Month: November 2019

November 08, 2019 at 06:50PM by CWC I have always associated fiber with pooping. Out of all the diet essentials that we’re supposed to get, fiber’s undoubtedly the least sexy, regardless of how healthy it is… mainly because of its reputation for keeping you on the toilet. Hot take, though: Fiber’s sexier than you ever realized—because it’s a secret beauty booster. Right alongside its abilities to promote your gut health, lower “bad” cholesterol, and keep you regular is its potential to beautify your hair, skin, and nails. “Fiber alleviates bloating, it helps with weight management, because it keeps you full for longer, it helps with energy, and it helps with amazing hair, skin, and nails,” says Lo Bosworth, founder and CEO of Love Wellness, a women’s personal care product line (which just launched its very own fiber product called Sparkle Fiber). “Nobody talks about this.” She’s right—while people incorporate all the collagen and vitamin C they can for the sake of good skin, fiber remains a nutrient that about 95 percent of people don’t get enough of in their diet (the FDA recommends about 25 grams a day). But fun fact: your collagen and vitamin C might not be doing the most for your body if you’re skimping on fiber. “Fiber increases the absorption of essential nutrients and antioxidants,” says Lisa Richards, CNC, nutritionist and author of The Candida Diet. “Certain nutrients like lutein, lycopene, and vitamin C are needed for collagen production, and eating enough fiber enables your digestive system to absorb

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November 08, 2019 at 05:30PM by CWC When it came time to rank the best workouts, Harvard Health asked experts on staff to name the fitness modalities that contribute the most to overall health and happiness. You won’t find trampoline classes or pole dancing on the list, but the five workouts that make the cut ensure there’s a little something for everyone—whether you love cardio, feel empowered by lifting heavy things, or rely on your workouts for mental clarity. The 5 best workouts, according to Harvard Health 1. Walking A good old stroll gets Harvard’s seal of approval. Walking for just 30 minutes has been found to boost immune function, and the activity may also lessen joint pain. “Start with walking for about 10 to15 minutes at a time. Over time, you can start to walk farther and faster, until you’re walking for 30 to 60 minutes on most days of the week,” say the experts. If you have a chance to walk as your commute to and from work, then you may log these minutes without even noticing. 2. Swimming Swimming gives you all the cardio benefits of of running without taking a toll on your joints. It’s been linked with improved mental health, decreased joint pain, and even strengthening your lungs. So if you have a chance to take a dip, for health’s sake, dive right in. 3. Kegel exercises I know what you’re thinking—Kegel exercises seem like a weird addition to this list. Well, they’re not. Both

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November 08, 2019 at 05:08PM by CWC For anyone who leads a busy life (so, like, all of us), there are nights when it feels impossible to eat dinner at a respectable hour. Even when it only takes a few minutes to prepare a meal, I know I’m not the only one who is curious what makes for a healthy late-night dinner that won’t mess with my sleep or digestion. Whatever keeps you from sitting down to dinner at a reasonable hour, there are a few food rules to follow for late-night eating. During an Ask Me Anything with Well+Good’s Facebook group Cook With Us, registered dietitian and author of The Better Period Food Solution Tracy Lockwood Beckerman, RD, shared her recommendations for putting together a healthy late-night dinner. How to navigate late-night eating, according to a dietitian 1. Choose something rich in magnesium Magnesium-rich foods might help you sleep better better. “Go for foods like oily fish, beans, lentils, brown rice, and seeds,” says Beckerman. Proteins like fish, beans, and lentils are easier to digest than meat, which makes your digestive system work a bit harder—something you definitely don’t want when you’re trying to sleep. 2. Add a high-calcium food Beckerman points out that calcium is another nutrient linked to good sleep, so she recommends pairing your magnesium-rich food with something like spinach, broccoli, or cheese. 3. get your probiotics “Add a side of kimchi or sauerkraut to sprinkle some probiotics into your gut before bedtime to help ease Sunday

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November 08, 2019 at 03:00PM by CWC If you’ve been feeling burnt out and overwhelmed, the November 12 full beaver moon in Taurus might just provide the help you need in order to power through. “Taurus is a tenacious sign. It’s stable, reliable, and stubborn at times,” says Rachel Lang, intuitive astrologer and healer. With the moon in Taurus and the sun in Scorpio, the potent combo of these fixed signs can “give you staying power to commit to anything you start,” Lang says. “This could be favorable for working through a relationship challenge or for finishing up a home project.” This full moon gets its name from—you guessed it—beavers. It marks the time of year when beavers start to retreat into their lodges for the winter. And the major theme for this specific full beaver moon is the practical versus the esoteric. “The Taurus-Scorpio axis line features themes of self-reliance (Taurus) versus merging with others (Scorpio),” Lang says. “Taurus is grounded in the material, while Scorpio plays in the unconscious realms.” You may also find yourself dealing with issues regarding money, whether that means having difficult conversations about money with your partner or rethinking your budget. “It’s the time to lay everything on the table and be real with yourself and your partner,” Lang says. If you’re worried about having difficult conversations while Mercury is in retrograde (through November 20), Lang says not to worry. This full beaver moon gives us a much-needed break from the communication issues that can

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November 08, 2019 at 02:00PM by CWC Graphic: Well+Good Design For some, running is the be-all-end-all; for others, it’s a yoga 365 love affair, and while loving and leaning into a workout that fires you up each day is all well and good, sometimes variety is necessary. So, bless-up that we’ve found yet another way to bring the childhood game of H-O-R-S-E into our adult fitness lives using “alphabet workouts.” Alphabet workouts are pretty much what they sound like: Each letter of the alphabet corresponds to a short burst of basic strength training or a cardio move. While you can spell out whatever you want (or just go through the entire alphabet), my fave option is to spell out my name—last name optional—or ya know “horse” if it’s a TBT. About a zillion alphabet workout variations exist all over the internet, but we at Well+Good created our own, which will have you doing burpees (sorry!!), squat jumps, push-ups, crunches, and the list goes on, but you are certainly very familiar with all of the moves. We tried to make it as well rounded as possible, targeting every square inch of your body. If you’re ever crunched for time but still want to squeeze in a workout, this one’s really easy to knock out. I tried doing “Rachel” the other day at the gym, and was winded (I’m assigned 20 squat jumps, for goodness sakes). You’ll definitely work up a sweat and get in some cardio and fire up a ton

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November 08, 2019 at 12:00PM by CWC No matter who you are, what you make, or how much you have saved, anxiety about money in at least some form is a common denominator for most of us. Sure, the way in which we freak out about it differs (maybe you essentially hold your breath until your next payday, or maybe you’re more concerned about stock market fluctuations, or maybe both). No matter where you stand in your financial journey, the concept of money itself can be freakout-inducing to an extent that forging a friendly relationship with it can feel impossible. But during our latest Well+Good TALKS, which focused on financial wellness, panelist Paco de Leon, financial expert and founder of the Hell Yeah Group, offered a quick tip for maximizing good feels about cash that anyone with any amount of money can use. And, by the way, it’s a simple reimagining of the classic 80-20 rule. “I think financial wellness is 80 percent of the time being chill, and then 20 percent of time freaking out,” de Leon said. “Even people who are wealthy and are going to be fine—they still worry. Human beings are hardwired [this way]. But if you can, 80 percent of the time, just be cool about it, that’s financial wellness for me.” What’s interesting about de Leon’s suggestion is that it cuts back on the day-to-day way that we worry about our finances. (And, as a former full-time freelance writer, I really wish I were

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