September 13, 2019 at 12:15AM by CWC Pinpointing my motivations for doing, well, just about anything, is a fruitless task. The inner-workings of the human psyche are largely enigmatic to me. But when a coworker introduced me to the “behavior chain,” a model that helps you to identify which actions trigger specific behaviors, I felt the fog lift. Once you know how the behavior chain works, you can use it to hack all of your habits—but it might be most useful when it comes to nutrition. “Typically, the behavior chain looks at behaviors we want to stop, or that are detrimental,” says psychotherapist Jennifer Silvershein, LCSW. When it comes to healthy eating though, it’s possible to use it not just to identify a perceived problem but also to put a positive spin on it, which helps you make good choices down the line. First, let’s establish the ground rules of the behavior chain. “The behavior chain is a tool that enables an individual to better understand the function of a particular behavior,” says Silvershein. “While attempting to complete a behavior chain analysis, an individual begins to slowly dissect all of the factors that lead to the specific behavior they are focusing on.” The four steps of the behavior chain are the trigger, thought, action, and consequence. By following the breadcrumbs back to the trigger of a certain action, you can begin to understand why you did something in the first place. And the next step is to be mindful of how
Day: September 12, 2019
This is the exercise NASA astronauts do when they get back from space to recover
September 12, 2019 at 11:01PM by CWC List out all of the different types of exercises in the world, and you’d be hard pressed to find one more fun than a rebounder workout. After all, the entire premise is basically just jumping on a trampoline—the way you used to back in third grade—with some choreography mixed in. Rebounding has been around since the early eighties, but has risen in popularity lately thanks to a number of studios like New York City’s The Ness and Los Angeles’s LEKFit integrating trampoline workouts into their class offerings. And for good reason. There are a whole lot of benefits of rebounding (aside from it being one of the most enjoyable ways to break a sweat). Seriously—a study out of NASA in the eighties (this is when these types of workouts first became popular) found that jumping on a trampoline can give you a full-body workout without the impact and pressure on your ankles and knees that you might get from running on a treadmill. They dubbed it an effective way for astronauts to recover and regain bone and muscle mass after returning from space, and needless to say, if it’s good enough for astronauts, I’ll be all over it. Want to do the same? Here are the benefits and how to incorporate a routine into your sweat mix. The benefits of rebounding It gets your heart pumping: The most obvious benefits of rebounding have to do with your cardiovascular system. If you remember anything
Friday the 13th: Astrologically speaking, should we brace ourselves for bad luck?
September 12, 2019 at 10:49PM by CWC When I pulled up my calendar today to see my schedule, it dawned on me that Friday the 13th approaches. To get ahead of the bad luck this date seems to promise, I decided to ask an astrologist if there was any significance. (In true Piscean fashion, I was also looking for a way to be the victim instead of take responsibility for my actions should anything go haywire.) Turns out Friday the 13th is a little misunderstood, and it’s not quite the doomsday it’s been made out to be. Astrologically speaking, September 13, 2019 is significant in that it “only coincides with a Full Moon around every 20 years,” says astrologer Amy Tripp. The next full moon on Friday the 13th won’t happen until 2049. “It’s superstitious significance has roots in Christianity, as Judas was the 13th guest at the Last Supper and the crucifixion of Jesus occurred on a Friday,” Tripp says. Also, hey, in tarot 13 is the Death card, she notes. “Though we have superstitions surrounding Friday the 13th and other ones about full moons, there is no direct astrological significance of these two things happening together,” intuitive healer and astrologer Rachel Lang adds. But astrologically speaking, “the energies up during this time can be quite intense,” she says. “The planets Jupiter, Neptune, and Mars are all involved, in addition to the Sun and Moon. This could mean a perfect blend of mixed emotions, heightened awareness about life circumstances,
The 2-minute shower routine that a derm and acupuncturist say will jolt you awake
September 12, 2019 at 09:25PM by CWC Taking a shower is the best $0 self-care method that there is. Think about it: A few minutes under the jet stream gives you an excuse to slather your body in fancy products while simultaneously washing away dirt/grime/stress/sins, and you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who didn’t feel better when they stepped out of a shower than they did when they stepped in. But one way to up your shower self-care game even more, aside from investing in a $22 body wash, is to turn it into a hydrotherapy session. Hydrotherapy—which is a fancy word for “hot/cold therapy”—does a whole slew of good things for your body, and has become a spa-scene fixture over the past few years. But according to board-certified dermatologic surgeon and specialist David Amron, MD, you actually don’t have to leave your bathroom (or even your shower) in order to experience it for yourself. He cites switching the water in your shower from hot to cold as one of the easiest (and free!) ways to activate your lymphatic system. “Hydrotherapy has many healing health benefits such as relieving sore achy muscles, relaxing for stress relief, and its overall cleansing ability to detoxify,” confirms Tina Tsan, a licensed acupuncturist, adding that it also helps reduce swelling by improving your lymphatic function. When you alternate between hot and cold water in the shower, it helps get the fluid in your lymphatic system moving, otherwise known as lymphangiomotorcity (… try saying that three times
True or False: Stretching actually makes you taller
September 12, 2019 at 07:16PM by CWC Standing at 5 feet 5 inches tall, I’m pretty happy with my height. That said, if I was offered the chance to grow a few inches to make my #legsfordays dreams a reality, I’d most certainly take it. Sadly, there’s really no way to increase your height aside from those platform sneakers in your closet. Still, some people insist that regular stretching does the trick. But is there any merit to that claim? Does stretching make you taller? Stretching can help to improve mobility, boosting energy, fight off aches and pains, and prevent injury. When it comes to making you taller, on the other hand, you’re out of luck I’m afraid. “Stretching will not make you taller—that’s determined by your bone structure, among other factors,” says physical therapist Katie Sun Worrall. There is some good news, though: If you’re a chronic sloucher (like me!), stretching could make you appear to be taller. “If you slouch when standing or sitting, your trunk muscles may be in a constant shortened state. Stretching can help improve your posture and allow you to stand up straighter, effectively making you appear taller,” says Worall. “If you sit hunched over at a desk all day, the muscles you should stretch to help improve your posture—and stand up straighter!—are your pecs. I would also recommend any exercise that will help lengthen your spine, like yoga.” Also cool: Putting a focus on lengthening and stretching your muscles while you’re young can help
This color-correcting serum nixes my rosacea redness better than any concealer
September 12, 2019 at 07:01PM by CWC Rosacea is an extremely rude and disrespectful skin condition. I say this with authority because my diagnosis last year cleared up any confusion about my skin. So that’s why I get weird whitehead-looking breakouts if I’m out in the sun for too long. (Fun fact: rosacea can manifest as tiny pimples.) It’s also the reason why I turn beet red after a workout class or getting a facial, and why my makeup-free skin resembles a ripened heirloom tomato. My dermatologist has helped me overhaul my skin-care routine to avoid certain problematic ingredients that cause irritation, adding in some topical prescription treatments that have majorly improved the overall quality and health of my skin. But when it inevitably flares up, I often feel powerless to do anything about it. I’ve historically had very little luck with nearly every so-called “redness-reducing” product on the planet. Yes, I know that green technically cancels out red on the color wheel, but green concealers and creams and serums just leave me looking like the Grinch mid-blush. Not cute. After listening to my struggles (and seeing them written in red all over my face), beauty editor Zoe Weiner handed me a bottle of the Dr. Jart Cicapair Tiger Grass Camo Drops ($46). It’s a hybrid between a color-corrector and a serum to help reduce redness and soothe angry skin. “My sister has rosacea, too, and she loves this whole line,” Weiner told me. But my built-in trust issues with
Is Your Sleep Position Disrupting Your Sleep Quality?
September 12, 2019 at 08:00AM How your sleep position affects the quality of your sleep Continue Reading… Author Ko Im, M.S. | Life by Daily Burn Selected by CWC
Unresponsive To Antidepressants? Check Your Inflammation Levels
September 12, 2019 at 06:00PM An entirely new and exciting reason to increase our intake of turmeric and green tea. Continue Reading… Author Jamie Schneider | Life by Daily Burn Selected by CWC
8 trainers share the best moves for working your obliques—and there’s not a side plank in sight
September 12, 2019 at 05:52PM by CWC There are so many exercises you can use to work your core. Crunches, sit-ups, leg raises… the list is never-ending. Located on the sides of the abdominals muscles, the obliques can be particularly tricky to isolate. And since no one wants to do side planks for the rest of their life, I asked a crew of top trainers to lend some advice. If you want super-strong abs, you need to target the internal and external obliques to help you bend and twist, support your back, and keep your posture in check. The best oblique exercises, according to top trainers 1. Oblique marches “Oblique marches not only fire up your obliques. The total-body move also challenges your balance and recruits other muscles as well.” —Gerren Liles, Hyperwear athlete and Equinox master trainer How to do it: Hold one medium or heavy dumbbell in your right hand, with elbows locked, and the weight about a hand-length away from your hip. Start to march in place, driving your knees up to hip level, without allowing your center of gravity to shift as you’re raising your legs. Stay as upright as possible. March for about 30 to 45 secs and then switch sides. Repeat for 3 to 5 sets. 2. Pallof press “The Pallof press is not just one of my favorite oblique exercises, but it’s one of the best exercises for the core, period. This movement targets overall core stability and also activates the glutes and
Meet ‘enjoyment anxiety,’ the reason you feel pressured to have the best. time. ever.
September 12, 2019 at 05:44PM by CWC Last month, I took two weeks off to vacation in Bali—and I don’t mean “vacation” in the 2019 sense, whereby a person is physically out of office but still checking in on emails, fielding client texts, and being quasi available. Rather, I tried the best way I knew how to stop stress and intentionally disconnected from everything related to work for the first time in more than a decade. I fantasized about this trip for months before I left, imagining how breezy I’d feel traipsing through rice paddies and sipping on fresh coconut water without the usual cloud of deadline stress hanging over my head. But once I crossed the Pacific Ocean, my worries shifted to a different subject. See, as a freelancer, I don’t get paid vacation time, meaning my savings account would surely take a pretty sizable hit from this trip. Beyond spending money on hotels and restaurants, I was also missing out on half of my monthly income. For the first few days, as I wandered jet-lagged through the traffic- and tourist-clogged streets of Ubud, a troubling thought kept entering my mind: Is this really going to be worth it? I’ve come to know this sensation as enjoyment anxiety, and as it turns out, I’m not alone in feeling it. A few days after I returned, a colleague admitted that she felt the same way whenever she was faced with a high-stakes experience—like buying tickets to an expensive show or