What small tips can improve health substantially?

I request you to take out 10 minutes from your busy schedule and read this answer.

Here, I share with you a large part of what I have learnt over the years. This answer will be long but I assure you will not regret reading it.

Alright then. Here we go.

Drinking water is an art.

Straight from the teachings of the legendary Vagbhata.

Sushruta, one of the earliest surgeons, Charaka, a medical genius, and Vagbhata are considered to be "The Trinity" of Ayurvedic knowledge.

1. Avoid drinking water just before or after meals - When we eat food, the body temperature increases due to the formation of a digestive fire (jathr agni, as called by Vagbhata). When we drink water just after or before the meals, the body temperature decreases which hinders the digestion process. You can drink water 40 minutes before a meal and one hour after the meal.
2. Always drink water sip by sip - This helps the saliva to move along with the water into stomach. Our saliva is basic in nature and hence helps the stomach overcome it’s acidity. Vagbhata had said that human saliva has many more medicinal properties
3. Let water be the first thing in the morning - The saliva produced overnight is most effective and hence water should be drunk before brushing or rinsing the mouth.
4. Avoid Chilled water - Vagbhata in Ashtanghrudyam has said that drinking too much of chilled water narrows the large intestine which slows down the bowel movements.
5. Avoid drinking water while standing - According to Vagbhata, one should never drink water while standing. He has specifically mentioned two sitting positions for drinking water. First is the squatting position and other being cross legged.

Watch this video for more clarity

• Practice drinking 3 liters of water every day. Staying hydrated has umpteen benefits, one of which is that it keeps the metabolism up.

2 ways to know if the body is getting dehydrated:

1. If the color of your urine is dark yellow.
2. If the lips are getting parched.

Darker the better

The darker fruit/vegetable is , the higher it will be in antioxidants. For eg: Black grape is higher in antioxidants than white grapes. Purple cabbage is higher in antioxidants than green cabbage. Similarly, when buying Jaggery, choose the darker one.

Anti-oxidants help us stay immune from diseases.

Do not fall for these common diet myths

• The lesser the fat I eat, the better it is for weight loss. No. Healthy fats are essential for the daily functioning of body.
• Crash dieting helps in weight loss. No. Crash dieting can never help you lose weight in the long run. It’ results are temporary and effect is unhealthy.
• If the label says “fat free”, it won’t make me gain weight. No. Always read the ingredients before buying anything.
• If I am working out regularly, I can eat as much as I want. No. If you do so, you are just wasting your time working out.
• If I want to lose weight. I got to eat only salads. Hell no. Please don’t starve yourself. Eat a well balanced diet, no matter what your fitness goal is.
• I should not eat more than 4 almonds per serving. It will generate heat in the body. No, it’s not true. One handful of almonds is considered to be one serving.
• I should not eat almonds without soaking them in water. It will generate heat. Forget this heat concept. It’s untrue.
• I should remove the skin of almonds before eating them. No. Skin contains Vitamin E which is essential for skin nourishment.
• I should thoroughly chew almonds. This is true. And this is true for whatever food you eat. Don’t be biased towards almonds :p

Do not do these workout mistakes

• Skipping the warm up/cool down before/after the actual workout. This may lead to injury.
• Following the same routine always. The body gets used to it and stops giving results.
• Not training the body proportionately. Concentrating on a few parts and skipping the others will make you regret in the long run.
• Not drinking water while working out. Not doing this may cause fatigue.
• Concentrating on lifting heavy at the cost of bad form. Lift as heavy as you can but until the form is correct, it won’t help you.
• Spending too much time in the gym. 45 minutes of rigorous workout is more than enough.

Protein is essential for one and all

Irrespective of your physical goals or gender, protein is essential. It is required by the body for it’s regular wear and tear. It helps nourish the hair and skin. Unfortunately, our Indian style of eating is full of carbohydrates. I request you to add protein in your diet.

How much protein a day?

1. If you have a sedentary lifestyle i.e. you are not active and do not workout, you should still be eating at least protein (in grams) equal to your body weight (in kilograms).
2. If you have a fairly active lifestyle i.e. you workout 3–4 days a week, you should eat protein (in grams) twice your body weight (in kilograms).
3. Let’s say you are very active i.e. you workout 5–6 days a week. Moreover, you are working out for over 5–6 years and your muscles are mature. Then you should eat protein (in grams) thrice or even four times your body weight (in kilograms.

Non Vegetarian Protein sources:

• Chicken Breast has about 25 g of protein/ 100 g .
• Egg White: 1 egg white has around 4 g of protein.
• Fish : 100 g of fish has around 25 g of protein.

Some Vegetarian Protein Sources:

Black Beans - 19 g protein / 100 g

Chickpeas - 18 g protein / 100 g

Black chana - 18 g protein / 100 g

Cottage cheese (paneer) - 18 g protein / 100 g

Soy chunks - 52 g protein / 100 g (It’s advisable to keep daily intake of soy not more than 50 g as it may decrease the testosterone levels in men )

Moreover, one should not overdo protein intake per serving. The amount of protein that our body can absorb is 24 g to 50 g depending upon the muscle maturity.

Just like protein, other macro nutrients like carbohydrates, healthy fats, vitamins, minerals and dietary are also essential for the daily functioning of the body. To know more about it, checkout this short video.

Overcome the bland taste of egg whites. Hacks.

We all know now that egg whites are a great source of lean protein. But we also know that how difficult it is to eat an egg white alone. So try this:

1. Mix the egg whites with a curry. Just cut the egg whites into small pieces and dunk them into whatever curry is prepared at your home. This will result in the following:

• The protein value of the curry will increase.
• The taste of the curry won’t change
• The egg whites will taste better because of curry.
• You can happily eat egg whites.

2. Whenever you prepare an omelette, mix egg whites along with whole eggs. For eg: 4 egg whites along with 2 whole eggs.

You can checkout this video for more information :

• Do not eat more than 2 whole eggs a day.
• Eat as many egg whites as you want.
• 6 egg whites make one serving. No. They don’t cause any heat in the body. Forget that.

Just 15 minutes

1 . Experts recommend that 15 minutes of everyday workout is more than enough to stay fit.

2. Yes, I know that you are very busy. Taking this into consideration I have designed a workout series. You can do at your home without any equipment. I have covered all major muscles along with warm up and cool down exercises. It has 10 episodes. Check it out. Hit one muscle group a day. I have also added one fat loss cardio for the obese.

What should you eat before a workout ?

An ideal meal before a workout should be high in carbohydrates, moderate in proteins and low in fats.

Basically, you need two macro nutrients before the workout. Carbohydrates (preferably complex carbohydrates as they provide energy for longer period of time) and proteins. This is because carbohydrates are best sources of energy. Eating protein helps improve muscle protein synthesis, prevent muscle damage and promotes recovery.

Fats, because they slow down the absorption, should be kept to minimum before workouts.

What should you eat after a workout?

The most important macro nutrient required post workout is Protein. The muscle fibers which were broken while working out needs protein to get repaired and rebuild.

Then the body also requires carbohydrates, preferably fast digesting carbohydrates, to replenish the muscle glycogen.

Fats must not be taken post workout as the body needs immediate recovery and fats slow down the absorption.

Moreover, protein should come from a fast digesting source like egg whites. Chicken breast, fish and other meat sources are not ideal form of protein, post workout.

Taking into consideration the complexity and importance of a post workout meal, I share with you 4 post workout meal options to recover the muscle fast in this video:

• No. You should not have almonds post workout. Please understand that almonds are a source of healthy fats. Again, checkout my grocery shopping video linked above in the answer to know clearly what food contains which macro nutrient.

The Thumb Rule

1. To Lose Weight - Find out your weight in pounds. Now divide it by 2. Consume these many carbohydrates (in grams) everyday to lose weight. For example: My weight is 60 kg i.e approximately 132 pounds. So if I want to lose weight, I should not consume not more than 132/2 = 66 g of Carbohydrates. The only video you will need to lose weight is this:

1. To Gain Weight - Find out your weight in pounds. Now multiply it by 2. Consume these many carbohydrates (in grams) everyday to gain weight. For instance: My weight is 60 kg i.e approximately 132 pounds. So if I want to gain weight, I should consume 132*2 = 264 g of Carbohydrates. The only video you will need to put on healthy weight is this. The video also features a home made mass gainer shake.

Spot reduction is a myth

No. You can reduce fat from your face, thighs, hips, neck or any other body part alone. Fat acts like the layers of an onion. The fat gets removed layer by layer from the whole body. Again, the only video you will need to lose fat is the one linked just above.

Control junk food cravings

1. Whenever you get junk food cravings just tap your forehead for 30 seconds and I guarantee that your food cravings will stop. This happens because tapping the forehead distracts the mind.
2. Moreover, the cravings last for not more than 10 minutes.

For more information checkout this video:

Some more tips

• Peanut butter is one of the healthiest sources of fat. However, the peanut butter that you will buy in the market is unhealthy. This is because it is adulterated with hydrogenated oils which are bad for health. But do not worry. You can make peanut butter in just 15 mins at home.

• Never skip breakfast. Instead, keep it heavy and balanced with all major macro nutrients.
• Prefer eating whole grains like whole wheat, brown rice, oats etc. over refined grains like refined flour, white rice, white bread etc. Whole grains are rich in dietary fiber and provide energy for a longer period of time.
• Start using olive oil cooking spray. This will reduce your daily oil intake significantly.
• Include at least one serving of raw vegetable salad in your diet daily. It may comprise of carrots, cucumbers, cabbage, beetroots etc. These salads are vital in cutting the lower belly fat.
• Switch to low fat dairy products. Actually, I would suggest you to make curd and cottage cheese (paneer) at home using low fat milk. Trust me, it will save you money and give you health.
• Rinse your mouth thoroughly after every meal.
• Cut down on sugar. Refined sugar is nothing but empty calories. Moreover, it brings along major health problems. Try to stick to natural sweeteners like fruits, Stevia, maple syrup and natural honey.
• Stay away from your cellphones and laptop at least half an hour before you sleep at night. Not only will it help you sleep fast, but also you will have a deep sleep.