Paris Je T’aime – Part 2

“I’m-I’m sorry, I didn’t see you.”

“Yeah, seem like it. Kya ye seat khaala hai?“

“Sorry, what?”

“I meant, is this seat vacant, or do you have company? Did I say something wrong? I kind of, umm, learning Hindi at the moment.”

 

His thick French accent was apparent when he talked. I’d never seen a full-grown man blushing like a teenager. It’s cute. 

“It’s “khaali” not “khaala”.”

“What?”

“The seat. You were saying, “Kya ye seat khaala hai?” It’s “khaali-vacant”, not khaala.”

“Sorry about that!”

“No problem, the seat is vacant.”

He sat next to me! I was shouting internally, wondering why was a French man sitting next to me?

“I hope you won’t mind me sitting here? You know, I’ve been watching you from the corner of the street. You seemed lost in thought. I couldn’t stop myself from coming here.”

“Yeah, I kind of.”

And then, it was an awkward silence. 

“I’m Alex, by the way. What’s your name?”

“Ohh, I’m Priyanka.”

“Priyanka? As in Priyanka Chopra?”

“Hahaha, you know there are a lot of Priyanka with different surnames around the world, right?”

“Yup just wanted to hear you laugh.”

“Guess it worked.”

“It is. So, why a beautiful girl like you sitting here all alone? Don’t you have company? Friend, partner? I’m sorry if I’m intruding.”

“No, it’s okay. I came here all alone. Trying to get a break from life.”

“You know, you can tell me what you’re dealing with. We’re practically strangers who know nothing about each other. Besides, maybe I could help. It’s a win-win.”

The way he uttered those words, the glint in his eyes while speaking, and his desire to know more about me like I was an unresolved mystery. It’s all apparent in his eyes. Can someone be this easy to read? 

So, I described to him my story, how I was dealing with my heartbreak and how I ended up in Paris.

“That guy seemed like a douchebag to me. I’m glad he left you.”

He whispered the last part almost to himself.

“What did you say?”

“Nothing! Since Paris has always been on your bucket list, do you have any place or places in mind?”

“It might sound stupid, but I only wanted to visit Eiffel Tower and then some museums, drink hot chocolate, eat macarons, and return home.”

“Seriously? You sound so boring! I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it that way. Have you visited Eiffel Tower yet?”

“No. I’m kind of plucking up the courage to visit there. It’s not that easy.”

“Ohh…if you don’t mind, I can go with you. You won’t be feeling alone plus, I am a local and can take you to a lot of hidden gems around here. Only if it’s okay with you, I can understand if you don’t want me to come with you.”

Sitting there, in front of a stranger, I was contemplating whether to say yes or not. My cousin lived here, but he had no time from his job to take me sightseeing. Since my French was non-existent, it was challenging to travel around. I had no idea why I never learnt French when I always wanted to visit here? I wanted to bang my head so hard that I could lose my memory. God!!! Why is everything so hard? 

Besides, I might never get the opportunity to visit Paris again, so why not enjoy the stay.

“So, will you come with me, Priyanka?”

“Yes! I can use your company since my cousin bailed out on me.”

“That’s the spirit! Are you interested in visiting the Eiffel Tower or the hidden gems?”

“Hidden gems, perhaps?”

“Oui, madame.”

That’s how Alex made my four days in Paris extraordinary.  

I came to Paris for a week and wasted the first day crying in my room. The cafe was nearby my hotel room where I met Alex. I was hesitant to trust him. No matter how truthful his eyes were, he was still a stranger. But his manners, his weird ways of expressing himself, compelled me to throw out all my doubts. I felt safe when I was around him. 

Keeping his promise, he showed me numerous gems that perhaps I wouldn’t find on my own. 

During these four days, I felt a foreign feeling bubbling inside me. I couldn’t interpret it in words. In this short span, Alex became my secure haven. Perhaps he noticed that too. Surprisingly, I never felt this connection with Amit. 

Was I in love with Alex? But wasn’t it too soon? 

But even if it’s love, what’s the point of pursuing it? It’s like tasting forbidden fruit. 

These thoughts made me reckless. I shouldn’t have said yes to Alex’s offer in the first place. But it’s good that I didn’t share my number or social media details with him. I couldn’t lead him to a tunnel with no way out. 

A day before my departure, I packed my stuff and left, not even telling my cousin about it. It’s rash, but that’s the only option I had in my mind. 

The worst thing that happened in all the chaos was I couldn’t get to see Eiffel Tower!

To be continued...

This story originally published on Storygiri

Paris Je T’aime – Part 1

Never in my life had I imagined that I would visit Paris alone! It has been on my bucket list since time immemorial. And trust me on this, I have been saving money since I was a kid drooling over the pictures of the Eiffel Tower.

Like most couples, I imagined that whenever I would visit Paris, I would be with my lover, holding each other’s hands, staring at the Eiffel Tower dreamily, looking at the sky lying somewhere in the park.

But not everything works according to plan!

I had a perfect relationship with Amit. We had been together for over three years. Always telling each other whatever bothers us, whether in a relationship or in life. People around us envied our relationship.

Everything was going great until one day when everything turned upside down.

I work in Mumbai, but my hometown is Delhi. It was the wedding of my adorable cousin that I had to go back to Delhi. I requested Amit to come with me, my cousins knew about my relationship with him, and my parents thought he was just my colleague who worked with me.

He politely declined my offer, stating that he was preparing for some momentous presentation. I didn’t mind his absence since it was related to his career.

I planned to stay there for a week, four days for a wedding and three days to relax. But due to reasons unknown, I was restless. I had no idea why? Everything was working according to the plan. My cousin was getting married, and I was happy about it, but there was a feeling back in my mind nagging me that something wicked was going to happen. Though I let all the negative thoughts aside, that feeling was not going away.

So instead of staying for the next three days, I cancelled the trip after promising my parents that I would visit soon and came back to Mumbai. Rather than going straight to my apartment, I thought, “why not give Amit a surprise visit!” With that thought in mind, I went to the “Dream & Blush” bakery; Amit loved their glazed doughnuts.

While advancing to his apartment, my restlessness & agitation was increasing. Reaching his doorstep, balancing my luggage & doughnuts, I knocked at the door. My breath hitched when I saw who opened the door.

There stood my so-called friend Smriti smiling at me deviously in nothing but a shirt, wait, it was Amit’s shirt! I saw him coming to the door and was shocked to see me standing there. The only thing he said was, “were you not supposed to come on Sunday?”

I lost the ability to utter a word, let alone shout at him. Instead of creating a scene, I handed him the doughnuts and left his apartment.

For the next two days, I cried my eyes out. The only thought that ran into my mind was, where did it go wrong? Where did we lose the connection? Was I not enough?

While looking for answers, my eyes landed on the picture of my cousin, who lived in Paris. It was the moment when I thought, “if it’s not now, then it’ll never going to happen”. And that same night (while crying), I applied for the visa and (thankfully) received the date.

Surprisingly, my boss didn’t say anything when I asked him for another (longtime) leave. Maybe, he heard office gossip about what happened and with whom it happened.

What shocked me most was I didn’t hear anything from Amit. No texts, no calls, no sorry messages, no explanations, or any social media posts, nothing. It felt like I didn’t mean anything to him. Like those three years, we spent together were nothing.

I’m still not over him, but I know the pain will subside one day.

Looking around the lovely surrounding, I started humming to one of my favourite songs when someone came in front of me, waving his hands, like swatting a fly and said, “excuse me, excuse me!”

Shit! He has the most captivating eyes.

To be continued...

This story originally published on Storygiri

9 Hidden Signs of Protein Deficiency

Protein, a word that we heard from people who are gym freak or people who take the matters of their health rather seriously. But, most importantly, what is protein and what causes protein deficiency?

Protein is a macronutrient that the body needs on a large scale to function properly. A diet that contains proper protein intake can give healthy skin, hair and muscles. Also, protein is essential to maintain blood sugar levels, can heal wounds, and kill the bacteria inside the body. 

There is no denial in that eating a healthy meal will eventually make a person fit? But, most people can have their protein intake by their usual eating habits while others can’t have it due to their irregular and junk food eating.

 

Signs of Protein Deficiency

A lack of sufficient protein intake can lead to protein deficiency, ignoring which can lead to a significant impact on health. Here are nine signs of protein deficiency:

1. Effects on Sleep: We often heard that millennial have a weird sleeping pattern. They can sleep all day and can awake all night. It is not something that happens with millennial only but depends on the age factor. Protein is responsible for making neurotransmitters, such as serotonin. Also known as ‘feel-good’ chemical, serotonin influence mood, digestion, sleep, blood clotting, bone density and sexual function. A proper diet filled with adequate protein intake can help people save from unusual sleeping pattern and other problems as well.

2. Effects on Concentration: Difficulty in concentrating or memorising something can cause due to protein deficiency. A low protein-infused diet leads to the inability to handle any stress, which leads to the exhaustion of the body. 

3. Effects on Weight: Wondering what might be the reason for unusual weight gain during these past few months? The answer to this question is protein deficiency and lower protein intake in meals. Low protein intake will lead to craving unhealthy food which is responsible for unwanted fat on the body. Whereas, high protein diet will boost metabolism, help lose weight or keep a track on body weight.

4. Effects on Cholesterol: Hearing cholesterol, most people start to fret about its tendency to cause havoc in a human body. But that’s not entirely true. A human body does need cholesterol. It helps organs to function, properly make hormones and other digestive fluids. Protein deficiency leads to the risk of high cholesterol level and increases the chance of heart-related problems.

5. Effects on Periods: Irregular menstrual cycle caused due to hormonal imbalances that we all know, but it also causes due to protein deficiency. Protein-rich diet not only makes periods regular but also helps to be less painful in some cases. 

6. Effects on Body: Protein deficiency not only mess with inside of the body but also affects the outside. Protein deficiency leads to hair fall, hair damage, split ends, hair thinning. It causes harm to nails as well, like brittle nails. Above everything, skin becomes patchy, uneven, and flaky. 

7. Effects on Immunity: Protein deficiency makes a person fall ill more frequently. If someone, having fever, cold, cough and other acute illness constantly, then the chances are that person is dealing with protein deficiency. 

8. Effects on Joint or Muscle Pain: Protein deficiency can lead to constant pain in joints and muscle that leads to making people weak and losing the capacity of lifting anything a bit heavy.

9. Effects on Diet: Protein deficiency indeed play a negative role in the eating pattern of a person. Low protein in the body leads to the craving of more unhealthy food, like sweets, caffeine, or junk. Although not each craving lead to protein deficiency.

Protein deficiency in India

It’s not easy in India to explain people about the benefits of protein-rich diets. Many people still think that a protein-rich meal is for people who love exercising and bodybuilding. Most of them believe that protein deficiency does not impact on their health, whether physically or mentally.

Sources of Protein:

Sources of protein intakes are conflicted matter. Some dietician counts the benefit of vegan others will tell the benefits of vegetarian and whereas, rest will advise to include some portion of non-vegetarian items to the diet. 

For non-vegetarian: 

Taking a protein-rich diet as per body requirement will never be harmful. As people say, too much of anything can be dangerous:

· Meat

· Fish

· Diary

· Poultry

For vegetarian: 

Vegetarians have a lot of options to have a protein-rich diet

· Seeds

· Nuts

· Beans

· Lentils

· Whole grain

· Soy

· Sweet potato

· Spinach

Protein deficiency tests: 

Usually, a doctor runs a blood test to get to know about the level of deficiency of protein in a body and how severe it is and then prescribe the medications according to it. Besides, if you or anyone around you have any signs mentioned above then make sure to get it checked before it’s too late.

 

 

The Ultimate Guide to the Keto Diet

Keto diet, a term that we are hearing most in today’s world. Especially on social media where people are posting photos and videos of the food that they are eating, which happens to be keto-friendly. We often wonder sometimes, what exactly is the keto diet? And why everyone is going gaga over it. This article will surely give you the ultimate guide to the keto diet. Keto also known as a ketogenic diet is a low-carb, high-fat diet that provides innumerable health benefits to the body. It not only burn excess body fat but also helps the metabolism to work more efficiently. Many studies show that a keto diet is beneficial in losing weight and improving health. Keto diet is healthy for people having diabetes, cancer, epilepsy or Alzheimer’s disease. 

Types of Keto Diet: 

There are different types of keto diet found to be helpful according to the body’s capacity to consume food.

1. Standard Ketogenic Diet: In standard keto diet, all the food that a person needs to eat contains fat, which includes butter, ghee, fish, meat and olive oil. Daily intake of fat is 150 grams carbs intake is 50 grams and 90 grams of protein intake that should be divided into 30 grams three times a day. In simple terms, this diet contains 75% fat, 20% protein, and 5% carbs. 

2. Cyclical Ketogenic Diet: The cycling keto diet has an option of cheat days. You need to follow your diet according to the plan for five-six days, and then eat something of your choice in the remaining one-two days depending upon your eating habit. There are a lot of people present, who instead of having their cheat day or day-off every weekend, take it on holidays. 

3. Targeted Ketogenic Diet: Targeted keto diet is popular among athletes, bodybuilders and people who exercise vigorously. The total carbs intake increases and come between 70-80 grams. Best food, in this case, including fruit, dairy or grain-based foods which can give them required nutrition. 

4. High-protein Ketogenic Diet: In high-protein keto diet entails consuming 120 grams of protein and 130 grams of fat per day. Carbs are still a big no in this diet as well. Usually, people prefer to follow a high-protein keto diet because it emphasis on protein, unlike standard diet. This diet contains 60% fat, 35% protein, and 5% carbs. 

Keto Diet Helpful in Weight Loss 

Keto diet is an efficient way to lose weight without starving yourself. Unlike other low-fat diets, keto diets are more superior because they are rich in protein intake, which eventually nourishes the body and mind. Keto diet not only helps in losing weight but also preserve muscle mass and improve the chances of getting any disease. Ketogenic diets are low in carbs (which turns out to be more beneficial). When the level of carbs decreases and the level of fat increases in that situation body enters into a metabolic state called ketosis. After this state, the body starts burning fat into ketones. Ketones are molecules that can supply energy to the brain. 

 Health Benefits of Keto Diet

 Initially, the ketogenic diet originated to treat neurological diseases, such as epilepsy. The beneficial factors in keto diet decrease the risk of having heart disease, cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), brain injuries and acne breakout on the skin surface.

Foods to Avoid: There is a lot of food, a ketogenic diet follower should avoid. Food such as sugary items, whether food or drink, grains or starches, strawberries, chickpeas, beans, root vegetables, processed food, alcohol, and sugar-free diet food. 

Foods to Eat: If you are following the keto diet, then make sure to include these items in your food intake. Food such as meat, chicken, turkey, fatty fish, eggs, butter, cheese, cream, nuts, seeds, avocados, salt, pepper and other healthy herbs and spices. 

Side Effects and its Treatment: Although it is safe to have a keto rich diet, there may be some side effects during the initial days because the body starts to adapt to the new eating pattern. The whole condition referred to as keto flu. There is nothing to worry about it. It will be over within a few days once the body is comfortable with the eating pattern. Low energy, increased hunger, sleep issues, digestive discomfort, and decreased exercise performance are the symptoms of keto flu. To minimise these symptoms, you can start with a regular low-carb diet for a few weeks, initially. 

 At first, it will take some time for the body to adjust to following a new diet plan but eventually, you’ll see the result of the keto diet and its benefit on health.