April 23, 2019 at 03:00PM by CWC We can all agree that orgasms are pretty great. I’d even venture to say they’re more satisfaction-inducing than an ASMR video (if that’s your thing) or reaching Inbox Zero. So when Stuart Nugent, brand manager at luxury sex-toy company LELO, told me about a supercharged orgasm that feels “like jumping into an Alpine lake under the stars on a warm, autumn night,” I had questions. Namely, what, how, and where do I sign up for this 200-level “blended” orgasm, as the sexperts call it? Let’s get right to it: “There are many different kinds of orgasms a vulva owner can have: vaginal, G-Spot, P-spot, anal, A-spot, clitoral, cervical, nipple, etc.,” says Alicia Sinclair, sex educator and CEO of anal-sex-product company b-Vibe. “If you’re experiencing a blended orgasm, it means that you’re means you’re having simultaneous orgasms.” A blended orgasm can happen when two or more (!!!) happen at the same time. Apparently, we can have it all. “If you’re experiencing a blended orgasm, it means that you’re means you’re having simultaneous orgasms.” —Alicia Sinclair, certified sex educator Since it’s not possible to experience anyone’s orgasm but your own, making a general statement about what a blended orgasm feels like is tough, says sex expert Andrea Barrica, CEO of education platform O.school. “Some people describe their blended orgasms as feeling more intense, deeper, or just as more because there are multiple points of stimulation.” Basically, the blended O is the Daft Punk of pleasure:
Category: Relaxation
Dance fitness improves brain function, so let your body move to the music
April 23, 2019 at 12:00PM by CWC Coachella is officially in the rearview mirror (some may sigh; some may say thank god). But that doesn’t mean that you need to bid goodbye to dancing your heart out with your friends and reaping all the sweaty benefits of busting a move. You can tell just by how sweaty the dance floor gets on a Saturday night that getting down to Cardi B and Ariana Grande can be a workout just as much as any other cardio-based activity. Yes, it gets your heart rate up and tones your body (twerking is basically a level up from holding a squat), but the benefits don’t stop there. It turns out that when you take the time to learn dance moves—like in a dance-based fitness class—there are a lot of science-backed benefits for your brain, too. Intrigued? Here, two experts in the space go deep into the hidden benefits. Keep reading to find out how dance-based fitness classes not only work your body, but your brain, too. Photo: Getty Images/People Images 1. It strengthens neuroplasticity There are some workouts, like running or spinning, that you can do and just completely zone out. Learning choreography in a dance class can be meditative too, but in a different way. “When it comes to dance, you have to be cognitively ready to function,” points out DanceBody founder Katia Pryce. “It doesn’t take the same amount of mental processing to hop on a bike and just spin the wheels.”
This is the tightest muscle in your body—and here’s exactly how to stretch it out
April 22, 2019 at 07:59AM by CWC Every time an instructor says to sit in sukhasana during meditation, I can’t help but groan. For someone with unrelenting hip flexor tightness, the so-called “easy pose” is really hard. As everyone around me is settling into the seated position, I’m often trying to ease discomfort with yoga blocks. The hip flexors aren’t always the tightest muscle for everyone, according to Jeff Brannigan, program director at New York City’s Stretch’d, but it’s one of the most common areas for tightness and discomfort. “Not only are the hip flexors used in almost every type of physical activity, but they’re also under tremendous stress when we sit at our desks for hours on end,” he says. “During long hours of inactivity, these muscles are tightening up which, over time, will end up compromising the blood flow to the area and exacerbate the problem.” The hip flexors are used for any movement “in which the leg is elevated forward in front of the body, like kicking,” Brannigan says. Consistent hip flexor tightness can lead to a long list of problems. You could experience misaligned a pelvis, compromised movement when exercising (which could lead to injury), and pain in your hips, low back, and knees. “In order to properly deal with tight hip flexors, we need to not only lengthen the area, but also pump blood into the muscle so inflammation can be reduced. The best way to do this is through an active stretch,” Brannigan explains.
Meet the ridiculously easy breathing exercise that’ll get you through every WTF moment in life
April 21, 2019 at 06:00AM by CWC When you’re internally freaking out about something, there’s no shortage of advice about how to handle it: sniff some lavender oil, pop some CBD oil under your tongue, roll out your yoga mat. And while all of these things have merit, holistic healer Ashley Neese is here to tell you that calming your nervous system can be even simpler than that. All you have to do, she says, is breathe. Okay, well there’s a little more to it than that: You have to breathe with intention, which isn’t how we, as humans, generally operate. Think about the last time you paid any attention to your respiration, outside of a workout or yoga class. It was probably a long time ago, if ever, right? “We are out of touch with our breath because we’re out of touch with our bodies,” says Neese, author of How to Breathe: 25 Simple Practices for Calm, Joy, and Resilience. There are lots of things that cause this detachment, she adds, including chronic stress, trauma, illness, negative body image, and disconnection from nature. But when we’re mindful of how we’re breathing, it can completely change our physical and emotional state—and fast. As Neese explains in How to Breathe, slowing your breathing rate in times of stress sends a message to your brain that everything is cool. As such, it can help your body transition from fight-or-flight mode into a state of greater peace, even if your external circumstances are still chaotic.
The yoga poses that can most benefit from adding blocks
April 20, 2019 at 10:00AM by CWC Whenever I’m in a yoga class, I feel really bad for yoga blocks. They definitely get a bad rap, and there’s such a widespread misconception that only the most novice yogis need to rely on yoga blocks for support—when in actuality, even the most advanced yoga practitioners turn to the tools in their practice. And so I reached out to a number of yoga pros to find out all of the yoga block uses worth knowing about and incorporating into your own Vinyasa class. “We love blocks,” gushes Kyle Miller, yogi pro and co-founder of Los Angeles’ Love Yoga space. “Yoga blocks are scaffolding and support. Our teachers always say when you are building a cathedral, a structure to house spirit, you use scaffolding. For us, blocks aren’t for beginners—they’re for informed practitioners who are supporting themselves while they practice. We use them throughout the practice, incorporating them into many poses.” So a major, functional use of yoga blocks is that they’re truly for support. “I use yoga blocks to help create more space or to act as a boundary,” says Beth Cooke, yogi and instructor at Sky Ting. “I’ve learned the Katonah yoga lineage that blocks create healthy boundaries in my body, and that gives me more freedom on both the mat and in life. If I become too flexible, I have a harder time feeling stable and grounded in my body.” Besides that, blocks are great because they allow you to cater
Zap your headaches away with these 6 natural home remedies
April 20, 2019 at 08:00AM by CWC Headaches are day ruiners that halt your big plans in their tracks—or at least make them difficult to flawlessly execute. As someone who gets many an angry migraine, I know that the pain forces me to pack it up for the day and retreat into my dark cave (AKA my bedroom with the shades drawn). But most days, we don’t have the time to sleep off a headache. What’s a gal to do? While doctors maintain over-the-counter or prescription medications are most effective to relieve the tension headache or migraine itself, there are some home remedies worth taking a spin to quell symptoms and feel a bit better, fast. “Treating as early as possible is the best chance to get pain under control,” says Susan Broner, MD, medical director of the headache program at at Weill Cornell Medicine and New York-Presbyterian. She says home remedies can help get through an attack alone or in tandem with medication, so whip these fixes out sooner rather than later. And if your headaches are getting more frequent, more painful, or harder to treat, definitely talk with your doctor. Okay, now grab a glass of water (hydration is important here, like in so many aspects of our lives!) and let’s get into what to keep in your arsenal of instant home remedies for headaches: Essential oils You’ll want to grab peppermint, lavender, and rosemary essential oils for their pain-busting properties. “It’s not just, ‘Oh it’s relaxing,’ or
How to take the perfect shower for your skin type, according to dermatologists
April 19, 2019 at 08:10AM by CWC I often find myself in a rush, and the challenge is to scrub, shampoo, condition, and shave (if you’re into that) in five minutes or less. But when I’ve got JOMO vibes, I hang out in the shower for the better part of an indulgent hour while contemplating the meaning of life. No matter what time allows, skin experts say following certain shower practices will keep your complexion happy. No surprise, the first step is figuring out how to shower for your skin type. “It’s truly important to remember that what works for you may not work for the person next to you,” says Jen Kramer, a paramedical esthetician and founder of Corrective Skincare LA. In fact, the only hard-and-fast rule is that you shouldn’t linger too long in the shower (i.e., 30-minute showers are too much). “You might think standing in a hot, steamy shower sounds like it would hydrate your skin (not to mention relax you!), but the longer you stay, the more your skin is stripped of natural proteins and oils that protect your cells from the environment,” says Kramer. “No matter what your skin type, limit the time you’re in the shower to 10 minutes. This makes Mother Earth happy, too.” Keep it short, sweet, and full of products that make your skin look and feel its very best. How to shower if you have oily skin Joshua Zeichner, MD, a dermatologist based in New York, advises sticking to
Essential oils might just be the underrated cough remedy you didn’t know you needed
April 19, 2019 at 03:00AM by CWC There’s no getting around it: A pesky cough is annoying. Like, so annoying, especially considering that some research has found standard over-the-counter cough medicines aren’t always so effective for combatting the symptoms and treating the underlying problem. That said, there are some great options for calming a cough, and a number of them include essential oils. There’s a variety of oils you can choose from when it comes to treating and easing the symptoms that come with a cough, says aromatherapist Amy Galper, co-founder of the New York Institute of Aromatic Studies. While each oil works a little differently, all of the selects listed below have been shown to thin mucus, kill microorganisms, support your immune system, help you cough out mucus, work as a decongestant, serve as an anti-inflammatory, kill bacteria, and improve circulation, Galper says. Basically, these are great tools to have on hand for whenever that next super-annoying cough strikes. Keep the following seven essential oils around to help fight a cough 1. Eucalyptus “I use eucalyptus a lot for upper-respiratory infections, including coughs,” says Irina Todorov, MD, medical co-director for the Cleveland Clinic Center for Integrative Medicine. In fact, the essential oil offers many benefits, but it’s known for decongestant properties, says Michele Mack, a licensed massage therapist at the Center for Integrative Health and Wellness at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center. Its antimicrobial, antiviral, and expectorant qualities can also help combat the symptoms that come along
Certain spirit animals are showing up a lot right now—here’s what they mean
April 18, 2019 at 03:00PM by CWC I’m about as woo-woo-friendly as an evidence-based person can be (crystals and reiki and lunar cycles, oh my!), but I never really understood the whole “spirit animal” thing. I havn’t had dreams where, say, a bear was trying to tell me something. And the eye of the tiger is something I really only feel during karaoke, to be honest. But when I moved out to the country—about two hours north of New York City, in the Catskills—I did start to get the feeling that (bear with me here) the animals were trying to connect with me. And more than anything, it scared the hell out of me. First came the turkeys. One day last fall, I walked out of my house to find six turkeys hanging out around my car, and as I tried to shoo them away, they just looked at me like a bunch of surly teenagers and refused to budge for several minutes. Then later in the day, miles and miles away, two other turkeys crossed my path on a winding country road. An hour later, I saw another one in a yard on a residential street. Even though they were (kind of scary) material-world beings, not the spirit-world variety, the turkeys (and the deer, and the bunnies, and the hawks that came later) were definitely showing up with messages attuned to what was going on in my life, says spiritual medium Erika Gabriel. “I think what’s happening is you’re
If your workouts are fueled by farts, here’s how to find some relief
April 18, 2019 at 07:00AM by CWC If you’re feeling a bit gassy and you’re about to hit the gym—or worse, you’re already there and can’t stop farting—you might stop and think to yourself what. is. going. on.? Certainly, it’s distracting, and yeah, it doesn’t feel great either to have an uneasy stomach when you’re trying to, you know, strengthen your core and the rest of your muscles. But it does bring to mind one very specific question: Why does fitness seem to really amp up the amount of toots in the tank? “Gas is produced in the gut by the microbes that reside there. They eat foods we don’t digest and ferment them, which results in gas,” says Kate Scarlata, RD and GI and IBS expert. “We might notice lower GI gas moving during exercise, as exercise can stimulate the movement of gas in the intestine.” So, if you’re eating before exercising, you might experience those gas bubbles. The good news is you don’t need to suffer through those minutes in pain. With a few simple lifestyle tips and exercises, you can reduce gas prior to exercising and get rid of it mid-workout, too. Bless up. 1. Choose your carbs wisely before working out You need carbs to help fuel your workout with immediate and sustainable energy, but some carbs are better than others in terms of gas production. Ditch poorly absorbed, fermentable carbs a few hours before you head to the gym. “These include beans, onion, garlic and