By: Shaza Walid & Magy Ghaly

What would be more precious than our health and our bodies’ fitness? Of course there is nothing more important. So, as winter has come to an end and our months of hibernation is over, we need to give more attention to our health and take more care of our bodies. However, as most of us go home feeling tired after an exhausting day at work, we feel lazy to go to the gym.

And because our main objective at Yaoota is your comfort, we decided to offer you some important tips to take care of your health. Also, we are presenting some home appliances that will help you take good care of your bodies, so that your health will significantly improve.

After you have read the article, and if you liked any of these appliances and thought about buying any, you can easily purchase it through Yaoota and have it delivered to your doorstep as soon as possible.

*Prices listed in the article are the ones provided when the article was published, and they are subject to change according to supply and demand of the market.

First of all, here are some tips for a healthier lifestyle:

• One of the things that will help you stick to your goal is to start it with your family and stick to it together. You can remind yourself of the goal and keep it in front of you all the time by writing it down and sticking it on the refrigerator for example as a notepad like this one, price starts at 30 EGP.
• Try cutting down canned, preserved, and processed food, canned fruits and vegetables, food that is cooked in the microwave, chips and other such kinds of food. That kind of food contains higher percentages of sodium, sugar, and fats than your daily needs.
• Try not to eat while using your laptop or watching television, as when you are distracted or not focused while eating, you end up eating larger amounts of food.
• It is highly important to have light healthy snacks during the day; yogurt, granola, fruits and nuts (especially cashews and almonds), peanut butter, chickpeas and dried fruits. But keep watching the amounts you eat, as you might get an opposite result if you ate too much. You can order all the healthy food you want from Nature’s and Gourmet.
• Did you know that you can burn calories while doing the housework? According to health.com website, you can burn 90 calories when vacuuming for 60 minutes, washing the dishes for 60 minutes burns around 100 calories, cleaning the bathroom including the ceiling and floor is equal to 35 minutes on the treadmill, and if you walked while talking on the phone for 35 minutes, you would burn 90 calories. You can also burn some calories if you cleaned your home appliances. Check out this article “A step by step guide to cleaning home appliances” to know the right way to clean each home appliance.

You can also calculate how much calories you burnt when doing the housework using a pedometer, prices start at 50 EGP.

Now, let’s have a look at some appliances for a healthier lifestyle at home:

1-The juicer

You can cut down soda drinks and canned juices, as they contain enormous amounts of sugar and calories, and start using a juicer for fresh juices. There are two kinds of juicers:
Centrifugal juicer: It absorbs juice by spinning the fruit to separate the pulp apart from the juice, so that you can have the juice ready to drink. It is cheaper, easier to use, lightweight and fast performing. However, it does not grind leafy vegetable. Also, it is a little noisier when it is on.
Masticating juicer: Basically, it squeezes and grinds up the fruit through a vertical tube. This juicer is more effective and suits most people who like to make juices a lot, and it is quieter when being used, but it is not fast like a centrifugal juicer.

Check out centrifugal juicer.

If you prefer citrus juices (lemon, orange, and others), you can check out citrus juicers here, price starts at 149 EGP.

2- Food steamer

Cooking with steam keeps the shape and color of food, preserves the nutritious elements, saves power, and does not require oil. That is why it is considered a very healthy way to cook. This food steamer will enable you to cook vegetables, chicken, meat, and fish. When buying a food steamer, do not go for the one whose container is plastic, as it contains toxics and keeps bacteria when being exposed to high temperature, which is neither good for your health nor your family’s. Instead, opt for the stainless steel ones. You should also consider the power consumption compared to the cooking time, as steam cooking makes cooking time longer than normal, yet it consumes less energy. So, if you want the cooking process to be faster, you will need to choose a food steamer with higher consumption of power (but take care of your electricity bill). One last thing you need to consider is the size of the food steamer, which depends on the number of your family members and how frequent you are using it.

Check out food steamers.

If you want a steamer specifically for rice, then check out this article “All you need to know about the Kenwood rice cooker.” You can see different rice cookers here, price starts at 255 EGP.

3- Vegetable cutter

A vegetable cutter will help you make salad or a vegetable casserole fast and easy. Most cutters can cut all kinds of vegetables (including hard vegetables like onions and potatoes). There are some cutters that can cut fruits, cheese, and meat, but it will not benefit you unless you like to cut specific shapes. There is also the spiral slicer that is used for slicing food, but you will face some difficulty with carrots for example. And if you want a tool that can do more jobs, you can get a cutter that is of a bigger size. It can cut and chop in many different ways, as it comes with different cutters. You can choose the right cutter according to your needs and budget. Regardless of the cutter you will choose to buy, you must take care of the blades as they are always very sharp.

Check out vegetable cutters.

Check out spiral cutters here, price starts at 49 EGP.

You can also check the nicer dicer that cut food in different shapes and sizes, price starts at 79 EGP.

4- Air fryer/ No-oil fryer

The no-oil fryer has been a major leap in the way we eat fried food. As we all know, fried food contains a high percentage of fats and increases the rate of obesity and cholesterol. But the air fryer made it possible to enjoy the taste and crunchiness of fried food, yet without its unhealthy consequences. This fryer uses 70 – 80% less oil than normal frying. It does not make a mess or spill oil, and is very easy to clean. You can use it for other purposes, like frying, baking, and grilling. That is if you knew how to set the right temperature and time of cooking, which differs according to the fryer model. Usually, an air fryer does not cook large amounts, and food takes more time to be ready. So, when using it, do not put a large amount of food at once, and that is for the sake of food to be cooked properly. Also, you will need to flip the food every 10 minutes to cook evenly.

Note: spray some oil on the food so it will not stick.

Check out a variety of air fryers.

If you would like to know more about air fryers, you can check out this article.

5- Yogurt maker

Yogurt is one of the light healthy snacks. It contains healthy bacteria “Probiotics” that your body needs. It also helps in digestion, contains a reasonable amount of calcium, and helps prevents Osteoporosis. So what do you think of making yogurt at home? It would be of a lower price than buying it ready-made from the supermarket. In addition to that, it will not contain any preservatives.

The recipe and instructions:

All you need is milk and fresh yogurt. The quantity depends on the number of people eating. If you use full cream yogurt, it will make your homemade yogurt thicker. First, heat the milk in a pot but do not leave it to boil, and then leave it to cool down to about 43˚. In a separate pot, mix the yogurt and 1.5-2 cups of warm milk and stir it until being smooth, then put the mixture in the milk pot and mix them well. After that, put the new mixture in the cups of the yogurt maker. You can adjust the temperature and time according to how thick you want it. You can add granola, strawberries or berries for the yogurt to taste good.

Check out different models yogurt makers.

6- Grill

Grilling is considered one of the healthiest ways to cook. It allows food get rid of excess fats, so that food is lighter, healthier and keeping its nutritious elements. When buying a grill, it is better to get an electric or gas grill, not a coal one, as it is easier to clean and the food is cooked faster. Coal grills make your food gain some elements that cause health issues, yet it gives food a very nice flavor that no other grill does. You should also think about the size you need according to how often you are going to use it and how much food you will cook. The stainless steel grill is the best one you can get. Also, try to find a grill with a thermostat to be able to cook without the need to check on the food every once in a while.

Check out different kinds of grills.

You will need some accessories for the grill like cooking tongs and cooking gloves.

7- Food containers

Food containers are beneficial in many ways; you can use them to store cooked food or leftovers to eat it later, take food on the go to work, or school lunch for your kids. Food containers save you money by keeping leftovers fresh, so you do not have to cook again. You can find them in different shapes and sizes according to your needs.

When choosing a food container, the best choice is glass one as it does not react with food, is very easy to clean, and it is both microwave and dishwasher safe. However, they are pretty expensive and are not suitable to take with you due their heavy weight, not to mention that they can get easily broken. If you are buying plastic food containers, choose the ones with numbers 1, 2, 4, and 5 as these are the safest types of plastic. Plastics that contain BPA or Phthalates cause hormonal imbalance, which affects negatively the body functions. And if plastic containers are scratched, do not use them. Do not use them in the microwave too unless it says you can. Make sure that the lids are closed tightly and do not leak. That is to help you maintain the taste of the food. Finally, make sure that the containers can be put in the freezer.

Check out food containers.

Check out glass food containers here, price starts at 82 EGP.

8- Popcorn maker

Popcorn is one of the light healthy snacks that you can give to your kids instead of chips and chocolate that contain lots of unnecessary sugar and calories. Popcorn makes you feel full, not to mention that it is full of fibers and whole grains that are beneficial for your body. Try to stay away from popcorn that is made in a microwave as it contains preservatives and unhealthy oils. Popcorn with caramel, chocolate, or cheese contains high calories. Stick to salted popcorn and you can add some butter for better taste.

When buying a popcorn maker, think of its size, the time it takes for the popcorn to be ready, how many seeds that do not pop all the way (as this happens all the time), how much it makes, and how it is made (whether it is oil or hot air). Hot air makes all the seeds pop as air is evenly distributed. If you are getting oil popcorn maker, make sure it has stirring stick to pop evenly. Air popcorn makers are easily cleaned, but the one that requires oil makes popcorn that tastes better. However, you still can add flavors for better taste, which makes you keep track of how many calories you are eating.

Check out popcorn makers.

9- Salad mixer

When we hear the word healthy food, the first thing that comes to mind is salad. Salad contains many nutritious elements that your body needs every day, like fibers, antioxidants, beta-carotenes, vitamin C, and many other elements. When you eat a bowl of salad before the main dish, it makes you feel full and eat less, and therefore lose weight.

A salad spinner is an excellent tool that will make it easier to make salad at home. Instead of washing every vegetable separately, you will put all the salad components in the salad spinner with water, and they all will be washed at the same time. Also, the spinning will help dry the vegetables fast. When you buy the salad spinner, think about the size according to the amount of salad you normally make, and also according to the number of the family members. Make sure that the inner bowl spins easily and is cleaned easily as well.

Note: Salad mixers take space in the kitchen, so make sure you have room for it.

Check out salad mixers.

10- Sports equipment

Sometimes, we find it hard to go to the gym during our busy days, but what about bringing gym home? You can have your own sports equipment at home, so you have no excuse. You will not waste time to and from the gym. And for busy mothers who have many responsibilities, they can exercise at home without worrying about where to leave their kids when going to the gym.

When you are buying sports equipment, calculate your budget and the kind of exercise you want to do as that equipment is expensive (but worth it). Make sure that you have room for it at your home before determining the size of the equipment you want to buy. People with injuries or any physical problem will need to check with their doctors first before trying any sports equipment. That is to avoid any health problems. Also, needless to say that fitness equipment needs to be in a well-ventilated place, and it is better to keep away from children reach to avoid any injuries.

To know more about fitness equipment that you can use at home, check this article.

Check out different types of sports equipment.

Now, share with us how you make your home a healthier place?

*Some items may currently be out of stock, but they will available soon. If you encounter any similar problem, please comment on the article, or contact us through our Facebook page.