January 03, 2019 at 01:12PM Whether you’re deep into marathon training or hit the ground running a little too eagerly pursuing those #NewYearNewYou goals, muscle soreness happens to the best of us. While soaking in an Epsom salt bath can work wonders, there’s another secret weapon worth having in your back pocket: ginkgo biloba. Never heard of it? Ginkgo biloba comes from the leaves of the ginkgo tree, which originally hails from China. It’s been used in Traditional Chinese Medicine for centuries because of its many healing benefits—including, yes, muscle soreness. “One of ginkgo biloba’s functions is working as a blood invigorator,” says TCM expert, licensed acupuncturist and herbalist, and IN:Total Wellness founder, Simone Wan. “It increases blood circulation and can especially help with joint and muscle injuries and soreness.” Basically, boosted blood flow brings more oxygen and nutrients to your muscles, helping speed their recovery. But that’s not the only benefit it offers up. Keep reading for every ginkgo biloba benefit, potential risks, and ways to incorporate the herb into your diet. Photo: Getty Images/ivstiv Other ginkgo biloba benefits 1. It may be good for your brain. As Wan explains above, ginkgo biloba increases blood flow in the body—and this includes your brain, which is key for keeping the mind sharp and healthy. However, research is notoriously mixed on the subject. While a 2017 review of studies found that ginkgo biloba could improve cognitive function for people with dementia, a 2012 meta-analysis found no evidence to prove that the supplement gives
Day: January 3, 2019
This Is Our Fave Folding Tip From Marie Kondo’s New Netflix Show
January 03, 2019 at 12:00PM Who knew decluttering could be so addicting? Continue Reading… Author Emma Loewe | Life by Daily Burn Selected by iversue
Cher’s early ’90s workout videos make me want to turn back time
January 03, 2019 at 01:03PM The other day I found myself sucked into YouTube black hole. I was trying to explain to a friend with limited knowledge of The Golden Girls that I often feel like Blanche and Dorothy when they get overdressed in sequined outfits for a workout class. Three hours of mindless YouTube browsing later, I found something I didn’t know I had been looking for all along—Cher’s exercise videos from the ’90s. Cher is a priceless national treasure unlike any other (save maybe for RBG). Her Twitter is sublime, “Dancing Queen” (an album of ABBA covers) is the reason I made it through 2018, and the 1987 film Moonstruck is perfection. Needless to say, I am a fan. So, when I happened upon this trove (two videos) from the CherFitness series, I nearly passed out. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7uR_h2ePmjM] First released on VHS in 1992 as part of “Body Confidence,” “Hot Dance” runs for a cool 38 minutes (!!!!!!) of equipment-free aerobics. While I haven’t tried this workout myself, people have been swearing by this routine since the grunge era. The real part I’m interested in, however, is Cher’s choice of apparel. For “Hot Dance,” Cher is clad in a black bodysuit with just the right amount of mesh. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uE02x2ZIpQg] Next up, “Step Workout,” which is, well, a step workout. This gem is part of the singer’s first CherFitness video “New Attitude,” which sold 1.5 million copies domestically upon its release in 1991. Throughout the series, Cher’s costume is the real star of
The derm-approved ways to apply retinol without irritating your complexion
January 03, 2019 at 12:56PM Plain and simple: Retinol has been bestowing millions of people with glowy complexions for decades. Vitamin A derivatives (from OTC retinols to prescription-strength tretinoins) have been prescribed by derms, recommended by facialists, and snatched off of beauty shelves en masse because of the ingredient’s unparalleled ability to speed up skin’s cellular turnover, promote collagen production, and help skin repair itself from a handful of woes. Despite its amazing popularity and glow-inducing prowess, it still leaves some people frustrated, because while working these wonders, it can also irritate the complexion, resulting in dryness and flakiness for some. That why plenty of skin-care pros advise that new retinol users start out by using it every other day or even once a week. And now another rule to keep in mind: Many prescription-strength retinoids suggests users wait upwards of 20 minutes post-cleansing before putting retinol on their skin and 20 more minutes before putting anything else on, according to Reddit. According to derms, however, it’s an old-school rule. “In the 1980s, when we just started using Retin-A and tretinoin for anti-aging, we instructed women to wash and wait 20 minutes before applying the Retin-A,” explains Loretta Ciraldo, MD, FAAD, a Miami-based dermatologist and founder of Dr. Loretta Skincare. “At this time, dermatologists believed waiting was the best way to minimize any irritation from the product. Immediately after washing, while our skin is slightly damp, you do get enhanced absorption.” These days, however, retinol formulas are more skin-friendly and don’t tend
I’m more Tasmanian Devil than Marie Kondo, and I couldn’t be happier about it
January 03, 2019 at 12:37PM On Thursday, The New York Times published a story entitled “The Unbearable Heaviness of Clutter,” and I feel personally attacked. The piece cites several studies, one of them new, about the negative psychological and emotional effects of a cluttered or messy space. This is all part of the propaganda machine that says having a messy desk means (or at least makes people think) you’re “cranky” and “neurotic.” When did we as a society designate neat-freak levels of organization and cleanliness the only socially acceptable predilection? Personally, I’ve tried Muji-esque routines and created pristinely clean environments, and all it did was make me sad. My apartment looked like the front of a brochure for a new high-rise condominium, but I felt irritable—maybe even a little unhinged. I can’t remember where anything is and I spend an insane amount of time rifling through little boxes, attempting to remember which is supposed to contain the shoes I’m looking for. It just also seems like I could be doing so many other things in the time it would take to work Marie Kondo’s magic on my home. My inclination toward organized chaos is the reason I’ve had time to read and to teach myself embroidery. Growing up with four siblings in a seven-person household, if I had spend all my time tidying, I wouldn’t have had time to do anything else. Personal spaces should look and feel lived-in and say something about your personality. My home pretty accurately reflects that I am, in some
This 2-for-1 push-up will give you a total full-body workout with a single move
January 03, 2019 at 12:03PM When it comes to push-ups, my personal mantra is “the fewer the better.” So when I do do them, I want to be absolutely sure that I’m getting the most bang for my (brutally suffered-through) buck. Those things are hard, you guys! Well, my sore, sweaty prayers were answered yesterday morning in a HIIT class when I was introduced to the 30/60/90 pylo-fly push-up. The move—which, it’s worth prefacing, is among one of the hardest I’ve ever done—is two-fold. It starts with a chaturanga (AKA tricep) push-up on a riser, and then jumping your hands outward to the floor on either side of the riser to do another, regular pec push-up. Then, you jump your hands back on top of the riser and do it all again. FWIW, I’m exhausted just typing that. This 2-for-1, plyometric-meets-push-up situation winds up giving you a full-body workout in a single swoop. “With the chaturanga or tricep push-ups, you’re also using your core, your triceps, your shoulders, a little bit of chest, but ideally more of the back of the arms,” says 30/60/90 Fitness founder Kristi Molinaro, who invented the move. “The plyo part adds in the core because at [the] moments you’re in the air, your core needs to be strong in order to lift your body up and down like that with your hands. And then when you do the wide grip or pec push-up, you’re using your shoulders, your chest, your biceps, and triceps.” On top of that, because you’re doing
What Vitruvi founder Sara Panton wants you to know about essential oils
January 03, 2019 at 12:01PM One day she was in medical school studying global health, the next she was concocting essential oil blends, and now Sara Panton, co-founder of Vitruvi, is leading the charge to make essential oils mainstream. Chances are you’ve seen her creations at places like Nordstrom, Anthropologie, and Sephora: The ceramic black bottles are meant to look like they’re from the periodic table of elements, stamped with a simplistic 2-letter label, a far cry from the crunchy-granola, health-food store variety many of us have come to know. “In integrative medicine, when I learned about the 12 cranial nerves, I became really fascinated by scent—your olfactory nerve,” says Panton, who truly lights up when she’s talking about the power of plants. “I then became really passionate about the idea of using traditional botanicals and repurposing them in a modern way. The power of scent is really intriguing and underutilized, so it all started when I concocted my own focus blend to help with my anxiety.” Panton then began establishing rituals with herself that were connected to scent and oils, blending different essential oils together in her kitchen with her brother, and loved the practice so much that she wanted to share it with the world. And so Vitruvi blossomed into a small, hand-crafted business that’s now a mega company taking over the natural beauty industry. Here, Panton talks about what she wishes more people knew about essential oils, why everyone should be using them, and what she sees for
So You’ve Made A New Resolution — Can You Answer This One Question?
January 02, 2019 at 11:00PM So You’ve Made A New Resolution — Can You Answer This One Question? Continue Reading… Author | Life by Daily Burn Selected by iversue
The one thing most people get wrong when it comes to Ayurveda
January 03, 2019 at 10:59AM If you’re merely orbiting the wellness world and not fully immersed, chances are you’ve still heard of Ayurveda, a holistic medicine practice that originated in India. At more than 5,000 years old, it has out-lasted every diet fad and wellness trend. But here’s the funny thing: Almost every buzzy subject within the wellness world right now is rooted in this ancient practice. “Almond milk. Energy balls. Turmeric everything. Herbalism. Meditation. Soaking and sprouting,” Jasmine Hemsley, co-founder of Hemsley+Hemsley, lists off in a recent episode of The Business of Fashion podcast. “Bone broth. Fermentation. Probitoics. Prebiotics. Tongue scraping. Circadian rhythm. Oil pulling. Massage. Yoga. Mindfulness. Intermittent fasting. It’s all Ayurveda baby.” Practicing Ayurveda successfully doesn’t just mean adopting all of the aforementioned wellness habits. In fact, according to Hemsley, this is the main thing practitioners in the West tend to get wrong when trying to live their healthiest lives—they take it too far. “We hear ginger shots are good for us and then we want five,” she says. “Green juice is not a solution. And sauerkraut? Eat too much and you have more than a wind problem. We need to understand that the dose makes the medicine or the poison. Creating balance is the art of living well.” “We need to understand that the dose makes the medicine or the poison. Creating balance is the art of living well.” —Jasmine Hemsley, co-founder of Hemsley+Hemsley Good news! Time to cut yourself a freaking break. Hemsley explains that true wellness through the
4 hacks to remember any and all facts
January 03, 2019 at 10:35AM Reading Romeo and Juliet in high school pretty much ruined me. Without fail, anytime someone brings up Shakespeare in casual conversation (which happens to me surprisingly often), I hear in my mind, “Parting is such sweet sorrow, That I shall say good night till it be morrow,” on endless repeat. It’s annoying, but it does make me wonder about putting rhymes—and other memory tricks we all learned back in grade school—to good use. Our brains encode memories visually, acoustically, or semantically, according to Psych Central. While small studies have been conducted around rhyming and other mnemonic devices (think: “30 days hath September…”, the fate of Henry VIII’s “six sorry wives“, and acronyms like ROYGBIV), it’s not exactly clear why they work so well to cement memories in the brain. But since you do have at least 12 years of anecdotal proof that they do, here’s how to use each as, like, an adult. Make it rhyme. New coworkers? Gayle is the VP of Sales. Nick edits pics…This one is pretty self-explanatory. Find an acronym. JOMO, FOMO, BBE—acronyms abound in popular culture! Beyond memes, you can DIY (see what I did there?) one to suit your learning needs. For example, The Memory Institute suggests enlisting DR. ABC (Danger, Response, Airway, Breathing, and Circulation) to guide you in administering the proper first-aid care. Get alliterative. The possibilities are endless. (Jolly Jamie. Mystical Megan. Tall Tom.) If you struggle to remember a new name, just conjure up some alliteration on the spot. Create an acrostic. Acrostics are