January 28, 2020 at 01:00PM by CWC In this dawning time of the still-new decade, it’s natural to feel a welcome sense of renewed hope about all the things, personal and global. While troubling issues (like fires and politics, to name two big examples) persist, certain auspicious astrological days are worth bookmarking in your calendar to keep that hope alive. So, perhaps you’re curious about what the luckiest day of the year for you might entail? Well, that largely depends on Jupiter. “Typically, we associate the planet Jupiter with luck, and if you want to know your personal luckiest day of the year, look at the day when the sun meets up with your natal Jupiter,” says astrologer Rachel Lang. (You can run your birth chart for free here, but you might benefit from meeting with an astrologer to help you find the specific Jupiter-in-the-sun date.) “This is going to be the luckiest day of each year for you, and it’s typically a time when good things happen.” “We associate the planet Jupiter with luck, and if you want to know your personal luckiest day of the year, look at the day when the sun meets up with your natal Jupiter.” —astrologer Rachel Lang. In addition to Jupiter, Lang suggests keeping an eye on Venus, which signifies times when you’re apt to enjoy life and experience pleasure (ahem, pleasure). Since she says we all benefit when Jupiter and Venus relate, keep an eye on March 27 and October 19 as general
Category: Beauty
Do you know where the ingredients in your supplements are grown? Here’s why you should definitely look into it
January 28, 2020 at 10:30AM by CWC There’s a specific routine you go through when shopping for the perfect avocado: Check out the color to estimate its ripeness, pick it up to feel how firm it is, read the sticker to see whether it’s grown organically, and repeat until you find one that meets your avo-toast standards. That process can apply to pretty much every piece of produce on your grocery list, but do you run your supplements through the same wellness litmus test? Similar to fruits and veggies that supply your body with nutrients to power you through, well, life—supplements deliver nutrients that, newsflash: are often sourced from plants. So don’t you want to know whether those ingredients are grown in such a way that they’d pass your grocery store inspection? Do you run your supplements through the same wellness litmus test as your fruits and veggies? “Since supplements are not regulated the same way pharmaceuticals are, it’s important to know yours have been tested for quality standards such as identity, potency, and contaminants,” says Adrienne Dowd, RD and health coach. “Making sure your supplement has been tested and verified for quality can ensure that what is on the label is actually what’s in the bottle.” (The reason we have trust issues, tbh.) If you notice there isn’t a mention of where a product was grown, you might want to skip over that bottle because Dowd says, “manufacturers that source from quality locations are generally proud to display this
The way we talk about skin is taking a cue from mental health—here’s why
January 28, 2020 at 03:00AM by CWC Once upon a time not so long ago, the words we used to talk about our complexions revolved around physical markers. It was dry, oily, red, scaly, congested, or some combination of all of these things. In a fairly recent phenomenon, however, there’s been a shift. The way that we talk about skin has largely come to mimic the way that we talk about mental health. Adjectives previously reserved to describe an individual’s personality or emotional state are now tapped to talk about how our largest organ is looking and feeling. We say it’s stressed out, tired, temperamental, angry, irritated, and the list again goes on (and on and on). But what exactly is the reason behind this, and why does it matter? The mind-skin connection really all boils down to biology. “We know from a medical standpoint that the brain and skin have a common embryonic origin,” explains Josie Howard, MD, a San Francisco psychiatrist with an expertise in psycho-dermatology. According to her, that means that when an embryo is forming in the womb, similar cells are involved in the creation of both the brain and skin. That link continues to manifest in very apparent ways throughout our lifetimes. “The history of skin and mental health isn’t a short one,” says Richard Fried, MD, PhD, a dermatologist and clinical psychologist in Yardley, PA. “One hundred years ago it was stated that acne causes more [mental] suffering than [physical suffering]. Within the past
Arm dancing is the key to getting ballerina-strong arms—try these 3 moves to get you started
January 27, 2020 at 11:00PM by CWC American singer-songwriter Kenny Loggins wrote the lyrics, “everybody cut loose, footloose” for the 1984 film (must I specify?) Footloose. Almost 40 years later, Bomont has been conquered, the movie’s remake has been released to mixed reviews, and now it’s time we start setting loose our other limbs. Meet arm dancing, the dancer-approved way to strengthen your arms without picking up a single weight. “Every style of dance has a type of ‘arms,’ in both aesthetic and movement,” says Donna Flagg, a dancer, ballerina, and stretching instructor at New York’s Broadway Dance Center. “You could take any of them and create an upper body workout, but ‘arm dancing’ per se is an unweighted exercise for your arms.” By moving for a sustained period of time (anywhere between one to 10 minutes), you work up a burn that runs from your shoulders to your fingertips. “You’ll see really great shoulder development because the weight of the arms challenges the shoulders’ strength the most,” explains Flagg. That’s because you target the teeny, tiny muscles of your upper arms, forearms, and shoulders that help you perform everyday tasks like carrying your grocery bags. “Arms can be heavy if you don’t put them down for a rest,” says Flagg. “So that is where the resistance comes into play.” If you’ve ever French-braided your hair and felt the sheer torture of pulling off the ornate work with your hands overhead, you know exactly what I mean. That’s enough talking—let’s
Exfoliating oils will brighten and quench dry skin *without* rubbing it raw
January 27, 2020 at 02:00PM by CWC Each and every winter, we all inevitably face the same skin-care conundrum: How can you exfoliate your skin without drying it out even more than the combination of heaters, dry air, and cold weather already are? It’s important to slough off dry skin cells all year long, but there’s a fine line between ridding your complexion of debris and compromising your skin barrier or making your face even more dry. This is where exfoliating cleansing oils come in, which have both exfoliating and nourishing properties in a single formula. Oil cleansers, generally, are known for their abilities to rid the skin of dirt and oil (think of it as a “like dissolves like” situation). They’re particularly helpful for people with dry, flaky skin because, as board-certified dermatopathologist Gretchen Frieling, MD puts it, they “help clean the skin without leaving the face stripped of its natural oil and moisture.” And adding a physically exfoliating element into the mix, she says, “can be a great alternative for people who experience irritation from oil-free cleansers and harsher physical exfoliants.” These oil cleansing products are gentle, yet effective, and offer the quadruple-whammy of removing makeup, clearing pores of excess oil and debris, wiping away dead skin cells, and nourishing skin. In other words, they’re giving your double cleanse a run for its money. Got oily skin? Despite what you might think, these cleansers can work for you too. In fact, they tend to help dissolve oils from your
Your hands deserve a skin care routine, too—and this is the only one you need
January 27, 2020 at 12:00AM by CWC When you think of skin care, your think of your face. That’s probably what 99 percent of the beauty products on display in your bathroom are for, whether they’re melting cleansers or luxe serums. That other 1 percent? Moisturizing body lotions. The only area of your body that’s often neglected in skin care is your hands, and experts say they’re more than deserving of a routine too. The hands rarely get an adequate amount of TLC, and that’s exactly why they often end up looking much older than other areas of your body as you age. “The hands are very vulnerable because the skin is thin,” says Gretchen Frieling, MD, a Boston-based dermatopathologist. “We forget that we need to exfoliate our hands and moisturize them just as we would our face. Hands also tend to be dryer than our faces because they have fewer sebaceous glands, which produce sebum, an oily substance that helps protect the skin by keeping it lubricated and waterproof.” In addition, the hands aren’t protected by makeup or clothing. Because of that, Dr. Frieling says the sun’s powerful UV rays cause about 80 percent of the unsightly skin changes that are associated with aging. To make sure you’re properly taking care of your hands—from using SPF to exfoliating on the regular—here’s your expert-approved routine. The only skin-care routine your hands need 1. Use a broad spectrum SPF sunscreen every day Dr. Frieling’s go-to: Supergoop! Forever Young Hand Cream with
Rebuild your ravaged skin barrier with this simple 3-step formula
January 26, 2020 at 06:00PM by CWC I’ve dealt with a lot of skin conditions, ranging from hormonal acne to hyperpigmentation, but for the first time in my life I’m dealing with a totally new issue: a sabotaged skin barrier. And it is brutal. The skin barrier acts as a natural protective shield, and when it’s disrupted (the way mine is right now) it makes skin especially vulnerable to damage from pollution, winter air, sunlight, etc. TL, DR: everything hurts. Although it’s easy to confuse an impaired skin barrier with other woes like wind burn, eczema, or a sensitivity, the telltale signs are skin inflammation and redness (like… a lot of redness). As a refresher, a damaged skin barrier function means that the lipid or oil barrier of your skin is disrupted. “So the small, exposed cracks in the skin are more sensitive to products and outside agents that can get in and cause inflammation,” says Purvisha Patel, MD, a board-certified dermatologist and founder of Visha Skincare. “Water is able to evaporate from the skin more, resulting in drier skin.” And since your skin is more exposed to the environment, she points out that you can experience even more sensitivity to the products you’re using. Suddenly reacting to retinol for the first time in your life? A damaged skin barrier could be to blame. Building your skin barrier back up is a process that involves a strategic regimen filled with ultra-nourishing ingredients, and absolutely nothing that can cause irritation. As
Target is now stocking a $12 shampoo that we’d pay well over double for, TBH
January 26, 2020 at 02:00PM by CWC Even though the drugstore beauty aisle has gotten a serious upgrade over the past couple of years, stocking dermatologist-backed, better-for-your-skin options, the hair selection has been slower to change. Last year, Herbal Essences partnered with the EWG to launch a truly game-changing clean shampoo. And now, Odele, a brand-new clean hair-care brand making its debut at Target today, is here to chic the whole category up a bit. One look at the brand and you’ll fall in love, but you’ll stay in love thanks to the minimally-scented, hair-nourishing formulas that make the wash-and-go a cinch. And not to bury the lede, but everything in the line is $12. “Odele was born out of a want (slash need) for a high-quality, clean formula that didn’t break the bank, and of course, we wanted it to be chic and something you’re proud to display,” says co-founder Lindsay Holden. Her goal with Odele? To create a product “that met our high expectations for performance, but we felt good about sharing with those who shared our showers,” she says. Photo: Odele Within Odele’s line are there are three different shampoo-conditioner collections meant, each meant to either volumize, smooth, or help define curls. Out of the shower, there are also three stylers: an air-dry crème, a leave-in conditioner, and a texturizing salt spray. While the line is relatively edited, from what we’ve tested, the products are able to achieve results on their own, so you don’t have to
I’m a Parisian facialist, and I think this French-girl drugstore buy is super overrated
January 25, 2020 at 01:00AM by CWC Of all the ways to wash your face, micellar water just might be the easiest on the market. The cleansing staple has garnered quite the reputation for gently removing makeup and gunk from your skin, working on all skin types, and being so easy to use that you don’t even need the bathroom sink. Even more appealing? The fact that it’s a French-girl beauty staple, constantly flying off of Parisian pharmacy shelves and into suitcases headed for the U. S. of A. But, according to a French facialist, micellar water is way overrated (I’m gonna pause to let that land, because wow, mind blown). “Micellar water has become very famous in the U.S., but it’s just not good,” says Mila Moursi, a Parisian facialist who’s now based in Los Angeles and treats the complexions of celebs like Jennifer Aniston. If you gasped, please note that I did the same. “It’s supposed to cleanse and tone, but you cannot do it all with micellar water, and it doesn’t take the place of a cleanser and a toner.” A quick chemistry refresher on micellar water and how it works. Micelles are oil suspended in water, which act as the surfactant (aka: cleansing agent). Micellar water has molecules that have a hydrophobic (water-fearing) end and a hydrophilic (water-loving) end. This helps to get your complexion clean, because the oil end helps to attract oil and dirt (and leftover makeup) on your complexion and the water-loving end
A CrossFit coach says ‘MCI’ is the acronym to remember for nonstop progress at the gym
January 24, 2020 at 09:00PM by CWC Unless you have a natural-born talent for heavy weight-lifting or 5-minute miles, you’ll have to begin, well, at the beginning. The CrossFit approach known as ‘MCI’ (mechanics-consistency-intensity) teaches you measured progress that values longevity over immediate gains. And Maillard Howell, owner of CrossFit Prospect Heights and founder of the The Beta Way, says that you should be applying it no matter how you move your body. Below, Howell breaks down each tier so you can commit MCI to memory and watch your body grow stronger and quicker without sacrificing your physical health. Because, hey, don’t we all want to be sweating for a long, long time? Breaking down mechanics-consistency-intensity, piece by piece 1. Mechanics “Your foundation should be mechanics, that’s the first layer of the pyramid,” says Howell. “And that’s learning the basics of the movement.” If ten weighted pull-ups is your eventual goal, then the mechanical part of the processes would involve nailing your pull-up form. You might have to start with a jumping pull-up or enlist the help of a resistance band to give you a boost. Only when you could do a pull-up in your sleep—or, okay—without having to compromise your former should you move on to tier two. 2. Consistency Alright, so you’ve got your pull-up—here’s where things get tricky. “You’ve got to be able to make the first rep look like the last rep or the last rep look like the first rep—even under fatigue,” says Howell. That means if you’re