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Set for SAF Games CHEAT CODE Fitness
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Set for SAF Games
The preparations are in full swing for the first South Asian Federation (SAF) Winter Games, which are scheduled to be held from January 7 to 19 in Uttarakhand. As per the organising committee, the preparations are almost complete and only the final works are left. The SAF Winter Games, which missed several deadlines due to incomplete infrastructure, were recently given final confirmation by the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) on the dates proposed by the organising committee. The games are scheduled to be played in two different phases. In the first phase, the skiing will be organised from January 7 to 12 at Auli in Chamoli district, while in the second phase, ice-skating and ice hockey will be held from January 14 to 19 in Dehradun.
S.S. Patwal, president of the SAF Games, says almost all work is complete and only a bit of repair and cleaning up are left. “In the Dehradun rink, we had put up ice this week to give a test and it worked out well. In Auli, all the machines are ready and only repair work is to be done, as it was affected by the incessant rain in the region. We are waiting for suitable weather conditions to lay ice there,” Patwal adds. Patwal attributes the delay in preparations to the foreign technology being used for the construction work at the two sites of the games. “We are holding these games for the first time and to understand and install foreign technology does take time,” says Patwal, adding that he had gone to watch the Commonwealth Games in Delhi to get a fair idea about the preparation and organisation of the SAF Games. Besides the preparation of the infrastructure, the accommodation for players and improvement of roads that are leading to the two sites will also be a big challenge for the organising committee, which will have to pull up its socks to meet the new deadline. The SAF Games, whose organising process initially started in February 2008, got inordinately delayed due to the incompletion of the construction work at the games site. The games were later rescheduled for February 2009, then December 2009, then January 2010, and are now to begin from January 7, 2011. It may be mentioned here that earlier this year, the Comptroller and Auditor-General (CAG) had expressed his displeasure over the delay of the SAF games due to the incompletion of work in Uttarakhand and chided the organising committee to finish it soon. Test event from Dec 18 Meanwhile, to select the Indian team that will participate in the SAF winter games, an open championship of skiing and ice-skating will be held from December 18 to 30. It will also be a test event before the winter games. The open skiing championship for senior, sub-junior and junior will be organised from December 18 to 23 at Auli, while ice-skating will be held from December 25 to 30 in Dehradun. A total of 500 sportspersons, including 200 locals, will be taking part in the championship. The winter sports team will also be prepared for participating in the 7th Asian Winter Games, which are to be held in Astana and Almaty, Kazakhstan, from January 30 to February 6. Bharal as mascot |
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CHEAT CODE
Women resort to a host of bizarre tricks to kid themselves to weigh less than they actually do, a new poll has revealed.
Many admit to standing on one leg when they hop on the scales in the hope it will reduce the reading by a few pounds. And more than half confess they take all their clothes off before getting weighed, reports express.co.uk. Thousands even say they will only get on the scales before a meal for fear their undigested dinner would add a couple of extra pounds. And in desperation to convince themselves they are lighter, almost four out of 10 go to the toilet first, while one in 10 admit to breathing in as they step on the scales. But an astonishing 3 per cent, which translates to approximately half a million women, wait until a full moon to weigh themselves in the belief that this is their lightest time of the month. The survey by diet website Go Lower quizzed 3,000 women of all ages. It found that nearly 90 per cent of British women want to lose weight. But 85 per cent admit they get depressed after a disastrous weigh-in. Almost half of the women who weigh themselves turn out to be heavier than they thought. Meanwhile, nearly 25 per cent of overweight and 16 per cent of normal weight women of reproductive-age misperceive their body weight, says a new study. The research from the University of Texas Medical Branch suggests that this misperception affects women's weight-related behaviour, making many vulnerable to cardiovascular and other obesity-related diseases. The researchers also found that overweight women who perceive themselves as normal weight were significantly less likely to report weight-related behaviours, such as dieting. "As obesity numbers climb, many women identify overweight as normal, not based on the scale but on how they view themselves," said corresponding author Mahbubur Rahman, assistant professor, Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology and Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in Women's Health. Self-perception of body weight is the degree of concordance between perceived and measured weight.The study analysed more than 2,200 women 18-25 years’ old based on survey questions pertaining to sociodemographic variables, height, weight, weight perceptions and weight-related behaviors. Women with Body Mass Index (BMI) below 25 were considered normal weight and those with BMIs of 25 or more were considered overweight. Overall, 52 per cent of the study participants were considered overweight or obese. Weight-related behaviours assessed included using diet pills, powder or liquids, laxatives or diuretics; induced vomitting; skipping meals; dieting/eating less or differently; smoking more cigarettes; and not eating carbohydrates. Respondents were also asked about the number of days over the last week that they exercised for at least 30 minutes continuously. Overweight misperceptions had significantly lower odds of participating in healthy or unhealthy weight-related behaviours. Normal weight misperceivers were more than twice as likely to diet, skip meals and smoke more cigarettes; the respective odds were nearly four and five times higher with regard to using diet pills, powder, liquids and diuretics. "Weight misperception is a threat to the success of obesity prevention programmes. Overweight individuals, who do not recognise that they are overweight, are far less likely to eat healthfully and exercise. These patients are at risk for cardiovascular disease, Type 2 diabetes and other serious problems," said lead author Abbey Berenson, of the Center for Interdisciplinary Research in Women's Health. The researchers recommend that clinicians calculate patients' BMI at each visit as part of their vital signs, routinely screen for misperceptions of body weight and enquire about unhealthy weight-related behaviours so that they can counsel patients appropriately. |
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Fitness
mantra
SKIN sense It’s not easy to keep your skin fully hydrated in the best of times. For those of you have dry skin, winter brings on its own set of difficulties, providing that fully moisturised skin can often be difficult to achieve. Drinking a lot of water can only do so much. If you really want to maintain healthy, youthful skin, you have to concentrate on doing so from the inside out. You need a steady supply of collagen and elastin (protein) in our skin if you are serious about keeping wrinkles at bay. Drinking about two cups of green tea daily could simultaneously keep your collagen and elastin supplies well topped up and help fight antioxidants in your bodies. Free radicals, which are present in your bodies and in the environment, can wreck havoc on your skin. However, with a steady supply of Vitamin E, your bodies can easily neutralise them. Vitamin E-rich foods like fruits (avocados), nuts and oil seeds help prevent your skin from drying out and becoming itchy, especially in cold or dry weather. Vitamin E is known for protecting your skin’s moisture from the inside out and a good supply keeps it looking fresh and young. Do’s and Don’ts For those who are particularly sensitive to the cold, pay attention to the following. n Don’t have cold drinks or icy desserts. n
Don’t stay hungry. Keep some healthy snacks with you in case that you may be too busy to have full-portion meals. n
Drink lots of water. warm Bites n
Vitamin C is important for a healthy immune system. Fruits and vegetables, high in Vitamin C, help you stay healthy. And in winter, fruits and vegetables can help keep the chills away. n
Build your immune system up with probiotics, such as yogurt, curd and buttermilk. n
Eat as many detoxifying foods as you like, including garlic and onion, as these are naturally antibiotic. n
Spicy seasoning keeps cold temperatures away by boosting blood circulations. n
Have some tonic treats like tulsi tea, ginger tea, lemon tea, herbal tea or green tea during the dry and cold season. Have daily at least two cups of tulsi tea (i.e. tea mixed with 4-5 tulsi leaves, a little ajwain and 3-4 pieces of black pepper). This will increase the blood circulation, thus keeping you warm and also well hydrated. n
People tend to dehydrate in winter due to cold winds and the heaters, which dry up your skin. Drink lots of herbal teas.
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Other than the host India, seven other countries, including Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Maldives, Sri Lanka and Afghanistan are expected to participate in these games. The events that will be played in this international competition include alpine skiing, free-style skating, ice hockey and curling.
The Bharal will be the official mascot for the South Asian Winter Games. The mascot was launched by the president of the organising committee in Dehradun recently. Bharal, the Himalayan blue sheep or big-horn (ovis ammon) wild sheep, is the native of North America, the Mediterranean basin, Central Asia, Asia and south Himalayas.
It is not fun to have a cold especially in winter season. Sometimes, a cold is associated with an irritating cough, nasal and chest congestion and sore throat, which keep you awake at night. Sneezing is one way the body tries to eliminate the virus and is always a way of spreading it. Perhaps, these problems are due to a low immune system, lack of right kind of food choice or due to viral infections. Thus, always choose the right kind of foods to improve your immune system and also fight against infections. Foods are always better than the dietary supplements to keep winter chills away because you get the whole nutritional package.
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Eat foods that contain niacin (Vitamin B), which helps stabilise the nervous system and boost the circulatory system. This vitamin is abundant in foods like milk, eggs, cheese, till, coffee, peanuts as well as all wheat products.