Author: Katie Martin

Categories
Nutrition x Advice

End The Cycle Of Emotional Eating With These 10 Expert Tips

Perhaps you had a bad day at work. Or a fight with your spouse. Maybe you can’t quite put your finger on what’s making you feel so lonely, upset, or just plain sad.
To help cope with the feelings, you make a big batch of creamy macaroni and cheese, the ultimate comfort food.
You’re hungry, so you have a bowl for dinner. Then another.
Before you know it, the entire batch of macaroni and cheese is almost gone. But instead of feeling satisfied, you feel stuffed and mad at yourself for overindulging—and you’re still upset about what was previously bothering you.
Sound familiar?
This cycle is called emotional eating, says Kimberly Hershenson, New York City–based clinical therapist specializing in eating disorders. “Emotional eating is when a person turns to food to make them feel better during periods of anxiety, stress, or depression.”
While emotional eating isn’t a healthy habit, it may not be considered an eating disorder.
“Emotional eating does not necessarily mean you consume large quantities of food. You may just use food as an attempt to control and cope with feelings,” Hershenson explains. “If your emotional eating tends to be consuming large quantities of food … in a short period of time at least once a week for three months, it may be binge eating disorder, which is an eating disorder.”

  • Recognize unhealthy eating habits

The first step toward a healthier relationship with food is understanding why emotional eating occurs in the first place.
But how do you know if you’re an emotional eater?
“Hunger is usually a physical feeling felt in the stomach, chest, and even throat,” says Molly Cutler, a registered dietitian and nutritionist based in Tel Aviv and Los Angeles. “With true hunger, you may find your stomach growling low and slow.”
On the other hand, says Hershenson, “some signs a client is an emotional eater include feeling hunger intensely and all of a sudden or frequently craving comfort foods rather than seeking to eat balanced meals.”
[pullquote align=”center”]If you notice that you’re turning to junk food or sugary snacks for comfort every time you experience a setback, you may be an emotional eater.[/pullquote]
Recognizing true hunger pangs can be difficult. Sticking to a regular eating schedule of small, healthy meals every two to three hours can help keep [linkbuilder id=”5106″ text=”hunger pangs”] and cravings at bay. When you do feel hungry, try to rate your hunger on a scale of 1 to 10. If you keep your hunger to a 1 or 2, you’ll be less likely to use food as a comfort tool. If you’re still experiencing hunger pangs or intense cravings after eating a meal, an underlying issue such as low blood sugar may be the culprit that’s leading to emotional eating.
“Most people at one point or another have used emotional eating in some form to cope or provide comfort,” explains Cutler. “But emotional eating is usually a symptom of someone who is struggling to process their emotional reactions to their inner and outer world. …Emotional eating is using food to comfort oneself in order to fill a lack or void of some kind elsewhere in the person’s life. The problem with using food to soothe when hunger isn’t the root issue is it often leads to a cycle of obsessing, overeating, and having feelings of guilt and shame.”
If you’ve occasionally binged on ice cream after a bad breakup but otherwise eat a regular, healthy diet, you’re probably in the clear. But if you notice that you’re turning to junk food or sugary snacks for comfort every time you experience negative emotions, you may be an emotional eater.

  • Take mindful action to stop emotional eating

If you struggle with emotional eating, Cutler says the first step toward a healthier lifestyle is to identify the underlying feelings you have the next time you get the urge to eat mindlessly.
Do you feel bored? Sad? Tired? Hungry? Overstimulated?
“Once you identify the feeling, you can find tailored ways to provide comfort that do not involve food,” says Cutler. “The most important message I try to get across to clients is that when and if there are slip-ups, it is important to view these not as failures but as a natural part of the healing a process.”
One way to help realize eating patterns is to keep a journal. Jot down not just the foods you eat each day, but also make notes about your moods and emotions each day. When you can look back over several days or weeks in a food journal, emotional eating patterns may be easier to recognize.
“Overcoming emotional eating involves teaching the individual healthier ways to have a relationship with food and develop better eating habits such as mindful eating, recognizing their triggers for engaging in emotional eating, and developing healthy coping skills,” says Hershenson.
Mindful eating is exactly what it sounds like: being aware of how your body feels when it is hungry and paying attention to your thoughts and emotions as you eat, as well as the foods that fuel your body.

  • Eat slowly and intentionally

No, this doesn’t mean intentionally eating the whole box of cookies when you’re feeling sad.
Instead, says Cutler, “Tak[ing] time to pause, look at your food, smell it, really taste it, chew it, and savor each bite is very different than eating without thinking and focusing on the action of eating.”
One way to practice intentional eating is to think of each meal as an experience. Set the table with your favorite dinnerware, light a candle, and make your dining space an inviting place.
Another way to eat with intentionality is to plan your meals each day. When you have a meal plan, you’ll be more likely to reach for the healthy meals you’ve already prepped, even when you’re feeling stressed or sad.

  • Chew to completion

Chewing each bite completely before swallowing also means it takes longer to finish a meal. This way, your stomach has time to catch up to your brain and signal that you’re really full. When you scarf down a meal, you’re brain doesn’t get the signal that you’re full until you’ve eaten too much.
“Chewing your food thoroughly until it is liquid also helps prevent bloating, gas, and indigestion,” says Hershenson. “When food breaks down due to saliva stimulation, it moves through your intestines easier, allowing for better absorption of vitamins and nutrients.”
In addition, Cutler says you can eat more slowly by simply putting your utensil down after each bite. “Putting your fork down in between bites is a brilliant way to build up mindfulness around eating, as you simply can’t inhale your food this way.”

  • Unplug from technology

“Staring mindlessly at the TV or your phone often leads to us not paying attention to what we eat or how much we eat,” says Hershenson. “We may eat too quickly without even tasting our food. Shutting off allows us to focus on our food while giving your mind a break from technological stimulation.”
Sometimes you can’t control your interaction with technology during a mealtime. For example, if you’re like 62 percent of Americans, you probably take a working lunch, eating at your desk every day.
When it is within your power, step away from technology during meals. Put your phone on its charger, shut down your laptop, and turn off the television. You’ll find that you’re more mindful about what you’re eating when distractions are kept to a minimum.

  • Use your senses

“I find the best ways to incorporate mindful eating is to look at your food before you eat it, noticing the different colors and textures,” says Cutler.
One of the best ways to do this is to create a rainbow on your plate. This means choosing colorful veggies, like green beans, squash, and tomatoes, along with nutritious whole grains and healthy fats, like nut butters.
Noticing food’s color and texture “allows you to fully embrace eating with all of your senses, leading to slower eating, easier digestion, and attention to fullness,” Hershenson explains.
How does each bite taste and feel as you eat? You may realize things about your meal that you never noticed before, like the satisfying crunch of a sugar snap pea or the way a perfectly ripe avocado melts in your mouth.  

  • Eat with gratitude

You’re probably very grateful to have plenty of food available any time you want it. But mindfully practicing gratitude goes a little deeper.
[pullquote align=”center”]”Acknowledge all that was involved in getting the meal to you from the farmers that may have planted the seeds for your vegetables to the animals that produced your milk.”
—Kimberly Hershenson[/pullquote]
“Give yourself credit for the time and effort it took [to] creat[e] the meal in front of you,” says Hershenson. “Acknowledge all that was involved in getting the meal to you from the farmers that may have planted the seeds for your vegetables to the animals that produced your milk.”
When you take time to fully appreciate all that was involved to get a meal on your plate, you’ll be more likely to savor the food and eat more slowly instead of overeating.
What’s more, practicing gratitude daily has been linked to other health benefits, like reduced stress and an overall improved sense of well-being.

  • Practice self-care

“Self-care is crucial,” says Hershenson. “When uncomfortable feelings come up, it’s important to recognize them and take steps to take care of yourself in a healthy way.”
When you recognize a feeling that causes emotional eating, put your self-care plan into action. If stress triggers emotional eating, schedule something relaxing, like a massage. Or simply run a hot bath and take a 15-minute soak.
If loneliness triggers your emotional eating, try to meet up with a buddy who understands what you’re going through. If you’re new in town, try these tips to meet new friends.

  • Stop negative self-talk

Negative self-talk may be one reason you turn to food for emotional comfort, and it can turn into a negative cycle when you then beat yourself up for overeating, renewing those feelings that made you turn to food in the first place. “Don’t berate and punish yourself when you emotionally eat,” says Cutler.
Easier said than done, right?
Instead, Cutler says if you start to use food for comfort, stop and try to find out what your body really needs. Often our moods and subsequent emotional eating can be solved when we get the key nutrients our bodies needs.

If you notice that your cravings are repetitive, maybe you are lacking specific foods in your day. For example, if you eat nonfat dairy only and then find yourself consistently craving and piling in a pint of ice cream, it may be your body telling you full fat dairy is what you really need. Or if you notice you crave fried foods, it may be a sign you aren’t getting enough healthy fats in your diet, so load up on avocado, olive oil, coconut oil, nut butters, and nuts and seeds to keep cravings at bay.

  • Get help to stop emotional eating

Don’t be afraid to reach out for help if you find yourself emotionally eating.
Overeaters Anonymous is free and offers support meetings in every state. If going to meetings isn’t your thing, you can also take advantage of their virtual services, which include telephone and online meetings and email support groups.
While emotional eating isn’t always considered an eating disorder, Cutler says that the National Eating Disorders Association also has helpful resources for those who struggle with emotional eating. Call their helpline to speak with a professional, or use their private online screening tool to determine if you may need professional help.
[pullquote align=”center”]“Healing doesn’t mean perfection, but a process. The more you realize this, the less you will punish yourself and your love for yourself will keep growing.”
—Molly Cutler[/pullquote]
Breaking the cycle of emotional eating is really hard, but you can do it, and you shouldn’t beat yourself up when you experience setbacks.
“Build compassion toward yourself,” Cutler encourages.

You don’t lack discipline and you are not shameful [when you experience a setback]. You are simply learning how to identify your body’s signal and you are progressing every day. There will be highs when you’re feeling awesome and fulfilled, and there will be lows where you turn to food as comfort. The key is to focus on healing. Healing doesn’t mean perfection, but a process. The more you realize this, the less you will punish yourself and your love for yourself will keep growing.

Categories
Fitness Advice x Motivation Sweat

Too Busy To Work Out? These 2018 Fitness Trends Are Perfect For Busy Moms

Pre-baby, I ran three to five miles daily. I had time for lengthy yoga sessions and group fitness classes.
Post-baby fitness?
(Insert maniacal Disney-villain laugh.)
I’m lucky if I have time to take the dog on a walk around the block, much less squeeze in a fitness routine.
But even a few minutes of exercise a day can be enough to boost your mood and increase your level of happiness and well-being, and happy mamas are better equipped to raise happy, healthy kiddos—making exercise time a worthy investment on so many levels.
Maybe you didn’t make December goals or stick with your New Year’s resolution, but it’s not too late to make health and wellness a priority in 2018—even if you’re a busy mom.
Not sure where to start? Try one of these 2018 fitness trends inspired by moms, for moms.

1. Tone your postpartum tummy.

Diastasis recti is a condition in which the abdominal muscles separate during the stress of labor and delivery. Even as you drop your pregnancy weight, diastasis recti can cause a tummy pooch until your muscles come back together. One of the biggest fitness trends of 2018 is the Dia Method, a postpartum fitness program designed by trainer Leah Keller to repair diastasis recti.
The Dia Method only takes ten minutes a day to complete, meaning it’s an ideal exercise program for busy moms. You can pair it with one of Keller’s other fitness programs (all designed for pregnant and postpartum women) to up your fitness game in 2018.

2. This isn’t your mama’s Jane Fonda video.

I love group classes, but until my baby is older, I don’t want to take him to the complimentary childcare service at the gym.
Who am I kidding?
I let my gym membership lapse months ago.
I still want to get my sweat on though, and have tried dusting off some of my old workout DVDs for fitness motivation.
Unfortunately, it’s hard to ride the crest of enthusiasm when you’ve basically memorized the routine moves.
Enter one of my favorite 2018 fitness trends: streaming fitness classes.
Sites like the Daily Burn offer thousands of fitness classes online so you can choose a different daily workout at a time that’s convenient to you.
If you need the motivation a live instructor provides, Fortë, a hot new live-streaming fitness app, is for you. For a monthly subscription fee, Fortë streams a variety of live options from barre to kettlebell classes, all at your fingertips whenever you have a free moment.

3. Get the whole family involved.

My charming child wakes up at 4:45 a.m. no matter what time he goes to sleep and has an irregular nap schedule, so sometimes penciling in solo workout time is just not an option.
Luckily, one of the biggest wellness trends of 2018 is a focus on family fitness.
Take your kids to a mommy and me yoga class, or use your baby in place of weights (safely) during a strength training session at home.
If you like interacting with other moms, consider joining a fitness group just for parents. If you’re looking for a free or low-cost option, join a Meetup fitness group. Like meeting other moms? Try a fitness program like Stroller Strides that encourages moms to bring baby along for workouts.

4. Just breathe.

Working out is just one aspect of overall fitness and well-being. While HIIT workouts have been popular for the past few years, one of the biggest fitness trends in 2018 is all about taking a step back and incorporating mindful practices like yoga into your workout routine.
Start by doing a few sun salutations first thing in the morning. According to one study, just 20 minutes of yoga a day is enough to markedly improve cognitive function (which is extremely important for sleep-deprived moms).
Before bedtime, turn off all your devices (except the baby monitor, of course), and do a few light stretches, like cat–cow pose, child’s pose, and savasana. During this time, focus on your breathing as you wind down from the day.
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Categories
Conscious Beauty Lifestyle

Going Gray The Right Way: Everything You Need To Know About Gray Hair

One day you will find yourself going about your morning routine, when all of a sudden you’ll do a double take in the mirror after applying your mascara.
That second look isn’t because you look amazing (although you do!). No, you spotted a glint of silver in your blowout.
Your first gray hair.
First, don’t panic. Although silver-haired men seem to get all the glory (Anderson Cooper is still bae, y’all), there are plenty of women who make going gray look ultra chic. I mean, have you seen Helen Mirren lately? She’s a total silver foxy lady!

Going gray? You can thank your parents.

HealthyWay
You may have inherited your mom’s gorgeous smile or your dad’s eye color, and you can also thank your parents for your salt and pepper locks. Gray hair can strike at any age, and when it appears is largely thanks to genetics.  
“Going gray is a genetically programmed process that appears to have multiple genes that are interacting to start the process,” says Amy McMichael, MD, chair of dermatology at Wake Forest Baptist Hospital in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.  
According to McMichael, the interferon regulatory factor 4 gene (IRF4) plays a key role in when you’ll develop gray hair. IRF4 genes code proteins that affect the immune system and help protect the body against viruses. In addition, IRF4 genes regulate melanin production, which determines skin and hair color and is the pigment made by cells called melanocytes.
“There are two types of melanin,” says Fayne Frey, MD, board-certified dermatologist and founder of FryFace, an educational dermatology site. These two types of melanin are “eumelanin, which imposes a brown to black color, and pheomelanin, which is a reddish yellow color. Both types are made in melanocytes. Which type and how much of each is genetically determined with a wide variation.”
HealthyWay
Before we’re born, our hair is actually white, because it’s completely free of melanin. Over time though, the melanin begins to color our hair, resulting in each person’s unique hair color. Just as melanin colors our hair when we’re young, we lose melanin pigment as we age, which can result in silver strands.
The BCL gene family, which keeps certain cells from dying by coding a protective outer membrane around the cell, also plays an important role in why we get gray hair. BCL genes may protect melanocytes. When the body doesn’t have a sufficient number of melanocytes, hair may turn gray faster. In one study, BCL-deficient mice experienced graying faster than mice who were not BCL deficient.
A more recent study from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center claims to have pinpointed a protein called KROX20 that some scientists believe is responsible for graying hair. KROX20, also known as early growth response protein 2 (EGR2) is a protein that aids in neural crest cell development (these are the cells that end up forming hair and skin, smooth cartilage, and bone, among other things).
KROX20 produces another protein, called stem cell factor (SCF), which is the protein needed for hair color to form. When KROX20 no longer produces SCF proteins, pigment is no longer produced, which results in gray hair.
So does this mean we can reverse gray hair?
Not quite.
The study was performed on mice and has yet to be examined in human subjects. Other scientists and doctors believe it may be a bit too early to determine if SCF proteins may be the secret to keeping colorful locks longer.
HealthyWay

But I’m too young for gray hair!

Most men start seeing their first gray hairs sprout at around age 30, whereas women tend to see them a few years later, at 35.
Any gray hair that occurs before this age is considered prematurely gray hair.
[pullquote align=”center”]“Stress has been implicated in every possible way with hair loss and the process of graying,”
—Amy McMichael[/pullquote]
Aside from genetics, several other factors can also play a role in how early you’ll go gray. Some—like hormonal imbalance, age, and certain environmental factors—are beyond your control. Others, like stress and smoking, may be reduced by lifestyle changes.
Frey says, “There are multiple studies that consistently show smoking linked to premature graying. The exact mechanism of how smoking affects hair pigment is unknown, but an increase in free radical (unstable atoms that can wreak havoc in the body) formation within the hair follicle is one theory.”
As we age, free radical production increases, which also causes an increase in oxidative stress, which is stress that actually changes cellular makeup. As free radicals in the body increase, so does the damage to melanocytes, thereby causing prematurely gray hair.
“Stress has [also] been implicated in every possible way with hair loss and the process of graying,” says McMichael.
HealthyWay
 
According to McMichael, similar to the oxidative stress caused by smoking, long-term physiologic stress may affect the graying process. These long-term stressors include chronic illness and severe caloric restriction. Scientists theorize that long-term stressors cause oxidative stress, thereby causing melanocytes to die prematurely. However, scientists are still working to prove this theory. So one stressful day at the office is probably not the cause for your gray hair, but a whole year in a seriously stressful work environment might be.
Unfortunately, McMichael says there are no proven methods of reducing or reversing gray hair. “While there are labs that are working on this process, it is not clear that any group really has this figured out.”
If a product promises to slow or reduce gray hair growth, it’s probably too good to be true. Instead, focusing on lifestyle changes is the best way to slow the growth of gray hair.
Limiting stress and stopping smoking has many added benefits besides delaying the graying process. Manage stress by exercising daily or practicing mindful meditation. (And if you’re trying to quit smoking, you don’t have to do it alone. Visit smokefree.gov for information, resources, and support to quit smoking.)

HealthyWay

Help! My gray hair isn’t on my head.

So you noticed a few gray hairs…everywhere on your body except your head.
According to Frey, graying patterns vary from person to person. “Based on my personal experience, I’d say hair on the temporal scalp (above the ears) seems to gray first on many individuals.”
McMichael says that anecdotally, “Some feel that the facial hair grays before the hair on the scalp, but this is not a hard and fast rule.”
What dermatologists do know is that your hair down there will go gray eventually.
Even though you might be totally freaked out, it’s usually totally normal for your body hair to start graying around the same time as the hair on your head.
Sometimes though, gray or white strands in your nether regions do signal a health problem.
If you notice silvery white strands while you’re landscaping downstairs, it could be the result of a severe vitamin B12 deficiency. A vitamin B12 deficiency can cause anemia, which interferes with red blood cell production, depleting the source of oxygen that most cells need to thrive. Fortunately, with treatment, hair will usually return to its normal color if a B12 deficiency is the culprit.
White piedra, a fungal infection, is another reason your hair may appear gray or white prematurely. White piedra is caused by a yeast-like fungus. While it can occur anywhere on the body, it is more likely to be found in the groin than anywhere else. The fungus attaches to individual hair follicles, giving the hair a white or gray appearance. The good news is that this asymptomatic fungal infection is easy to treat by trimming the affected hair (a great time to do some grooming!) and over-the-counter fungal creams.
HealthyWay

If you want to go gray gracefully…

I only have one gray hair (that I can see). It’s right at the front of my hairline, and it insists on sticking straight up, Alfalfa-style. When I frantically called my stylist, Emilee Phillips, who is the owner of the organic Green Goddess Hair Salon, she told me very sternly not to pluck it no matter how much I wanted to do so.
“The old wives’ tale that plucking a gray hair will cause two more to sprout in its place isn’t true, but you still shouldn’t pluck a gray hair,” says Phillips. “Just like tweezing your eyebrows, over time, repeated plucking will damage the hair follicle so much that it won’t grow back at all.”
So how do stylists recommend caring for gray hair?
Jamie Church Ball, a veteran stylist at Shear Shakti Salon in Boone, North Carolina, says “Styling products depend on what the client is looking for just the same as natural hair, but there are shampoos formulated for gray hair.”
HealthyWay
Ball recommends Oribe products, which has two products that work for gray hair. Oribe Silverati shampoo and conditioner are specially formulated for gray and white hair. This illuminating shampoo brightens hair and removes yellow tones that makes silver strands shine.
Ball also recommends Oribe’s Bright Blonde shampoo, which works for both blonde and silver hair. Many people with lighter skin tones are afraid that gray hair will wash out their complexion, but they needn’t worry. This revitalizing violet shampoo corrects brassiness and yellow tones while brightening natural highlights for hair that is healthier, shinier, and lit from within.
Another way to boost lighter complexions while sporting gray tresses is to wear bold colored clothing. Think rich jewel tones, like Pantone’s 2018 color of the year, Ultra Violet. 
HealthyWay
While you don’t have to wear makeup to be beautiful, Hope Alfaro, a makeup artist in Durham, North Carolina, shared some of her favorite makeup tips to balance your complexion with gray hair.
“Embrace cool tones,” says Alfaro. “As you embrace your natural gray hair, try new shades like mauves or taupes that compliment the coolness of gray tones. Lipstick and blush with cooler undertones will start suiting you better as well.”
In addition, Alfaro says if you do only have time for one thing in the morning, make sure you don’t neglect your eyebrows.
“If you are in the later stages of graying, your eyebrows and eyelashes may have also turned gray. Even two minutes with a pencil defining your eyebrow shape can make a world of difference to your face.” A few products we love are Glossier’s Boy Brow, Anastasia’s Beverly Hills Brow Wiz Eyebrow Pencil, and Maybelline’s Total Temptation Eyebrow Definer Pencil.
HealthyWay

If you’re not feeling the gray…

Gray hair is totally having a style moment right now. Celebs from Kim Kardashian to Zosia Mamet have paid big bucks to have their hair dyed gray on purpose. If you just can’t jump on the gray-hair trend, you can color your hair to hide the gray. Before you reach for that box of Clairol, there are some things you need to know about dyeing gray hair.
“I can tell you that gray hair is very coarse, which makes it resistant to color,” says Ball. “So your stylist has to formulate the color for gray hair and let it process about 10 minutes longer than normal.”
In addition, Ball says, because gray hair is resistant to color, stylists end up using a double pigmented color, which can end up being pricier than your standard dye job. After the color is applied, your stylist will probably use a developer, which helps open up the hair cuticle so the color can totally penetrate your hair.
Justin Barnett, owner of Justin Salon and Spa in Vero Beach, Florida, says, “regular hair grows up to a half an inch a month so every 4 to 6 weeks, you should plan to touch up your color.”
HealthyWay
One perk of dyeing your gray hair is that color-treated hair is often softer, which makes it easier to style. The downside? Coloring your hair can add up to a big monthly expense.
Whether you choose to color your gray hair or not is totally up to you, but the same styling tips apply to both.
Exposing hair to prolonged high heat from styling tools can seriously damage hair, so always use a heat protectant, like amika’s The Wizard Multi-Benefit Primer, before styling your hair.
[pullquote align=”center”]“A lady’s grays are life’s trophies. Celebrate your age, wisdom, and accomplishments through your natural beauty.”
—Justin Barnett[/pullquote]
Additionally, because gray hair is already coarse, try to avoid washing your hair daily, which can strip your hair of natural oils, leaving hair brittle and dry. Instead, aim for washing your hair every two to three days, and use a dry shampoo in between washings.
“In one way I feel that I shouldn’t encourage women to embrace their gray hair,” Barnett jokes. “Women embrac[ing] their gray hair doesn’t pay my salon bills! However, I do believe that a lady’s grays are life’s trophies. Celebrate your age, wisdom, and accomplishments through your natural beauty.”
So will you embrace your gray strands as they are or will you cover them up? Whatever you decide is totally fine either way.
Because you know what’s really sexy? A woman who’s in love with her own look, even if that includes a gray strand or two.

Categories
Healthy Relationships Wellbeing

Put Down Your Phone And Meet New People The Old-Fashioned Way

Thanks to my spouse’s job, we move a lot. Every two years, I have to find a new favorite pizza place, a new hair stylist who understands what exactly what I mean when I say I want a non-mom mom bob, and—worst of all—I have to make new friends.
If you thought making friends in middle school was hard, you have not experienced trying to form a squad as a thirty-something mom.
Initially, I tried downloading apps to meet new people. I communicated with possible pals through the app and met up at events hosted by group moderators.  In a weird way though, I felt that even though I’d joined the app to get to know people, it actually prevented me from forming close bonds with the people I met, because we only communicated comfortably through the app.
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I wanted a real friendship, so I decided to ditch downloading apps in favor of meeting people organically. You know—in person.
It’s crazy, right? But believe it or not, we used to interact that way all the time.
It can be a bit awkward at first, but meeting new people without an app is actually a lot of fun and has really helped me develop my social skills.
Ready to meet new people? Here’s a quick refresher on the best ways to make friends without downloading an app.

Single and Ready to Mingle

I’m married now, but before my hubs came to his senses and locked this bod down, I tried basically every dating app known to man, because I knew so many people who found the one online.
Me?
Not so much.
After a particularly bad OkCupid date at Pizza Hut ( although my date did score points when he splurged on the stuffed crust), I decided that I’d delete all my dating apps and try meeting guys the old-fashioned way.
It was slow going at first, because with a dating app, someone’s almost always available to meet up. I unsuccessfully tried to meet guys at the grocery store, the post office, even the gym (which I was sure would be a gold mine).
But just as I was about to despair, I found out that there is a place where single men and women flock like the salmon of Capistrano, and it ain’t Aspen.
It’s your local park.
That’s right, ladies. I started running (for exercise, I swear!) at a local park with a running path.
Working out at the park is the perfect way for to spark a conversation with a potential date.
Not only are your endorphins super high after crushing a workout, giving you a big confidence boost, but you look fly as heck in your matching workout ensemble.
Of course, you should still be safe. Take a friend along to pull double duty as a workout buddy and wingwoman and never go to the park at nighttime.

Moms need playdates too.

I love my baby. I really do. He’s adorable. But he’s not exactly a great conversationalist.
I knew I needed to make some friends when I realized recently that I was communicating almost exclusively in third person, even when I wasn’t talking to the baby.
I tried chatting up moms at Target, without success. Even though I had my own kid with me, I think women thought I was creeping around trying to steal their identity or their babies like a Lifetime movie villain.
I ditched Target and, after a little online research, decided to join Fit4Mom’s Stroller Strides instead. Stroller Strides is a group fitness program geared toward moms.
The best part? Bringing baby is encouraged!
You do have to pay for Stroller Strides classes, but the cost is no more than your average gym membership. It’s really nice to meet other moms who also show up with baby food on their workout tops sporting nursing bras instead of sports bras.
Plus, there is literally no pressure to be able to do a certain workout or look a certain way in Stroller Strides. I can just focus on getting in shape and making new friends who are on a similar journey.

Did we just become best friends?

I did not appreciate how easy it was to make friends in college until I entered the real world. Meeting new people as an adult woman combines all the awkwardness of a first date with the promise that you’re not getting lucky later.
Luckily, women are nice. All you need to meet your new bff is an open mind and a willingness to look a little silly (and desperate in a non-threatening way). For example, I met one of my very best friends in the elevator of my apartment building when she complimented my North Carolina sweater.
“You’re from North Carolina?”
“Me too!”
I invited her up to watch the Bachelor, and the rest, as they say, is history.
If the thought of constantly putting yourself out there makes you cringe, think about what interests you. Do you love to read? Consider joining a book club (your local library or independent bookseller can recommend book clubs in your area). Want to blow off some steam at the end of a trying work week? Join a roller derby team!
By joining a group whose members’ interests align with yours, you’ve already got something in common with possible pals, making it easier to form a lasting bond.

Out there and (not) loving it?

I get it. It can be exhausting trying to meet new people. Apps are popular because they’re convenient and you can make new friends or schedule a date online from the comfort of your couch while sporting your jammies.
If you’re not quite ready to edge out of your comfort zone, download these fun apps to meet new people:

To Find A Date: Coffee Meets Bagel

One of the free dating apps I actually really liked using before getting married was Coffee Meets Bagel, which values quality over quantity of matches, meaning it’s basically the opposite of Tinder. The app uses your mutual friends on Facebook and other info to send one quality match per day to your inbox.

To Find Other Moms: Peanut

Meet other new moms just like you on the free Peanut app. The app works to find potential mom friends within a certain radius of your location. This app is pretty new, so be aware that some kinks are still being worked out.

To Find a Galentine: Patook

Swipe right…for the platonic friend of your dreams! Patook is a new free app designed to help you meet people who share your interests, and according to the developers, no flirting is allowed.

Categories
Gym x Studio Sweat

5 Yoga Poses For Amazing Core Strength

You know core strength is important. After all, it’s why you bought (or at least considered!) that exercise ball to replace your desk chair at work.
But do you know why core strength is so important to overall health?
According Harvard Health, a strong core has far-reaching benefits. A strong core gives your whole body strength to do even the most minor daily tasks, from typing at your desk to carrying your 20-pound toddler.
Whether you’re a master yogi or more like Yogi Bear when it comes to hitting the mat, you can still use key yoga poses to strengthen your core.
Michal Duffy, a yoga teacher and practitioner in Boulder, Colorado, shares her favorite series of yoga poses for core strength. Each pose is suitable for beginners, but can be incorporated into any yoga routine, no matter your experience level.
[sol title=”Mountain Pose” subheader=”Beginning Grounded”]
“A great place to start any yoga practice is in the fundamental mountain pose,” Duffy says. “What appears to be a simple standing pose actually allows you to collect yourself, prepare your body and breath for movement, and begin to integrate mind and body.”
Mountain pose is the perfect warm-up for core strengthening exercises as you’ll slowly engage the muscles in your core and perform a body scan that will bring awareness to your practice.
To do mountain pose, Duffy says:

  • Start standing with your feet hip-width apart.
  • Lift and spread your toes and lightly rest them back down one at a time onto the ground.
  • Feel the little pockets of air underneath the wide expanse of the bottom of your feet—here you are establishing your foundation and stability.
  • As you inhale, ensure you’re in a strong stance with your knees over your feet and your hips over your knees, keeping your leg muscles nice and tight.
  • Drop the tailbone slightly, bringing a gentle tuck to the pelvis—this opens the low back and begins to active your core.
  • Expand your breath wide through your ribs and upper lungs.
  • Gently lift the back of the skull, subtly tucking your chin toward your chest to really lengthen the spine, reaching the crown of your head toward the sky.

  • Bring your shoulder blades toward one another and slide them down your back, allowing the chest to open.
  • Keep your arms relaxed by your sides with palms gently open, facing forward.
  • Concentrate on your breath filling your body, starting at your feet and moving upward.
  • Each inhale expands big and broad, each exhale empties from the top of your core to the bottom as the navel draws in toward the spine.
  • Ground in mountain pose for several breaths, allowing the mind to clear as you focus on the breath and the physical sensation in your body.

[sol title=”Fierce Pose (aka Chair Pose)” subheader=”Command core strength like a queen.”]
This pose is aptly named because it looks like you’re sitting in an invisible chair or throne, like a fierce queen, meaning it’s totally ok to channel your inner Beyoncé during this pose.
To move into fierce pose from mountain pose:

  • Open your eyes and inhale your hands wide and high above your head.
  • As you exhale, bend at the knees and send your seat back as if you were going to sit in a chair behind you.
  • Keep your legs hip-width apart with the knees over the ankles (don’t let them extend forward over the toes or knock in together—you should be able to see your toes as you sink back).
  • Lift your chest and draw your shoulders back, spreading your collar bones wide.
  • You can keep your arms extended overhead, shoulder width apart, with the biceps pulling back in line with the ears, or, if extending your arms isn’t working for you, bring the palms to your heart center and press them into one another.

A post shared by Lucía Lapuente (@yogalaia) on

  • Keep your shoulders down and away from your ears regardless of your arm variation.
  • Keep your spine long by imagining your tailbone extending out diagonally behind you to meet the ground and your crown reaching up above and beyond you.
  • Keep most of the weight in your heels and your hips; allow the toes to rest lightly on the earth without gripping.
  • Take long slow breaths, again expanding wide through the ribcage and chest on each inhale.
  • On each exhale, draw the navel toward the spine to empty completely.

Don’t be afraid to allow the heat to rise through your body, Duffy says. “Cultivate this warmth with lips closed or explore lion’s breath by inhaling deeply and exhaling with a wide open mouth and wide eyes, stick out your tongue, and make an audible exhale—breathe fire!”
End fierce pose after holding it for several breaths. Return to mountain pose for a moment to feel your heart rate and control your breath before moving into the next pose.
[sol title=”Warrior III” subheader=”Time to Take Flight”]
“Also called airplane pose, there are various ways to come into warrior III from mountain pose,” says Duffy.
To flow into warrior III from mountain pose:

  • For beginners, take a deep inhale, and on your exhale fold forward until your hands reach the ground, blocks, or another stable surface positioned strategically in front of you.
  • Inhale and reach the spine long, keeping your back flat and hips bent at a 90° angle.
  • Ground down into the left foot and lift the right leg straight back behind you.
  • Work to bring the right heel as high as the back of the hip to create a long line from the heel forward through the torso to the top of the head—all of which are parallel to the ground.

A post shared by seonia (@seonia) on

  • Think about lifting the inner thigh up toward the sky.
  • The back of the hips should stay level with the back of the shoulders as much as possible, as if you are creating a table with your back.
  • Find a steady focal point with your eyes and slowly try lifting your hands off the ground.
  • As you find stability, you can explore arm variations: palms pressed together at heart center, arms along each side of the torso with open palms facing down beside the hips, or arms extended straight forward beyond the top of the skull.
  • Stay with your breath and maintain your steady focal point to bring yourself into balance.

“The lift of the torso and challenging balance of this pose activate the core and build strength,” Duffy says.
As you finish one side, inhale back up to mountain, then repeat on the other side.
[sol title=”Plank” subheader=”Core Strength, Old School”]
Plank is the OG core-strengthening move, and plank variations can look deceptively easy. But don’t be fooled—these yoga poses are a serious core workout.
To do a traditional plank:

  • Begin with your hands grounded under your shoulders, fingers and palms spread wide to create a good base.
  • Your feet are extended behind you with the toes curled under and your body is lifted off the ground so only your toes and hands are touching down.
  • Press into your fingertips and try to create a pocket of space under the palms of the hands by subtly lifting your palms off the mat. This activates the lift through the arms and engages all your muscles.


  • Forearms spiral slightly inward and upper arms spiral slightly outward to open the chest and integrate the shoulders. To achieve this, bring the inner edges of your shoulder blades toward one another and maintain a broad chest.
  • Avoid a sway in your back by preventing your hips from sagging. Likewise, don’t allow the hips to point upward. Instead, find a position that creates a long line from the tailbone to the crown of your head.
  • Return to your breath—long, full, and steady.

“Dolphin plank is another challenging variation that is especially good for those with wrist issues,” says Duffy. “In this variation the elbows are bent and the forearms are pressed into earth, the hands fold together. The body is closer to the earth, but keep that long line of the body without allowing the hips to dip down or pop up.”
[sol title=”Boat Pose” subheader=”Your breath is your tide.”]

  • For Duffy’s final core strengthening pose, come to sitting with your legs extended in front of you.
  • Begin to lean back slightly and lift your legs up—ankles together—to create a wide V shape with your torso and legs.
  • Arms extend forward, parallel to earth on the outside of the legs.
  • Draw your shoulders back, spreading your collar bones wide.
  • Maintain a long spine and draw the back of the skull in line with the back of the spine.
  • Spread your toes and breathe deeply.

A post shared by Moon Ji eun (@moonjiyogadiary) on

  • Experiment with different distances between the torso and legs and your legs and the floor, leaning further back into a wider angle or drawing up in a tighter V shape.
  • Notice the shift in balance and muscle engagement.
  • Find your sweet spot and hold there for several breaths.
  • Focus on the contraction of the abdomen as you exhale and the expansion of the chest as you inhale.

To end, stretch out on the ground with your legs hip-width apart and your feet open. Allow your arms to rest by your sides with your palms facing upward in savasana or corpse pose. Close your eyes and relax your breathing to a slow, steady pace.
As you finish this core strengthening sequence Duffy says you should, “Lay quietly for several minutes to rest and integrate your experience. This allows the body to absorb the good work you’ve done. As you’re ready, roll to one side and rest in fetal pose for a few breaths.”
When you rise up from your mat, you’ll be ready to implement your core strength throughout your day!
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Categories
Mindful Parenting Motherhood

Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About Cloth Diapers

When I was pregnant, I never dreamed I’d spend as much time as I do thinking about my baby’s diapers and bathroom habits.
But I do. And guess what? I LOVE IT. Because you know what? Even my baby’s stinky poops are adorable.
That said, I decided pretty early in my pregnancy that I wanted to cloth diaper. I’d heard it was better for the environment than using disposable diapers, and when you consider that the average baby goes through about 10 diapers a day, I figured reusable cloth diapers would be more economical in the long run.
I did my homework, and while there are definitely pros and cons to both disposable and cloth diapers, I ultimately decided I wanted to cover my baby’s precious tushy in cloth.
If you’re on the fence about cloth diapering, I’ve got you covered (Get it? Because diapers cover your baby’s sweet little bum).
Read on to learn more than you ever wanted to know about cloth diapering…

Save some sweet moolah.

Disposable diapers are really handy, but can add up to a a big expense. It’s estimated that the average family spends about $500 on diapers each year. Depending on when your kid is potty-trained, that adds up to about $1,500 in diapers alone.
By comparison, I spent about $400 for my whole cloth diaper stash, which I can use through potty training, and for any additional kids (if we survive the first one).

It ain’t easy being green.

One of the reasons I originally wanted to use cloth diapers was to be more environmentally friendly. Disposable diapers aren’t completely biodegradable, and it’s estimated that up to 20 billion diapers go to landfills each year.
No wonder landfills are so stinky.
However, cloth diapers aren’t without their environmental downsides.
Cloth diapers have to be washed almost daily on hot wash cycles, which requires a lot of non-renewable energy. Additionally, cloth diapers are often made of cotton fibers. Unless it’s organic, cotton production is pesticide-heavy, which isn’t great for the environment either.

So what’s a new mom to do?

I work from home, so I figured I’d be able to keep up with all the laundry, I liked that we’d save money by cloth diapering, and let’s face it: Cloth diaper prints are just so stinking cute.
So, I determined to cloth diaper.
I immediately realized that I misjudged how much time I’d have to keep up with the mountain of diapers that had to be washed daily.
Keeping a baby alive all day, every day is hard work, y’all.
Also, cloth diapers are a huge pain to use when you have to leave home. If you have to change a cloth diaper on the go, you also have to carry a gross diaper around with you all day long.
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Size can be an issue, too. Most cloth diapers fit babies starting at eight pounds. My baby weighed almost eight pounds at birth, so I figured he’d be able to wear his cloth diapers immediately.
Not so much. The cloth diapers we’d purchased were comically large on his scrawny little newborn butt, so we wound up using disposable diapers for about two months, until he fattened up a little bit.
Even though we’d practiced cloth diapering, my husband was intimidated by all the ins and outs of cloth diapers, and still uses disposables if he has to change a dirty diaper.
I’ll be totally honest: We’re really lazy. I estimate that we use cloth diapers about half the time—far short of our initial goal.
Whether or not you decide to cloth diaper is totally up to you, but  if you do decide to cloth diaper, here’s what you need to know before you start accumulating your stash.

Pockets, prefolds, and fitteds, oh my!

Cloth diapers usually contain an absorbent microfiber or cotton insert surrounded by a waterproof diaper cover. However, there are several different types of cloth diapers on the market, and choosing which type is right for your munchkin’s hiney can be totally overwhelming.
Before you buy, I’ve created a quick guide outlining the most popular types of cloth diapers.

All-in-Ones

All-in-one cloth diapers are exactly what they sound like. All-in-ones go on just like a disposable and the whole diaper can be popped into the washing machine, which makes it the most convenient type of cloth diaper. However, because they’re so convenient, all-in-ones are often the priciest type of cloth diaper, ringing up at around $25 a piece.
Want it all (in one)? I recommend BumGenious’s Freetime All-In-One Cloth Diaper.

Pocket Diapers

Pocket diapers are my personal favorites. A pocket diaper looks like an all-in-one, but has a pocket at one end that contains a removable microfiber or cotton insert. The insert is removed and washed when the diaper is soiled. While the insert adds an extra step in the washing process, I like pocket diapers because you can add extra stuffing if your baby is a heavy wetter. Pocket diapers are often less expensive, and can usually be purchased for five or six bucks per diaper.
Pleased by the pocket? I recommend Mama Koala’s pocket diapers.

Flats and Prefolds

A flat diaper is the kind of cloth diaper your grandma probably used to diaper your mom’s bum. They’re cheap, but you have to be an origami wizard to get them to stay on a wiggly baby butt. Prefolds are similar, but are made of fluffy cotton and can be folded into three sections, with the middle being a super absorbent layer. Both can be pinned on using a snappi (the modern equivalent of diaper pins). I like prefolds because if you’re lazy like me, you can simply fold the diaper longways and lay it in the cover. I also use prefolds for extra stuffing in my other cloth diapers at night so I don’t have to get up to change a midnight diaper.
Want to kick it old school? I recommend Green Mountain Cloth-eez Prefold Diapers for use with Wink Hybrid Diaper Covers.

Fitteds

Fitted diapers are also ultra convenient. They’re made of absorbent cotton and look like disposable diapers with snaps. All fitted diapers must be used with a waterproof diaper cover because the fitted cloth insert isn’t waterproof.  Fitteds, like all-in-ones, can be pricy, but are a lot less bulky than other cloth diaper options.
After the perfect fit? I recommend Mother Ease’s One Size Fitted Cloth Diaper.

Start your stash.

You’ll want to start preparing your diaper stash early. If you’re having a baby shower, cloth diapers and cloth diapering accessories are great items to register for because starting your stash is a totally upfront cost, unlike disposable diapers, which can be bought weekly.
A cloth diaper stash doesn’t have to be large, but at a minimum, you should have at least 10 to 12 cloth diapers on hand. With that many diapers, you’ll more than likely get through one whole day with your baby, but you’ll need to do laundry daily.
I recommend trying a couple different types of cloth diapers to see which ones you like best before purchasing too many of one type. For example, I found out I really love pocket diapers, even though I thought for sure I’d hate having to stuff them each time I used them.

You’re gonna need a bigger washing machine.

The nice thing about disposable diapers is that they’re well, disposable. You take it off, wrap it up, and toss it in the garbage. The biggest inconvenience with disposable diapers is emptying the diaper genie every so often.
Cloth diapers, on the other hand, have to be washed and dried before you can use them again. Depending on the size of your diaper stash (which is the number of diapers you have available for use), you may have to do laundry every day, especially if your baby is a super-pooper.
Before you use your cloth diapers, it’s important to run them through a hot rinse and spin cycle at least three times to ensure their absorbency. It isn’t necessary to dry them in between cycles, but you can if you’d like.
Once your baby starts filling his or her diapers, you’ll want to have a separate stink-proof bag to put the used diapers in until laundry day. You can spend a fortune on a fancy diaper bin, or you can visit the camping section of your local big-box store for a dry-bag with a cinch top, which will also do the trick and keep your nursery smelling fresh as a baby’s bottom.
Now, many cloth diapering blogs will tell you that newborn poopy diapers can simply be thrown in with the wash because newborn poop doesn’t stain cloth.
In my experience, this is a big, fat lie.
Newborn poop is a violent shade of neon orange, and it stains everything. EVERYTHING.
Before throwing a poopy diaper in the pail, saturate it with hot water to keep a stain from setting. If the diaper is still stained post wash, a couple hours in direct sunlight should remove the stain completely.
As for regular laundering, most cloth diaper instructions are ultra-intense, and recommend multiple wash cycles and special detergent, like Rockin’ Green each time.
Me?
Not so much.
I’m lazy. I only do one hot wash cycle with whatever detergent was on sale at the grocery store.
Occasionally, I will do a wash cycle with a couple drops of bleach to strip any residue that’s left behind, but that’s as far as I go.
Mama ain’t got time for multiple wash cycles.

Yikes. Cloth diapers sound like a lot of work.

I’ll be honest. Cloth diapers are a lot more work than I bargained for. But then, raising a kid is a lot more work than I thought it would be, too.
There are pros and cons to both disposable and cloth diapers.
I’ve been a mom for four months, so I’m basically a parenting expert, right? Take my advice: Go with whatever diaper you want! Before you stress spiral about whether or not the diapers your kid wears will affect his chances of getting into Harvard, ask yourself, Is my kid clean and dry in his diaper?
If yes, then you’ve chosen wisely.
That’s what I’d call a parenting win.
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Categories
No Gym Required Sweat

May The Course Be With You: Half-Marathon Training For Beginners

Even though I look like Phoebe Buffay when I run, I enjoy lacing up my sneaks and going for a run to clear my head.
Still, I wouldn’t call myself a runner.
I’ve only done a couple of 5ks, and I don’t stick to any kind of running schedule.
I got out of the habit when I found out I was pregnant. It’s totally okay to run or jog while pregnant, but I chose to go for brisk walks instead, because you can eat and walk at the same time. It’s a lot harder to eat frozen yogurt when you’re running.
But now that my little nugget is a few months old, I’m ready to start running again. To motivate myself, I signed up for a (gasp) half-marathon.
That’s right, I voluntarily signed up to run 13.1 miles, the distance of a half-marathon.
According to Scott Bush of Running USA, 60 percent of all half-marathon finishers in 2016 were women.
There’s a reason 1.14 million women chose to run in a half-marathon in that year alone. If you’ve run a couple of 5k or 10k races and are ready to try a longer distance, then trying to go for 7 to 10 more miles isn’t a huge stretch.
Still, to say I’m nervous about running a half-marathon is an understatement. I can hazard a guess that half-marathon training does not involve eating frozen yogurt during training sessions.
To help reach my goal of running a half-marathon in Spring 2018, I knew I’d need professional help, so I went straight to the pros for answers.
Ready to run your first half-marathon with me?
Here’s what you need to know about training for your first half-marathon.

Get the right gear first.

You can probably run a half-marathon in your 10-year-old sneakers that you’ve had since college…but why would you want to?
Having the right gear before you train can really set the tone for how your half-marathon training will go.
“Get fitted for running shoes,” says Robin Nemanick, a runner and coach with more than 80 marathons under her belt. “Have your gait analyzed at your local running store—a store geared specifically for runners and triathletes. These folks live and breathe the sport and will help you get fitted properly. Spend the $150 for the shoes; it’s well worth it.”
Vanessa Law, an amateur marathoner and co-founder of the Healthy Life Project from Jacksonville, Florida, agrees that the right gear can make or break a race: “Run-specific clothing is key for comfort and to keep from chafing.”
Law says her favorite brands of running clothes are lululemon and Athleta, but you can find the brand that’s best for you by trying a few different styles during your training.

Don’t dive in head-first.

Excited about your first day of half-marathon training?
That’s great!
Keep your enthusiasm, but don’t expect to go for a full 13-mile run on your first day of training.
It’s important to acclimate your body to long-distance running gradually, building your speed and distance over time to prevent injury.
“Preparation for any athletic event requires proper planning,” says Elin Kanchev, creator of the 4 Seasons Training Method and a personal trainer based in Washington, DC. “If the outcome is running a half-marathon, then let’s see where we are and how much time would it take us to get there. That might be 16 weeks, more or less, depending on [your fitness level. It] all really comes down to being honest with yourself about what you need to do in order to achieve your goal.”
That’s why sticking to a training schedule is so important.
Trainer Joe Pepe says, “For first-time racers, I recommend a two-days-on, one-day-off approach. Your legs are going to be new to running this much and you need to recover to make any type of progress in your training. On those off days you should focus on flexibility and mobility work.”
One great way to work on your mobility is through strength training on off days from running.
Kanchev says, “Strength training is highly important as it helps the body to create stronger musculature and bone systems that improve overall well being and … enhances performance, utilization of muscles, improves metabolism, and helps prevent injury, which is the most important aspect. When done properly [strength training] also helps with range of motion, mobility, and form.”
Two days on, one day off seems totally doable. But how many weeks will it take to work up to 13.1 miles?
Adam Burleson, a marathoner who also started the Run for Holland 5k to benefit Down syndrome research, tells HealthyWay, “I personally recommend finding a 10- or 12-week plan. You want to work on getting the mileage up per week without injury. You cannot train if you’re hurt, but you also have to understand that there will be some ‘growing pains’ in the process.”
If you’re looking for a half-marathon training plan to get you started, Hal Higdon has several free 12-week training guides online, based on your current running levels.
You can also download a free printable training log to keep yourself on track.

Don’t feel like you have to run the entire time.

But wait, isn’t the point of a half-marathon to run the whole thing?
No!
The whole point of running a half-marathon, says Nemanick, is to “just enjoy yourself. Unless you are qualifying for the Olympics, running is a great sport to take stress away, so enjoy your race!”
If running 13.1 miles seems daunting, know that you don’t have to run the entire thing. It’s totally okay to walk portions, and it’s okay to incorporate this run/walk method into your half-marathon training as well.
Jeff Galloway, Olympian and creator of the Run/Walk/Run method of training, tells HealthyWay, “You cannot go too slowly or walk too much. You’ll get the same endurance even if you walk the entire distance.”
That sounds good to me!
If you’re going to train using the run/walk method, Galloway suggests these training strategies based on pace per mile:

  • 9 minutes per mile: Run 2 minutes/walk 30 seconds or run 90 seconds/walk 30 seconds.
  • 10 minutes per mile: Run 90 seconds/walk 30 seconds or run 60 seconds/walk 20 seconds or 30 seconds.
  • 11–12 minutes per mile: Run 60 seconds/walk 30 seconds or run 40 seconds/walk 20 seconds or run 30 seconds/walk 30 seconds.
  • 13–14 minutes per mile: Run 30 seconds/walk 30 seconds or run 20 seconds/walk 20 seconds or run 15 seconds/walk 15 seconds.
  • 15 minutes per mile: Run 15 seconds/walk 30 seconds.
  • 16–17 minutes per mile: Run 10 seconds/walk 30 seconds.

“The best preparation [for the run/walk/run method],” says Galloway, “is to gradually increase a slow long run/walk, every 14 days, to 14 miles—two weeks before the half-marathon. If you start to huff and puff [during the race], walk for 2 to 3 minutes and start back with a more gentle strategy of run/walk/run.”
Between long runs, Galloway recommends taking a short 30-minute run every other day to maintain your training. These short runs could be combined with stretching or strength-training exercises.  

Race Day Essentials

Races start early, so you’ll want to make sure you have everything you need ready to go the night before.
“Make sure to wake up eat, go to the bathroom (trust me on that one), and still have enough time to get there with time to spare,” says Pepe. “You should be enjoying this event, not rushing around and feeling anxious.”
He adds, “Eat some carbs but don’t go crazy; you don’t want a heavy meal in your stomach before you run a long race.”
In addition to a healthy breakfast, Galloway says, “During long runs and the race, consume the following every 2 miles: 2 to 4 oz of water and 30 to 40 calories of sugar (Life Savers, gummies, etc.)” to keep your energy up for the miles ahead.
Thinking about testing your new running skirt on the day of your half-marathon?
Think again. The day of a race isn’t the time to try out new running gear, no matter how cute it is.
Make sure you break in running gear at least a month before the half-marathon you plan to run, says Nemanick. “Being uncomfortable [on race day] isn’t fun.”
The biggest race day essential?
Your motivation.
Nemanick says the hardest mile is always the first mile, but adds, “The best advice I give myself is to run the mile I’m in.”
It is tempting to think about bringing your phone or fitness tracker along, but when you feel like you’ve been running for hours only to realize you’ve still got 10 miles to go, it can be disheartening.
“Don’t focus on how much further you have to go,” Nemanick advises. “Remember to rely on your training. That hard work will pay off during the race.”
Instead, says Pepe, think about why you’re running the race in the first place and let that be your motivation. “I remind myself at every mile marker [why I’m running] to reignite my engine. It also helps to have that music that makes you feel like a superhero!”

You got your race bling. Now what?

“Just enjoy yourself,” says Nemanick. “Unless you are qualifying for the Olympics, running is a great sport to take stress away, so enjoy your race bling!”
But after the party, how can you keep up your half-marathon training between races?
“First things first, take a week off,” says Pepe.
After that week off, though, Burleson says to get back into half-marathon training: “So many runners make the mistake of taking a ‘break from running’ that always becomes too long and always is hard to come back from. Just take that one week then get back out on the road and put in some miles.”
You already have all the motivation you need to get out and lace up those sneakers after your first half-marathon, says Pepe.
“Keep that finishing time nearby, keep your split per mile nearby, and look at it often. Remember those numbers, and that will drive you to go out and perfect your craft and run an even better race!”

How to Choose the Half-Marathon That’s Right for You

Burleson has three criteria when choosing a half-marathon to run:

Price

“Some of these $100+ half-marathons are just too expensive,” says Burleson. Unless the post-race perks are really cool or the race is in a location that can’t be beat, you don’t need to spend a ton of money on entry fees. Look for local half-marathons that are still loads of fun but a lot less pricey.

Elevation

“Trying to find a race that doesn’t beat you down with loads of elevation will help boost your confidence late in the race,” says Burleson. This is especially true if you’re training in low-elevation areas. For example, I’m training in Jacksonville Beach, Florida, which is mostly below sea level. I will choose a half-marathon with a similar elevation … You won’t find me racing in the Rockies anytime soon!

Location

“If possible, find a race that has a cool after party or at least some good eats and drinks around the post-race,” Burleson advises. This isn’t too hard these days. Check race websites for post-race parties and events before you pay the entry fee.
As for me, I’m signing up for the Rock ‘n’ Roll Raleigh half-marathon in 2018.
Check out this cool list of fun half-marathons, pick out a chic pair of running shoes, and hit the pavement with me as I train for my first half-marathon in 2018.

Categories
Happy x Mindful Wellbeing

Happy, Healthy, And Strong: What You Can Learn From These Celebs’ Wellness Routines

I have a confession to make:
I’m 31 years old, and before this year, I had never been able to do a “real” push up.
I’ve always had to do a modified version, and even then I struggled.
That is, until I started following fitness star Kayla Itsines on Instagram. Her before-and-after photos of regular women just like me getting stronger and more fit inspired me.
I downloaded the app, treated myself to fancy workout clothes, and got to work.
It hasn’t been pretty, but thanks to Kayla, I can now carry my son in his car seat without having to stop and catch my breath every five feet.
Itsines is just one celeb dishing out some serious wellness inspiration.
Check out these seven celebrities’ routines for restoring health to mind, body, and soul.
Drew Barrymore
Recently, internet trolls tried to come after my girl Drew for posting a photo of herself without makeup. Even though she looked totally gorgeous in the photo, Barrymore admitted that the comments stung. Instead of wallowing in self-pity though, Barrymore practiced self-love.
In a pic posted to Instagram, Barrymore commented, “Yesterday I saw comments on my Instagram feed about my post that were mean, cruel, and ugly. It hurt me. And you know what women do when they get hurt???? They pick themselves up! Go get a haircut. Put on some lipstick and chant ‘if you don’t have something nice to say… don’t say anything at all’ thank you @markishkreli @yumi_mori for picking a girl up and dusting her off. And more than anything, helping me feel pretty. Pretty is on the inside. But a little love on the outside never hurts.”
Whitney Thore
I love Whitney Thore, the star of TLC’s My Big, Fat, Fabulous Life, and not just because she’s from my home state of North Carolina. Thore has become a vocal advocate for body positivity and self-love, both on her show and through her website, No Body Shame.
Thore became YouTube famous with her viral “fat girl dancing” videos, which seek to show that women don’t have to be a certain shape to practice wellness—or have fun doing it.
Thore believes that wellness isn’t just about a particular workout or diet. In an interview with The Gloss, she says:
“It’s not just about body image … I want to reach anyone that has something they feel is holding them back from just living in the moment and being happy.”
Jessamyn Stanley
Another Carolina girl (we really are best in the world, y’all), Jessamyn Stanley is a body positivity advocate and yoga instructor.
One reason I love Stanley is how refreshingly honest she is. Even though she’s written a book, amassed more than 300,000 Instagram followers, and now teaches yoga all over the world, Stanley did not always love yoga. In fact, she hated it. According to a post by Stanley on Tumblr: “I think it’s really important for me to say that my first yoga experience was hell on earth. Are you hearing me? HELL. ON. EARTH.”
Lucky for us, Stanley gave yoga another chance and has this advice for wannabe yogis:
“Don’t be intimidated by your inexperience—even world weary yoga teachers are lifelong students. We are all constantly learning and evolving, and your evolution is absolutely perfect from the start.”
Julianne Hough
Julianne Hough is serious fitness goals. I mean, have you seen her abs?
But Hough is so much more than a rockin’ bod. She created her website, JulianneHough.com, as a space for women to be the “best versions of ourselves through style, fitness, and giving back to the world around us.”
Most recently, Hough shared her struggle with endometriosis, a painful condition in which uterine tissue grows outside the uterus. Other famous celebs like Lena Dunham have recently revealed their own battle with endometriosis, but the condition is still a mystery for most women.
Hough is committed to raising awareness for endometriosis through her organization MeInEndo and says, “Through this campaign aimed at inspiring women to learn about and understand endometriosis, I too have learned so much. Most importantly, I’ve learned I’m not alone. … Together, we can change the way endometriosis is understood.”
Ashley Graham
I typically think of Dress Barn as being a place women of a certain age might shop, but Ashley Graham changed my mind. When her Dress Barn collaboration came out, I bought every. single. piece. She’s almost (but not quite) replaced Dolly Parton as my style icon. And that’s not a statement I make lightly!
One of the best things about Ashley Graham is the way she stays true to her own wellness routine and shuts down haters. Recently, Graham had the best response to some ugly comments about her workouts on Instagram:
“Just for the record—I work out to: stay healthy, feel good, get rid of jet lag, clear my head, show big girls we can move like the rest of em, stay flexible and strong, have more energy … I don’t work out to lose weight or my curves, bc I love the skin I’m in…”
Preach, Ashley!
Paloma Elsesser
The new face of Fenty, Paloma Elsesser is not just a bombshell but an advocate for body positivity and women’s wellness. Recently Elsesser appeared in Glossier’s campaign for their new Body Hero line. In an Instagram post, here’s what she had to say about the experience:
“I did this to show that being fat isn’t a burden. Being fat isn’t ugly or shameful. To prove to one person that it isn’t BRAVE to be fat, but bountiful. And for that young girl looking on Instagram, or walking down Spring St, that she is … perfect despite the precarious and irresponsible versions of beauty we are urged to digest.”
Like Ashley Graham and Jessamyn Stanley, Elsesser also wants women to know that wellness has nothing to do with size. In an interview with Coveteur, Elsesser says, “This image that we’re now unpacking is that there’s no one body type—we all have different body types, everything can sit differently.”
How does Elsesser maintain a wellness routine while also being a jet set supermodel?
“There is so much chaos [in the world], so it’s important that we, as women, as human beings, are able to tap out in a positive way. [I was living in a] negative, destructive way that I was just not willing to participate in anymore. [And for me] that was wellness, having tranquility.”
Serena Williams
I don’t know about you, but when I was in my first trimester, it was all I could do to drag myself to work on time, much less work out.
That’s why Serena Williams is and always will be the GOAT.
Not only did she slay on the court, but she won the Australian Open while in her first trimester.
Serena’s secret to wellness?
Killer self-confidence.
After the birth of her son Alexis, she posted on Instagram, “’I’m ready to get back at it. My belief in myself has never been stronger.”
In an interview with Fitness magazine, Williams revealed that although she eats a healthy diet and maintains a wellness routine even when she’s not training, she does have days where she feels a little inadequate. “When I was young I thought I should be built more like an athlete—long and lean—not with a womanly figure. But then people my age started coming up to me, saying, ‘I love you because of the way you look.’ They could relate to me. That was really motivating.”
Williams’ advice for women?
“I learned to be proud of my curves and to embrace my large boobs and my butt. It’s all about loving who you are and realizing that you’re beautiful.”
In my opinion, that’s the only wellness routine women really need to follow.

Categories
Fitness Advice x Motivation Sweat

Should You Make December Resolutions?

I understand Cinderella’s pain: When the clock strikes midnight each New Year’s Eve, I go from strutting my stuff like Beyoncé to real-life crying Michael Jordan in a matter of seconds.
Why?
Because at 12:01, the new year officially begins, and so do all the resolutions I vowed to make in 2018.
There’s a lot of pressure to keep New Year’s resolutions. It can be really overwhelming, especially when you feel like you’re competing with friends, family, and co-workers to see who can keep their resolution the longest.
That’s why instead of resolutions, I prefer to simply make achievable goals.
Same thing right?
“Well, a rose is a rose is a rose,” says Joanna Nunez, author and licensed clinical social worker and licensed clinical addictions specialist with a private practice near Ft. Bragg, North Carolina. “But there is actually a difference in terminology here. A goal is a desired result that a person wishes to achieve. It can be short term or long term. A good goal is measurable and achievable. A resolution is supposed to be long term, and something you keep, not complete.”
Whatever you decide to call it, instead of caving to the pressure to make a resolution on New Year’s Eve, why not set those goals in December and get a head start on the new year?
Crazy, I know.
Hear me out.
Earlier this year, I resolved to run my first half marathon. I vowed to start my training Jan. 1.
But after some deliberation, I decided to start training in December, getting a jump-start on achieving my half marathon goal.
So far, it’s been great.
For one thing, all the treadmills at the gym are totally empty during the holidays!
But more importantly, I haven’t put any pressure on myself. If I miss a run day, it’s no big deal. During Thanksgiving, I happily stuffed myself with all the pie without stressing over whether I was going to make a six-mile run happen (I did not).
If you already know your goals for 2018, why not go ahead and start working toward them?
Creating a vision board is a good way to get a head start on your December resolutions. Vision boards are collages of images designed to motivate you to reach specific goals.
You can create a vision board on Pinterest, or you can go middle-school project and pull out magazines and poster board.
Either way, include images that inspire you each time you look at your vision board.
Have no idea what you want to achieve in 2018?
That’s just fine too.
Nunez says that planning ahead gives you time to set or change multiple goals.
“Planning now gives you time to edit [your goals]. …You’ve decided to give up sugar, caffeine, cigarettes, and start running 5 miles a day. …That part I said before about goals being measurable and achievable was important. If you wake up on Jan. 1 and decide this is your plan, you will probably crash and burn pretty quickly.”
Instead, Nunez suggests prioritizing your goals and starting with the one that is most important to you. Then work on ways to incorporate the other goals you would like to achieve in the future.
Setting resolutions in December gives you time to practice, Nunez tells HealthyWay:
“Say you decided to start with a running goal. If you’re not a runner, or not a regular runner, starting out at 5 miles a day would be frustrating, painful, and potentially dangerous. It would be great to start with small runs now, giving you time to build up endurance, make it a habit, make sure you like running, and make sure your body can physically tolerate running. This would give you time to reconfigure your resolution if for some reason running isn’t right for you.”
So whether you call it a goal or a resolution, when everyone else is schlepping to the gym on New Year’s Day, you can cozy in at home because you’ve been working toward your goals since Thanksgiving!

Categories
Life x Culture Lifestyle

10 Secret Santa Gifts Under $30 You’ll Want To Keep For Yourself (But Won’t)

Picture it: the office holiday party, 2014.
It was a tradition to play Secret Santa, the game we all know and love, in which we’d all draw a name at random and secretly give that person a gift at the annual holiday party.
When it was my turn to draw a name, my worst fear came true. (Ok, my worst fear is getting stuck at the top of a roller coaster, but this is a close second.)
I drew my coworker Sally.
Sally (whose name I’ve changed just in case she’s reading this article and learns the truth about my 2014 Secret Santa snafu) was a perfectly nice person. The only problem was that I knew literally nothing about her!
Seriously, not one thing.
She kept no personal mementos on her desk. Even her computer desktop background was a plain blue screen.
The only intel I had on Sally was that she ate a tuna melt every single day, which did not endear her to the office.
So, it was safe to say I was at a total loss when faced with the pressure of buying her a Secret Santa gift.
For weeks I tried to find out more about her, to no avail.
Finally, the day before the holiday party, I spied a coffee-table craft cocktail guide at TJ Maxx and thought, “Good enough.” It seemed like a generic gift almost anyone would enjoy.
Fast forward to the party, where Sally opens up her Secret Santa gift.
I could immediately tell she didn’t like it.
To her credit, she politely put on a brave face and tried to guess who’d gifted her the book.
Later, I found out that Sally didn’t drink at all due to her religious background, and while she wasn’t offended by the gift, it wasn’t exactly something she could use.
Yikes.
Since then, I’ve become an expert Secret Santa gift-giver. I don’t want to let anymore Sallies down with lackluster Secret Santa picks.
If you have no idea what to give your Secret Santa recipient this year, I’ve got you covered.
From your mystery coworker to your dad, here are the best Secret Santa gifts under $30 that are sure to impress this year:

1. Birch Box Subscription

I love subscription boxes. One of my personal favorites is Birch Box—the popular beauty product subscription that can be gifted to just about anyone: your work wife, best girlfriend, or mom will all love getting a personalized box of goodies each month.
Starting at $30 for a three-month subscription, Birch Box now offers men’s subscription boxes, truly making them a gift anyone will enjoy.

2. Nuns Having Fun

“A wall calendar? But that’s so boring!”
Au contraire, my friend.
My roommates and I stumbled across the Nuns Having Fun calendar in college, and it has been my go-to wall calendar for the past decade. It’s a great gift for someone you don’t know very well because, seriously, can you imagine anyone who wouldn’t smile seeing nuns having fun?
At under $15, this is an affordable gift that can easily be paired with another item, like a gourmet chocolate bar, for the perfect office Secret Santa gift.

3. Essential Oil Diffuser

Is your work bestie stressed about a big upcoming project? How about giving her an essential oil diffuser this year?
Diffusers like this one from URPOWER are pretty inexpensive but can be used at home or in the office. Along with the diffuser, gift your Secret Santa a couple of different essential oils. Just make sure you buy oils from a reputable source.

4. Bacon, Bacon, Bacon

Does your Secret Santa love bacon?
Who am I kidding?
Everyone loves bacon.
Assemble a bacon-forward gift basket with the retro-inspired 101 Things To Do With Bacon cookbook, gourmet bacon-flavored salt, and a petite bottle of bacon-flavored hot sauce.
No time to assemble something yourself? While Man Crates are designed for men, they’re really a great gift idea for any whiskey-drinking, meat-eating guy or gal and they aren’t just for Secret Santa either. When Valentine’s Day rolls around, send your boo a delicious heart filled with gourmet jerky.

5. Have Mug, Will Travel

This isn’t your average travel mug. The Thermos insulated travel mug was tested by Good Housekeeping and was crowned one of the best travel mugs of 2017.
Everyone can use a good travel mug (especially if they’re like me and can never find a clean one in sight).
Not only does it keep drinks hot or cold for 18 hours, but it even has diffuser options for bag or loose leaf tea. It’s the perfect Secret Santa gift for a coworker or your dad (whose 30-year-old thermos probably needs an update).

6. Cozy Slippers

Studies show that the more comfortable you are, the more productive and happier you are at work. Alan Hedge, PhD, found that employees who were warm enough were more productive than those who worked in the chilly conditions of most office buildings.
You may not be able to change the thermostat in your office, but you can gift your Secret Santa a cute pair of slippers to slip on under their desk. These rose gold Minnetonka slippers will be sure to keep your Secret Santa’s feet feeling toasty and looking fabulous, even when the office feels like the frozen tundra.

7. Ready, Set, Write!

With New Year’s Eve right around the corner, this journal is a great gift idea for your coworker, friend, or anyone you know who is working toward a specific goal. While it does come in just a few dollars above the $30 price point, it’s well worth the extra expense (less than a cup of coffee!) for the motivation it provides.

8. There’s no place like home.

Is your Secret Santa homesick over the holidays? Cheer them up with these Homesick Scented Candles. Each state’s candle smells like a bit of home. I love to light my beloved North Carolina candle, which smells a little sweet and a little bitter, just like the perfect bite of NC barbeque.
Homesick candles cost between $25 and $35 each and can be purchased on Amazon.

9. Grow your own tree.

Give a gift that keeps on giving (in a good way) by gifting your Secret Santa a Bonsai Garden Starter Kit from Nature’s Blossom. In addition to giving them reason to slow down and take the time to plant and tend to their little bonsai, as the tree grows, it will enhance their space, whether it finds its home at the office or somewhere around their house or apartment.
An added bonus? Houseplants help rid the atmosphere of carbon dioxide and release oxygen thanks to photosynthesis, which means, in a way, you’ll be gifting them a breath of fresh air for the new year!

10. Stylish Reusable Tote

This solid jute tote from MudPie is a stylish, versatile take on the reusable tote. It’s a steal that can be used to carry everything from groceries to beach gear.
Want to make this gift extra thoughtful? Consider having your Secret Santa’s initials monogrammed on the side as a special touch.