The Brunette Diaries

Foods that can poison your dog

You want the best for your dog. Many a times you cross the line and cannot resist their drooling ‘please share with me’ look and share foods with them from your plate. Well, this may not always be a good idea. What’s good for you may be toxic for your pooch. Let us look at a few such human foods:

What’s good for you can be toxic for your dog

Chocolate

Just because you love chocolate and your dog eats it too, doesn’t mean you give it to your furry friend just because it is drooling and giving you repeated handshakes in a bid to get you to “treat” them. Chocolate contains caffeine and theobromine, which can cause symptoms like vomiting, excessive thirst, abdominal discomfort, severe agitation, irregular heart rhythm, seizures and even death.

Avocado

What is healthy for you, you may assume is healthy for your dog too. Well, that’s where you can be so wrong! Avocadoes contain persin, which may be toxic to some dogs.

Yeast

A slice of bread is very often given to dogs, thinking, what could possibly go wrong with just a slice of bread. Well, you may be wrong again. Bread contains yeast, which is severely harmful as it causes alcohol intoxication and bloating.

Coffee

Oh, who doesn’t love a cup of coffee? You sure do, but what you may require every morning to energize yourself can be severely harmful to your dog. Caffeine, especially in large quantities, can be fatal for dogs.

Grapes

Research hasn’t proven anything yet, but grapes and raisins have been associated with kidney failure in dogs. Most dogs aren’t really affected by it, but better to be safe than sorry.

Alcohol

All you smart Alecs out there who have fun with your dogs by getting them a bit tipsy, bear in mind that alcohol can be fatal for your dog. They get drunk far sooner and with a lot less booze than we do. And the results are about the same: everything from vomiting and loss of coordination to seizures and even death is on the table.

So the next time you feel the need to be a considerate dog parent and share your delicacy with them, remember what you read today.

Things that may destroy your dog’s spirit

“Stop it! Stop barking you little pest!” How would you like to be treated that way? Well, dogs have emotions too. Not as much as we humans do, but if we call them man’s best friend, then we ought to treat them that way. Here are a few things that we say and do to our dogs that can crush their spirit.

Hitting

Dominance and animal submission is a very outdated belief and training method. Hitting a dog does nothing but teach him that you are to be feared. Love is lost between you and the dog and he will not be the friend to you that you want him to be.

Take your dog’s food away while he is eating

Dogs should be left alone when eating. Many people view a dog who growls when eating as being greedy, but this is just a dog being a dog. Some dogs will bite out of fear or confusion, so let them eat in peace.

Not taking your dog for walks

Ignoring your dog in this way is going to make him feel lonely and unloved. A dog that is unloved will not love back. If you want something that lives yet requires no attention, other than to give it water and occasional sunlight, get a houseplant and not a pet.

Leaving the dog alone

Leaving your dog alone for excessively long periods of time is going to crush his spirit severely. If you are going out for a long time, seek the services of a family member, friend, neighbour, pet sitter, or dog crèche if you must leave the dog for long hours at a time. Nothing destroys a dog’s spirit like emptiness, so don’t do it.

The more you love your dog the more will he love you

If you own a dog, don’t own it! Be a friend, be a parent, but don’t be a boss. A dog is man’s best friend, not a slave!

Top 5 Women Instagrammers To Follow For Best Fitness Tips

Social Media is the new bible of today’s generation. Everything is on Social Media. From Photographs to Phones, facts to food, Buying/Selling, Celebrities, etc. In fact, people search “How to lose weight?” on Google before giving up their toxic habits and hitting the gym. Naturally, people turn to social media to look for motivation so that they could lose weight or even go to the gym. For example, people follow who they like or aspire to become like, they may follow actor SRK if they’re aspiring actors, girls tend to follow role models of their liking. And people who are trying to lose weight or be more pro-active, more of a fitness person should follow these lady bosses who are masters of fitness.

1) Ishwari Patil

If you’re interested in learning YOGA the right way then she’s the one to follow. Ishwari Patil, based in Mumbai, is a Women empowerment enthusiastic. She is trying to increase the awareness of benefits of Yoga and Fitness through her Instagram account. You can see her posing at different locations all over Mumbai, she also provides online consultation to the ones in need.

Instagram Account – @_ishwari_

2) Rashmi Agarwal

Rashmi Agarwal is a fitness freak being a mother. She goes by the name #FitMom or #Momwholifts. She is a fitness model and an inspiration to many. No one can guess that she’s a mother by looking at the pictures she posts on her account. From Weight Lifting to Cross fit, there’s nothing this lady can’t do.

Instagram account – @rashmiaagarwal

3) Surbhi Sharma

Surbhi Sharma is a Rhythmic Gymnast who also practices Yoga. Her Instagram feed is filled with her pictures doing all the extreme yoga poses with a smile on her face. She is on her journey to inspire and teach people the true meaning of Yoga.

Instagram Account – @_surbhisharma

4) Jinni Shaikh

Jinni Shaikh is one of the most hardcore lady bosses of all. She is an ESN Athlete who trains in heavy lifting. Her training videos will get you off of your couch and into the gym. A perfect role model and inspiration, she shares her experiences through her posts and her feelings of motivation and dedication through her captions.

Instagram account – @jinni_shaikh

5) Priya Chandra

A certified nutrition and Fitness consultant, Priya Chandra is a Body Transformation Specialist. She provides diet and workout schedule and guidance through her Instagram account online. She majorly posts videos of her working out for her followers for them to see and do it themselves.

Instagram account – @priya_chandra94

Apps that help you lose weight

Losing weight is not everyone’s cup of tea, but it is definitely achievable. With a little motivation and dedication, you can too, reach your goal weight, and that too this year itself. Going to the gym, working out, while following a strict diet isn’t going to cut it. For the constant track of your journey as well as the progress, you need a personal trainer. A trainer that isn’t just present in the gym, but is with you 24/7. Your SMARTPHONE. As many aren’t aware, your smartphone can be of a great help in achieving your weight loss dream. How? All you need to do is just need to download these following apps, which are designed specifically to keep track on your health, on your food intake, calories, workout and many more.

1) My Fitness Pal

When you download this app, it will first take your weight, height and your lifestyle to understand what you eat, and how it can help you to lose weight easily. It cuts down your weight loss goals shorter, for like what you can achieve in a month which is really motivating.

2) Lose It!

This app keeps a proper track on your food and calories, your current weight, and prepares you a plan to focus on weight loss along with tracking your workout regime and your only job is to lose it!

3) Fooducate

Fooducate educates you about every food there is to eat. It helps you understand what harms your body, which food is rich in fibre, protein, calcium and so on. With the help of this app, you know what you eat and this way you can easily substitute the harmful junk you were eating into healthy and wholesome foods.

4) Pact

We are sure you must’ve seen a video of a girl running behind a car where her friend is seated giving her cash for running. How about you get cash for every kilo you lose? That’s what the app Pact does. It’s a weight loss app that uses cash stakes to keep you motivated and help you achieve your goals.

5) Nike Training Club

If you’re not comfortable with personal trainers or their high budgeted bills and expenses, this app is for you. Here you can get professional help from Nike’s experts and tons of workout plans from, guidance from pro athletes and celebrity trainers and much more. The app considers your requirement and plans your regime accordingly.

So, which app are you downloading next?

Keep Off These Foods If You Want To Enjoy A Healthy Heart

Your heart is the engine of your body. It is responsible for the circulation of the life of our bodies, that is, blood. Therefore, you have to take good care of it if you want to live a healthy and long life. To help you do this, we have compiled this list of foods you need to avoid to maintain a healthy heart.

1) Cold Cuts

In themselves, cold cuts do not endanger your heart’s health. However, their continued usage means that you will keep exposing yourself to raw salt consumption. By taking too much salt, you expose yourself to heart diseases.

2) Beef Jerky

Even though beef jerky is popular among meat lovers, its continued eating exposes you to excessive raw salt consumption. The results? High risk of developing artery failure and cardiovascular diseases. In fact, a 1–ounce serving can contain up to 700 milligrams of salt, which is more than four times what you expose yourself to when taking the same amount of chips.

3) Margarine

In as much as people love it, margarine is a source of unhealthy trans fatty acids, which make it dangerous for your cardiovascular health.

4) Processed Meats

Even though they are not dangerous in themselves, avoid them when possible. The reason is that they are persevered using salts and nitrites that are responsible for weakening your heart health. Therefore, it is necessary to take a maximum of two servings weekly. This way, you will avoid exposure to these chemicals.

5) Soft Drinks

Soft drinks are not that “soft” on your heart. On the contrary, these simple sugars are rich in soda that is culpable for triggering stroke inflammation and raising sugar level. The result of such conditions is that they strain artery walls and increase your risk of developing heart disease. If it is a must to take soda, then you should limit it to a maximum of seven 8-ounce servings weekly.

6) Added Sugars

Added sugar is another culprit behind increased chances of developing heart disease. The reason is that it increases blood pressure and high triglyceride levels.

Since you know the secrets, the ball is in your court to avoid these delicious and sweet poisons that could harm your heart health. It is now up to you to apply these little secrets and enjoy healthy living.