According to a poll conducted by Public Health England in 2021, about half of the population gained around half a stone, or just over three kg, during the epidemic. Throughout the autumn, I gained weight and entered the obese category. For Christmas, I attempted a novel strategy to lose weight: a short-term ‘keto’ diet, in which you limit your carb intake to fewer than 50 grams per day while eating plenty of healthy fats.
I kept to my low-calorie keto diet for the entire 12-day period leading up to Christmas and shed 9lb (4kg), lowering my BMI to 24 and shaving an inch off my waist. Your body uses ketones to fuel itself by converting fat stored in your liver into ketones. Ketones, according to a Norwegian study, reduce appetite. Rather than spending endless hours at the gym, try incorporating more activity into your daily routine. Set up activity alarms or experiment with ‘exercise snacking.’
Optimists live seven years longer on average than pessimists and are more likely to achieve ‘exceptional longevity,’ meaning they can live to be 85 years old or beyond. According to a University of Illinois study, optimistic persons have higher sleep quality. Singing a song has been shown to reduce stress, boost blood pressure, and relieve chronic pain in a variety of studies. Junk food is detrimental to your brain as well as your waistline. This results in chronic inflammation, which can lead to heart disease, cancer, depression, anxiety, and even memory loss.
Standing straight up while brushing my teeth improves my equilibrium. Regular 20-second hugs have been shown in studies to reduce stress and blood pressure while also increasing levels of the “cuddle hormone,” oxytocin.
