The first thing that comes in our mind after getting up in the morning is coffee. For many people, coffee is the fuel they need to function for the entire day. But, what if we tell you that your coffee is a great ingredient that can be used to take care of your hair and skin? By bringing these tips in your daily routine, you can keep your skin and hair healthy and beautiful.
The caffeine present in coffee is beneficial for skin and hair if only you know the right amount suitable to use. Coffee helps in reducing red rashes and cellulite.
Let’s look at some of the other beauty benefits of coffee
1. Corrects Dark Circles: Not only the puffiness of your eyes goes after your first cup of coffee, but, you can fix dark circles lurking around your eyes with the help of it too. You can take a teaspoon of cold curd and mix it with coffee powder. After mixing it well, you can apply it around your eyes and leave it for 30 minutes. Rinse your face with cold water, and continue doing it for 10-15 days to see the best result.
2. Coffee Reduces Hair Fall: To use coffee as a hair applicator, you can use it in two ways. The first way to use coffee involves shampooing hair with coffee water. Wrap your hair under the towel for 15-20 minutes before washing with cold water.
The second way to use coffee on hair is by making hair masks. To make a coffee mask for the hair, take two tablespoons of any hair oil, 2-3 drops of Aroma oil, and 1 teaspoon of honey. Now, mix these ingredients with two tablespoons of coffee. Once your mask is ready, make sure you keep it on your hair for at least 30 minutes. Rinse hair with cold water.
3. Keeps Hair Healthy: If your hair is dry and weak, you can depend on coffee for a good result. You can mix coffee powder with water and massage your hair. Make sure you apply and massage your hair evenly and properly. Once you are done with the massage, wear a shower cap and leave your hair for half an hour before shampooing and conditioning your hair with cold water.
4. Keeps Hair Soft: Mix 2-3 tablespoons of fresh curd with 2 tablespoons coffee powder, and one tablespoon castor oil. In fact, castor oil increases hair growth, while curd makes your hair shine and removes dandruff. Therefore, this amalgamation of ingredients is one of the best ways to get shiny and soft hair.
5. Good For Skin: Coffee also benefits your skin. For this, mix 2 tablespoons of raw milk in 1 tablespoon of coffee, and make a smooth paste. You can add 1 tbsp of turmeric powder also. Apply evenly on your face and neck, and leave it till it dries. You can use this face mask 2-3 times a week. Very soon you will see the difference in your skin. Apart from this, you can also use masks made by mixing coffee, curd, and honey. This will hydrate your skin and also reduce the problem of pimples.
6. Used As Scrub: To make a coffee scrub, prepare a scrub by putting some drops of sugar, coconut oil, cinnamon powder, and aroma oil of your choice, and mix it with coffee. After using this, the skin remains quite fresh and moisturized due to the removal of dead cells. From the very first time, you will see an effect on your skin. For better results, you can use this scrub twice a week. What an amazing thing it is to have something that tastes so good, but at the same time has some amazing beauty benefits for us?
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I belong to Nainital, a small town in the state of Uttarakhand. To start with, just after 15 days of being born, I was abandoned by my mother in the hospital just because I was a girl child. My parents had separated because of differences in marriage.
My father was suggested by family members to give me up for adoption as it was not convenient for a man to raise a girl child. My father bluntly refused the suggestion, slashing existing stereotypes back in those days. My relatives took care of me in the first few years.
But because of ever-growing family disputes, I was shifted to Nainital where my father was a teacher in Birla Vidya Mandir School.
Sometimes school teachers and sometimes neighbours who were close would take care of me there. Given the scenario, I had to learn to become independent at a very young age. as with growing age, I found it difficult to even take care of my nutrition because of which my immunity was affected too.
But the good part was I used to get a lot of time to play around as there was no one to call me out for my studies for most of the times. Soon after relocating, I started studying at Birla Vidya Mandir School in Nainital, where my father was a teacher and it was a boy’s school.
The Nainital Entrepreneur
This had a very positive effect on me as the experience gave me enough exposure to become an extrovert. But sadly, I could never bond with my brother as he used to live with my mother.
But as fate would have it, there was yet another surprise for me. As a motherless child and due to family and societal pressure and manipulation, I was married off early when I was barely 18 years old. This was done on the presumption that the rest of my life would become easier and smoother.
But God had different plans for me as I suffered grave disturbances in my marriage as well. The person I got married to happened to be involved in illegal business deals and connections. My father decided to take me back to Nainital, my hometown when we found out that everything that we were told was a big fraud and hence my family filed for divorce. I REMEMBER I WAS very sad and was battling DEPRESSION…..during days….because of the given circumstances. Then again my father and I faced societal pressure to not go for divorce as it would be difficult for me to handle things alone.
My father tried to give a chance to the guy and his family and so under pressure, I went back to stay with him for a week. What happened next tore me up mentally. I WAS NOT READY for any physical relationship with that man who was STILL my husband, for the namesake. Hence I faced MARITAL RAPE which in our so-called society doesn’t come in the CATEGORY OF RAPE. Trust me, even I wasn’t aware of what it was. I went back to Nainital.
My depression got worse. I attempted suicide thrice but in vain and then I came to know that I was 3 months pregnant. As my body was extremely weak at that time and my immune system wasn’t that strong, besides, my haemoglobin was around 5.8, so abortion wasn’t an option.
Ekta & Shashank
I had to undergo several medical procedures to stabilize my health and pregnancy. With time then, my daughter was born in Nainital and she was the only source of motivation for me to move forward and do something about my life but my mental health still wasn’t cured. My daughter was barely two and a half years old when I left her with my father and moved to a close town Rudrapur for work.
I worked in a bank for a year but I wasn’t satisfied there. I decided to move to Delhi where I tried my luck in different careers. Then my father decided to send me and my daughter to Canada where they were looking for a second option for my marriage.
I requested my family to give me some more time before all the formalities were completed. Nothing in my life comes easy. Not even my career. Then in 2014, I moved to the city of dreams as they call it (Mumbai) in search of the peace and tranquillity. I was searching for, and there it was all this while right in front of my eyes and I couldn’t see it, the only thing that gave me immense pleasure had always been health and fitness.
I decided to explore my career fitness industry as I was good in sports since childhood. I dedicated myself fully to accomplishing my goals. It felt as if the child inside me screamed with joy to have found it’s lost home yet again. I felt alive after many years.
Mumbai gave me one more thing. As a struggler in Mumbai with no knowledge in the fitness industry, I joined a few classes like yoga n martial arts and thereafter i joined a gym club where I met my partner, Shashank. He also belonged to Uttarakhand and we connected on commonalities and soon became great friends. He was senior to me in the industry as I was a fresher. He gave me the guidance I was lacking from so many years and showed me the path that I should follow. Our bonding became stronger with time. Thereafter, there is no stopping till date.
Shashank with their daughter
Soon I started competing in many private competitions and attended many fitness expos with Shashank and educated myself. Today I am an MBA graduate, an Internationally certified personal trainer, Internationally certified kettlebell, National Champion in powerlifting, Strongest Woman of India 2018, co-founder of Mountstrong Personal Fitness Studio with my partner in Dehradun, and a known woman in Nainital.
The hope that I had lost in marriage, life and relationships were alive again. My partner has been the biggest support system all this while and he has been my guiding light in true sense. Today, I am happily married to him and have settled down with him along with my daughter.
1) Please follow a very regular healthy lifestyle and fitness regime. You don’t need expensive workout gear, fancy shoes and supplements to get healthy. Basic 30 minutes of brisk walk and organic wholesome diet is enough to stay fit. Nut fruits and 5 litres plus water intake with regular workout frequency is the key to keep your organs active and boost your immunity.
2) Good health is not just the absence of diseases or illness. It’s a state of complete physical mental and social well being. This means eating a balanced diet, getting regular exercises, avoid alcohol, tobacco etc which will help prevent anxiety and depression also.
3) I believe in the strength of will power and consistency. And that’s what I say to other people as well. It has not only improved my physical strength but also my mental strength. I never imagined myself lifting weights or setting national and state records. With whatever little rollercoaster adventure my life has been since my birth I can say it with my conviction that life is never easy for anyone but we have got to take all the misfortunes with a pinch of salt and never give up on ourselves! They also say: “Winners never quit, and quitters never win.”
Ekta with her family
I will soon be representing Asia in the powerlifting category and I am looking forward to winning the world powerlifting championship in the coming year!
4) Please believe and practice the mantra of learning and growing every day of your life. I know you all are young and maybe some of you don’t have a deep appreciation and inclination towards spirituality YET. I am not too far in age from you all. YET my saviour in the darkest times was TRUST FAITH that we must never give up.
5) Last I will say is: HAVE An unshakable spirit and the power of resilience! When it comes to health and fitness, my plan is to reach out to as many young girls as I can to make them reach their potential without having to sacrifice on their happiness and make informed choices
I am sharing my story in the hope that even if one woman who’s gone through or is going through the same or even grave ordeal as I have feels inspired by my tale and can bring about a change in their lives I will be glad, all I want to say is I HAVE walked this path….and IF I CAN DO IT….SO CAN YOU. No matter what life throws at you STAY POSITIVE….GIVE your loved ones a chance to LOVE you unconditionally.
A 'non-9-5 desk job' ambivert geek who chooses her own audience, Sonali loves sharing stories and finding the corners where humanity still exists! She believes that every individual's story is unique and special. She loves writing about the untouched and unspoken segments of society. When not writing, you can find her listening to someone's stories or playing with dogs. Sonali values mental health and encourages people to speak their heart out!
