While the winter months are often cold, dark and rainy, don’t let that deter you from keeping an active lifestyle. If you prepare properly, you can get the most out of your winter workouts and enjoy it. Read more
Unless you are hidden away in a mountain retreat, I’m quite certain that you are feeling the effects of stress. We are aware of those moments when stress hits, and the physical and mental feelings it brings. Yet there’s a good chance that you are not aware of how stress affects your health.
You may think that decreased productivity at work, trouble sleeping, anger, headaches, and your frequent trips to the bathroom are separate issues. In reality they are all common signs and symptoms of stress. Read more
When you are feeling the effects of growing stress levels pressing down on you, what do you do for relief? If taking a walk in nature has been a practice, you already experience the benefit of forest bathing or Shinrin-yoku.
This ancient practice of visiting a forest and breathing in its air is used as a natural remedy for mounting stress and mental fatigue. The point is to take a trip into the forest to soak in and fully experience your surroundings. Read more
Does summer time normally involve time spent in the pool to cool off, exercise or keep the kids busy? Most of us are careful about sunscreen to protect from burns. But what are you doing to protect yourself from the damaging effects of chlorine?
When I was young, our normal practice was to rinse off when we came out of the pool in order to remove chlorine and other pool chemicals from our skin. What I have learned since then is that what our skin is exposed to for more than 20 seconds is absorbed. That means a rinse after an hour or so playing in the water didn’t really protect us. We need to work from the inside. Read more
Whether you celebrate Christmas or Hanukkah or Kwanza, the holidays can be a great time of joy for many. But for others, they are filled with anxiety and stress. You can set yourself on a more positive path – and bust the holiday stress cycle – when you understand the how to best support your body for joy.
When stress hits at this time of year, it’s easy to turn to that tray of cookies for moral support. After all, cookies won’t criticize you about your choices the way your family will. What we don’t realize is that we are self-medicating with sweets – the quick spike of sugar in our system can bring an increase in serotonin, a neurotransmitter that promotes feelings of well-being and happiness. Sadly, the benefit is fleeting, and we find ourselves reaching for another fix. Read more
I think you would agree that daily workouts can be quite difficult to fit into a busy schedule. Have you thrown up your hands and abandoned this goal altogether? The all-or-nothing mindset so common when considering exercise and other practices that benefit your body is harming your health. Let’s talk about how we can put that mindset to rest and how to incorporate wellness into your day.
Let’s start with the definition. A workout doesn’t have to mean an hour and a half of sweating at the gym. Whew! There are ways to sprinkle wellness into your everyday life, and even into your workday.
Ever have those days where you can’t seem to think straight? It can feel like your brain is actually foggy, and you can’t get to your thoughts. Fatigue often accompanies brain fog — including feeling easily irritated, forgetting things or having trouble learning new things, feeling unmotivated, anxious, lacking concentration and even insomnia. Frustrating, and the good news is you can do a lot to clear the fog in your head.
Here are a few tweaks you can start implementing: Read more
Does scheduling exercise into your busy calendar feel like trying to put a puzzle piece in where it doesn’t fit? If you have read my materials for any length of time, you understand that exercise is quite necessary for wellness; yet it can seem challenging to fit it in.
Part of your frustration may be based in the expectation that you have to spend an hour at the gym in order for it to qualify as exercise. Not so! What is important is movement of your joints and resistance for your muscles. And this can be done anywhere! Read more
What is the normal pattern of your visits to the doctor? You notice symptoms and make an appointment. Once the doctor joins you in the exam room, he or she asks what your major complaint is, perhaps asking a few clarifying questions, and then offers a prescription to ease the symptoms.
If you were to equate the process with care of a tree, what part of the tree have you addressed? Read more
Do you shudder when you hear the word “exercise”? You aren’t alone if you do. What is behind your response – a dislike of sweat, an injury, a busy schedule?
There are many reasons why we may avoid exercise, yet it is critical for improving our overall health. What happens when you leave a tool with moving parts unused for a long time? It doesn’t move as well. And it’s the same for your body. Read more
