November 09, 2019 at 02:00PM by CWC There has never, in the history of the human language, been a conversation about moving that has not involved at least one person proclaiming that moving is the “woooooooooorst.” But honestly, it’s true. Packing up your entire life into a bunch of boxes and schlepping them to a different location, only to have to unpack them with Tetris-level skill to fit into your new space is a particular kind of exhausting (and not to mention, expensive) hell. Then, there’s the issue of decorating, which can deplete your bank account faster than you can say, “I should have hired movers.” Lately, though, a new crop of companies has emerged to make the moving experience slightly less terrible by allowing you to rent furniture and decor. Instead of pouring $1,000 into a couch that will only serve you until your lease is up, or a set of shams that you’ll get sick of after a year, you can now treat yourself to temporary home goods that you can get rid of the minute they stop serving you. Considering millennials are moving more than ever before—in its most recent survey, the United States Census Bureau found that between 2007 and 2012, millennials accounted for about 24 percent of the total U.S. population, but made up over 43 percent of all movers—it makes sense that this type of no-commitment home decor has become increasingly popular. Add to that the fact that far fewer millennials are buying homes
Category: City
Instant Pot vs Air Fryer: Which gadget gives you more bang for your buck?
November 07, 2019 at 03:00AM by CWC For the past year, an Instant Pot versus air fryer debate has been raging. While both small appliances offer big possibilities for home cooking, Jessie Van Amburg, Well+Good’s senior food editor, and I simply cannot agree which kitchen gadget reigns supreme. I have even argued my case publicly. To know where I stand, just read Ode to My Air Fryer, a 1,000-word essay of adoration. Meanwhile, Jessie feels strongly that the Instant Pot is a superior tool. In order to settle the score once and for all, we conducted a side-by-side comparison of the kitchen appliances, considering price, pros and cons, functionality, and plenty of unsolicited personal opinions. Hopefully, by the end you’ll be able to decide which device is right for you (or you just might decide to buy both). Instant Pot vs Air Fryer: Once and for all, which one is better? Instant Pot Price: $95 Functionality: It makes stews and soups, slow cooks meat, makes effortless casseroles, and prepares eggs. Pros: It holds large amounts of food for bulk batching and meal-prepping, can easily be cleaned, and can tackle any meal of the day from breakfast until dinner. It also gives at-home chefs the opportunity sharpen their cooking skills with more difficult recipes like desserts. Cons: It comes with a learning curve: you have to learn how to use it before you can really appreciate it. It requires understanding many settings and can be intimidating to use. Jessie says: “I think it
5 activewear items with pockets that hold more of your things than those mini bags you love
November 06, 2019 at 10:52PM by CWC This one time, not-so-long-ago, I boldly decided: “You know what sounds challenging? Running a marathon!” Having never run this distance before, I anticipated many, many obstacles including potential injuries, feeling fatigued, enduring soreness, and waking up at very (!) early hours to mark off miles. What I didn’t realize—or even think—would be an obstacle was where to put my keys (and other necessities). Honestly, this rings true for all forms of outdoor fitness from long walks on the beach to long walks up a mountain (also known as hikes). Hear me out: I love studio fitness (and gyms!), so even though I was exercising every day before marathon training, I always had a locker to place my belongings. This outdoor workout thing is fairly new to me, and well, it’s new for my stuff, too (read: keys, AirPod cases, and credit card and cash.) My storage problem came to a head when—as a last resort and as a pure act of desperation to free my hands—I placed my keys in an armband specifically designed to simply hold my cell phone. Five miles and about 45 minutes later, I found myself locked out of my apartment because the keys had fallen out. I’d had enough, and so, I embarked on a personal scavenger hunt (not to find my lost keys of course—that could have taken years!). Instead of pouting, I opted for some new clothing items. The best workout gear with pockets come in
Has burnout culture made you addicted to ambition and busyness?
November 06, 2019 at 02:00PM by CWC Like most freelancers who juggle multiple clients, projects, and deadlines—sometimes seven days a week—I often feel like the dogs in this meme. That’s to say, while I might be smiling on the outside, I’m completely overwhelmed by my circumstances, many of which are by my own choosing. But since society has conditioned me to believe that keeping a frantic pace is a sign of self-employment success, whenever another request for my time comes up, I generally say yes without question. And I know this is also true for my friends with full-time gigs, who often raise their hand to work on projects outside their job descriptions, and sometimes also juggle an after-hours side hustle in the name of forward momentum. Despite this existence of living on the edge of burnout, if we experience what feels like too many slow days in a row, it’s easy to assume something’s wrong, leading us to start wondering: Am I lazy, or something? The problem here is many of us are conflating calmness with complacency. And it is a bona fide problem, to be clear, because not only are the two states simply not the same, but the construct itself is dangerous. On the work front, burnout is so rampant that this year the World Health Organization recognized it as an official condition that’s “resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed.” You know, the kind of unrelenting tension one experiences from the heavy
This handy guide will help you choose the perfect antioxidant for your skin
November 05, 2019 at 02:00PM by CWC We all know that different skin conditions need different products (which is why fellow beauty editors Rachel, Ali, and I never have to battle it out over who gets to test whatever comes across our desks), but there’s one thing that every morning routine should have in common: an antioxidant. No matter which skin condition you’re dealing with—whether it’s acne, oiliness, aging, dryness, sensitivity, or “all of the above”—an antioxidant serum should be the meat (or, alt meat, for my veg friends) of your routine, sandwiched between your cleanser and SPF. Why? Because these ingredients work to zap away free radicals in your skin. “Whether you are in highly polluted areas or getting too much UV damage, free radicals form and can harm your cellular structures, and antioxidants protect you from this and are crucial to good skin health,” says board-certified dermatologist Dhaval Bhanusali, MD. While there’s no question that everyone should be using an antioxidant on their skin, the question does remain of which one is worth reaching for. And the answer depends on your skin concern. An easy way to figure it out? By way of this easy-to-navigate guide. Read on for more info, below. View this post on Instagram Antioxidants have different properties and function in different ways. If you want to make the most of antioxidants, try choosing products that are adapted to your skin type and concerns! There are many more AOX out there but these are some
5 myths about nail health you need to stop believing
November 03, 2019 at 12:00PM by CWC Some people go their entire lives believing myths that just aren’t true. Case in point: Going outside with wet hair isn’t actually going to make you sick, even though you may have heard it growing up as you ran out the door to school. Or that workouts don’t have to leave you sore to be effective. Same goes for many of the nail-health mantras you’ve committed to memory. Between spots on your nails showing up due to nutrient deficiencies or having to give your nails a breather between manicures, these are the top nail health myths Nadine Abramcyk, co-founder of tenoverten, wants you to stop believing right this second. These are the myths about fingernail health you need to stop believing 1. White spots on your nails are a sign of a calcium deficiency It’s just not that complicated. Instead, it’s more likely it’s damage to your nail. “White spots on nails are typically caused by an injury to your nail,” Abramcyk says. “With that being said, in some cases it can be a type of mineral deficiency, although that’s rare.” 2. You need to let your nails “breathe” If you’re currently giving your nails a breather between manicures, there’s really no need. “Letting your nails breathe is indeed a myth since your nails technically get all of their oxygen from your internal blood flow,” she says. 3. You need to trim your cuticles If you’re not into trimmed cuticles, don’t do it.
Hummus is more than a crowd-pleasing party dip—it’s a nutritional goldmine
November 02, 2019 at 05:00PM by CWC It’s safe to say that hummus has reached cult-favorite status in the snack department, even spawning creative variations in all sorts of different colors and flavors including avocado, beet, chocolate, and ice cream hummus (yup, that’s a thing!). As delicious as those iterations may be, there’s nothing like the creamy, garlicky original. I’d even go as far as to say that it’s not a party until hummus has made an appearance. (What on Earth will you dip your baby carrots in?) Of course, nothing is perfect—not even hummus. And it’s easy to wonder how something that tastes so good could even be healthy. So for the sake of journalism, we asked three nutrition pros this very question. The short answer: yes, hummus is indeed a healthy snack (cue sigh of relief) thanks to its good-for you ingredients. Here, the experts break down the nutritional benefits of hummus, the healthiest way to eat it (or buy it, if you’re in a pinch), and the many ways you can enjoy your hummus. Hummus nutrition benefits: what’s the lowdown? Although there are many variations of hummus, traditionally, it consists of just six ingredients: chickpeas, olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, salt, and tahini. Each one of those ingredients is packed with nutritional benefits. Chickpeas, the primary ingredient in hummus, are a great source of fiber and protein. “Hummus is loaded with dietary fiber which is a key factor in gut health,” says Alison Cody, certified holistic nutritionist
Please, please stop shopping for discounted cosmetic treatments
November 02, 2019 at 11:00AM by CWC Earlier this year, two people in New Mexico were diagnosed with HIV after undergoing the Instagram-famous “vampire facial.” The news sent the internet into a tailspin, calling into question just how safe the treatment—and other treatments like it—really are. And while this is an extreme (and horrific) example of a cosmetic procedure gone wrong, the incident was a major wakeup call about the precautions we should all be taking when it comes to finding, scheduling, and undergoing beauty treatments. When you see advertisements for beauty treatments popping up on your Instagram feed at seemingly every other swipe (case in point: The vampire facial came into popularity in 2013, after Kim Kardashian shared a bloody selfie of herself getting one), it can be easy to forget that these treatments are, in fact, a big deal. “Cosmetics medicine and plastic surgery have become the Wild West in health care; there are so few regulations about what is happening [and] people should not treat these situations and decisions without the seriousness they deserve,” says NYC-based plastic surgeon Laura Devgan, MD. “In the same way you wouldn’t go to a fun pop-up millennial-pink bar for your upper endoscopy or lung cancer screening, you shouldn’t go to a place like that for your cosmetic interventions. These are real medical procedures with real risks and benefits.” In 2015, a study published in The Journal of Cutaneous and Aesthetic Surgery noted that “minimally invasive” procedures—like Botox, fillers, chemical peels, laser
Sea-level rise threatens 300 million homes by 2050—here’s the most important thing you can do to stop it
November 01, 2019 at 05:13PM by CWC Newly released data reveals the catastrophic effect of rising sea levels, painting a stunning picture for the future of the planet. Estimates produced by Climate Central, a science organization based in New Jersey, more than triple previous projections for sea-level rise by 2050. In little more than 30 years, water threatens to overtake highly-populated cities like Shanghai, mainland China’s commercial capital, and Alexandria, Egypt’s second-largest city with unparalleled historical significance. The common narrative around such climate reports too often skews toward cutting down use of plastic straws, swapping your car for public transportation, and watching your electricity usage. These choices for personal responsibility make a measurable impact, but they fall short of enlisting people with the power to make the biggest difference of all: elected officials. It’s our job as inhabitants of the planet to vote for candidates who prioritize its health—those who will create policy that regulates the use of carbon emissions, for example. “People in the U.S. and across the world need to know that carbon emissions play a key role in determining how fast or slow sea levels rise,” says Scott Kulp, PhD, senior computational scientist at Climate Central who helped author the study. “The more we reduce greenhouse gas pollution, the more time coastal communities will have to plan and respond to this threat.” “For coastal cities, sea-level rise is an existential threat. It’s truly above politics.” —Scott Kulp, PhD Concern over sea levels rising should inundate political differences,
I found a cauliflower gnocchi that’s even better than Trader Joe’s—but there’s a big catch
October 31, 2019 at 06:00PM by CWC Anyone who knows me knows that I need a minute to come to terms with healthy food trends. I turned up my nose at kale for years until I was okay with it being in every salad I ate; I gave oat milk the side eye for months until I realized that it makes a mean latte; I am the first to admit that I still don’t enjoy matcha. I’m not a picky eater per se, I am just deeply skeptical of most trends. (Call me the Dana Scully to the wellness world’s Fox Mulder—I do not want to believe.) This is part of the reason why it took me a full year to try Trader Joe’s famous cauliflower gnocchi for myself. The other reason for the delay is that it was always sold out at my local TJ’s. I went to buy it and couldn’t. For 12 months. That’s how popular it is. The anticipation was so great, the wait was so long, the hype was so huge, that once I finally got my hands on it, I was a bit underwhelmed. It’s good, but not the mind-blowing food that Instagram made it out to be. I considered myself not into the trend, and moved on. Photo: W+G Creative But I kept hearing about cauliflower gnocchi everywhere—including from fellow staffers at Well+Good. Then in September, grocery store staple Green Giant (distributor of frozen peas and also my beloved broccoli tots) reached out