In today’s fast paced world, everything is desired at a lightning speed, be it food delivery, a new dress or professional success. We all need it now. And to fulfil our wants, there are online food aggregators, e-commerce apps and fast moving careers. Finding resonance with all this, people have started looking for this in health also. Youngsters and even middle aged men and housewives , with poor physical activity, jump into the neighbourhood
gym wagon to become healthy overnight.
We also equate health with fitness and hence the craze for body building flaunting those biceps. But is health so cheap and easy to acquire? Our self founded notions are put to rest when we hear or see some videos circulating in social media/ television, of young, so-called fit people collapsing in gyms or elsewhere. So is it the gym culture to blame or something else is brewing up? We all need to understand that being healthy is a long term goal needing lifelong commitments. It also entails a holistic approach where physical, mental and spiritual health needs to be taken care of.
There are certain simple rules which if followed will significantly decrease your chance of dying early ( remember, nothing is sureshot in medicine, there are only probabilities)
Try to live a disciplined life:
Sleeping and waking up at a scheduled time. Avoiding waking up late at night, too much consumption of media/social media. At least take good quality sleep for 7-8 hours daily. Avoid stress.
Eat healthy. Whenever we talk of healthy eating, people desirous of weight loss, start skipping meals. Rather we should take note of portion control and the nutritional value of food. Avoid being overweight and especially abdominal obesity
Eat lots of vegetables and legumes:
Fruits of different varieties also add up to fibre. Avoid packed foods , ultra processed foods, or foods rich in high fat, sugar or salt. avoid food which is fried/cooked in reheated oils. Try to eat fresh home cooked food most of the time. Even if you want outside food, go to a restaurant rather than ordering home delivery, it's an addiction and one may end up ordering daily.
Exercise daily:
Medical associations worldwide recommend 30-45 minutes of moderate degree exercise daily. Incorporate three types of physical activity-yoga and meditation,
endurance exercises like walking, jogging , running etc, and
resistance training like weight lifting. If you are not used to exercising, be gradual in approach. Body needs time to adapt to changes.
Regular check ups
Regular check ups for diabetes,
hypertension and cholesterol levels Keep them in control. Keep in touch with your physician. Don’t be shy of medicines if need be, because early control of these risk factors make disease less aggressive and also reduces its complications. Avoid addictions like smoking, alcohol , tobacco.
In short, being healthy is a marathon, where you continue to have a stable pace and don't burn out too early. Moderation is the key. Avoid extremes of effort but rather be consistent. Be positive in life and make informed choices every day.
(Article Courtesy: Dr. Anurag Singhal)
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