My Strategies To Drive Safely While Drunk

First things first, I do not support or condone drunk driving. It is dangerous. Period. I have seen a friend lose his eye and another, his life while driving under influence. It is not worth it and should be avoided at all costs. We all know the basic routines when it comes to strategies to prevent drunk driving. Crash at your friend’s place, keep a designated driver, gather at a bar close to your home, call a cab etc.

But let’s face it, we have always faced the situation when we visit a bar with friends for just a couple of beers. But soon the situation takes over and before you know anything, its 11 PM in the night. You are considerable drunk, drove to the place in your car or bike alone and there is no place around where you can spend the night. So the only choice you have is hobble inside your car and hope for the best. But there are a few tricks that I use when I am stuck in such a situation. Hopefully they will help you too.

General tricks:

1) Drink lots of water along with your drinks. This will help you in two ways. First, you will not be able to drink as much as you would probably have. Second, you will be soberer than you should. It will make you visit the loo more often but that is definitely better than risking your life.

2) Ask for a glass of lemon water before leaving. No lemonade, no sweeteners or flavors, just plain lemon water. Drink the glass as fast as you can. Lemon is effective against hangovers and from my experience, this lemon water will clear up your head to some extent. Driving is a complex reflex action and you may not need your brain functioning at a 100%. Just enough to see you through to home.

3) Washing your face is a well-known solution. But you know what you got to do? Have you ever seen those face wash and beauty cream ads and how those girls splash water on their faces? yes that’s what you need to do. And aim the water for your open eyes. A few cold splashes of water in your eyes should take the edge off the liquor.

4) If you have done everything else and still feel quite inebriated, vomit! Just put your fingers in your throat and vomit it out. It will prevent the situation from going worse as time progresses and the effort it takes to vomit should wake you up considerably.

If You are driving a car:

1) Turn off the AC. Keep the windows barely open so that it does not get sweaty and stuffy inside the car but the air does not hit our right in the face. Cold breeze after drinking will make you fall asleep faster than the Chronicles of Narnia lullaby.

2) Keep the radio turned off. I have seen that while drunk, mind tends to focus on unimportant things too much like a music coming from a distance or the song on a radio. You want to be fully focused on the road and nothing else.

3) Munch on something. It could be a chocolate bar or a pack of chips. The idea is to have some action going as sitting behind a wheel can be pretty boring.

4) If you feel losing control, pull over at the side of the road. Get out of the car, walk around it, shake your head and do what ever it takes to drive away the dizziness. Walking will also increase blood supply to your brain and help it function better.

If you are riding a bike:

1) It’s a lot worse then a car but you have no choice I presume. So wear a helmet. It can save your life and also it will stop the air from hitting you on the face. best thing to do is pull down the visor of the helmet for added safety.

2) Try singing or whistling a song while bobbing your head in rhythm. This is the best action you can get while riding a bike drunk.

3) Drive slow so that you can stop at any time you want.

4) If you feel losing control, pull over at the side of the road. Park the bike, walk around it, shake your head and do what ever it takes to drive away the dizziness. Walking will also increase blood supply to your brain and help it function better.

These are the tips I follow and so far they have worked like a charm for me. But again, I do not promote or condone drinking and driving. If you know you are going to drink in the evening, make plans beforehand for your safe return. Take to driving and riding only if all else fails. Apply my techniques mentioned above and you should live to see the next sunrise.

My Effective Workout Diet For My Weight Loss Routine

So you have decided to finally start exercising to lose weight. The chances are you have already told my articles about 6 guaranteed exercises to lose weight and weight loss exercises for busy people. But working out alone does not help in losing weight unless you control your food intake. It is a known fact that calorie intake is much more easier than losing calories. It takes a healthy amount of exercise to lose 500 calories but only a small ice-cream to gain it back.

You must be thinking that what are the foods that will set you on the path to weight loss. Well coming from a family with many doctors and having some prior bodybuilding experience, I definitely have a few tips to share about weight loss diets. There are certain foods that if taken regularly will satisfy your daily calorie needs without piling on the fat. If you are exercising then you will need foods that give you considerable energy to workout and perform your daily chores effectively.

The last time I set out to lose some Pounds, I did so with some light exercising and a very effective diet. I am going to share the same with you here. Some adjustments to the diet may be necessary as young people need more energy than aged people. Being a grown male, I need around 2600 Calorie per day to function properly. If you are a woman, you will need 500 – 600 calories less than me. There is a myth that to lose weight, you need to take less than your daily requirement calories. Well, it’s a BLATANT LIE! The fact that you are overweight means you have been taking more calories than needed for a long time. For weight loss, all you need to do is eat the right amount of calories and work out to shed off the existing fat.

Well, here is my diet for the whole day if you are doing light workout everyday:

1) Breakfast: Start with a glass of warm water. If you plan to exercise in the morning then after having the water, have half a glass of milk and two fiber biscuits 10 – 15 minutes later. Working out on an empty stomach is not healthy. After the exercise have a toast with low fat butter or some other spread and two boiled eggs. You can conclude the breakfast with a large glass of fresh fruit juice or some fruit salad. I personally prefer the salad.

If you are lactose intolerant then instead of milk drink fruit juices. Drink fresh fruit juice instead of boxed ones. A basic juicer does not cost much money and there are many varieties in the market. Some people prefer bacon and salami in the morning but I personally never preferred meat in the breakfast.

2) Lunch: Since I used to be in office during lunch hours, my choices were considerably limited. The same might be the case for you. But no matter where you are, getting a bowl of salad should not be a problem now-a-days. Usually it is said that breakfast should be largest meal of the day. I have always had problems with eating too heavily in the morning. So I topped of my lunch and then took it easy during dinner.

Some pieces of bacon, boiled egg, boiled chicken and lentils can be your weapon of choice for protein requirements. Boiled vegetables might be unavailable in the office cafeteria so you can consider boiling some vegetables in the morning and take it to work with you. Add a dash of pepper and salt to the vegetables for taste.

3) Evening Snack: It is probably the most dangerous meal in terms of weight loss. It is difficult to consider something eat during those hours in the evening and likely you will only get unhealthy snacks for consumption in the office. One unhealthy meal in the evening can offset 2 – 3 days worth of hard-work.

The solution I opted was an all fruits snack for evenings. Apples, bananas and something like lime or oranges. Banana is considered a super fruit which can fill you up very quickly without adding much calories. Take those fruits with you when you leave for work or college. Eat just the amount required to take the edge off your hunger. Over indulging on the snacks can disrupt your dinner which is very important.

4) Dinner: A light dinner is advised if you are in the weight loss mode. The main reason being that after the consumption of dinner, you will spend 7 – 8 hours sleeping. You will not lose any energy or calorie during this time so whatever extra calories you take in dinner will likely stay in your body. My choice of dinner was small and equal portions of meat, vegetables and juice.

Trying to get calories off fruits, meat and vegetables is always better. Avoid rice and wheat as long as possible. This diet was pretty healthy for me too. I was able to get the proteins and vitamins from the meat, milk, eggs, fruits and vegetables. A combination of meat and vegetable gave me all the essential Amino acids. I avoided fried and oily foods like sin during this period.

Notes:

1) Fresh fruit juices are a must. Packed juices do not offer any real nutrition to our bodies.

2) Since you are breaking your normal intake of high carbs and high fat, your body will rebel this change. You must fight the urge to overeat.

3) I used to have milk and eggs at the same time without any problems. But some people might feel acidity after taking this high-protein combination. If this happens, remove one of the two from your diet list or take milk in the evening.

4) Drink lots of water to prevent dehydration resulting from exercises.

This diet chart was made by me and for me. It worked pretty well as far as I can tell. I never felt any loss of energy during this regime. There were a number of time when I felt the urge to overeat or fall back to my old routine but it was willpower that kept going. When you feel those urges, and you will for sure, just picture in your mind the type of body you want to have. That will keep you on the track.

Why Do I Have Midnight Cravings For Rum Or Chicken Wings?

This has been going on with me for quite sometime. I can understand one part of it fine but the other one completely perplexes me on so many levels. I am a foodie. I love to eat. Period. And by food I mean real honest to god tasty, succulent pieces of non-vegetarian delicacies. Not veggies or something. Well I love those occasional veg dishes but they are not a part of my staple diet. I love fried meat, roasted meat, grilled meat or meat in any form as long as they are tasty and edible. I do love my Sashimi, fish and eggs too. In fact I am all about oily, greasy, tasty mouth watering food.

Bacon and sausages in breakfast can make my whole day go better. I can make truce with the biggest enemy if he is bringing over a bowl of caviar. Mmmm!! Oh and lots of cream on my toast to go with the bacon and sausages. Butter really helps too. If you have read my previous blog about me getting overweight over the last six months, honestly it is because one too many of these cheese, butter and oil fests. So I believe I by now I have established my food habits and my claims of being a “Gourmet”.

For those of you in shock over the food I intake, well, what can I honestly do! I stay away from family, cook my own food, love anything that pleases the taste buds (Carbohydrates are notorious for that) so it was almost obvious that I would delve much deeper into those gratifying chunks of meat rather than a perfectly cooked piece of broccoli. So I believe it is not a big deal if I suddenly feel like putting my teeth into a large hunk of grilled lamb or chomp on some hot chicken wings in the middle of the night. Totally OK or should I say totally predictable.

But seriously, what’s up with the Rum? I do not love drinking. I do drink, occasionally, like once in two months or so. And whenever I drink, I almost always get the rum. Not sure why though. Maybe because it’s the first hard drink I had or because I can identify with it a lot more. The way rum works is a lot like how I love to mingle with people. Slow and steady. Whiskey can sometimes hit like 12 gauge shotgun. But I love the rum. Best of all, it does not leave a hangover. Brownie points for that.

On other days of the month , I am more of a red wine guy. Not because of the taste or the effect or anything. Just because it makes me feel rich and successful. Maybe it’s because of those movies or TV dramas showing business tycoons and drug lords set down with a glass of wine in front of the fireplace after a sumptuous dinner and talk business. I love to do that too. A glass of wine after dinner in front of the TV makes me feel like I am sitting in the living room of my penthouse with a few Bentleys and Porsches in the garage and a helicopter on the helipad behind the place. I really feel powerful at those moments. Hell I might even give great business suggestions and sound investment advice during those “Wine Sessions”.

But the fact remains that I am not an alcoholic. I enjoy the occasional drinks with friends but I really just hate the taste of alcohols. Beer, Rum, Whiskey, Scotch whatever. Corona beer is the only thing that i can tolerate to some extent but anything else, no. And I do not get drunk easily too. So there is no point for me throwing money down the gutter. Just yesterday, I got myself some Tequilla and did 5 quick shots. But nope, nothing! Not even a buzz! And boy does that shit taste bad!

So you get the point. But I still can’t understand the cravings. And I am not even sure those are cravings for Rum. It could be any liquor. But why? Why me of all people? Do I need to visit a doctor or a shrink? I don’t know. Maybe its just an alter ego of me trying to set free and booze all he wants. I mean much like Walter White in Breaking Bad. Well someday soon, I might break bad too. In a whole different way though!

Will It Be Easy For Me To Lose Weight?

In my short life so far, I have always been able to shed off the extra weight whenever i got a tad overweight. But then again, I had never been too much overweight in my life. So some healthy diet, outdoor sports and some freehand exercises always took care of the extra pounds. But the situation is not too rosy at this moment. I started eating fatty foods and eating them too much around six months back. So the end result is that right now I am a whale that cannot see its toes standing straight. At my height my ideal weight should be 72 to 75 Kgs. But right now I am a whooping 92 Kgs or 203 Pounds. I get tired by climbing only one flight of stairs and can no longer run more than five seconds.

Well, I have been meaning to start working out and also have been procrastinating the shit out of it. Every night before going to bed I plan to start a new fit life in the next morning. But every morning I love my pillow and bed even more. So the result has been as it should have been. But whatever it is, it does not feel good. The worst of it is the plumped up belly. It does not let me wear my body hugging t-shirts any more. I have had to buy new size 34 jeans as the older ones do not fit. Well, in a word, it “Sucks”!

But now the time has come to finally do something about it. It’s time to rip those fats to the shreds, get back that fit body and great stamina. But as it is always said, it is easier said than done. So I have to make a nice plan and stick to it. Exercise in the morning and evening, healthy foods, more greenies in the diet and tons of water. Oh and my office is at the 7th floor of the building. So it seems I will have to climb up and down the stairs at least a couple of times every day.

The goal is to first get down to the eighties. Getting to exact 80 Kgs would be great but keeping it short and realistic is the key here. If my weight reaches 84 or 85 in a couple of months, that would be great going. After reaching 80, I will need to start weight training for further weight loss and convert the remaining fat into muscles.

Well, here I stand, 92 Kgs heavy on 10th Aug 2013. Tomorrow will be the start of a tough few months for me physically. I wrote this down so that I can refer to this whenever I stray from my goal. If anyone is reading this, feel free to join my goal by cheering for me or if you are also overweight, we can do this together. What can be better than a buddy who is gunning for a common goal. Stay tuned as I will post the progress report regularly. Wish me luck guys!

Is It Really That Easy To Follow your Heart?

Well, I have been thinking about this for sometime now. Many of us, in fact most of us are living a life that’s not ours. We want to do different things but are somehow stuck in the wrong professions. Yes volumes have been written on this already. People have become millionaires by writing about this in their books and giving seminar talks on how to follow your dreams. But is it really that easy? Can a forties guy with comfortable home, loving family and a decent income can suddenly quit his job and start auditioning for movie roles? Or can 20s something guy like me (late twenties actually) drop his job and start following his passion?

It is actually harder than these books make it seem like. There is a always some uncertainty associated with jumping ships. And we, human beings, fear uncertainty almost as much as we fear spiders. And there is no point slamming all wrong decisions on peer pressure or on our parents. Yes parents sometime influence our decision for a particular career but most of the times, we are undecided ourselves. As teenagers or college grads we believe that something is the best  career for us only to find out alter that it is not what we want. yes we don’t know something until we try it. When I started off as a software engineer, i though I was born to do this. After 3 years, well, I am not sure anymore. But the experience was important.

Now it comes to the fact that if I can leave the IT industry. Maybe I can. I wanna be an entrepreneur, a writer, a traveler, a travel writer, there are so many things I would love to do.  But to type up that resignation letter and click the send button is the toughest thing I have ever had to do so far. Some unknown fears gag me whenever I make up my mind. Family responsibilities, social status, peer evaluation, ego, everything comes into play. What happens when I quit? People will think I fled because I could not do the job. I won’t be able to find another job. So far and so on.

Well I can’t take my decisions based on what other people will think But is it really that easy to ignore? Especially when I have not been the boldest or strongest person so far in my life? But I have to do what I have to do isn’t it? For the last six months or so, my mind has become stronger than before. In fact I came very close to submitting that resignation a couple of times. but something always stopped me at the last moment. I am hoping I will soon be able to shake off that last tie that’s binding me to the life I do not want.

I do not know what the future will be like. I guess nobody does. but my heart is telling me to take the plunge. Some have succeeded while doing so, others have failed. I have always known that no matter what happens, I have the necessary education, skills and strength to find my self a place to live in and feed myself three square meals a day. Will that assurance be good enough for me? Well ,I guess I will find that out soon enough. In fact may be sooner than you think.

Best Time Management Techniques I Have Learnt So Far

Well, first things first. I am not a lifestyle and management guru peddling life improvement techniques. Neither do I use and implement these techniques in my life effectively. I do not have stories and anecdotes to prove how these techniques can and will change your lives if implemented correctly. These are just some tips I have collected from several sources. I would love to follow them myself and here I am compiling them in a single blog. As they say, write something and you will remember it better. So that’s that.

With that out of the system, let’s talk about the real thing. I have always wondered, why is time management so necessary? I mean, we all know what to do when. We get up in the morning, brush, shave and get ready for work. Slug it out in the office till evening, come back home to some entertainment or household chores. Grab a dinner, watch some TV and sleep. Sooo simple. Why do we need to complicate this  with some guidelines? I mean we all know when to pay the credit card or electricity bills right?

Well as it turned out for me, it is really not that simple after all. At least not if you have other interests or hobbies. Getting into a daily boring routine is easy. But if you want to do new things like learn a new technology or language, join a class, start a personal venture or go out hiking etc, you need to have solid time management skills in place to back you up. Because routines are a vicious cycle. When everything is good, they run like well oiled machines. But as soon as something falls out of place, the whole cycle gets disoriented. So whenever you are taking up new activities, you must manage the time for everything beforehand so that your routine can stay intact.

Some best time management techniques I have found so far are as follows. None of them are absolute and some of them completely differ from one another. I, however, would love to implement a combination of more than one so that I can get the best of the both worlds and remove the negative points altogether.

1) The first one is of course the most common and well known one. It says that set aside a time for every activity at the start of the week. Set down using a paper and pen during the Sunday evening and prepare the list of things you have do till next Saturday. Prioritize each, set aside time for each and roll away. Stick to this list no matter what or every other job gets affected. Now this is a terrific solution except for the facts that:

a) We can have N number of unforeseen jobs coming up over the week. Each time they do, you have to adjust your calender.

b) Previously existing jobs can take more time than initially estimated.

c) We can fall sick, have a flat tire, have a nazgul attack, a visit from Voldemort  etc.

2) Second is the one I like the best.  It says don’t bother with detailed plans and such. Yeah you should keep tab of the important meetings and stuff but no more than that. Do everything as and when they come, without wasting time. In the office and work comes? DO it right then. Working on something else? Finish it and then do it. Of course we still need to prioritize work but at a very basic level, not extensively. I believe this will help me have more time on my hand than the first strategy.

3) This one might be effective but not exactly up my alley. It says, work hard now and enjoy later. Or as they say, “Delayed Gratification”. It says spend all the available time in taking care of more important stuff and play when you finally have nothing to do and have some time left. Yeah like I would love playing video games after I retire. Well, I might but I am not taking that chance.

4) All techniques stress on maintaining a diary or calender though. Basic or extensive does not matter. As long as you are jotting down down the important things and consulting the diary often, it should be fine.

I have the bad habit of relying on my memory too much. I do have a good memory and it has not failed me much so far but this is a habit I need to let go of. I am going to start to implement a combination of the first and second technique from today itself. I will later share with you all how it is going. In the mean time, you might take a step as well.