Ramadan A Glow Of Wellness

Ramadan is all bout keeping healthy, the teachings and guidlines of this holy month on both physical and spiritual levels which we as muslims recieved from God are more than enough to guarantee that by the end of these most beautiful 30 days of the year, we've all recieved a complete healing and purification program that is absolutely for free.

Fasting is normally defined as abstinence from all food and liquid for a defined period. However, one very important aspect of fasting which lots of people are ignoart of is that breaking your fast is of the same degree of importance as the act of fasting it self, what we eat and how we eat it must be a natural extension of the morals and ethics of fasting, serving and not contradicting with the objectives and spirit of Ramadan.

Muslims believe that fasting is more than abstaining from food and drink. Fasting also includes abstaining from any falsehood in speech and action, abstaining from any ignorant and indecent speech, and from arguing, fighting, and having lustful thoughts. Therefore, fasting strengthens control of impulses and helps develop good behavior. During the sacred month of Ramadan, believers strive to purify body and soul and increase their taqwa (good deeds and God-consciousness). This purification of body and soul harmonizes the inner and outer spheres of an individual. Muslims aim to improve their body by reducing food intake and maintaining a healthier lifestyle. 

Overindulgence in food is discouraged and eating only enough to silence the pain of hunger is encouraged. Muslims believe they should be active, tending to all their commitments and never falling short of any duty. On a moral level, believers strive to attain the most virtuous characteristics and apply them to their daily situations. They try to show compassion, generosity and mercy to others, exercise patience, and control their anger. In essence, Muslims are trying to improve what they believe to be good moral character and habits.

Fasting is a natural body detox, if only done right, it helps cleasne our bodies, minds and souls. It is a glow of wellness that shines upon us once every year, the benefits are countless but it will only work for us if we allow it to.

So the question here is, are you going to abide by the rules of the month, commit to its teachings and stick to the guidlines?

Yours in Health & Wellness,

Nada

YoYo No More

"If you are not obese or overweight with weight-related health problems, maintain your weight. Focus on adopting healthful eating habits and enjoying regular physical activity to manage weight and promote health for life". 

This is a great place to start planning your journey towards health and wellness, by asking your self the question "Do i really need to lose weights?" or is it just something you feel that you have to do? 

I talked in previous posts about the definition of health and psychological reasons and pressure people nowadays are under to lose weight and keep up with the modern image of beauty by being super skinny. 

To avoid repeating myself over and over again, and although i just can't seem to stress enough on the fact that it all starts with our minds, the thoughts we have in our heads about our self-image and beauty.

I will be talking in this post about the health risks of constant YoYo Dieiting or Weight Cycling as experts call it. 

"Weight cycling is the repeated loss and regain of body weight. When weight cycling is the result of dieting, it is often called "yo-yo" dieting".

Health Risks:

1) Some studies suggest that weight cycling may increase the risk for certain health problems. These include high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and gallbladder disease.

2) Weight cycling can put more fat around their abdominal (stomach) area. People who tend to carry excess fat in the stomach area (apple-shaped), instead of in the hips, thighs, and buttocks (pear-shaped), are more likely to develop type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and high blood pressure.

3) Extreme calorie restriction, which is a common practice among yo-yo dieters, can increase the stress hormone known as cortisol. When this hormone is present in your body over long periods of time, it can have myriad negative health effects. In fact, it can even increase your risk of developing heart disease, cancer and diabetes.

4) Low-calorie diets lead to muscle wasting, which means once you get back to your normal eating habits, you'll be left with a physique that lacks muscle and carries excess fat.

5) Losing and regaining weight may have a negative psychological effect if you let yourself become discouraged or depressed. The more times you go through the gain-lose-gain cycle, the less convinced you become that you can break free from the constant ups and downs," 

Weight cycling should not be a reason to "feel like a failure." Instead it is a reason to refocus on making long-term changes in your lifestyle and level of physical activity to help you keep off the pounds you lose.

If you are obese or are overweight and suffer from weight-related health problems, try to improve your health by achieving a modest weight loss.

Always remember that No one wants to diet forever. It is a hard work.

Yours in Health & Wellness

Nadatizer 

Mirror Mirror On The Wall, Who's the Skinniest Of Them All???!!!!

                                             (The eyes are usesless when the mind is blind)

"There is only one mirror. The mirror inside, everything you see on the outside is a reflection of what is going on in your mind. its a powerful tool, so use it wisely".

You are just fine!! there is nothing wrong with you, you are not fat, you have excess fat storage in your body, this can be fixed, you just need the knowledge, you need to learn how to do it, you need the determination and the unconditional love for yourself, no matter how you look like or how much you weight.

It is understandable the pressure we are all under, with everything going around us, this super skinny fever spreading all around us, the infectious lifestyle of supermodels and celebrities, the endless messages the media is sending to us every single day, trying to make us all turn into copies of the so-called world standards of beauty. 

Well! for a moment, forget about that, forget about the magazines' covers, the girls from the videoclips, yourfriend's new size, forget about the number on the scale, your body measurements forget about gossip on the radio or the shows on TV that is trying to transform you into something you are not.

Focus on ONE THING, a simple fact, that you are a unique human being, there is only one you in this world, you don't have to compete, nor top anyone else, you are beautiful just the way you are. You ARE ORIGINAL!

Once you learn how to accept yourself with all your curves and your edges, your perfect imperfections, taking care of yourself, losing weight to become healthier, being active to maintain a well body, will all come to you naturally, it will be as easy as it can be, and you will enjoy every minute of the journey. 

By changing the inner attitudes of our minds, we can change the outer aspects of our lives.

With love,

Nadatizer (Yours in Health & Wellness)

Dieting Is Not Normal

Does this sound extreme to you, i think for most people the answer would be yes. 

Well, maybe it's about time that we open up our minds and hearts and start understanding what this concept of DIETING is really all about, specially that lately, it seems to be the ONE Thing taking control over people's lives.

Why do i think dieting is not normal? 

Basically, because as someone who worked in the feild of health and nutrition consultation, i have seen many examples of people falling into a lifetime love and hate relationship with food and with their bodies while dieting. After many years i came to understand that the problem was not with the food they ate nor with the way they looked, it was something else, something inside their heads that has to do with their mindset, how they think, how they feel, it was the unrealistic image they carry around in their minds, it's the life of competition they are constantly having with their peers, which i believe is mainly because they do not know how to love themselves enough to stop comparing themselves to others.

Those people who didn't set the right goals for their health/weightloss to begin with, their reasons are based on external factors that might soon change or disappear, instead of coming from within. (Wanting to look like superstarts, supermodels or the celebrities on the covers of magazines, dreaming to fit in the crazy standards of beauty that is trying to make us believe that BEAUTIFUL = SKINNY. 
If you were one of those people, trust me on this, your achievements will only be temporary,  you might be satisfied and happy but only temporarily, after a while you will be back where you started, falling in the same pit over and over again, only to get more and more disappointed every single time.

In the world where we are living now perhaps the biggest misconception is that as long as you lose weight, it doesn’t matter what you eat. But it does. Yet being thin and being healthy are not at all the same thing. Being overweight is not necessarily linked with disease or premature death. What you eat affects which diseases you may develop, regardless of whether you’re thin or fat. Some diets that may help you lose weight may be harmful to your health over time. (Your weight is not the indicator of your overall health.) 

                                                                  Dieting Cycle 

What do you need to do instead of dieting?

My advice is learn to love yourself, stop comparing yourself to others, and stop trying to be someone else. Listen to your body and pay attention to the signs it is sending you, and always ask your self this question, is what i am about to eat going to harm me or nourish me? 
your ultimate goal should be being healthy and well, living your life to the fullest, that is your way to an everlasting happiness and joy.

EAT FOR HEALTH, NOT WEIGHT and when you do, do it BY CHOICE NOT BY FORCE.

Yours in Health & Wellness

Re-Defining Health

World Health Organization (WHO) defines health as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.

My question to you is, how do YOU define your own health?  

It is very important to analyse/understand your own perceptions about health, find out more about your thinking patterns, your values and opinions, test yourself to see if they belong to you or if you are just influenced by someone else.

Whether you are trying to lose weight or maintain a healthy one, if you just want to stay fit, or trying to heal yourself from an illness, none of these goals can ever be accomplished without you fully comprehending the dimensions of your health and how its different aspects are interlinked, affecting one another, only then you will succeed in your quest and acheive all you are hoping for.

The 5 Dimensions of Health

The reason why i wanted to talk about this first and foremost is because it is fundamental to have the proper base for our knowledge from which we can build up and plan for our optimal health. 

Always remember (No matter what our weight, we can use the cues from our physical and mental selves to judge how healthy we are).

Yours in Health & Wellness

Nada