They say that good health is the greatest wealth but sometimes making a change in habits and lifestyle is harder than we think it is.
Here are five tips to incorporate healthy choices easily into your day. Because healthy choices turn into healthy habits!
1. Get Moving!
Twenty to 30 minutes of exercise such as walking, jogging or yoga each day is important for heart health, maintaining a balanced weight, and keeping muscles flexible and moving.
But sometimes, you might get busy or put your exercise off till tomorrow. To keep yourself moving, put an alarm on your phone to remind you to take a break.
Take 5 minutes to stretch - reach up and touch the sky with your fingertips and then slowly bend down to reach your toes, take a quick walk outside and get a breath of fresh air, hold a plank pose for as long as you can, or do a few sit-ups or push-ups.
Another easy way to get moving is to skip the elevator! Choose the stairs to get up and down. Live on a high floor? Take the stairs up to the second or third floor and then take the lift. Keep adding an extra floor up the stairs every week. Soon you’ll be a pro in no time!
Making this small change will make sure you are moving every day, even if you skip your usual exercise routine.
PRO TIP:
Did you know that ghee can help you lose that stubborn belly fat? Ghee contains conjugated linoleic acids or CLAs that have been shown to aid in helping to lose weight.
So, go for the ghee on your roti, in your daal, and swizzled atop steamed veggies!
2. Get Your Protein On!
Our bodies require protein to build muscle strength, stay satiated and reduce cravings for snacking and nibbling between meals, and even reduce blood pressure!
Legumes like daals, chickpeas, black-eyed peas as well as eggs and lean meats are a great way to add protein to every meal.
However, sometimes these proteins can be difficult for the body to digest especially if you’ve been eating a diet that has been lean on proteins or if you have a weak or compromised digestive system.
Our farm fresh paneer is a perfect and easy to digest protein that is well suited for children, the elderly, and adults alike! Milk & Meadows paneer is made fresh from Gir Cow A2 milk on order, so it never contains any preservatives that commercially packed paneer contains.
Paneer is also very easy to incorporate or substitute in many recipes and perfect for a healthy snack in between meals. You can effortlessly replace chicken or meat in a recipe with paneer!
3. Good Health Comes from a Healthy Gut!
The gut is the body’s largest immune organ and having a healthy and balanced gut is the key to good health!
While gut health has been in the recent limelight in wellness and fitness trends, Ayurveda has long known of the power of a strong and healthy digestive system.
A strong digestive system efficiently and powerfully processes nutrients from your food into fuel for your body.
Ayurveda recognizes ghee as an ideal anupan or vehicle substance that aids in carrying micronutrients in food right to the cellular level.
Ghee also protects the lining of the gut, prevents gut inflammation and can be help prevent Leaky Gut Syndrome that disrupts the body’s ability to digest and process foods.
A healthy gut microbiome is maintained with rich and diverse gut bacteria. Including pre and probiotics helps create an ideal environment in your gut and can prevent and support those suffering from Irritable Bowel Syndrome.
Adding a glass of chaach to your daily diet is an easy and healthy way to improve your gut biome. Our Gir cow chaach is churned fresh from yogurt and is rich in pre and probiotics. Ayurveda recommends chaach as an ideal way to support and improve the quality of Agni, the digestive fire that is the foundation of good health!
4. Say Hello to Healthy Fats!
Healthy fats are vital to metabolizing vitamins, lubricating joints, boosting brain health and for healthy, glowing skin.
Our farm fresh white makkhan or cultured butter is a healthy fat and one of the best sources of fat-soluble Vitamins A, D, E and K which help you have healthy hair, skin, bones, and teeth.
Cultured butter or white makkhan differs from factory-made, commercially prepared butter because it is churned from yogurt and naturally contains pre and probiotics that support a healthy gut and digestive system. Our farm fresh butter contains no added salt which can reduce bloating and is helps maintain balanced blood pressure.
While high in fat content, white butter is a healthy fat and when included in your meals will keep you satisfied and satiated, and curbs cravings for unhealthy, nutrient -deficient foods and snacks. The fats in white butter don’t need to be digested by the gut and are processed directly by the liver, converting the fats to a good and quick source of energy.
Milk & Meadows Gir Cow butter is made from yogurt made from our pure A2 Gir Cow milk. Our Gir cows are fed fresh greens daily which provides a healthy omega 6:3 ratio for all our Gir cow products. Cows fed a grain-based diet have a higher omega 6:3 ratio which has been linked to increased inflammation in the body, a common cause of chronic health issues.
So, don’t skip out on good fats and add a dollop of fresh white butter!
5. Get Good Sleep!
Quality sleep is one of the best things you can do for your mental and physical health! A good night’s rest is essential to allow the body to repair and heal while it allows your mind to process events through deep REM sleep.
Sounds easy enough, right?
Sometimes, no matter how hard you try, you may find yourself tossing and turning in bed at night or not getting enough deep sleep. A good way to signal to your body that it’s time to sleep is to create a sleep ritual that works for you.
Stop screen time including laptops and phones at least 30 minutes before bed. Keep that book you’ve been meaning to read on your bedside table so you have it handy. (For some great books and non-fiction titles, have a look here and here )
A warm cup of spiced milk before bedtime will help you get relaxed and ready for sleep. Milk contains the essential amino acid tryptophan which is the precursor for hormones serotonin and melatonin that help you relax and regulate your circadian rhythm. The ritual of a warm cup of milk keeps you from feeling hungry before bed and helps your body and mind prepare for sleep and inculcates a routine that your body remembers
PRO TIP: Milk & Meadows Gir Cow A2 milk is easier to digest than A1 milk from foreign breed cows like Holstein and makes a delicious cup of haldi doodh which also helps reduce inflammation in the body. So, get that cup of golden milk and allow your sleep to work double-time for you!
Every little step is a building block to creating sustainable healthy habits! One step leads to the other, and up, up, up you go!