Busy schedule? Short on time? These quick health and wellness boosters take just a few minutes.
I want to hold your hand...
By nature, humans love to touch and cuddle. Why? Because our endocrine systems release pleasure chemicals when we receive a caring touch and it makes us feel better. Adding a touch, caress, or hug to conversations with your partner or spouse is a great way to show them just how much they mean to you. It can make you feel more connected, happy, and even less anxious.
Alleviate junk food for the brain
Do you reach for your phone within the first hour after waking up? Don’t! It’s said that the way you spend the first hour of your day dictates how your day (and life) will progress. Jim Kwik states, “When you wake up, you’re in this theta alpha state and you’re highly suggestible. [With] every like, comment, and share, you get this dopamine fix and it’s literally rewiring your brain. What you’re smart device is doing, especially if that’s the first thing you grab when you wake up and you’re in this alpha theta state, is rewiring your brain to be distracted.”
Get help from an “accountabilibuddy”
Getting up to run or exercise at 6am is never easy. You can always find an excuse to do anything but get up and lace up. What can you do? Phone a friend … “There’s nothing like accountability to make you follow through on a commitment;’ says Vivian Eisenstadt, physical therapist and CEO of Vivie Therapy. “When you exercise solely for yourself, you can find any excuse not to do it. When you have to answer to someone else who is counting on you, it’s a whole other ballgame.”
You are what you think
We’ve all heard the saying “you are what you eat,” but do you know that “you are what you think?” Start each day with a positive affirmation like “I’ve got this.” “Today is going to be a great day” or “I won’t sweat the small stuff.” Repeating these statements flood your brain with positive self-talk and can be extremely empowering. If you don’t think they are true, that’s okay … over time these positive affirmations can reshape your beliefs. But until then, “fake it until you make it.”
Homemade sunscreen
Ingredients:
- 1.5 oz. (3 Tbsp.) Beeswax pellets
- 4 oz. (1/2 cup) Shea Butter
- 3.5 oz. (1/2 cup) Coconut oil
- 2 oz. (4 Tbsp.) Zinc oxide (NON-NANO)
- Optional: Up to 30 drops essential oil ( carrot seed oil has a high SPF.)
Process:
Using a double-boiler, add the beeswax and shea butter. After they melt, add in the coconut oil. Remove bowl from double -boiler and add the zinc oxide. Be careful not to inhale the zinc oxide since it can be harmful if inhaled. Add your essential oil (optional) and blend until nice and smooth. Transfer sunscreen to jar or even an old deodorant tube. It will harden as it cools. Being that we are in Florida, you may want to use a little more beeswax and a little less coconut oil to make a firmer sunscreen.
It’s quite puzzling
Doing a puzzle helps keep your mind sharp and is a great way to keep your brain and hands occupied. Many people find it very relaxing as well. Spend 10-15 minutes a day working on a puzzle and you can even stave off Alzheimer’s Disease.
So long, sugar
Most people have a love/hate relationship with sugar. We love the way it makes things taste, but we hate what it can do to our bodies. The average person consumes up to 150 pounds of sugar a year… that’s 12.5 pounds per month! When you realize that one soda contains about 10 teaspoons of sugar, you can see how that is possible. By decreasing sugar intake and finding healthy substitutes, you can decrease the risks associated with it.
