You know
what’s the key to a great year? Prioritising different elements of your life so
that you get the best out of it; and no matter who you are or what you do, the
thing that should always top your list of priorities is your health. The people
who find it necessary to make health resolutions are usually dealing with
weight issues so while losing weight tops their health list, nobody really
concentrates on the ‘how’ of things. And what about those who are of normal
weight? Don’t you think it’s important to maintain overall health? Here’s where
a resolution to maintain good health no matter what your current status is
becomes
important.
With an
increasing amount of people following a lifestyle that involves less physical
activity, they are dangerously close to suffering from various ailments they
are unaware of. After giving into the
season’s cravings, everybody wants to get back into shape within a short period
of time and hence they opt out for the trending crash diets and strenuous
workouts to get back into shape. Fitness trainers from various gyms have
unanimously agreed on how reservations are made in the gym for the first week
after New Year’s. According to Sheryl Afonso e D’Souza, Dietician at Nobert’s
Fitness Studio, “At the end of the year, people gorge on a lot of fattening and
unhealthy food and then go on a crash diet in the early weeks of the new year
which, according to me, is a big NO. As the name suggests, these diets make you
crash; they don’t make you healthier.” Though these crash diets and workouts
may seem to give you immediate results, these results are fleeting and quite
damaging to your body as a whole.
“Nowadays,
everyone wants to have a lean physique. A bit of bicep and chest size
increased. Overweight people want to lose a few kilos but nobody is interested
in maintaining an overall healthy body. Once they achieve their objective,
people stop exercising until the next time they need to get into shape,”
laments Akbar Gazi, owner and fitness trainer of Muscle Kraft, a gym in
Curtorim.
The
current fad of consuming supplements without proper knowledge for that added
push can also be detrimental when adopted without consultation. Having a hectic
schedule is what often leads to people trying to take these misinformed shorts
cuts to good health. Yet hectic schedules are just an excuse, the experts say.
If we all have the time to party, finish work and sleep, sparing one hour in a
day is the minimum you can do for your own good health. It is not even necessary to go to a gym for a
workout session. You can always work from home if you have the equipments or
simply practise routines that don’t require equipment.
And
don’t forget a healthy, balanced diet. “The general diet plan for everyone is
to have 5-6 meals a day. The three main meals – breakfast, lunch and dinner are
very important; intersperse them with smaller portions of food. The in-between
meals could be homemade juices, whole fruits and vegetables or nuts; avoid oily
snacks such as samosas. Vegetables are very essential to a healthy diet and you
have to ensure that they are included in your meals,” advises Sheryl.
What is
the advice given by these experts for people this New Year? Akbar says, “Go to the gym and stay fit.
Maintain a healthy body.” Sheryl adds, “Party hard but exercise and work on
maintaining a healthy diet harder.” So yes it is difficult maintaining the oath
of remaining healthy after the initial few weeks but it is not impossible so
put on those gym shoes and plan a healthy diet. Cheers to a healthy new year!
