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Day: September 21, 2019

You and your body

Work your hamstrings and your back at once with ‘good mornings’

2 min read

September 22, 2019 at 12:04AM by CWC Waking up to a workout is always a good idea. While there are plenty of different exercises to choose from to help you get in a solid sweat sesh before running off to work, there’s one in particular that reigns supreme when it comes to setting you up for the day ahead. If you haven’t heard of “good mornings,” I’m pretty sure they’re about to become your new favorite thing. The exercise can be done banded or with a bar, but both bring on the same benefits: a stronger lower back and toned hamstrings. And if you’re going to be sitting all day—the worst thing for your lower back—doing a few reps will keep your body feeling its best, even when you’re stuck at your desk for hours. How to do “good mornings”: Stand on a looped band with your feet hip-width apart and toes pointed straight ahead. Squat down, put the band around your neck so it’s sitting on your traps, and stand straight back up. Keeping your shoulders pulled back, core tight, and knees slightly bent, slowly push your hips back as you bend forward into a nearly 90-degree angle. Once you reach the top, squeeze your butt. Perform 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CTRaCzE8pWU] Before working out, start with this warm-up that will take you straight back to elementary school recess. Then if you want a quickie sweat session, go for this 9-minute Pilates workout that targets

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You and your body

How to shop for skin care on Instagram, because you can’t believe everything you see

5 min read

September 21, 2019 at 10:00PM by CWC It’s hard to believe that 10 years ago, the word “shelfie” didn’t exist. Over the course of the last decade, Instagram has completely changed our relationship to skin care. An industry that once only existed in drugstores and department stores has now become a social media stronghold, with everyone from Kim Kardashian to Alexandra Oscasio Cortez taking to the ‘gram to show off their routines. If you want to discover a new brand, all you have to do is scroll through your discover page. To learn how to use it, just consult your favorite beauty blogger. To buy it, you can now even do that directly in the app. Instagram has changed the way we interact with skin care in literally every possible way, and is as much a part of many people’s routine as the actual slathering on of products is. While there are a lot of positives to the fact that this is now at our fingertips in an entirely new way, there are also some major setbacks, because—and say it with me now—you can’t always believe what you see on IG. “Social media is a powerful marketing tool for small brands, and it is actually the way that many people receive their news. So it makes sense that consumers learn about skin-care products through their social media channels,” says board-certified dermatologist Joshua Zeichner, MD. “However, it is important that a product is well formulated and actually benefits the skin. Social media

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Diet Keto Vegetarians You and your body

The rules for eating a plant-based burger are the same as eating a regular beef burger

5 min read

September 21, 2019 at 08:00PM by CWC Not to brag, but we totally predicted 2019 would be the year of alt-meats. Not only do I live within spitting’s distance of innumerable joints slinging Beyond and Impossible Burgers here in vegan-friendly Los Angeles, but I have also spotted them on multiple menus in my Texas hometown, where “meat-free” typically registers as a slur. Alt-meat’s fast becoming a staple on menus at Burger King, Dunkin’ Donuts, White Castle, Carl’s Jr., and Subway, which signals a mainstreaming of the trend beyond any quinoa-eating old-school vegan’s wildest dreams. However, just because they’re plant-based doesn’t mean they automatically deserve a place at every meal. “We know that real burgers are not a health food, and these fake burgers are not meant to be a health food,” cautions Dana Hunnes, PhD, MPH, RD, senior dietitian at UCLA Medical Center. “They are meant to be a direct substitute for a meat burger that doesn’t harm any animals and reduces harm to the environment.” Still, she posits, they are technically better in some ways than a beef burger from a health perspective. Despite being processed, “they’re are not nearly as likely to be potential carcinogens since they are plant-based,” she says, referring to the scientifically-established link between red meat and cancer risk. Nutrition science journalist Max Lugavere takes a somewhat contrary view. “Every ingredient in these fake meat burgers has already undergone intensive processing on their own, often using heat and harsh chemical solvents, which then come together to achieve

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You and your body

8 natural air purifier hacks, because we can’t all afford fancy machines in every room

6 min read

September 21, 2019 at 06:00PM by CWC Full disclosure: I actually have a Dyson air purifier situated in the largest room of my home. That one machine—mighty as it may be—doesn’t purify my entire living space, given that I live in a perpetually dusty space in smoggy Los Angeles with two dander-dropping cats and their particle-spewing litter box. But since I can’t afford to Dyson-ify each room, I keep at least one window cracked 24/7, clean regularly (though not as often as I should), and just hope I’m not harming myself with indoor air pollution. Clearly, I could stand to better educate myself by exploring natural air purifier options. To pinpoint an effective, cost-saving solution, I began investigating different ways to naturally clean the indoor air. Below, clean living experts offer eight tips for detoxing your (and my) home the natural, cost-saving way. Below find 8 natural air purifier options, straight from experts. 1. Prioritize plants As evidenced by her uber-green office, Well+Good Council member Sophia Gushée is a plant fanatic. Her obsession isn’t simply aesthetic, either. “Some plants have been proven to convert harmful chemicals, like formaldehyde and benzene, into oxygen,” Gushée tells me. Her favorite plants that have natural air purifier powers are Sansevieria trifasciata (or snake plant), peace lillies, and the Zamioculcas zamiifolia (or ZZ plant). “They are low maintenance plants that can survive my dry NYC apartment and hectic lifestyle,” she explains. And for a deeper dive into detoxing your home, watch the What the Wellness

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You and your body

The curved treadmill makes running 30 percent harder

3 min read

September 21, 2019 at 04:00PM by CWC The treadmill is hands down the most dependable member of the gym equipment family. You know exactly what you’re going to get when you step onto it, and can always rely on it for a good workout. But if you’re sick of the same ol’ thing you’re getting from your treadmill runs, allow me to introduce you to the machine’s slightly more exciting cousin: the curved treadmill. A curved treadmill is exactly what it sounds like—it’s a treadmill that dips in the middle instead of sitting across a flat plane. But instead of having a motorized belt, it’s got a manual one. So unlike with a regular treadmill, where you’re running to keep up with whatever pace you’ve set the belt at, a curved treadmill actually requires you to move the belt on your own. Essentially, every step you take propels it into motion. “A curved treadmill is generally a self-powered machine,” explains Switch Playground founder Steve Uria. “In essence, it’s more similar to running or walking outside where the user propels the forward motion. This requires more effort from the user and recruits more muscle fibers in the posterior chain, glutes, and core.” If that sounds a lot harder than just running on the tread, that’s because it is. A 2018 study out of the Journal of Science and Medicine in Sports found that running curved treadmills has “higher physiological and perceptual demands and increases cadence,” and runners have to work 30

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City You and your body

I have $500 of foundation, but this $8 drugstore product is the only one I use every day

3 min read

September 21, 2019 at 02:00PM by CWC My makeup collection is so vast that I’m sometimes embarrassed to show it to people. Any time someone comes into my bedroom, it’s the first thing they comment on, and I feel like I have to warn the guys I’m dating about it before they come over. There are dozens of eyeshadows, at least 70 lipstick shades, and 17 different iterations of highlighter. There are also 14 foundations, all of which retail for upwards $30 a pop, and all of which I have recently given up in favor of an $8 drugstore buy. L’Oréal Paris Magic Skin Beautifier BB Cream—which was first introduced to me by my mom, who had traded in all of her ex-expensive foundation in its favor—is officially the only thing I want to put on my face. It’s a BB cream (which, for the uninitiated, stands for “beauty balm”), and unlike a traditional foundation does a number of different things for skin. It comes out of the tube as a white lotion with pigmented beads, and when you apply it—which I like to do directly my fingers—they burst open to distribute a sheer tint across your skin. I can’t explain it, but whatever shade it turns into post-application always matches my skin tone exactly, and leaves me looking dewy and natural. It basically looks like my skin, but slightly better. It’s sorcery, I swear. “A BB Cream is an amazing option for anyone who has limited time but needs coverage,

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