September 10, 2019 at 02:00PM by CWC As I once learned after eating an entire bag of Sour Patch Watermelons that left me with an actual sugar hangover the next morning, there is definitely such thing as “too much of a good thing.” And this morning, as I layered my moisturizer on top of my hyaluronic acid, vitamin C, and AHA serums, I had a thought that stopped me in my tracks: Could this principle apply to skin care, too? In other words, is it possible to use too many active ingredients at the same time? “There’s no limit on number, but I think most dermatologists would agree that less is more,” says New York City-based dermatologist Dhaval Bhanusali, MD, FAAD. “Especially if ingredients are drying, like exfoliators, you can strip away the good oils and actually cause compensatory hyper-secretion of oil into the pores and more breakouts.” As in—your skin will produce more oil, which, he says, is one of the major culprits behind adult acne. “There is not one magic ‘one size fits all’ number of actives that a person can use,” confirms board-certified dermatopathologist Gretchen Frieling, MD, noting that people have different skin care types, conditions that they wish to address, and tolerance levels for products, all of which can influence how your skin responds to different ingredient cocktails. While there may not necessarily be a thing as “too many” actives, if you do plan on combining a whole bunch of them at once, you’ll want to
Category: You and your body
Why crying during sex is a thing—even when it’s consensual, enjoyable, and loving
September 10, 2019 at 01:00PM by CWC When sex with your partner is fun, happy, and—most importantly—consensual, your mind and body are liable to react in a number of different ways. Your feel-good emotions run high, and your adrenaline pumps, and the result may include you shaking, moaning, writhing, or even laughing with joy. In fact, crying during sex is even a thing, and it doesn’t necessarily mean anything negative. It’s true: Even when you’re in bed with someone you trust and you’re having awesome sex, you may just find yourself shedding some tears, whether during intercourse, upon achieving orgasm, and/or in that post-romp haze. And according to sex therapists, there are a number of reasons this emotional response is a completely and totally normal experience. Why you might cry during sex “Just like sex is not just physical, our responses to sex can be physical, emotional, or both,” says sex and relationship therapist Kristine Seitz, LSW. So while you might feel happy and safe and totally into what’s going on (either with a partner or by yourself), your body’s reaction may tap into your emotions and thoughts, or vice versa. “When people cry during sex it could mean myriad emotions are being released at the same time,” says certified sex therapist and coach Sari Cooper, LCSW. The emotions could come from love, anxiety, vulnerability, excitement, or whatever else you happen to be feeling at the given moment in question—and sometimes those feelings can manifest in a way that’s overwhelming,
The 2 foods you should *always* buy organic, according to a top dietitian
September 10, 2019 at 12:00PM by CWC [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ncHSaA0-Chg] There’s a reason why Whole Foods is often dubbed Whole Paycheck—buying all-organic everything can add up. But given the risks of pesticides from most conventionally-grown produce…what’s a healthy, budget-conscious eater to do? Registered dietitian and You Versus Food host Tracy Lockwood Beckerman, RD, says the easiest way to prioritize your organic spending is to know which foods most often are contaminated with pesticides. In the latest episode, Beckerman explains that every year, the Environmental Working Group (EWG) releases two lists: the Dirty Dozen and the Clean 15. “[These two lists] identify the produce that are the most and least likely to be contaminated by pesticides,” she says. She says that out of anything, you should do you best to go organic when buying strawberries and kale. “Strawberries have held their spot at the top of the Dirty Dozen list for four out of the last five years, so if there’s one fruit to buy organic, it’s definitely strawberries,” Beckerman says. As for kale, it’s a newbie on the list. While it used to not be on the Dirty Dozen at all, it’s now one of the most contaminated veggies. Good. To. Know. Check out the full episode above to see what else tops the Dirty Dozen and Clean 15 lists. “Buy organic when you can, but don’t put too much pressure on buying all organic all the time,” Beckerman says. After all, feeling stressed about your food isn’t good for you
Learn the ‘5-3-3 breathing technique’ for the most up and at ’em morning attitude
September 10, 2019 at 02:01AM by CWC From the moment I wake up, my to-do list is already running through my mind in neon lights. It’s a lot for only having been conscious for five seconds, which is why finding out crafty ways to re-center myself before jumping out of bed can be a pretty invaluable tool. Enter the 5-3-3 breathing technique, an invention of basketball coach Dominique Williams that’s designed to focus your energy before your day truly begins. “5-3-3 is a meditation designed in the spirit of Buddhist meditation and martial arts training,” says Coach D. “The method uses breath work as the concentration for mindfulness and insight, along with martial arts breathing techniques for rhythm and increased endurance.” Williams designed the 5-3-3 to motivate athletes, but it works for anyone whose mind feels unfocused and frenzied. Quick, clipped inhales and long, drawn out exhales are both part of the practice. Meaning, on a physical level, the diaphragm (which Coach D calls the body’s “space maker”) is expanding, the brain is receiving in influx of oxygen, and the lungs are expanding while the core is contracting. Studies have shown that deep breathing techniques can calm the respiratory and cardiovascular system, while faster breathing (known as Kapalabhati in yoga), is said to create energy. “Much like a team huddle and chant that keeps the motivation, focus, and morale up throughout the course, 5-3-3 relieves discomfort, anxiety, and creates a collective focus,” says Coach D. Here’s how to get more
The 9 best inclusive sex education Instagram accounts to follow right now
September 10, 2019 at 02:00AM by CWC In the event that the sexual education you received in your high school classroom more closely resembled a Mean Girls punch line than the comprehensive, inclusive, and factual rundown we all deserve and deserve and need, two things: 1. You’re hardly alone in your experience of being underserved by the system. And 2. You’re in luck. That’s because in the digital age, learning more about deep and wide world of pleasure can be as easy as scrolling Instagram thanks to all the sex educators who drop knowledge regularly on the platform. The influx of free, readily available information that is sex-positive, pleasure-inclusive, body-inclusive, and consent- and trauma-informed is one of the great benefits of living in the digital age. Here are nine of the best accounts for you to follow now. Scroll down for 9 sex ed accounts you should be following on Instagram. 1. @gabalexa Think of this account as the Bisexuality 101 course you never had the opportunity to take. Bicon (ahem, bisexual icon) Gabrielle Alexa Noel, founder of Bi Girl Club, a lifestyle and apparel brand, creates content specifically for people who identify as bisexual and their supporting allies. She provides tools to fight against internalized biphobia, shares little-known bisexual history, and offers tips for experimenting. 2. @sexelducation Get ready to learn way more here about STIs than you did in any classroom. Run by sexologist Emily Depasse, @sexelducation aims to transform the narrative around sexually transmitted infections from one
Yes, healthy fats are good for you—but it’s still possible to overdo it
September 10, 2019 at 01:00AM by CWC If the nutrition world had Avengers (bear with me here), fat would be the Bucky Barnes of the group—once a villain, then rehabilitated to be a true hero. It’s not that long ago when fat-free butter replacements and fat-free snacks and desserts were all the rage; now things couldn’t be more different. Fat is back, baby. However, as we all embrace healthy fats and slather our toast with nut butter, pile avocados onto our salads, and add MCT oils into our coffees, it begs the question: how much fat per day, even the healthy kind, is okay to eat? After all, protein is healthy but there’s definitely still a limit on what we’re supposed to be consuming every day. Answering this question gets confusing, fast. So we talked to experts to figure out what we should be doing in the fats department to maximize those benefits without going overboard. How much fat per day is safe to eat? Unfortunately there’s no one “magic” number of grams of fat that works for everyone. But in general, nutritionist Jessica Ash, CNC, and founder of Jessica Ash Wellness recommends getting about 20 to 30 percent of your daily calories from fat. Whitney English MS, RDN agrees. “For someone on a 2,000 calorie diet, that would be about 55 to 66 grams of fat a day,” English says. However, that number is flexible depending on a person’s activity level and overall health. For example, women with hormonal issues
7 under-$50 leggings that stand up to even your sweatiest, most high-intensity workouts
September 10, 2019 at 12:00AM by CWC Workout clothes are akin to sushi in my mind: I’m extremely wary of a deal or discount. And so, I often admittedly question just how good a pair of inexpensive workout leggings that cost under $50 could possibly be. Now, before you start rolling your eyes at my choice to continually spend more on workout leggings than many pay for actual real-life everyday wears, I’m going to go out on a limb and assume that you’ve never been in a heated yoga class, sweating it out 110-degrees, trying to balance on a single toe while your top rides up and bottoms slip down. The thing is, I tend to go to so many sweaty hot yoga classes these days that I can’t possibly keep up with the laundry. So I’ve started buying more. And more. And more. All that money spent on leggings, though, has had me on the hunt for more affordable options that actually work. And guess what? I’ve found not one, but seven that have passed my test for performance wear. And spoiler: I’m pickier than most. From Danskin, Adidas, Target, and more, find my favorite workout leggings under $50…that are actually awesome, price tag aside. Photo: Danskin Danskin Classic Supplex Body Fit Ankle Legging, $36 These were actually my first legging loves back in the day before I turned to other trendier (… and pricier) options. But honestly, maybe I should have just stuck to the classics. The tights I’ve
Ok, TMI: Why do the back of my earrings smell absolutely disgusting?
September 09, 2019 at 11:15PM by CWC Tell me how accurate this scenario is: You’re sitting at your desk in the office, or cozied up on the couch, twirling your earring back (which is a soothing thing to do with your hands, much like twirling your hair or clicking a pen or making a friendship bracelet), only to catch a whiff of your fingers which smell like… white cheddar popcorn? Nutritional yeast? Stinky cheese? WTF? I know it’s not just me. Every single person I’ve talked to about this nods in solidarity, because it’s just a fact of having piercings that nobody happens to talk about. So, since I’m now fearful that someone in my life will think my fingers smell like yeast, I have done the important job of investigating the cheesy-behind-the-ear situation. And it all stems from oil and bacteria. Your ears are a nice, warm anatomical crevice for oil, bacteria, and the accumulation of dead skin cells. Hence why your mom always told you to wash behind your ears. “It’s so that you clean off the oil that accumulates there,” explains Purvisha Patel, MD, a board-certified dermatologist and founder of Visha Skincare. “These cause ‘ear cheese,’ aka an accumulation of rancid oil—oil that gets exposed to air—dead skin cells, as we’re constantly shedding, bacteria, and sweat. It’s more common in people who do not change their earrings much and who sweat a lot.” (Me.) Your earring backs are the perfect breeding ground for that cheesy smell, especially if
‘Cross-fiber friction’ saved my stiff neck—and made me feel 2 inches taller
September 09, 2019 at 10:53PM by CWC Every once in a while in yoga class, a magical thing happens: the teacher comes up behind you during savasana and gives you a neck massage. The five-second act of other care is worth the entire $30 drop-in free, in my opinion. But you don’t have to leave your house to give your neck tender loving care. Once you know about cross-fiber friction foam rolling, you can get that “Ooh, ah!” feeling in your very own living room. At this year’s Wanderlust 108 festival in Brooklyn, Julie Wu—an instructor with RAD roller—taught me a valuable lesson in foam rolling. Even though most of us are trained to just move the device north and south to knead out tension, a little east and west action is good, too. That’s why Wu had the group at Wanderlust place a Rad Rod (a tiny, tube-like roller) just beneath the nape our necks and wiggle it right and left as well as up and down. It felt like a euphoric out-of-body experience, and I walked away from class feeling like a gazelle. That is, a taller, more agile version of myself. A horizontal approach to foam rolling is called cross-fiber friction foam rolling. Rather than running the foam roller along the length of the muscle, you’re going against the grain of the muscle fiber. For example, if you’re trying to target your quads, roll the tool from side to side rather than from knee to hip. When
Why you don’t have to ‘forgive and forget’ to truly move on
September 09, 2019 at 09:13PM by CWC The act of forgiving someone is often put on a pedestal. Self-help books and page-after-page of Pinterest quotes will tell you that no closure truly comes without first uttering “I forgive you.” Despite the phrase’s sterling reputation, psychologists say that not every hurtful scenario is resolved with three words. In reality, it’s more complicated than a cut-and-dry “forgive and forget.” “Forgiveness doesn’t have anything to do with how the person who hurt you feelings. It’s about how you feel,” says Aimee Daramus, PsyD, a psychologist based in Chicago. After someone stomps all over your feelings and apologizes, you’re left at a crossroads. “The point is for you to be able to move on with your life and have some peace, so if you’re truly moving on, forgiveness might not be necessary. If you’re still hurting, then it might help to forgive someone,” says Dr. Daramus. Letting them off the hook isn’t compulsory; it’s a personal choice. “The point is for you to be able to move on with your life and have some peace, so if you’re truly moving on, forgiveness might not be necessary.” —Aimee Darmus, PsyD Obviously, emotions are slippery. So instead of wading into your #feels and trying to navigate blindly, Dr. Daramus recommends visualizing what moving on might look like for you. “If you want to move forward without forgiving, you need to have goals, or at least vision for where you’re going,” she says. “Short-term goals help a