Health and living

My husband Sarang has a very hectic life. Work keeps him on his toes. The moment you read this you will start thinking about your spouse/you yourself/ and other such people who are caught in this cobweb of work load and career path snatching the work life balance from them. On one hand where technology is fast changing and making life easy for us, it is also a slow poison for us. Look at the irony of it.....people who are designing these life changing products, their lives are changing too but not in a good way but rather in a way where it is impacting their health, mental peace and family life. Every one today is so caught up in his/her work and accomplishing the career goals they have set that families are falling apart, teen pregnancy cases are rising, drugs keep creating health havoc. There is hardly any time for anything else. You wake up and work, you go to office and work, you sleep and dream work. Not that no one wants little bit of peace here and there,but we all forget that a little change in our habits and way of life will go a long way and probably lessen the pain.I would like to share some tips from our own lives and will love to know if that helps you at all. 1. Old habits die hard but a conscious approach to live a healthy life goes a long way. Some say, we have to die one day so eat and live big. But who wants to die a painful death (paralysis, disability and other lifestyle diseases) or live a painful life causing pain and discomfort to others too? All it takes is a strong will and a little change in our lifestyle and we get accustomed to it gradually. 2. Our ancestors ate all and still lived long comes as an answer whenever you tell people to eat healthy. Mind it, they did not have a sedentary life like us with all the modern day comforts. I haven't heard anyone saying our ancestors had a hard life, lot of hard work, loads of kids and still found time to be with their family, meet everyone and live with tolerance with all. Can we not use their example here in finding time for each other? 3. Substituting normal salt with lite salt with less sodium, cheese with lite cheese, white bread with brown bread or wholegrain bread, sugar with honey, vegetable oil with rice bran oil/olive oil/ mustard oil, white rice with brown rice and straining water out of rice, whole milk with fat free milk,and many such changes will definitely make you much more fitter. 4. Food is not bad till we know how to eat everything in control. We can eat everything till we can control our portions/servings.Timing to eat something is also very important. If we eat a healthy breakfast, it will keep us going till lunch and also control our appetite.. Dinner should always be light and early. Body needs some time to digest the food. Avoid eating fruits in the night for it creates water retention and also has natural sugar in it. Carbohydrate intake should be less to nil after lunch. Diet should be rich in protein, complex carbohydrate, and vitamins. 5. Exercise daily at least five days a week. The lame excuse that we don't have time is nothing but self justification. And just because you exercise daily does not mean you can eat all. Burning 200 hundred calorie and then eating 3000 calories is the typical ostrich approach to food:-). Exercise regime can also be broken into parts if one hour at a stretch is too much for really busy people. People who work inside tall buildings, can probably take the stairs and plan their own workout on stairs for 15-20 mins at work itself. Breathing at work too helps. Park your car at a little distance. Every little walk counts. If you can afford, hit the gym at least five days a week or play a sport. Cardio workout and weight training, both are needed for a healthy workout. You don't have to have a six pack abs. A healthy BMI (Body Mass Index), and a body fat percentage is important. No two people have the same body type and metabolism. Also men lose weight faster than women. So stop comparing yourself with others. 5. Count your calories and eat. A little binging here and there is ok but the idea is to compensate it in your next workout or your meal. 2000-2400 calorie no longer implies in our lives anymore.The lesser the calories the healthier you stay. But do not starve yourself to death with stupid diet plans. 6. Stay away from sodas, ready made fruit juices. Even fresh fruit juice has a lot of natural sugar so better dilute it with water and reduce the portion. Try and stay away from artificial sweeteners too. The colour white isnt a very recommended color for food i.e. Flour, sugar, dairy products also to an extent should be kept away from the human body. Go natural and stay away from all the processed food, chicken, cookies, biscuits, cakes, namkeens etc.You are what you eat. If possible go vegetarian.I have turned one and it feels great. 7. Talk about your problems to someone you trust ( that does not mean you altogether rely on the person). Try and live a stress free life. Passive aggression is unhealthy and in a way a disorder. 8. Be good to people around you. Treat them the way you want to be treated.Be friendly and polite with the elderly.We will grow old too. 9. Dont litter/ spit/ pee on the road. It is the nature's living room. Dont dirty it. Nature makes us pay back in our own coin with natural calamities/disasters. 10. Be kind to animals. 11. Be open to learning. It is a never ending thing. 12. Find time for your loved ones. 13.Be humble, and be real. If we all make an effort to be a good human being, this world will be a much nicer place and we much happier humans. 14. No one has a perfect life. We all have our share of sufferings or sorrows. So stop comparing and envying others. You have something better which the other person doesn't have and vice versa. 15. In the end, do not forget that death is the inevitable truth of life. You came alone and will go alone and will leave everything else behind. So don't let the monetary pleasure take your inner peace away.