Reasons to eat Banana...

Googling every time leads me to some diverse things. Today also I actually was going through “the banana Republics” and it don’t know somehow lead me to “The Benefits of Banana”… Strange, isn’t it?…!!

But ya… for the people who are too lean, as I was; want to gain weight, as I wanted; are pure veggie, as I am, should know the paybacks of Banana as the best alternative for gaining weight easily. (Of course not the muscle building but the carbohydrates which at some extent not bad and ya too important for weight gaining)

Apart from attaining weight which I have thoroughly observed and experienced, following are the banana benefits which I was not knowing (and may be you too)

Blood pressure: Maintaining a low sodium intake is essential to lowering blood pressure, however increasing potassium intake may be just as important because of its vasodilation effects. According to the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, fewer than 2% of US adults meet the daily 4700 mg recommendation.

Also of note, a high potassium intake is associated with a 20% decreased risk of dying from all causes.

Asthma: A study conducted by the Imperial College of London found that children who ate just one banana per day had a 34% less chance of developing asthma.

Cancer: Consuming bananas, oranges and orange juice in the first two years of life may reduce the risk of developing childhood leukemia. As a good source of vitamin C, bananas can help combat the formation of free radicals known to cause cancer. High fiber intakes from fruits and vegetables like bananas are associated with a lowered risk of colorectal cancer.

Heart health: The fiber, potassium, vitamin C and B6 content in bananas all support heart health. An increase in potassium intake along with a decrease in sodium intake is the most important dietary change that a person can make to reduce their risk of cardiovascular disease.

In one study, those who consumed 4069 mg of potassium per day had a 49% lower risk of death from ischemic heart disease compared with those who consumed less potassium (about 1000 mg per day).

Diabetes: Studies have shown that type 1 diabetics who consume high-fiber diets have lower blood glucose levels and type 2 diabetics may have improved blood sugar, lipids and insulin levels. One medium banana provides about 3 grams of fiber.

Preserving memory and boosting mood: Bananas also contain tryptophan, an amino acid that studies suggest plays a role in preserving memory and boosting your mood.

So stay boosted.. and I again get into where I started from.. " Banana Republic "

Kingly Breakfast...

Breakfast like a King, Lunch like a Prince and Dine like a Pauper..

well-known but the most neglected fact right?.

During a busy morning, it's easy to let breakfast fall low in your list of priorities, but taking just a few minutes to have something to eat can really make a difference to your day. Every one of us might have heard that a healthy breakfast is the key to start your day with a bang.

After eight hours of starvation, our body needs adequate nutrition to initiate its regular activities. And quality, complex carbohydrates give us the energy we need to start the day. A healthy breakfast not only helps in weight management but also maintains your blood sugar levels. The NHS says...

"Eating breakfast has long term health benefits.  It can reduce obesity, high blood pressure, heart disease and diabetes."

Breakfast provides the body and brain with fuel after an overnight fast - that's where its name originates, breaking the fast!  Without breakfast you are effectively running on empty, like trying to start the car with no petrol!

Something which I just read when I was searching for the benefits of breakfast is as follows.

Breakfast benefits: Source of Energy

Nutritionists advise that breakfast should be eaten within two hours of waking and a healthy breakfast should provide calories in the range of 20-35% of your guideline daily allowance (GDA).

Apart from providing us with energy, breakfast foods are good sources of important nutrients such as calcium, iron and B vitamins as well as protein and fiber.  The body needs these essential nutrients and research shows that if these are missed at breakfast, they are less likely to be compensated for later in the day.  Fruit and vegetables are good sources of vitamins and minerals so try to include a portion of your daily five at breakfast, whether that be a banana or glass of fruit juice.

Breakfast benefits: Weight Control

Breakfast can be good for waistline too, research shows those who eat breakfast are less likely to be overweight and more likely to be within their ideal weight range compared with breakfast skippers.  If you skip breakfast, you're more likely to reach for high sugar and fatty snacks mid-morning.

Many studies, in both adults and children, have shown that breakfast eaters tend to weigh less than breakfast skippers.

One theory suggests that eating a healthy breakfast can reduce hunger throughout the day, and help people make better food choices at other meals. While it might seem you could save calories by skipping breakfast, this is not an effective strategy. Typically, hunger gets the best of breakfast-skippers, and they eat more at lunch and throughout the day. 

Breakfast benefits: Cognitive function

Breakfast also restores glucose levels, an essential carbohydrate that is needed for the brain to function.  Many studies have shown how eating breakfast can improve memory and concentration levels and it can also make us happier as it can improve mood and lower stress levels.  In studies amongst children, breakfast can improve attainment, behaviour and has been linked to improved grades.  Just like any other organ in the body, the brain needs energy to work at its best!

Click here to know why breakfast is must. And..

Enjoy Breakfast..

Continue Running...

So here I finally am finishing my consolidated list of "Start Running" tips and Hope these tips may help you in your Running, which I am sure you are going to start from tomorrow morning.

• Ease it back

"After a run, don't rush back into life. Take a few minutes to walk, stretch, relax, and meditate." —Runner's World editors

• Break the circle

"Quality counts, if you want to stay fast. Don't do all your workouts in the comfort zone." —Ken Sparks, Ph.D., top masters marathoner

• Observe certain rituals

"Once you find a warmup routine that works, repeat it as habitually as possible."—Ted Corbitt

• Finish it off

"To develop your kick, finish each repetition faster than you begin it. For example, if you're running 6 x 400 meters on the track, start off at a steady, controlled pace, then subtly shift gears in the last 100 or 200 meters." —Robert Vaughan, Ph.D., coach and exercise physiologist

• Take baby steps

"You can't climb up to the second floor without a ladder. When you set your goal too high and don't fulfill it, your enthusiasm turns to bitterness. Try for a goal that's reasonable, and then gradually raise it." —Emil Zatopek, four-time Olympic gold medalist from Czechoslavakia

• . . . . Anyone . . .(applicable for workout too)

"Never underestimate the value of a good training partner, even if it's your dog. Training allies will get you out the door on those days when exercise might otherwise be reduced to a finger on the remote control button." —Runner's World editors

• I have to do it..

"If one can stick to training throughout many long years, then willpower is no longer a problem. It's raining? That doesn't matter. I'm tired? That's beside the point. It's simply that I have to." —Emil Zatopek 

Click here to check for some basic running schedule. Hope it may help you. 

Finally few motivational words from my site. "You can do it. Believe me, anyone can run. Even if you are the laziest couch potato, you just need to hit your tipping point and decide to try it for real. One of the reasons I love running so much is because it provides me the way to surprise myself by accomplishing things that I honestly thought were impossible, even a short time beforehand. It’s an amazing feeling and I genuinely hope you get to experience it too."

So Enjoy Running..!!

Keep Running...

Firstly an apology for dividing this post into three. I thought like me, you all too may find it little boring to read 21 points in a single shot. So here we go with 2/3 of the “Start running” post.  

• Warm up then stretch

"Try some light jogging or walking before you stretch, or stretch after you run. Stretching 'cold' muscles can cause more harm than good." —Runner's World editors

• Stay hydrated

"Hydrate. Hydrate. Hydrate! In cold weather and warm. We use water to sweat, lubricate joints, tendons, and ligaments, and to carry blood efficiently to major organs. I work all day at hydrating." —Dr. Alex Ratelle, former masters running great

• Listen to your limits

"You must listen to your body. Run through annoyance, but not through pain." —Dr. George Sheehan

• Every mile is important

"So-called 'junk miles'—those slow miles done on easy days or during warm ups—do count. They burn calories as effectively as fast miles; it just takes longer. Regardless of pace, each mile you run burns about 100 calories." —Hal Higdon, runner/writer/coach

• Go for the goal and compete with yourself

"I believe in using races as motivators. It's hard to keep on an exercise program if you don't have a significant goal in sight." —Bob Greene, personal trainer of Oprah Winfrey

• Consistency (yeah again!!)

"Day to day consistency is more important than big mileage. Then you're never shot the next day." —John Campbell, former masters running star from New Zealand

• Tune in to your body

Once you hit a pace that feels comfortable, tune in to how your body feels. How hard are you breathing? How quickly are your legs turning over? How do your leg muscles feel? Getting a sense of how your comfortable pace feels will help you lock into it on every run.

So..keep youself updated for the final segment of "Start Running" posts. Till then..

Enjoy Running..!!

(To be continued..)

Start Running...

For most of us, running for beginners is quite a challenge. That’s why I have been searching some tips from many days. I put something to the test the other day and entered into Google "Tips of running” and started getting too many. So, I thought I would put together a list of it, which would stand up to the test of research and I was left with this list which I also have applied successfully to myself.

• Inception

As a new runner keep to less than 5 runs a week, have one complete day of rest and also have the odd lighter week when you do less mileage than normal.

• Increase minutes not miles

"The biggest mistake that new runners make is that they tend to think in mile increments—1 mile, 2 miles, 3 miles. Beginning runners need to think in minutes, not miles." —Budd Coates, four-time U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials qualifier/coach

• Shoes matters

"Spend at least $60. A good pair of running shoes should last you 400 to 500 miles and is one of the most critical purchases you will make." —John Hanc, author of The Essential Runner

• Talk test needed

"The 'talk test' means running at a pace comfortable enough to converse with a training partner—but not so easy that you could hit the high notes in an Italian opera." —Runner's World editors

• Relax

"When running, let your jaw hang loose, don't bunch up your shoulders close to your ears, and occasionally shake out your hands and arms to stay relaxed." —Dave Martin, Ph.D., exercise physiologist

• Hand position matters

"Don't clench your fists in a white-knuckle grip. Instead, run with a cupped hand, thumbs resting on the fingers, as if you were protecting an egg in each palm." —Runner's World editors

• Not time but consistency matters

"If 15 minutes is all the time I have, I still run. Fifteen minutes of running is better than not running at all." —Dr. Duncan Macdonald, former U.S. record holder at 5000 (set when he was in medical school)

There are many more tips that am going to post over here. So stay tuned.. 

Enjoy Running..!!

(To be continued..)

Water basics...

Daily water intake required

Another tough workout.. A 5K warm-up followed by 60 minutes of weight lifting and completed with 10 minutes of active stretching. Now where is my water bottle? Although I do not know if I can find it with this mess.. I am seeing everywhere.

Well.. maybe this fictional workout is a bit overzealous, but I am sure that everyone can recall finishing a tough workout and reaching for that cool sip of water that seems to satisfy you to the very core of your soul. Why does that sip of water feel so satisfying and why is water so important anyway?

Surely I am not going to give a long scientific lecture on water intake but will just copy-paste-modify some of the water related things that I found are too important for all who actually somehow somewhat gets involved in fitness training..

Water sure does a lot, which is why when the body has too little water the effects are devastating. Water loss, dehydration, occurs when the loss of body fluids exceeds the amount that is taken in. The symptoms of dehydration are varied but include increased thirst (your brain telling you your body needs water), dry mouth and dry nasal passages, weakness, dizziness, palpitations (due to the subsequent electrolyte imbalance dehydration causes), confusion, inability to sweat, heat exhaustion, heat stroke and if ignored long enough, death.

Physical activity, such as bodybuilding, exposes people to a variety of influences like..

• Duration and intensity of the workout
• Environmental conditions in which it was performed
• Type of clothing worn
• Individual's physical characteristics such as body weight, gender, age and metabolic efficiency

.. that can lead to water loss

Moreover normal diet for a bodybuilder is very high in fiber, but even more likely protein. With such high levels of protein there can be excess nitrogen and urea, which will be cleared out by extra water. Water also helps the kidneys do their job.

When you become dehydrated, you are not able to lift as much and workout at the same intensity as you would have if you were not dehydrated. It's estimated that a 2% reduction in body fluids can result in performance decreases of up to 15-20%. To have the best workout you can possibly have, you need to stay hydrated.

To maintain proper hydration,

• Individual bodybuilder must consider their own water balance defined as how much fluid is consumed versus how much is lost
• Pre-hydration should be considered based on urinary output and color (darker indicates improper hydration) before beginning your workout,
• Goal should be to prevent excessive dehydration during your workout,  
• Frequently drinking during the workout is recommended at a rate of 0.4 - 0.8 liters per hour.
• Post workout, the goal should be to fully replace any fluids. If time permits, consumption of meals and beverages will restore the proper fluid balance. If the food or beverages have sodium in them, it is even better.
• Eating fresh fruits and vegetables contributes to your water intake. Drinking milk, fruit juices and caffeine-free teas and coffees are also good alternatives to plain tap water
• Caffeinated beverages on the other hand present a bit of a conundrum. Caffeine is a diuretic and promotes water loss. Yet beverages that contain caffeine can be considered adding to your fluid intake, albeit to a lesser extent

And finally something interesting I found which may help us to drink more..

• Have a beverage with every snack and meal. 
• Choose beverages you enjoy; you're likely to drink more liquids if you like the way they taste.
• Eat more fruits and vegetables. Their high water content will add to your hydration. About 20% of our fluid intake comes from foods.
• Keep a bottle of water with you in your car, at your desk, or in your bag.
• Choose beverages that meet your individual needs. If you're watching calories, go for non-caloric beverages or water.

of course beverages above doesn't mean soft drink or alcohol.