September 19, 2019 at 05:56PM by CWC In the hair industry, you’d be hard-pressed to find a name more recognizable than Frédéric Fekkai’s. He’s the godfather of the modern hair salon, he managed to bring luxury haircare to the masses via his namesake line (which you’ve likely on the shelves of your local drugstore), and, in what is perhaps my favorite claim to fame of his, has cut the hair of none other than Hilary Clinton. So when Frédéric Fekkai—a true beauty legend, no matter how you slice it—serves up haircare advice, suffice to say it’s worth listening to. This morning, he hosted a group of editors for a fireside chat in his Soho salon to celebrate the launch of his first ever foray into natural haircare, called Frédéric Fekkai The One: Pure, and schooled us all in the most basic of hair practices: how to wash it the right way. While it may seem simple, washing your hair is really the first step in your styling process—everything you do to your hair outside of the shower depends on what you do in the shower, so you certainly want to do it correctly. “The right way to do the shampoo is actually not to put it on the hair,” he says (cue jaw drop). “Put just enough [product] in your palm, and then apply it only on your scalp.” He explains that you don’t need to worry about lathering up the entirety of your strands, because the water will do the
Tag: Well+Good
‘I’m a dancer, and these are the 3 no-no-no’s of stretching your hamstrings’
September 19, 2019 at 04:55PM by CWC I have a rocky relationship with hamstring stretching (see: the yoga butt incident of 2018). Unwinding the tight group of muscles running up the backs of your legs can make all of your everyday movements feel more effortless, but getting the hang of how can be tricky. That’s why I asked Donna Flagg, a dancer and stretching instructor at Broadway Dance Center, to coach me through proper techniques. Apparently, there are three things you should never (like, ever) do when you’re stretching your hamstrings. “The world is divided into people who believe they were born inflexible and always will be, and those who stretch but don’t understand why their flexibility does not improve,” she tells me. If you find yourself struggling with forward-fold or (trying) to do the splits, then Flagg wants you to listen up. Simple as it may seam, tweaking your form just slightly can lead to big results. Ready for smarter hamstring stretching? Watch out for these 3 common mistakes. 1. Don’t: Buckle foward “In an effort to go farther and touch their toes, people bend their knees, making it more likely that they will touch the floor,” says Flagg. While nothing’s inherently wrong with that, the problem arises if you buckle and slacken the whole back of your leg. Meaning, your hamstrings won’t get stretched out and you’re compromising the health of your needs. Do this instead: To keep your entire lower chain safe, contract the muscles around your kneecaps.
A derm finally reveals why cold weather makes your skin break out
September 19, 2019 at 04:00PM by CWC I may be in the minority on this, but I happen to get very excited when the temperature drops to “sweaters and jackets” weather. Seriously—I’ll take 55 degrees over 80 any day. But the only downside to colder weather (in my opinion, at least) is that it often brings along the breakouts. While our skin tends to deal with a whole lot of sweat and oil all summer long, most people have less pimples in the midst of this heat than they do when it’s freezing out. Why is this, exactly? It all comes down to dryness. “When it’s very dry out, your body tends to want to make more oil and creates compensatory hyper-secretion,” says Dhaval Bhanusali, MD, FAAD, a New York-based dermatologist. So, basically, your skin creates more oil to make up for feeling parched in the colder air. “If patients don’t change their summer skin-care routine—using drying cleansers and toners—it can further dehydrate the skin and then oil production will go into overdrive. This can lead to breakouts and blemishes.” A-ha. (Also, some research has shown that UV rays can help kill acne-causing bacteria, but Dr. Bhanusali says it’s not recommended to rely on that because of sun damage and skin cancer risks—naturally.) The key to staying zit-free is being strategic with your regimen. Dr. Bhanusali’s tip? Adjust it to keep your skin barrier strong and do whatever it takes to combat dryness. “A lot of [staying acne-free in the cold] has
Nobel Prize-winning technology is coming for your skin care
September 19, 2019 at 03:00PM by CWC At a certain point when every influencer, heiress, and celebrity has decided to join the beauty bubble and launch a skin-care brand, one starts to wonder if products are worth the hype. What’s actually behind them, anyway? Do they exist simply to expand someone else’s personal brand? Are they worth our attention? Our expendable income? Times like these make scientific studies, Nobel prize-winning discoveries, and vetted teams willing to invest in real innovation shine a bit brighter through the clouded expanse of options. Enter Clé de Peau Beauté, which just launched one of the most innovative collections on the market that doesn’t dumb down the real issues—like skin burnout—or just think about the surface. With seven new players including one hero (spoiler: it’s the serum) the Key Radiance Care layout is designed to tackle the effects of serious stress on your skin. “Think about when your brain is stressed–how do you look when you’re completely stressed out?” asks Jason Leong, the brand’s national training executive and formulation guru. “Skin cells are like the brain of your skin—internal and external stress lower skin intelligence. When this happens, skin cells become out of balance, which leads to visible damage and aging.” The concept led to the team’s newest innovation—a nine-ingredient illuminating complex at the heart of all their products—that uses state-of-the-art technology to give your skin a second chance. What is autophagy and why do we want it? To combat exactly this kind of one-two punch on your
You can thank ‘sex brain’ for those out-of-character decisions you make when turned on
September 19, 2019 at 02:00PM by CWC Are you able to speak properly and make rational decisions when you’re super turned on? Because I can’t. I call this having “sex brain,” and it’s way more serious than an intense craving to pounce on your crush as soon as they walk into the room. Rather, it’s an inability to think, talk, and act logically that can plague even the most levelheaded among us. Sex brain is oh-so real and can strike in a number of ways, like jumbling words when you’re trying to talk dirty, having unprotected sex because you’re in the heat of the moment, going back on your plan to not hook up with someone after experiencing electrifying sexual chemistry in their presence, or something else entirely. There is a common denominator “symptom” of all these events, though: doing something that’s outside the realm of what you’d consider a good decision in your normal, sexually unaroused state of mind. Why does sex brain impair decision-making skills? “Much of this sense of passion and attraction occurs in the primitive brain—the limbic system—and, thus, often produces reactive, primal behavior that ‘doesn’t make sense’ to the rational mind,” says clinical psychologist and sex and relationship expert Carla Marie Manly, PhD. Sexologist Jill McDevitt, PhD, agrees that sex brain exists, and points to cognitive overload as an explanation. “The idea is that maybe sexual arousal is the brain equivalent of having too many tabs open, and processes start to get glitchy and shut
The Class by Taryn Toomey is coming to a city near you (you heard me!)
September 19, 2019 at 01:00PM by CWC Every Sunday, no matter how non-virtuous my behavior the night before, I scrape myself out of bed at 8 a.m. to make it to a 9 a.m. exercise class. I do this not because I love to work out (I do not), but because it is the only time in the entire week I can catch The Class by Taryn Toomey (who happens to also be a Well+Good Council member) near my house in east L.A., and I gotta have it. If you know The Class, you know The Class. Trying to describe the yoga-HIIT-dance hybrid always makes me feel inadequate as a wordsmith, because it’s really different than anything else out there. Much of The Class is focused upon the principles that you can build long, lean muscle by focusing on working fast-twitch muscles. You do this by repeating small, dance-like movements for what feels like for-e-ver. It’s emotional, raw, and plain-and-simple: effective. And it’s gained enough of a reputation outside of the New York City and Los Angeles bubbles that the brand felt like it needed to take Toomey’s show on the road. In an attempt to answer these calls, she’s kicking off a seven-city tour this October. “Every day we receive emails and DMs from students near and far that are asking about when The Class might come to them, whether that’s in Midtown or Nashville,” says Toomey. “So we decided to bring it to cities where we’ve never been,
Feng Shui your office for more wealth and success in just 5 steps
September 19, 2019 at 12:00PM by CWC If you’re anything like me, you probably spend way too much time at your desk, whether it’s in your home office or a cubicle at work. Luckily, there are many ways you can improve the vibe of your work space. Plants, for example, will breathe life into your office, literally. Essential oils will make the space smell heavenly and boost your mood too. Another way you can seriously create more good juju and take your work vibe to the next level? Feng shui, the ancient Chinese art of placement.“Feng Shui principles provide guidelines for how to successfully arrange our space with intention and meaning,” says Feng Shui consultant Jen Boyd. “Our environment influences the way we feel and it’s important that what surrounds us is supportive.” “It helps us discover how to create the most harmonious spaces for our mental, physical, and spiritual well-being,” adds Dara Dubinet, intuitive astro-geographer and Feng Shui consultant. By simply placing things in your office in a certain way and bringing in essential Feng Shui elements, you can boost your productivity, attract more wealth, and feel good on all levels—mind, body, and soul. Into it? Here’s how to Feng Shui your office, according to the pros. Step one: Declutter, declutter, declutter Before you infuse your office with good vibes, you first need to get rid of all the clutter, Dubinet says. Specifically, make sure there is no clutter on the floor so “chi,” aka life force energy, can
Find your superfood soulmate based on your wellness goals
September 19, 2019 at 04:30AM by CWC Integrating superfoods into your everyday diet is awesome—but understanding which superfoods address specific areas of your health before adding them to your grocery cart? Even better. For a refresher, here’s what a superfood actually is: “A superfood is a naturally occurring ingredient that has health-supporting properties in the form of antioxidants, anti-inflammatory compounds, highly bioavailable nutrients, or unique structural components,” explains Ali Miller, RD, CDE integrative dietician, and author of The Anti-Anxiety Diet. To put it simply, superfoods are organic methods of reaping wellness-boosting benefits, in just one scoop. (Life. Hack.) If you’re saying “yes please” to all of the above, same. The next step is figuring out how to actually add them to your diet—and luckily, that task has gotten a lot easier. Enter Further Food, the women-owned and led brand that dishes up real superfood supplements that you can add into your morning smoothie or go-to caffeinated bev. Developed by leading naturopathic doctors, scientists, and herbalists, the supplements are designed to support specific parts of your wellness—so you can find the exact one to meet your needs, because it’s all about that customized life. Keep scrolling to see which superfood supplements you should opt for depending on your wellness goals. Radiant skin It’s not news that the beauty scene has been buzzing about collagen, and for good reason: Studies have shown that the supplement could potentially help boost skin elasticity and hydration, meaning it could be nature’s way of giving you
The case for using a bidet seat (and why you actually need one)
September 19, 2019 at 04:30AM by CWC Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about bidets (what, like you haven’t?) and if this luxe bathroom upgrade—which is a super common cleanliness essential in Europe—is something I should try. You see, I’m a prime candidate for upping my level of well-being in the bathroom, because dealing with my various digestive issues means I spend a lot of time in there. But before I took the plunge, I sent a mass message to the Well+Good office with a simple question: “Bidet seats—what are your thoughts?” “Honestly, I’ve never used one, but people who have made the conversion swear by them,” said digital designer Ems McCarthy. “I think they’re cool but never used one—definitely would elevate my space if I had one,” added account manager Caprice Serafine. Even Eva Rohan, our director of content and strategy, chimed in: “It sounds like a ‘once you try it, you can never go back’ situation, and any situation like that is one I want in on.” Among these responses, it was obvious that pretty much all my wellness-loving co-workers are intrigued by bidets. So for the sake of journalism and hygiene, I took TOTO WASHLET out for a test spin (err, rinse?) to see what becoming a regular bidet-seat user would feel like. Keep scrolling to see how using a bidet seat was a totally life-changing experience. 1. It’s easy to install (even for me, someone who somehow messes up everything) I’m so jaded by my own
Scuba diving in the Caribbean gave me the meditative experience I didn’t sign up for
September 19, 2019 at 03:00AM by CWC When I arrived in Utila, Honduras—one of country’s three Bay Islands, which are located in the Caribbean—I had no intention of scuba diving period, let alone taking a certification course and then scuba diving in Costa Rica soon thereafter. But once I arrived on the Central American island surrounded by soft blue waters, I quickly learned that diving is enmeshed in area’s culture. Practically everyone I met was taking a course and seemed puzzled as to why I was even visiting if not to dive. So, nervous as I was, I changed my plan—while in Utila, do as Utilia tourists do, right? I enrolled in an open-water diving course for the entry-level certification, and while I wasn’t shocked about how quickly I fell in love with the activity, I hadn’t anticipated the underlying reason why. From the beginning, I knew diving would be a constant exercise in learning to keep my cool, and the first rule I learned facilitated this: Just keep breathing. It’s simple but something I definitely had to keep in mind in order to stay calm. After all, inhaling underwater after spending your whole life associating such an action with drowning is a strange sensation that can be scary. I put the rule to good use on my first day when my instructor and I were running through potential underwater mishaps and emergency situations at about 8 to 10 feet underwater. After one of these exercises, I had a panic