March 05, 2020 at 02:30AM by CWC If you’ve ever looked in the office bathroom mirror after lunch, noticed a brand-spanking-new zit, and wondered “where the hell did that thing come from?” this one’s for you. Some facial breakouts seem to come up out of nowhere and ruin your afternoon, but chances are those surprise pimples have been brewing for some time—and there are a whole lot of things that might have caused them. To find out where exactly they come from, I asked dermatologists to share the most common reasons behind sudden facial breakouts. The good news? Nearly all of them are avoidable with a few lifestyle tweaks—though sometimes, IMHO, a midday zit is well worth the extra scoop of ice cream. Common causes of sudden facial breakouts 1. Stress If pimples are popping up before a big presentation or a nerve-wracking first date, stress is likely to blame. “We know that stress has a significant impact on our skin,” says board-certified dermatologist Joshua Zeichner, MD. When you’re stressed, your brain releases a stress hormone called cortisol, which causes your oil glands to go into overdrive. They start to produce more sebum, which ultimately leads to acne. While many hormonal breakouts are unavoidable, stress pimples can be put to rest by chilling out. 2. Your diet Breaking out the morning after binging Ben and Jerry’s and The Bachelor (aka the bets way to spend a Monday night)? Those are probably sugar and dairy pimples. “Certain foods like dairy and
Category: Your Healthiest Relationship
The ‘3 Keys’ that make every weight-training workout more effective
March 05, 2020 at 02:00AM by CWC We know that using weights in your strength training routine helps to build muscle, boost metabolism, and make it easier to progress in your workouts. While bodyweight training is great, using weights adds extra resistance and is more impactful at making you stronger. “It’s so important to add weights into your workout routine to keep building muscle, regardless of your fitness goals,” says Sarah Brannon, Openfit Live trainer. But before you hit the weight rack, Brannon stresses that working out with weights isn’t just about curling dumbbells up and down. There are certain factors that you should pay attention to so that your workout is truly benefitting your overall strength (and even your overall mobility). Keep scrolling for the three elements of weight training that she recommends you touch on in each exercise session, which will result in a more efficient and effective workout. The three key weight-training tips to know 1. Work in all planes of motion: As we know, we don’t live our lives in just one plane of motion—and our workouts should follow suit. Multiplanar training is recommended by trainers since it gets your body moving in all different planes, which gives you more functional strength (aka strength that improves your mobility in the movements of your everyday life). “Our workouts need to be functional and mimic movements we would do in life, which is something we do by incorporating movements in all three planes: transverse, sagittal, and frontal,” says Brennan.
Do pore strips work? Dermatologists reveal the truth, once and for all
March 05, 2020 at 01:30AM by CWC People love to use skin-care products that work, sure, but they also love to use products that are satisfying. Beauty products like Baby Foot ($25) and peel-off face masks are fun because you get to watch dead skin cells come off centimeter by centimeter. Then there are pore strips, which suck up all of the little blackheads nesting on your nose. But do pore strips work, and is that satisfying treatment really doing your skin any favors? As a refresher, your pores are really small openings on your skin that oil and sweat come out of, and they can get pretty easily clogged. “Pores can get filled with dirt, oil, sweat, and makeup,” says Purvisha Patel, MD, board-certified dermatologist and founder of Visha Skincare, who adds that they can also get clogged by skin cells that aren’t exfoliated (reminder: this is why regular exfoliation is so important). One instance of clogged pores is a blackhead, which is oil that’s been oxidized in an open pore. Your nose happens to be a hotspot for blackheads. “The nose is a perfect storm to make blackheads, because the pores are stretched out on a convex surface,” says Dr. Patel. Pore strips come in because they’re able to mold around the nose, stick to it and cling to the pore buildup, then—ideally—take it all out of your skin. Keep scrolling for the low-down on whether pore strips really work, plus how to use them, according to dermatologists. Do pore strips
Why processed food isn’t always a ‘bad’ thing
March 05, 2020 at 01:00AM by CWC If avocados wear a health halo, processed foods definitely sport devil’s horns in many healthy eaters’ eyes. Many experts in the wellness world (including doctors, dietitians, and healthy food bloggers) advise cutting out processed foods completely, deeming them all as unhealthy. Whole foods are best is the message preached on blogs, on Instagram, and in the comments on Facebook. But here’s the reality: eating all whole foods all the time is definitely not practical. Who wants to subsist off of just fruits and vegetables and plain rice all the time? Meanwhile, packaged, processed foods certainly have convenience and ease on their side. Plus, there are definitely lots of packaged options that are at least seemingly healthy: they are high in protein and fiber, have minimal ingredients lists, rich in vitamins and minerals…they can’t all be bad, right? Basically, the debate around processed food is confusing. So we asked food scientists and nutrition experts to clear a few things up for us about the most demonized, feared food category there is. Buckle up, because your mind is about to be blown. What is processed food? One of the main reasons processed foods are so misunderstood is that not everyone knows exactly what they are. Food science and nutrition expert Taylor Wallace, PhD, defines it by saying, “Processed food is something that has changed from [its] original state.” This change can happen from a variety of processes, per the Institute of Food Technologists, including “washing,
6 trainers tell us their favorite lower ab exercises that actually work
March 05, 2020 at 12:00AM by CWC Ah, the lower abs. This part of my body feels, at least to me, impossible to tone. Apparently, strengthening them can make sex better, so I may at long last be motivated to put in the effort lower ab exercises require. To find out the best exercises for my lower abs, I surveyed the most notable trainers in my rolodex (read: iPhone, if you’re under 100). Before I dive into their go-to moves, Nicholas Poulin, celebrity trainer and online coach at Poulin Health & Wellness, offers a word of caution around the importance of engaging your transverse abdominals during these exercises. “Your TVA is a vital muscle that acts as a stabilizer for the entire low back and core muscles; a weak TVA is often one of the many reasons people may experience low back pain,” he says. “Think about pulling your belly button in toward your spine and not pushing your stomach out when doing any ab exercise,” he says. With that in mind, here are a few pro-approved exercises that’ll get the donut around your waist looking like a grill or, at the very least, like a… pancake? And now, I’m hungry. These are the best trainer-approved lower ab exercises you can do 1. Reverse Crunch [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hyv14e2QDq0] This one’s a classic, and there’s a reason it’s in every ab class ever—it works. This is also why both Poulin and Joan MacDonald, a Women’s Best Athlete and The Vitamin Shoppe ambassador,
The cannabis world has a diversity problem, but Cannaclusive’s founders are seeking to change that
March 04, 2020 at 11:00PM by CWC On the surface, it looks as though the cannabis industry is wide open with opportunity right now. By 2025, the market for the medicinal plant is projected to be worth $66.3 billion, expanding at an annual growth rate of almost 30 percent. In five years time, experts say 625,000 people will be employed by hemp-related businesses, triple the current number. But look a little more closely, and you’ll see that those currently profiting from the marijuana boom are largely white men—a reality that prompted Charlese Antoinette Jones, Mary Pryor, and Tonya Rapley-Flash to launch Cannaclusive in 2017. Their mission is big but simple—to give people of color a stake in the burgeoning cannabis world, both as business owners and consumers. “We originally came together out of frustration,” says Pryor, who was named one of Well+Good’s 2020 Changemakers along with Antoinette and Rapley-Flash. Most of the time, when they would attend cannabis industry events in Los Angeles, Pryor says she and her business partners were the only women of color in the room. “We were all interested in doing work in the industry and had a shared respect for the plant, but we were not being met with opportunities because of [racial] microaggressions.” According to Pryor, there are many reasons why the cannabis scene isn’t as diverse as it could be—racism, sexism, murky government regulations, and lack of access to capital among them. Then there’s the fact that people of color are four times
I’m a psychological astrologer, and this is the unique stressor I see for each sign
March 04, 2020 at 10:00PM by CWC For zodiac enthusiasts, Jennifer Freed, PhD, is the self-help hybrid of your dreams, a psychologist who also utilizes astrology (a psychological astrologer) to help patients cope with life in ways best suited to their unique makeup. According to Dr. Freed, each member of the zodiac tends to seek therapy for reasons specific to their astrological chart. No matter where in your chart a sign falls—sun, moon, or rising—it likely impacts the areas of your life in which you need pro assistance, says the in-demand therapist. Astrology may also dictate whether you’re a fan of therapy or avoidant. “Air signs like to be in their head and not in their feelings and bodies, so we could have Aquarius and Gemini and Libra avoiding therapy,” she says (noting that Sagittarius “might also want to run for the hills”). Water signs, meanwhile, may experience the opposite issue. “They stay in therapy forever because sometimes they just drown in their own recollections and feelings,” says Dr. Freed. “So, it’s important for the therapist that they go to to hold them accountable to growth.” Keep reading to find out more about the your sign’s unique stressors and how to deal with them. A psychological astrologer explains what each zodiac sign wants to talk about in therapy Aries “Aries most often come in to therapy [to deal with] impetuousness, recklessness, and anger,” says Dr. Freed. To combat these issues, Dr. Freed recommends slowing down to be more contemplative. “It’s
This is the part of your face derms say shows signs of aging the fastest
March 04, 2020 at 09:30PM by CWC Of all of the steps in a skin-care routine, eye cream often feels like the most superfluous. People (dermatologists—and myself—included) have argued that “eye cream is a scam,” and that you can get most of the same benefits from your regular moisturizer without having to spend extra cash on a pricey miracle potion. But while your under eyes might seem like the easiest place to skip out on skin care, they’re actually the ones you should be paying the most attention to, because they’re the spot that will show the first signs of aging on the face. “The skin under your eyes is thin, with fewer collagen and elastin fibers,” says board-certified dermatologist and president of Amarte, Craig Kraffert, MD, which makes the effects of things like dehydration, lack of sleep, and sun exposure show more readily. It doesn’t help that your eye muscles are constantly getting a workout, and that there are very few oil glands in the area to keep the skin from drying out, all of which contribute to those “crow’s feet” wrinkles that often occur. Then, there are dark circles, which appear because there are lots of blood vessels in the area and very little fat between them and your skin. “Aging can appear from genetics, stress, and not taking proper care of your under eye skin,” says board-certified dermatologist Michele Farber, MD, of Schweiger Dermatology in NYC. “Using harsh cosmetics can damage the gentle skin under your eyes, rubbing
Does canned food ever really expire? Here’s what you need to know
March 04, 2020 at 09:00PM by CWC I’m a canned beans hoarder. Black, kidney, garbanzo—you name it, I’ve got it. I like beans, but I don’t love them. I’m truly just a sucker for a sale, and grab a few cans nearly every time I go to the grocery store. But how long will my stockpile last? Does canned food expire? “In general, canned food has a shelf life of about two years from date of purchase,” says Vandana Sheth, RDN, a registered dietitian nutritionist in Los Angeles. Angela Lemond, RDN, a registered dietitian nutritionist based in Texas says the shelf life varies from product to product. “High acid foods like pineapples and tomatoes last about a year to 18 months. Other canned foods like vegetables or shelf-stable meats last between 2 to 5 years.” She points to the USDA shelf-stable food storage chart for more detailed guidance. Ron Giles, director of quality assurance at Goya Foods, explains why the canned food industry prefers to use “best by” dates rather than expiration dates. “Canned foods do not expire on a certain date,” he tells Today. “One cannot say that the canned food is good on one day and not good the next day. Canned foods are under a vacuum. The absence of oxygen helps to extend the shelf life of canned foods.” Sheth, the author of My Indian Table, says that you have to read the dates on the can closely. “The best if used by date is telling you that the
A *lot* of people are ditching bootcamps for Pilates—and there’s a science to why
March 04, 2020 at 08:00PM by CWC In 2020, Pilates will celebrate its 94th birthday. It’s the OG boutique fitness class, and Joseph Pilates’ 34 original exercises set the stage for a number of other workouts, like barre and Megaformer (which BTW: was one of our 2020 Trends) to become mainstays for those with stacked studio fitness calendars. Nearly a century after its advent, people (particularly women) are trading their sneakers and HIIT workouts for grippy socks, as Pilates has proven to be more popular than ever. According to a 2019 survey from MINDBODY, the modality ranked among respondents’ top choice for “what to try next,” and a third of those surveyed said they were looking to start doing Pilates. But they won’t be the only newbies in class: Nearly half (48 percent) of people currently practicing Pilates have only started taking classes within the last 12 months. Across the country, studios are seeing the effects of this increased interest. In early 2015, Club Pilates had only 30 studios—at the end of 2019, there were 650. Elaine Hayes, founder of MNTSTUDIO Pilates in San Francisco, says that she saw business increase 25 percent last year, and is opening a second location in Palo Alto in 2020. “My business is better than ever,” she told Well+Good. “I’m starting to see more and more people flock to reformer classes.” But what is it that’s sending so many people to the chair, mat, reformer, box, and tower? In a word: burnout. Forty-eight percent