November 19, 2019 at 04:30AM by CWC Comparing your own inventory of kitchen gadgets to the high-tech tools you see lining Instagram countertops is enough to make you wonder: How many of these do normal people (read: not just the Martha Stewarts of the world) actually need? During the holidays, it’s especially tempting to stock up on gadgets promising to make prepping for your family shin-digs a breeze, only to have them collect dust for the other 11 months of the year. To help you avoid accumulating more clutter, and to clue you in on the real must-have tools that’ll make your food taste delish and your life easier, we tapped Carla Contreras, professional chef and founder of Cook+Chop to share what she always has in her kitchen during the holidays. From a chef’s knife to a peeler to a dutch oven—get ready to finally stock up on the useful stuff. Keep reading for the kitchen gadgets this professional chef swears by over the holidays. Farberware Triple Rivet Forged Chef Knife, $16 Contreras doesn’t play around when it comes to her knife set—and neither should you. She advises stocking up on three knives to start: a chef’s knife (like above), a serrated knife, and a paring knife. Her ultimate fave is a chef’s knife, so she recommends starting there if you have to pick just one, and then growing your collection slowly. Epicurean Non-Slip Cutting Board Slate, $30 “I love Epicurean because of their grip, and they’re built to last—I’ve
Month: November 2019
Half of our editorial staff falls asleep using the same white noise app—but for brown noise
November 19, 2019 at 03:00AM by CWC Call me a tough customer, but I can neither fall asleep to the tune of my boyfriend’s snoring nor complete silence. That’s why, for years, I’ve relied on White Noise Lite, a free app offering an expansive slate of sleep-friendly sounds. But of all the sonic options available—from usual sound-machine suspects, like ocean waves crashing and thunderstorm, to more, eh, specific offerings, like dishwasher rinsing and cat purring—my absolute favorite is brown noise. And, I recently learned, I’m in pretty great company. Before I came to rely on the app, I had never heard of brown noise (or pink or violet or blue noise, for that matter), and always figured white noise was the standard in the world of color-coded static tones that can help a gal clock in some sleep. But then I learned that not only do several of my colleagues also credit brown noise for helping them to fall asleep, but they also use the exact same app. What’s the appeal, you’re wondering? At first listen, white and brown and pink noises may seem pretty similar, but each “color” actually has its own frequency, which gives off a different pitch. “Brown noise has less-high-frequency sound energy than pink and white noise, and it resembles the sound of gentle ocean turf,” says Sam Nicolino, musician, sound engineer, and founder, president, and CEO of Adaptive Sound Technologies, Inc. “Put another way, it has more bass than white noise, making it more pleasant
These 10 yoga stretches will help your aching feet
November 19, 2019 at 02:00AM by CWC As far as body parts go, feet don’t seem to get the attention they deserve. After all, they do so much for us. They hold us up, literally. They let us get our 10,000 steps every day. They keep us going when we hit the dance floor from time to time or go full speed on a spin bike. It’s only right that we show them some love. And yoga is one great way to do that. Whether you just ran a marathon or your feet are achy from a long day of shopping, here’s 10 yoga poses and stretches to try. Your feet (and toes) will thank you later. 1. Yogi toes To help improve your balance and show your little piggies some love, certified yoga therapist Ann Swanson, MS, recommends doing yogi toes. “While standing or seated in a chair, spread your toes as wide as possible and slowly place them firmly down on the ground,” she says. This will feel especially delightful after a long day on your feet or if you’ve been strutting around in heels. 2. Ankle pumps If your feet are swollen, ankle pumps will offer some relief and promote good circulation. You can either do it sitting in a chair or on the floor or laying down to simultaneously decompress your entire body. All you do is go back and forth from pointing your toes like a ballet dancer and then flexing your ankles. “This activates
Your step-by-step breakdown of what goes into a fertility test, straight from experts
November 19, 2019 at 01:00AM by CWC Grappling with infertility can often feel like shaking a Magic 8 ball over and over again—no matter how hard you try or how many times you ask, all you get are super vague, not-helpful predictions about outcomes. There are so many variables that can impact fertility, from age to health conditions to just simple timing, that determining when or how a person will get pregnant a bit more complex than it was presented in high school health class. (You know, sperm + egg = baby.) Even a person who is theoretically doing all of the “right” things could feel completely in the dark about what’s going on (or not going on) with their body. That’s why experts typically recommend people struggling to get pregnant come in for fertility testing to put some of the confusing question marks into more digestible concretes. “It’s always good to meet with and talk to your gynecologist when trying to get pregnant—they can help you move forward,” says Chantel Ianthe Cross, M.D., associate director of reproductive endocrinology and infertility fellowships at John’s Hopkins Medicine. Jennifer Kulp-Makarov, M.D., an OB/GYN, reproductive endocrinologist, and infertility specialist at New Hope Fertility Center in New York City, suggests people age 35 or younger should give themselves at least a year of trying before seeking out help from a doctor. Those between the age of 35 and 40 should consider waiting about six months before seeing a fertility specialist, while those 40 and older
Summer Fridays and 5 more beauty brands that reward you for recycling empty containers
November 19, 2019 at 12:00AM by CWC Your skin might be loving all the new skin-care products you try every month, but the planet? Not so much. The beauty industry is known for producing a lot of waste. Many products come in containers made up of mixed materials that can be hard to recycle, which means they probably end up in landfills. Fortunately, some of our favorite brands are making the effort to be more eco-friendly by launching recycling programs. Summer Fridays recently introduced a program to “help keep the Earth a little cleaner” by rewarding customers who recycle their empty containers. For every five empties you collect and send back to the brand to be recycled, you’ll receive a free Jet Lag Mask ($25). But Summer Fridays isn’t the only beauty brand that will give you a pat on the back for recycling. 5 beauty brands with sustainable recycling programs (and rewards) 1. Kiehl’s For every one empty full-size product container you return to Kiehl’s, you receive a stamp. And when you have 10 stamps, you get a free travel-sized product. Product to try: Kiehl’s Midnight Recovery Concentrate, $49 2. Lush If you save and return five clean black pots to your local Lush store, you’ll receive a free fresh face mask. Product to try: Lush Rosy Cheeks Fresh Face Mask, $13 3. Pacifica If you send your empty and rinsed-out products to Pacifica (up to eight at a time!), you’ll get 100 loyalty points added to your account.
Apple flour is the fiber-rich baking staple of the future
November 18, 2019 at 11:00PM by CWC The wellness world is once again spinning the wheel on alternative flours. And guess what we’re grinding down this time? Okay, okay, I’ll tell you: dehydrated apples. A November study published in the MDPI journal Foods looked into cookies fortified with apple pomace flour. Pomace is the byproduct of juicing made from pulp, seeds, seed cores, and stems. Usually, these leftovers get tossed, but apple flour transforms them into an alt-flour that has (wait for it) up to quadruple the amount of gut-healthy fiber as white all-purpose flour. “Some brands of apple flour—although not all—offer more than four times the fiber than the amount found in refined white flour,” says Malina Malkani, RDN, a dietitian with the American Academy of Dietetics. “This is a significant benefit, given that the Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend that adults consume between 28 to 34 grams of fiber daily, yet the average American adult only gets about 15 grams according to the National Academy of Medicine.” It’s true. While 1 cup of ordinary white all-purpose flour contains about 3.4 grams of fiber, 1 cup of Hearthy Foods apple flour contains 16 grams of fiber. And all that extra fiber is really, really good for your gut. “Fiber supports digestive and bowel health helps improve cholesterol levels, helps stabilize and control blood sugar levels, supports optimal body weight, and helps you feel fuller for longer, which can reduce the urge to overeat,” she says. Apple flour can often
5 powerful ways the mental benefits of yoga challenge the physical, according to science
November 18, 2019 at 09:29PM by CWC Yoga boasts an impressive 5,000-year track record. As the most popular workout in the world, the benefits of yoga include fast tracking digestion, tapping into big emotions, and making you strong from head to heart to toes. In the 21st century, scientific research is confirming long-held beliefs about the many benefits of yoga—particularly when it comes to mental health. A wealth of new research offers a better picture of how your work on the mat carries into your everyday life. You’ll want to take notes on all the ways the many types of yoga gives your brain a boost. You don’t want to savasana through this info. 5 brain benefits of yoga to you may not have known 1. It has been found to decrease anxiety A 2015 meta-analysis of 15 yoga studies focused on the cognitive effects following yoga class. Researchers found that practitioners had increased overall brain activity, as well as lower levels of anxiety. 2. Yoga may slow down your brain waves Slow brain waves indicate a more restful, sleepy state. More research from 2015 found that yoga increased positive brain wave states, increased alpha waves (which are associated with calmness), and enhanced theta wave activity (a state that’s associated with daydreaming). 3. It was found to improve well-being in older adults Recent research published in the International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity found that yoga interventions didn’t just improve the physical fitness of older adults. It also significantly
The 3 biggest myths about eating to boost fertility, debunked by experts
November 18, 2019 at 07:30PM by CWC Disclose to your friend group that you’re trying to get pregnant and everyone, it seems, has an opinion on what you should be doing to boost your odds. One may give you the name of a miracle-working acupuncturist. Another may share a list of their supplement suggestions, or the exact fertility boosting food and herbs they put in their morning smoothies. They might mean well, but second-hand advice (or hot tips in the depths of a Reddit forum) are breeding grounds for misinformation and confusion. When you’re considering changing your eating habits, taking supplements, or adding herbs to your wellness routine in hopes of boosting fertility, what’s truly important is getting advice straight from trusted experts. With that in mind, we asked Tracy Lockwood Beckerman, RD, a dietitian and author of The Better Period Solution, integrative gynecology functional medicine doctor Anita Sadaty, MD, and reproductive endocrinology and infertility doctor Rashmi Kudesia, MD to set the record straight about three major myths many people believe when it comes to the connection between food and fertility. Myth 1: Adding just one particular herb or ingredient to your routine boosts fertility “There is a tight correlation between the foods we eat and its impact on fertility,” says Beckerman. “Food holds the power to give the body the ‘fertility’ green light… Diet and lifestyle adjustments have been shown to boost fertility by almost 70 percent.” That said, “the biggest myth is that a specific food or supplement
All our beauty editors use this tinted lip balm and there’s now a party-ready shade
November 18, 2019 at 07:00PM by CWC Red lipstick gets a bad rap for being high maintenance, but I swear up and down that that’s just not true. Sure, you can spend hours lining lips and applying crease-proof mattes that will last until your first sip of coffee (read: five minutes after application). Or, for more of a “literally no maintenance at all” take, you can slather on Fresh Sugar Tinted Lip Treatment Sunscreen SPF 15 in Icon ($24), the brand’s newly-launched shade that imparts the most gorge red this side of 16 minutes spent applying lipstick in the mirror. Beauty editors sing the praises of these tinted balms for a few reasons, the least of which is that they contain SPF 15 (do not get trapped in a small space with a beauty editor and not expect them to rapid-fire list off the reasons you should be slathering sunscreen onto every inch of your body). In addition to the fact that they make your lips a no-go zone for sun damage, they’re also packed with good-for-skin ingredients like sugar, which acts as a humectant to lock in moisture, and grapeseed oil, which nourishes and squelches free radicals. But don’t just take my word for it: these balms are so effective that 97 percent of folks who swiped them in a clinical trial said their lips were softened after use. But not only do they feel good, they look good, too. The balms impart a buildable wash of color that
Ankle stability exercises that will get you solidly on your feet for any workout
November 18, 2019 at 07:00PM by CWC Hot take: No one is giving their ankles nearly the credit or love that they deserve. We treat our feet to pedicures and our legs to regular workouts, but our ankles—which do their job every. damn. day. to hold up the rest of body—are largely ignored. Think about it: When was the last time you did ankle stability exercises at the gym? A week ago from…never? Same—and that’s a big mistake. Your ankles are an integral part of literally every single thing you do while you’re standing up—whether you’re taking a leisurely stroll down the street or squatting with a 50-pound dumbbell. Think of every standing movement you make as a chain reaction that starts in your feet and travels up through your ankles and legs. “Any disruption in that chain of movements means that the following movement is less likely to be performed correctly,” says Terri Dreger, owner of 30 Minute Hit Edmonton, and crappy ankle stability can be a big time disruption to the body at large. “If the foot and ankle mechanics are off, it will likely impact the knee, which can cause the hip movement to be misaligned, leading to unstable core movements and stress to one’s back,” says Dreger, adding that this all leads to inefficient and ineffective movement patterns. In other words, she says, you won’t be able to run as fast, kick a ball as far, or throw as hard of a punch. And even worse, you