General Health

Hi friends, happy Friday!

How is it going? I am sure, all good.

A few days back, in my Instagram stories, I ran an #ama (ask me anything) and all the questions I received on it, were about weight loss or about protein. We will come to protein some other day but let’s discuss the fundamentals of weight loss, today and in the next few posts. It is important to understand these basics of weight loss if that is your current goal.

Here is my Instagram link, in case you wish to join me there:

https://www.instagram.com/healthcoach_smita/

Weight loss and weight management are both not easy tasks, for anyone. Here, I said it. Let me also complete the paragraph by saying that it is not that hard either. A body achieves what a mind believes, isn’t it the truth?

However, it’s not as simple as losing weight through crash-diets or low-calorie diets or… long-hours/days of fasting coupled with binge-eating. Actions have consequences (good and bad) and what we eat (or not eat) impacts our health in a big way.

When we crash-diet or go on low-calorie diets, our body adapts in a lot of different ways and not all of them are positive. Our best bet is to lose weight slowly and steadily, in a healthy way – so that we can have a control over sagging skin, sunken eye’s/cheeks, hormonal irregularities, mental health concerns, slow metabolism, nutritional deficiencies, sustainability and so on…

And that is why I am starting today with first explaining a few terms that one needs to understand before undertaking a weight-loss journey, for it to be:

• healthy
• sustainable for life
• bringing more positive changes as a bundle, rather then just unhealthy weight loss which would anyways make its appearance back soon, trust me

Let’s begin. Today’s post is about a word that we hear (and use) on a daily basis with ease however, if someone asks us to describe the word, I am sure most of us would not know how exactly to describe it. We know it, we are aware of it and yet, what it exactly means is not clear to most of us.

The word and topic of today’s blog is ‘Metabolism’. We use the word every day, in so many different contexts such as – “I need to boost my metabolism”, “I have a slow metabolism”, “this is good for metabolism” and “this boosts metabolism”, “she/he must have good metabolism, she/he never puts on any weight” and the kinds.

Let’s see what actually this mysterious metabolism is. To me, it seems that if we can figure this metabolism thing out, we can find solutions to many of our problems.

What Is Metabolism?

Simply put, whatever we eat or drink, is converted into energy for the body to use. The whole process of this converting food into energy is called metabolism. It is not a single-step process.

And we do need energy for everything that our body does – whether we run or rest. Body also needs energy for all the body functions that we don’t even see happening e.g. beating of our heart, circulation of blood, constant repair work inside cells, digestion and what not.

The very basic energy we require for our body’s basic functions is also called as Basal Metabolic Rate. This generally remains constant for a person and it takes considerable effort to change it. It also varies from one person to another due to many factors, such as:

• Gender
• Age
• Body composition
• Body size

Metabolism, to be honest, on its own has very little to do with weight loss per se. Shocking, right! It is true. So, unless one suffers from hypothyroidism or any other medical problem which actually affects metabolism, we can’t blame metabolism for our weight gain.

You see, weight gain happens due to lot of factors such as:

• Energy disbalance e.g. you eat more than your body burn
• Diet composition – means that even if you eat less or okay in terms of calories but the composition is not optimum for you
• Physical activity
• Sleep quality
• Stress
• Hormonal profile
• Lifestyle choices
• Genetic

Then Why Worry About Metabolism?

If it is not important why do we even worry about metabolism?  No point doing any sort of physical activity also if metabolism can’t be changed, right?

Wrong. Metabolism is important. In a way you probably never even looked at. Remember what I said when we began this post. The factors that affect weight-management. Recall the third point or scroll up. Right, body composition! And then, there is diet composition.

I have thrown probably two news terms at you today and may I say, of utmost importance. These are:

• Diet composition – what our diet is made of or macronutrients (and even micronutrients) such as carbs, protein, fat, fibre, vitamins, minerals etc.
• Body Composition – what our body is made of. Muscles or fat? What is their percentage? How much are the bones?

Now that you started to get it, let’s stop here today. Let it get absorbed. Think about these two words, their meaning and see where do you stand in both these terms.

Now, what to do about these terms, would follow in the subsequent posts and I will also keep sharing little nuggets of info (and motivation – super important, if you ask me) to work on these in my daily Instagram stories.

Hope you find what I write, useful and that it helps you in your goals and lifestyle modification efforts. All the best 🙂

Love, Health & Peace

Hi friends, how are you all?

In my last post, we discussed metabolism, the very foundation of weight loss. You can read it here if you missed it. We also discussed why we gain weight at all, in the first place.

In this series, I am not going to give you tips on how to lose/gain weight or how to maintain weight. What I am trying to do here is to explain, in simple terms a few things such as:

1. Why do we gain weight?
2. How can we lose weight sustainably?
3. How not to worry if you are doing everything right but still not losing weight?
4. How to lose fat and not muscles/water?
5. How to keep that hard-earned weight-loss forever?

I firmly believe that even if weight loss/gain/management is not easy, it should be a healthy and steady process. One should be able to make healthier and informed choices.

As for question no. 1, weight gain can happen due to lot of factors such as:

• Energy disbalance e.g. you eat more than your body burn
• Diet composition – means that even if you eat less or okay in terms of calories but the composition is not optimum for you
• Physical activity
• Sleep quality
• Stress
• Hormonal profile
• Lifestyle choices
• Genetic factors – which is the reason for us to work harder rather than simply resigning to it. Afterall, it is just a higher-than-normal risk, not something that would necessarily come true!

Now that we know what are the most common reasons for gaining weight, we can see what is our weak area and work accordingly. I have written about it in past and on my Instagram stories, I keep sharing small tips and info for it too. You can join me on Instagram here, if you want:

https://www.instagram.com/healthcoach_smita/

Now, coming to the 3^rd and 4^th questions (will come to 2^nd later), let us know what is body composition. It would tell us what kind of weight to lose and what kind to get on, even if it means no weight loss on your weighing scale!

Body Composition

Body composition is one reason why I wanted to be a Nutritionist as well as a Fitness Trainer, combined. I believe in a combined, holistic approach to health and fitness. Why? Because they go hand in hand, for optimal benefits.

In simple terms, body composition is the percentage of muscles, fat, water and minerals (e.g. bones) in our bodies. Two people with same weight can have very different body composition and thus, vary greatly in terms of overall health and fitness levels. For me (and most health experts), body composition is more important than just weight.

Body weight falling in average BMI category is very important yes, but after looking at BMI, it is also very important to have the right kind of fat/muscle percentage in the body. Too much of fat, especially around the belly area…even if your weight and BMI are normal, is still not healthy. It can lead to various diseases such as heart concerns, stroke, diabetes, obesity etc

Similarly unhealthy fad-diets, crash diets and prolonged fasting deplete our body of precious muscles. We might lose weight but most likely it would be muscles (and water and important minerals from our body). Not healthy again.

We any which ways lose muscles aka sarcopenia (and bone mass too) as we age and fastening the process with unhealthy diets and habits, just makes the matter worse.

How To Know Body Composition

There are several methods for it however, we might need one tool/machine or the other. Your nutritionist or fitness expert can help you with that. From basic tools like fat calipers to sophisticated BMI machines, pick whichever is accessible to you.

How To Achieve The Right Body Composition?

It isn’t hard. One needs to have a good balance of muscles, fats and minerals in body. Water too, of course but that’s for another day.

Right nutrition combined with a regular exercise routine can do that for anybody. It is that simple! Equally important is a right mindset which can learn to focus on a healthy weight, with a slow, steady and sustainable for life kind of approach. Throw in some muscles and you have got a winner!

Focus on:

• Right nutrition within your calorie requirements
• Having foods which are cleaner and satisfying
• Ensure adequate protein and fibre intake
• Physical activity and regular exercise
• Good sleep quality
• Avoid/low alcohol consumption
• Quit smoking

In The End

Just your weight is not an indication of good health and I am sure one can feel/notice that herself/himself. Good nutrition and regular exercise are critical for a good body composition and this comes with a host of other advantages such as strength and good health, in general.

Hoping that this second post today, in the series, helped you in understanding the basic concepts of weight loss.

Till next Friday,

Love, Health & Peace

Hi friends, how are you all? All good, I am sure. And even if there was something that is bothering you, I am sure you will soon find a way out ?

It has been quite a hectic week for me too as I finally presented Nutrition Works (my own nutrition label) to you and the world. Not in a big way still, until I am able to add more products to it. Do try the super-yummy chocolate cake, made clean and fresh, without added sugars/additives and with mixed flours…that can be customized as per your preferences/diet/medical concerns (while retaining the core-deliciousness).

My belief that one can eat healthier and cleaner with a little effort holds true with this chocolate cake (and with other products that I would introduce soon, hopefully).

To add to the chaos, my help hasn’t been around and the younger one had a birthday party planned. So, between the clients, chores, cakes, birthday planning/buying, online schooling/reviews and some time for myself and my studies…it was crazy! Good crazy though ?

Coming back to the post today, we now come to the third and the last post of ‘’Weight Loss’’ series. With this series, I have tried to give you a very important tool so that you can decide what works best for you. And that tool is – knowledge which brings the power to make right decisions, for oneself.

Because there are no thumb rules. Neither in nutrition nor in fitness. What is right for me might not be right for you. What works for you might not work for me.

And that brings us to diet composition.

What is Diet Composition?

In simple terms, diet composition is the combination or percentage of various major nutrients of our diet. The carbs, the fats, the protein, the fibre and of course, other micronutrients (vitamins, minerals, polyphenols etc).

A balanced diet would provide us with enough energy to go through the day as well as enough nutrients to maintain good body composition and…health. Sometimes, diet might be able to provide adequate energy but isn’t well-balanced! Sometimes, it can create energy-imbalance.

How much of each (as well the quality of each nutrient), is a good question and it all depends on our goals. For good health in general, it is easy to achieve though. How? We will come to it, shortly.

Just calorie-counting is incomplete in itself if the calories comes from unhealthy sources or result in nutritional deficiencies/malnutrition.

The Downside

There is a downside to diet composition too, yes. And we bring it in ourselves when we become obsessed with counting every single carb or eliminating an entire food group, from our diet…or add too much of good thing beyond our actual requirements.

So, What To Do?

There are a few things that we all could do when it comes to eating a well-balanced diet and though these would differ slightly from one person to another, due to a lot of factors including individual goals…these still hold true at a foundation level:

• We can practice intuitive eating for one. This means that we eat when we are really hungry and not to find comfort in food. It is also an anti- crash dieting approach to food
• Keeping ourselves occupied with things that we like can keep us stress-free.This in turn, helps us with keeping our diet (and life) on track
• Stay active physically
• We must eat a variety of food on a daily basis. This means that we experiment with healthier options and include all sorts of grains, vegetables and fruits to our diet. Of course, one would take care of medical concerns here and avoid foods that create contradictions with certain medical conditions/medications etc
• Do not exclude specific food groups from diet. One can increase or decrease certain components e.g. you could add protein a little more if you are physically more active however, including everything on a daily basis helps tremendously. One can always look for alternatives if one is allergic or uncomfortable with a certain food-item
• Keeping food clean is very important. This simple means that we reduce our consumption of highly processed food and food that we already know is doing us no good. Do notice that I said, reduce…not completely stop. It can be gradual process and a sustainable approach to food works best, in my experience
• Practice mindful eating. Please take 10 minutes to sit quietly and enjoy the food. Observe how it tasted and how it made you feel. Chew slowly. Follow your hunger and satiety cues. And this would only happen if we make a conscious effort towards listening to our body
• Moderation is the key to a sustainable health plan. However, some things such as smoking, are best completely quit

In the end, if general good health is our goal, the above-mentioned points would serve us well. If we have specific goals in mind or we seek disease management, best to get professional help.

Hope you found this post (and this series) helpful. Do share with people who you think might benefit from these post. In case you wish to join me on Instagram, here is the link to it:

https://www.instagram.com/healthcoach_smita/

Till next Friday

Love, Heath & Peace