of healthy antioxidants. It has anti ageing properties; hence is very good for the skin. Brandy also reduces the level of bad cholesterol in the body. It also helps in the treatment of bladder and ovarian cancer as well as sore throats and cough.
    Rum: Rum increases life longevity. It is very beneficial for the heart. It also functions as a blood thinner and helps in increasing the level of good cholesterol. Having this wonderful drink occasionally also guards you against osteoporosis and common cold.

8 Alcoholic Drinks That Might Secretly Keep You Healthy

To keep up good health, it is absolutely necessary for one to indulge in physical exercise or activities. Physical activities, in general, are linked to a host of good benefits, such as reduced stress and a healthier and better outlook, besides increasing the body's resistance against complications like heart problems, high blood pressure, diabetes and muscle pain among others problems.

Similarly, the practice of yoga is an ancient tradition well known for its health benefits. In addition, walking can further complement the practice of yoga and they can together prove to be highly advantageous, to the extent where they can be possibly regarded a better alternative to the act of gyming.

Benefits
Here are a few benefits of gym workouts followed by the benefits of yoga plus walking: 

Benefits of gym and other exercises:
1.  Keep muscles fit
2.  Enhance respiration and perspiration
3.  Helps in weight loss
4.  Relieve stress
5.  Increase appetite and food consumption

Benefits of yoga and walking:
1.  Keep you active throughout the day
2.  Help bowel movement
3.  Increase mind control over the body
4.  Improve blood circulation
5.  Relieve anxiety and keeps one stress free
6.  Can be practiced anywhere and everywhere

Differences
Although it can be argued that gym workouts are better than yoga and vice-versa, the subject matter is highly ambiguous and debatable. Since both activities are good for your health, physically as well as mentally, it is very difficult to say which one is better; perhaps a detailed comparison of the differences between the two may be more helpful:

1.  While gymming and other exercises focus on building the body and helping you attain the desired body figure, yoga and walking aims at regulating the entire body mechanism, with more emphasis on mental control.
2.  While gym workouts may be more expensive, yoga requires minimal accessories and is therefore, more economically convenient.
3.  Yoga is suitable for people of all ages, whereas gymming and other intense physical activities are not advisable for old people or those with specific medical ailments like hypertension and heart problems.
4.  There are minimal withdrawal effects with yoga, in contrast to gym workouts.
5.  Gymming requires you to go to the gym, whereas yoga and walking can be done anywhere and everywhere.

Benefits of Yoga + Walking Vs Gyming

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