October 16, 2019 at 03:30PM by CWC Welcome to Passport Nutrition. We’re mapping the flavors of the world one country at a time by speaking with people who wrap their careers around cuisine as well as those who simply savor an hour spent in the kitchen after work. You’ll find that a “healthy plate” isn’t one size—or country—fits all. Looking for some inspiration to switch up your avocado toast, or just curious how other people eat elsewhere in the world? Ordinary people living in all corners of the globe have different yet sometimes strikingly similar ideas of what an extraordinarily well-rounded diet looks like. From veggie stews and raw fish to vegan lattés and gluten-free pancakes, here’s what international food looks like for six people in Japan, France, India, Martinique, Ghana, and Canada call a “healthy” meal. All Graphics: Well+Good Creative India “For me, healthy eating is focusing on the foods that are closely attached to your roots and eating traditional, ancestral recipes,” says Shikha Tibarewala, a nutritionist, recipe curator, and diabetic educator in Mumbai. She notes the importance of fueling your body with complete and balanced meals, which means not obsessing over any one nutrient. A typical dinner includes millet flatbread, vegetables with cottage cheese, and Indian curry made with beans and vegetables. The pictured meal features black chana masala (curry made with black chickpeas), Dal chawal (spiced Indian lentils and rice), and kadhi (yogurt-based curry served with rice), paired with sliced cucumbers and millet flatbread, served alongside a
Category: City
‘A year of solo travel taught me a new way to approach food as fuel’
October 15, 2019 at 08:05PM by CWC Welcome to Passport Nutrition! We’re mapping the flavors of the world one country at a time by speaking with people who wrap their careers around cuisine as well as those who simply savor an hour spent in the kitchen after work. You’ll find that a “healthy plate” isn’t one size—or country—fits all. By the time I graduated from college, with a few school track records and All-American honors to my name, I had my nutrition dialed in. With the help of our team’s dietitian, I maintained a healthy weight while running 80 miles per week.I knew exactly what and when to eat before a key workout or race. The meals I cooked in my apartment were fresh, colorful, and as predictable as my twice-a-day runs. My menu included bagels and oatmeal for breakfast, fruit and energy bars for snacks, turkey sandwiches for lunch, and a rotating lineup of chicken, beef, and fish for dinner. “Balance” was the giant buffalo burger I ordered at our team’s go-to spot most weekends followed by a bakery stop. Then I traveled the world for a year. As a three-sport athlete—cross-country, indoor track, and outdoor track—at Rice University in Houston, studying abroad wasn’t an option. By graduation, my brief introduction to other cultures had come through mission trips to Mexico and a track trip to Bydgoszcz, Poland. I left those trips feeling equal parts satiated and hungry; moved by what I’d seen and done and eager to explore
In the battle between kettlebells vs. dumbbells, here’s what will upgrade your sweat sesh
October 14, 2019 at 06:00PM by CWC Finding your way around your gym’s cardio machines is fairly foolproof. You want to run? Hit the treadmill. You want to spin? Get your butt on the bike. You want to climb stairs for 45 minutes but never actually go anywhere? Hop on the stair master. Weights, though, aren’t as straightforward, which is why the question of when you should grab a kettlebell versus dumbbell to check off your strength training is often cause for confusion. The choice between the two shouldn’t just be based on preference…or whichever is closest. Because of their shapes, they each fit different needs, and therefore, should be used accordingly. A kettlebell has one large, spherical weight with a handle on top, while dumbbells feature two equal-sized weights with a bar in the middle. These designs lead to differences in the way the mass is distributed. When you hold a weight, the mass is on either side of your hand, while with a kettlebell it’s directly underneath with a space in the middle. “With a kettlebell, there is a space between your hand and the actual load, and this added distance acts as an additional lever arm,” says Kelvin Gary, founder of NYC’s BodySpaceFitness. This, he explains can make the load feel either lighter or heavier, depending on its position in space. So when should you grab for a kettlebell versus dumbbell? The answer is: It depends. Ballistic moves, like snatches and cleans, can be done with either.
Checks+Balanced: An engineer making $90K in Denver has a monthly leggings budget
October 11, 2019 at 01:00PM by CWC Even in a world where questions about menstrual cups and the ins and outs of sex are completely (and blessedly) normal, somehow the ever-ubiquitous use of money remains a touchy subject for many. People want to live their healthiest life ever, but—#realtalk—it can add up. Have you ever wondered how your colleague who makes less than you do (or so you think) can afford to buy a $5 matcha and a $12 chopped salad every day? Or how your friend’s budget allows her to hit up $34 fitness classes three times a week? It’s enough to make anyone want to ask, “Ummm, excuse me. How do you afford that?!?” That’s where Well+Good’s monthly series Checks+Balanced comes in. By lifting the thick, tightly drawn curtain to expose how much women of varying income brackets spend on wellness, we’re spreading transparency and hopefully providing some inspo that’s possible to copy. Because no matter how much you make, it’s possible to cultivate healthy habits that work within your budget. This month, meet Liz Stoyan, a 26-year-old engineer living in Denver, Colorado, making $90,680 a year. She’s passionate about working out (she even works as a spin instructor on the side), eating nutrient-rich food, and living an all-around healthy lifestyle. Oh, and she can’t have enough pairs of leggings—seriously, she loves them. Keep reading for an up-close look at her spending habits. Here, a 26-year-old engineer living in Denver shares her spending habits. Graphic: Well+Good Creative Liz Stoyan, 26, engineer, Denver, Colorado Income: $86,000 per year as engineer,
IVF is still illegal in France for gay couples—here’s how one woman and her wife had a baby
October 10, 2019 at 11:01PM by CWC On September 27, 2019, the French National Assembly passed a new law that would extend assisted reproductive technology (ART) to lesbian couples and single women. Until last month, artificial insemination and IVF was reserved for heterosexual couples. The law is expected to go to the Senate for approval and go into effect by next summer. The following weekend, conservative demonstrators took to the streets to protest the law. One group calls it “ART without a father.” The “children of science” resulting from this change, they say, would be deprived of a father and knowledge of their origins (sperm donors are anonymous in France). They warn it will lead to the commoditization of sperm and eventually the legalization of surrogacy (which is illegal in France). Others don’t believe the government, which subsidizes France’s health care system, should pay for ART. They say that in the case of gay couples or single women, having a child is a privilege and not a right guaranteed by the French state. Sophie*, 35, shares her story of traveling from France to Belgium and Holland for artificial insemination and IVF with her wife Julie*, 42. Married in 2017, they both work in higher education and live in Marseilles with their 9-month-old son. When my wife Julie and I first met in 2013, we began discussing almost immediately how we both wanted to have kids. Within a year, we had already begun looking into the logistics of how we could get
‘I took an 8-hour course in mental health first aid—here’s what I learned’
October 10, 2019 at 06:30PM by CWC I’ve lived in New York City for six years now, and most of the subway ads I see fall into two categories: trendy start-up (Casper or Blume perhaps) or slightly sketchy flyers for local psychics and guitar teachers. Which is why I was so surprised to step on the subway one very hot summer day and see a new set of ads that defied both categories for a free mental health first aid training class offered by the city. As a health editor, talking about mental health is a huge part of what I do at Well+Good, whether it’s through sharing real people’s experiences with anxiety or suicidal thoughts or talking to mental health professionals about what they do to help maintain their mental well-being. But I had never heard of mental health first aid—which is how I found myself signing up for a class over Labor Day weekend at the Gregory Jackson Center in the Brownsville neighborhood of Brooklyn. The mental health first aid curriculum was originally developed in 2001 by Australians Betty Kitchener and Anthony Jorm. It was adopted for use in the U.S. and 24 other countries around the world, including India, Canada, and Sweden. The City of New York City offers trainings for free through its Thrive NYC mental health initiative. “[Mental health first aid is] the ability to assess and approach someone in need,” explains Coach D. Williams, one of my two instructors. The goal, as she emphasized
Traveling to Boston? Check out these 8 incredible farm-to-table restaurants ASAP
October 10, 2019 at 05:00PM by CWC We totally get if you’ve had your fill of the term “farm-to-table” (I can’t help but think of the Portlandia scene). But this is a great thing! As news about the environmental consequences of the food system pours in, more restaurants are doing their eco-conscious part. It’s beyond a trendy schtick; transparency about where your food comes from can be good for you, local growers, and the environment. Boston’s flourishing restaurant industry features bright spots with good, clean food at the forefront of their mission. Maybe it’s working with farmers who embrace crop diversity, or promoting fair wages across their staff. The freshest part? Many of the below menu recommendations come at the time of writing, so your options could be completely different based on the day and season. And that’s what we like to hear. Here are eight of Boston’s best restaurants for farm-fresh food with a mission: 1. Craigie on Main You won’t find any out-of-season fruit or veg on your plate at this Cambridge mainstay. Since 2002, Chef Tony Maws has regularly switched up his French-inspired menu based on his daily haul from his network of go-to farmers, fishermen, and other local purveyors. Try marinated heirloom tomatoes, or head to the restaurant’s bar for their signature burger topped with cheddar from a farm in Shelburne, Vermont. Craigie on Main, 853 Main St, Cambridge, MA 02139, (617) 497-5511, https://www.craigieonmain.com/ 2. Bondir An ode to New England cuisine, Bondir’s cozy setting feels
We need naked yoga (and its confidence-boosting magic) now more than ever
October 09, 2019 at 05:33PM by CWC Yoga has approximately four bajillion variations within its fitness umbrella. There’s vinyasa, yoga nidra, kundalini yoga, mandala yoga, ashtanga, bikram, goat yoga, and the list goes on and on (and on). Rounding out how flexible the options for practicing out there are (see what I did there?) is, of course, naked yoga. Naked yoga, as you’d probably imagine, is like regular yoga but sans leggings…and a shirt…and a sports bra…and, yeah, underwear too (though you can wear these if you want). It’s not something that’s just offered as an exercise class at nudist colonies, but it’s actually done in naked yoga studios all over the United States, and it’s been around for a while now. “It’s not a fad,” says Willow Merveille, yogi and founder of Naked in Motion, which offers classes in New York, Seattle, and Boston. “It’s been practiced for centuries.” In actuality, naked yoga looks just like regular yoga (with bare bodies), but the purpose behind it is more abstract than just getting your flow on. “There’s heightened self-awareness and freedom,” says Monika Werner, yogi and co-founder of Bold and Naked, a studio in NYC. “You have to experience it for yourself, but the freedom of movement, the energy of the class, and the openness and increased self-awareness are the main benefits.” Before you actually start practicing the yoga, it’s typical for a naked yoga class to begin with a clear explanation of rules. “At Naked in Motion, we read
Before you say your skin is ‘sensitive,’ you might want to check with an allergist
October 09, 2019 at 03:00PM by CWC Not to be dramatic, but if you have sensitive skin your entire life may have been a lie up until this point. You’ve been hustled, scammed, bamboozled, hoodwinked, led astray! According to Dr. Purvi Parikh, allergist with the Allergy & Asthma Network, sometimes sensitive skin isn’t really sensitive skin—it could actually be a skin allergy. In addition to people being like woah about finding that out, “often people are also surprised that something you have been using for a while you can become allergic to,” Parikh says. It be like that sometimes. The best way to tell if you’re having an allergic reaction is to go see an allergist or dermatologist and get patch testing done. “Short of that, it is hard to know unless you have a pattern of reactions, like you only react to hair dye versus fragrances versus a variety of products,” Parikh says. “If there is a similar pattern to your reactions, it likely is an allergy rather than reacting to multiple things which may be more of sensitivity—or what we call an irritant reaction.” (There’s some allergist lingo for ya.) The most common allergens in skin care products, according to Parikh, are fragrance mix, formaldehyde, quaternarium 15, isothiazolinones, balsam of Peru, nickel, paraphenylenediamene, and antibacterial ointments. If you think you’re having an allergic reaction but can’t make it to an allergist, your best bet is to choose products that are fragrance-, dye-, and paraben-free, she says. A few brands
I went to a speed dating workout class and—spoiler—I’m still single
October 08, 2019 at 06:00PM by CWC When people ask me why I don’t have a boyfriend, I immediately tell them that it’s because I don’t have time to date. The fact that I write so much on the Internet about being single (on top of the vagina steaming and public armpit sniffing) probably isn’t doing me any favors, but I choose to blame my singlehood on scheduling. So, when I got an e-mail that Switch Playground—a workout studio in NYC—was hosting a speed dating event on a recent Friday night, I was obviously in. A Friday night activity that allowed me to multi-task a workout with a singles mixer? Hell, yes. In New York City, we’re nothing if not efficient. By nature, Switch Playground’s format lends itself fairly seamlessly to meeting people. It’s a partner-based sweat sesh in which pairs rotate through 20 exercise stations, spending two minutes at each before moving on. In a normal class, you stick with the same partner for the full hour, but at the mixer you got a new partner at every interval to maximize efficiency. So over the course of the class, I had the chance to cycle through 20 different stations and 20 different potential husbands. “I believe Switch Playground lends itself to the perfect opportunity to meet someone by sharing the experience together and having fun,” says Steve Uria, the founder of Switch and mastermind behind the event. “It removes the awkwardness of conversation and brings you right to a