Health

Working My Way Toward Wellness with Stretch Therapy – Week One

September 19, 2020 By lyndsinreallife Leave a Comment

I’ve been experiencing some kind of chronic pain for at least 5 years. My worst pain is in my low back, followed by hip pain (in both hips, but mainly my right hip), and as of the last year, my right neck/shoulder (thanks to surgery and at least one wonky nerve).

In Las Vegas (Summerlin specifically), there’s a stretch therapy studio called Kika Stretch Studios. I think it might be my saving grace!

At this studio, a highly trained Kika therapist gently assists the client with stretching. I’d say Kika stretch therapy is a mash up of yoga, Pilates, physical therapy, and massage therapy (4 of my favorite things!). The stretch sessions are designed to relieve the body of muscle pain, tension, and fatigue.

“Revive your body and ease your mind. The Kika Method© is meant for anyone who wants to move and feel the natural way that you were designed to.”
Kika Studios Website

I’m starting a 5-week wellness journey where I’ll participate in a Kika stretch therapy session every Friday (after the busy work week and before the relaxing weekend!). The stretch therapist I’ll be working with is Tamara.

I’m really excited and can’t wait to share all about my experience and progress – I hope you choose to follow along with me! I’ll be posting here on my blog, as well as my Instagram and Facebook pages.

Be on the lookout for a “first session” post in a couple days!

Health

Don’t Let Chronic Pain Break Your Back

September 10, 2020 By lyndsinreallife Leave a Comment

Do you suffer from chronic pain? Well, you’re not alone. Chronic pain is a lot more common than most people realize. Indeed, millions of people suffer from issues with chronic pain and this certainly becomes more of a common issue as you age. It’s important that you don’t let chronic pain take over your life. Instead, you need to figure out how to deal with it the right way. So, let’s look at some of the best options.

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Think About Cause

The first step should always be trying to determine what is the cause of your chronic pain. Now, unfortunately, this isn’t often an easy question to answer and there are a few reasons for that. First of all, it’s possible that there isn’t a known cause for your pain even when you go to the doctor’s. Second, you might find that it’s something that you didn’t expect or weren’t prepared for. You might suffer from GERD and this condition can cause severe pain. If you think this might be the issue, then you should consider consulting a gastroenterologist. They can provide the treatment you need.

Pain can also be psychological which is why many individuals find that they benefit from getting cognitive therapy. With cognitive therapy, you can usually address the root cause of the pain which could be an emotional issue from your past.

Once you understand the cause of your issue, you will be more than halfway to tackling the problem! However, it’s not quite enough.

Look At Coping Mechanisms

The next step will always be to explore coping mechanisms and ways to deal with your chronic pain more effectively. Cognitive retraining therapy can help a great deal. With this type of therapy, you can train your mind to essentially ignore the pain and treat it like a sensation that is not relevant. This allows many people to live with the pain far more effectively and lead more normal lives.

You might also want to think about trying herbal medicine rather than the typical meds prescribed by a doctor. For instance, many people have found great results with CBD. This is understandable as CBD does seem to have widespread benefits for both the body and the mind.

A lot of people who suffer from chronic pain do tend to avoid exercise however this can be beneficial too. Or at least it will be as long as you choose the right type of exercise. Specifically, swimming can be great because the water helps release and loosen the joints and muscles throughout the body. Tension will always make chronic pain far worse and more noticeable.

We hope this helps you understand some of the best and most effective ways to deal with your chronic pain. Chronic pain can feel like a nightmare, but if you take the right steps and follow the best strategy, then it doesn’t have to take over your life. You can still enjoy yourself and have fun with your passions as well as your family.

Thank you for reading!

Health

5 Signs You’re Close To Burning Out

September 9, 2020 By lyndsinreallife 1 Comment

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Human beings can only take so much stress and physical exertion. If you’re constantly pushing your body and mind to the limits, you’ll eventually burn out.

Nobody wants to reach this ‘burn-out’ stage – you’ll either get to a point where you don’t want to get up in the morning or you’ll have a nervous breakdown. You could even push yourself to the point of physical illness or self-harm if you’re not careful.

Below are five signs that you may be getting close to burning out (and what you can do to prevent this).

You feel physically and emotionally exhausted

Physical and emotional exhaustion are a clear sign that you’ve been pushing yourself too hard. This is likely from denying yourself free time, and possibly even sacrificing sleep to juggle responsibilities.

You constantly feel restless – even after accomplishing a task

People on the brink of burn-out often feel as if they have an ever-growing queue of tasks to complete. As a result, when one task is accomplished, you may not feel any sense of gratitude, because there are still so many tasks left to take on.

You no longer see the value of certain responsibilities

Certain responsibilities may have lost the value that they once held. In most cases, people stop caring about their job. The idea of meeting targets and impressing customers may all seem meaningless. Similarly, you may start to see no value in doing tasks such as housework or exercise.

You feel like the quality of everything you do is slipping

You may feel that you’re constantly making mistakes or cutting corners to get things done. While you may just about be staying on top of things, there could be a sense that nothing is being done as well as you’d like.

Any free time you get is spent recovering

Instead of doing anything productive with your free time, you could find that any free time you get is spent recovering – you may not want to do anything more than nap or watch the TV. Even this recovery time may not be enough, causing exhaustion to continue building up.

How to prevent burnout

Think that you may be on the brink of a burn-out? If you act now, you may be able to prevent things getting any worse. Here are just a few ways to prevent burn-out.

Allow others to take some of the strain

Consider the responsibilities that you are juggling and whether there is any way of getting support. If parenthood is getting on top of you, consider asking someone to babysit regularly to take some of the strain off. If caring for aging loved ones is taking up a lot of your energy, you could consider looking into hospice care. At work meanwhile, there may be tasks that you can delegate to colleagues or get help with.

Set clear boundaries

Try to keep clear boundaries between work and family life. Make sure that you’re finishing work at a certain time so that you can spend enough time with your family. Similarly, make sure that family life isn’t interfering with your work performance.

Avoid being a perfectionist

Perfectionists are often more prone to burn-out because they invest huge amounts of time ensuring that all the details are attended to. Not all these details may be necessary – it could be time to prioritize what is important.

Eliminate unhealthy sources of stress

Your stress could be due to an overly demanding employer or a toxic partner that expects too much of you. It could be time to quit your job or leave your partner to help eliminate the burden.

•Are you feeling burned out? What do you do to try to remedy that?

Thank you for reading!

Health Nutrition

The Most Important Dietary Requirements We All Have

September 9, 2020 By lyndsinreallife 1 Comment

Anyone keen to improve the diet they are eating will need to first look into what kind of changes they might need to make in general. You might be keen to try and improve your overall health, for instance by eating better and exercising more, and you might have a specific goal in mind like losing a certain amount of weight over a period of time. But before even all of that, it’s good to know about some of the essentials of the kind of dietary requirements that we all have – the sorts of things that you should be aiming to fit into your diet for the sake of posterity. Let’s take a look at some of those now!

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Fiber

First of all, make sure that you are getting plenty of fiber in your diet. Without fiber, your digestive system can’t properly break down the waste in your food, and you could give yourself stool problems. If left alone, those issues can later become much more serious, to the point where you might need to rely upon ostomy supplies or where you could even find yourself with colon cancer – a very serious problem indeed. You can help to keep all that at bay simply by getting a little more fiber into your diet every day, which you can do by eating more grains and cereals, and beans.

Vitamins

One of the main reasons why it is so important to eat a wide variety of vegetables and fruits is that it allows your body to get all those vitamins that are necessary for your good health and for your survival. If you are eating a rainbow of different veggies, you will be getting vitamins A, C and E, amongst others, and that will enable your body to operate as well as possible at all times. If you lack any of these vitamins, it can mean that your body is going to struggle to work as well as you would hope, and you could even cause yourself to have a weaker immune system in the long run as well. Make sure you get plenty of vitamins and you could really make a difference to your life.

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Variation

The most important thing of all when it comes to diet is to ensure that you are eating as much of a variation of different foods as you can. That is absolutely true when it comes to making sure you have many different kinds of vegetables, but also more broadly in ensuring you are eating something from each of the major food groups. While that doesn’t mean you have to follow the old rules of eating a certain amount of meat and so on every day – you can actually get by without meat perfectly healthily – it does mean that you should focus on getting all of the same minerals and nutrients that you would have done with meat. If you can do that, you will be much healthier indeed.

Thank you for reading!

Health

Common Digestive Issues That You May Face

August 28, 2020 By lyndsinreallife 1 Comment

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Digestive issues are pretty common nowadays. Different conditions require different treatment, or different changes in lifestyle, to alleviate symptoms and offer relief. So, it’s important that you are aware of the symptoms of issues you may face. This will help you to make the relevant changes as quickly as possible if you ever do experience them! Here are three of the most common digestive issues experienced by adults!

Constipation

Constipation is one of the most common digestive issues in the world. If you are constipated, you will experience difficulty passing stools as easily and regularly as you should. You may have fewer than three bowel movements a week, you may pass dry or hard stools, you may have to strain during bowel movements or you could even experience a rectal blockage. Now, for most people, constipation is an occasional thing. But for others, it is regular. Common causes of constipation include:

a low-fiber diet
a diet high in meat, milk or cheese
dehydration
lack of exercise
delaying the impulse to have a bowel movement
travel or other changes in routine
medications like high calcium antacids and pain medications
Pregnancy

Most of these can be tackled easily or are temporary. If you change your lifestyle to encourage bowel movements and are still experiencing problems though, you may want to visit a doctor. They could recommend stool softener tablets or diagnose underlying conditions causing the constipation.

Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Another common digestive issue is IBS or “irritable bowel syndrome”. It is estimated that one in five people suffer from this condition at any given time. It is identified by:

Stomach cramps
Bloating
Diarrhoea
Constipation

While few people will experience these problems constantly, they do come and go and IBS tends to be a lifelong issue that doesn’t resolve itself. There’s no cure for IBS, but it can be managed with help from medication and lifestyle changes. If you feel you may be suffering from IBS, make sure to consult a doctor who will be able to confirm your suspicions and can give specific recommendations in regards to your lifestyle and habits.

Diverticulitis

Diverticulitis isn’t as well known as constipation or IBS. But it is still a relatively common digestive issue. When you have diverticulitis, you develop pouches – or “diverticula” – within your colon walls. These pouches can become inflamed or irritated, causing severe discomfort. Unfortunately, this is another condition that doesn’t have an outright cure. But doctors generally recommend that people with diverticulitis incorporate more fibre into their diet to help with the condition. Again, if you are worried that you may have diverticulitis, it’s best to visit your doctor for an official diagnosis and individual advice.

These are just three digestive issues that commonly affect the adult population. So, it’s important that you are aware of their symptoms. If you have any concerns with your own digestive health, the best piece of advice is to visit your doctor. They’ll be able to identify the specific cause and set you out on the right path to relief and comfort!

Thank you for reading!

Health

7 Tips To Stay Fit Towards Old Age

August 26, 2020 By lyndsinreallife Leave a Comment

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Health is wealth, and before you think about achieving anything, you need to be in good health. Do not take your health for granted. Later in life, when you do not experience any signs of hearing loss, diabetes, or heart illnesses, you will thank yourself. So, follow these health-enhancing habits and live a good life.

Exercise regularly

To prevent or reduce the effects of issues like heart illnesses, osteoporosis, depression, high blood pressure, and stroke, you should exercise regularly. It even helps you easily fall asleep and stay asleep for a longer time. It also keeps your weight at a normal level, by burning excess calories, and contributing to the management of blood sugar and levels of insulin. This decreases your chances of getting type two diabetes. So, try being active for about 60 minutes each day, and it will go a long way in maintaining your health. Your bones and muscles get stronger when you exercise. And as you grow older, loss of bone density also slows down when you exercise regularly.

Drink in moderation

Experts suggest that two drinks a day are enough for men and one drink a day for women. Too much alcohol could cause damage to the liver, as well as cancer in the throat, pancreas, and even the liver. Alcohol abuse has been the cause of a lot of deaths from car accidents to murders and even suicide. Also, avoid drinking while driving, or when you’re pregnant.

Reduce smoking or quit if you can

Smoking is a harmful habit. It can cause heart diseases and even cancers in the lungs, mouth, or throat. Emphysema and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are also caused by excessive smoking. It is better to quit smoking now than to wait until it’s too late.

Practice safe sex

Use protection anytime you have sex with someone you’re not married to prevent sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). Using condoms protects you from sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). Also, get tested immediately if you suspect any STD.

Protect your skin

Sun exposure can cause skin cancer, which is the most common type of cancer in the United States. So, try to limit your exposure to the sun by protecting your skin with protective clothing when outside. Also, use sunscreen on exposed skin, especially your hand and face. Consider the broad-spectrum sunscreens which will block both UVA and UVB rays.

Try to lose weight if you’re overweight

Weight problems are one of the most common health issues a lot of people face. Being overweight, you expose yourself to so many health risks, including high cholesterol, high blood pressure, heart diseases, type two diabetes, and stroke. Arthritis in the weight-bearing joints is also caused by being overweight. So, consider working on your weight to maintain a standard weight and stay away from weight-related illnesses. The general recommendation is to start early and slow. Eventually, you’ll get the hang of it.

Eat a balanced diet

Try to eat a low-fat diet with lots of fruits and vegetables and try choosing diets that are low in saturated fat and cholesterol. Consider lowering your intake of sugar and salt or stop consuming them altogether if you can. Also, reduce your intake of total fat. Skipping meals is a no-no if it comes to balancing your diet because it lowers your rate of metabolism. Three major meals and two snacks between meals is normal. Try your best not to skip breakfast as it is a very vital meal of the day. Healthy food will increase your energy and make you more productive. It also makes the immune system stronger and prevents weight gain. A balanced diet with variation provides the nutrients needed to avoid nutritional deficiencies. Healthy eating prevents you from getting certain diseases like diabetes and heart illnesses. And even if you do fall ill, you can better manage it if you follow a balanced diet.

Stay hydrated

To stay healthy, take a lot of fluids. Fluids are crucial in maintaining the function of the systems in the body. They also take nutrients to the cells, flush bacteria from the bladder, and prevent constipation. Older people become dehydrated, especially in the summer when it’s hot, and there’s much more sweat. They do not easily feel thirsty. This could be a problem, and especially for those on medication that causes fluid loss, it can cause weakness, low blood pressure, confusion, dizziness, and dark-colored urine.

The bottom line is that it may be challenging to achieve anything worthwhile if you’re not healthy and so you should take it seriously.

Health

4 Wellness Tips to Keep You At Your Healthiest

August 19, 2020 By lyndsinreallife 2 Comments

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You should always take your health seriously, and if you haven’t been up until this point, then now is the time to start. No more sitting back and thinking that your health is always going to be okay no matter what you do, because this simply isn’t the case. By not addressing your health and making sure you’re doing everything in your power to keep it in good shape, you are potentially harming yourself. As such, we’re going to be looking at some wellness tips in this article so that you can stay as healthy as you can be. Keep reading down below if you want to find out more.

Pay Attention to What You Eat

You should always pay attention your diet. Everyone has different preferences, different allergies, and that is why what works for one is not going to work for all. You’ve got to create a balanced diet based around what you do eat, and this can be harder than you think. If you are struggling, then you can always talk to a professional, such as a nutritionist, who will be able to help you come up with some fantastic ideas for meals that will keep you within your limits.

It is important that you learn a whole range of ways to cook so that you’re not getting bored with what you are eating. Everything is okay in moderation, so don’t feel like you can’t eat something that you want

just because it isn’t considered healthy. However, when you can, the healthy snacks are going to be the best. For example, you could learn how to roast pumpkin seeds, add these to a meal, or simply eat them on their own. There are so many tasty snacks out there that you could discover if you just open your mind a little more.

Speak To A Medical Professional

Medical professionals have studied for years to get where they are, so you should see them if you think there is something wrong. Even if you just suspect that something is up because you have a hunch, it is always going to be a case of better safe than sorry. You don’t want to not see someone, and then down the line figure out you have an illness that could have been treated earlier, and more effectively. These people are here to help you, so let them do their job and keep you in the best possible health.

Even if you don’t think there is anything wrong with you, you should still be seeing your doctor every six months for a check-up. You never know, there are some silent illnesses out there that don’t have any symptoms, so the only way to know they are there is with tests. You need to be fully informed about your health as well, so if you do have any questions, make sure you ask them.

What About Your Mental Health?

Your mental health is just as important as your physical health, so you’ve got to be taking care of that too. If you notice that something isn’t quite right, take some kind of action. Speak to someone, make a lifestyle change of some sort, or whatever you think is best at the time. Mental health can be tricky, but there are measures in place to ensure that nobody has to suffer on their own. Another scary thing about mental health is that it can start to impact your physical health if it is left unchecked. You could notice things like tiredness, headaches, upset stomach, and a whole range of other symptoms that are linked to your mental health.

Talk to someone, whether that is someone you trust or a professional. A problem shared is a problem halved, and once you’re not dealing with it on your own anymore, everything seems a little more manageable.

Dare You To Move

Finally, we dare you to move. Exercise is crucial to maintaining your health because if you’re not careful, your muscles are going to lose mass, making you weak. Even something as simple as walking for half an hour per day is good enough to keep this away. You can complete higher intensity workouts if you like depending on what your goal is, but the minimum is to go for a walk at least four times per week.

We hope that you have found this article helpful. You should now know some of the best wellness tips that will keep you as healthy as possible. Put these into practice, and your health should stay in good condition, hopefully, for years to come.

Thank you for reading!

Health

How To Enjoy Loud Music Safely And Responsibly

August 17, 2020 By lyndsinreallife Leave a Comment

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When you’re really in the moment and are listening to your favorite song, it can be tempting to crank the up volume and feel every beat as it pulses through your ears. But sadly, our ears are not designed to listen to loud noises, and exposure to loud music can be just as damaging as working with power-tools without ear protection.

How loud music can damage your hearing

Inside our ears are thousands of hair cells (stereocilia) whose job is to pick up sounds and turn them into electrical signals that can be interpreted by our brains. We now know that these hair cells can become damaged, permanently, when exposed to sounds at 70dB (decibels) or above, which isn’t very loud when you consider that most night club music is played at 110dB and that the maximum setting on your headphones can also reach 105dB

When our ears are exposed to these loud noises, the hair cells get overstimulated and stop responding to sound, which can lead to temporary hearing loss. However, over time, it can lead to permanent hearing loss. Aside from potentially losing your hearing for good, exposure to loud music and loud noises can also cause tinnitus, a constant ringing sound in your ears, which can be extremely irritating.

How to listen to music safely

Sadly, the only way to protect your ears from becoming damaged by loud noises is by reducing your exposure to them. This means that you need to start turning down the volume on your headphones and put some protective measures in place when visiting nightclubs and festivals. Here are some things that can help you to look after your ears.

When listening through headphones

Headphones literally blast music directly into your ear canal, which can cause significant damage over time. Some of the things that you can do to protect your ears include:

Taking breaks
To stop your hair cells from becoming overstimulated, try to take regular breaks of at least five minutes once every hour or so. Take your headphones out and allow your ears to re-adjust to a normal noise level before starting your music again – this will also help to prevent you from turning the music up when you start to become desensitized to how loud it is.
Limit your volume
Many devices now come with a volume limiter setting, which allows you to set a maximum volume level. If you have this on your device, then set it to 85dB so that you are unable to damage your ears with noises louder than this accidentally.

Take note of your phone’s safety warning
Phone manufacturers know that playing loud music can damage your hearing, which is why they have to display a safe volume level warning on your phone when you turn the volume up past a certain level. This warning is there for a reason – so listen to it!
Turn down your volume
If you want to listen to music through your headphones for an extended period of time, then turn the volume down just a notch, and you will be able to enjoy your music safely for longer.
Use noise-canceling headphones
If you’re commuting to work on a busy subway or are trying to listen to music when on a busy street, then quite often you will need to have the volume turned up to simply drown out the sound of traffic and other people. Noise-canceling headphones can help remove this noise so that you can lower your volume and listen to your music safely.

When listening at a nightclub or festival

At a nightclub or festival, you may not be in control over the volume of the music, but there are still things that you can do to protect your hearing.

Wear earplugs

Custom earplugs won’t drown out the music altogether, and they also won’t stifle it, they just help to bring the volume down to a safe level. Keep a pair with you and wear them when inside the venue. If you’re worried about what other people will think, then there are many brands of earplugs that are virtually invisible.

Don’t dance near the speakers

It may seem obvious, but try to stay away from the speakers if you can, as this is where the music will be the loudest. Instead, dance the night away somewhere a little further away (this applies to scenarios such as clubs, concerts, and parties).

Give your ears a break

Make use of chill-out-zones or the smoking area of a nightclub to get away from loud music for a bit to allow your ears to rest.

Remember – you only have one pair of ears to last you your lifetime, and the action you take now will dictate the hearing that you have in the future. So look after your ears and stay safe!

Thank you for reading!

Health

How To Spread Equality Among Disabled People And Make The World A Better Place

August 14, 2020 By lyndsinreallife Leave a Comment

It is not uncommon to feel a little insecure about talking or interacting with someone with a physical or mental disability. Socializing with people with disabilities should not be different from any other socialization. However, if you are unfamiliar with a given disability, you may be afraid that you will either say something offensive or make a mistake by providing help. You can probably even help them lead a better life.

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Speak Respectfully and Encourage Others to Also

Respect, above all. Someone with a disability should have the same respect as anyone else. See others as people and not with problems. Focus on the person and their individual personality. If you have to put a label on the disability, it is better to ask which terminology they prefer and follow the terms they choose. In general, you should follow the “golden rule”: treat others as they would like to be treated.

While some people find it unpleasant the words “disabled”, others use them to describe themselves because they feel that they have been removed from life as “bad words” and that their disability is part of who they are. If they are referred to as “disabled”, ask if they are comfortable describing themselves this way or why they choose to describe themselves that way, it will help you get a picture of their perspective.

Labels and derogatory names are inappropriate and should be avoided when talking to someone with a disability. Assigning a label that is offensive (such as disabled or handicapped) is not helpful and indicates disrespect. Always pay attention to how you speak, censor your language if necessary. Be careful not to identify someone with a disability instead of their name or role.

Offer Real Help

Offer real help . Some people are reluctant to offer, to help someone with a disability for fear of being offended. Indeed, if you offer help because someone with a disability cannot do anything, your offer may be offensive. However, very few people will be affected by a real, specific offer of help.

Many people with disabilities are reluctant to ask for help, but may be grateful for an offer.

For example, if you go shopping with a friend who uses a wheelchair, you might ask if he needs help carrying his bags or help with his wheelchair. Offering to help a friend is not usually offensive. If you are unsure of a particular way to help, you can ask, “Is there anything I can do to help you?” You may want to politely mention that you are aware of new products that may assist. Perhaps you have seen an incredible power wheelchair and want to share it with them.

Recognize that some disabilities are not visible. If you see someone who seems to have a disability and you do not know what disability he has, do not face it and accuse him of not having a disability. They may have a disability that you may not see. Sometimes so-called “invisible disabilities” that cannot be seen immediately and many vary. Invisible illness is the main reason why kindness and understanding goes such a long way and together we can make a better world.

Thank you for reading!

Health

Has A Poor Diet Become The Norm In Lockdown?

August 12, 2020 By lyndsinreallife Leave a Comment

By now you’ve probably heard of the saying ‘lockdown weight.’ Many of us have piled on the pounds and it’s because we have been stressed, eating comfort food, haven’t been able to properly exercise, and we’ve become lazy in our shopping practices. This leads many to think that a poor diet has become the norm in lockdown. Do you feel this way? You’re not the only one. Millions of people are now trying to melt off the pounds while summer is still here. Do you see more people running outside? Going for an afternoon bike ride? Families are beginning to realize that although they may have (hopefully) escaped the novel coronavirus, also known as Covid-19, they haven’t come out of this unscathed. Your body has suffered in one form or another, here’s what you can do about it!

The Essentials and Weight Gain

Since going into lockdown, the essentials have become the highest priority for all of us. When it comes to grocery shopping, the essentials come in the form of rice, cereals, bread, and pasta. All of these foods are in the complex carbs category. They have made us very overweight, in such a short amount of time. It’s because complex carbs are very dense in calories yet they don’t weigh a lot. So, it’s more likely that you will fill your plate with pasta and still feel like you are hungry. Whereas, a small portion of steak will fill you up because the meat is very dense.

We also don’t realize that carbs take a lot of time to digest and to burn off as fat. It means that the fat that carbs have been converted into, takes more effort to shift off our bodies once they are on. The main cause of this sudden weight gain is because carbs are full of starch which is released over a long period of time. Hence they take more effort to burn off.

Solution

Eat complex carbs as opposed to simple carbs. Consider eating more vegetables, nuts, whole wheat bread, and whole-grain pasta. You can also limit your carb intake, which will force your body to burn fat for energy quicker. Eating more fats and protein should suffice your appetite and cravings.

Comfort Foods

First of all, there’s no shame in eating comfort food every once in a while. Food is something that excites our senses and makes us feel good and happy. But, let’s never see food as something that can fill a void. But during the lockdown, that’s all most people have been doing. And who can blame them!? Everyone has been in the same boat, locked down, unable to see family or friends, and constantly worrying about the future.

We have turned to junk food, such as chips, ice cream, pizza, and candy. Why? Because it tastes good and makes us feel satisfied. But we’re now paying for the consequences. We thought that a short term hit to our health wouldn’t be so dire, but now we’re finding out that our clothes don’t fit us anymore, we don’t look healthy in the mirror, we are not feeling confident in ourselves and this plagues our mental health.

Solution

No pain, no gain. We’ve done this to ourselves, so now it’s time to workout. There are lots of at-home exercise groups you can join. Cycling clubs have started out of nowhere, right from within the family home. Getting on a modern screen bike that you can use to watch a class or be part of it, can be really motivating. Or perhaps, following a YouTube channel like Joe Wicks, who has been doing pilates and intense cardio aerobics for many weeks. It’s time to get moving and exercising again.

Too Much Candy

In lockdown, we have been more likely to give in to our cravings because we are either too bored or simply too stressed to comply with our good nature. This has led to many people not taking care of their teeth and gums. What can happen is that our gums and teeth begin to shrink and become far weaker than before. The sugar will eat away at our gums, making them recede. The smaller or shrunken gums can then make your teeth loose and potentially fall out. The issue comes from a lack of strength in the root canal.

Solution

Speak with a certified endodontist who has done many root canal operations and has the experience and track record you will trust. They will give you advice on what your options are. They don’t always recommend you go for surgery, because if there’s hope to save your teeth, then they will do everything they can to do so. This goes for your root canals too. If there is an infection or inflammation, you can be given medicine for it. But if there is no alternative, then a root canal removal will need to be done. Don’t worry, you’re in safe hands.

Fat and Stress

Fatty foods have always been tempting to the majority of people. But now that we have been in lockdown for so long, eating junk food has been almost irresistible. Chips, chocolates, deep fried chicken, pizza, cheese, and all the rest of it, has been far too delicious to not have as part of your daily diet. But what does this mean?

Combined with stress, this has led to an obesity surge. Why? When stressed, the hormone cortisol activates and stimulates fat and carbs to metabolism and releases insulin. This then means that the fat in our body is increased due to the promotion of rapid digestion and absorption of energy. The chronic stress we have felt from lockdown has just added so much to this problem.

Solution

You need to have more endorphins and positive chemicals rushing through your body. Thus will make you feel far less stressed and able to return your body to it’s normal function. The constant stress of worry will activate our body’s fight or flight response. The body is simply protecting itself by absorbing more fat, which is basically just energy. Go outside now that the lockdown is mostly lifted. Go to a park, go for a walk in the countryside or by a river. Eat less and do more casual exercise such as cycling, walking, stretching and things like yoga. You should also do things that make you less stressed, such as turning off the news and staying away from social media. Focus on your diet and exercise, while focussing on your personal life, not what’s going on in the rest of the world.

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A Lack of Vegetables

A lack of greens in your diet is always a bad sign. But why has this happened? Well, for the first time in a long time, vegetables have not been part of the shopping list. Items such as toilet paper, medicines, bottled water and hygiene products like sanitizer have been at the top. Vegetables have neither been seen as necessary or worth the spend due to everyone also being put on hold from their professions. We haven’t known when we’re going to return to work so why bother spending money on food items that we may have already seen as a chore?

This has led to a drastic loss in minerals, nutrition and vitamins. Our skin has suffered as a result, due to a lack of vitamin B12 and vitamin E. We have also found that due to a lack of vegetables, our immune system has been weaker. We feel more distraught over an allergic reaction to the summer pollen, we feel more alive when the sun hits our skin and gives us the daily dosage of vitamin D we need and we feel heavier internally. Our system needs a good clean.

Solution

Make something with every ingredient being a vegetable. A vegetable baked with spices and herbs, or a vegetable smoothie with some natural sweetness, or perhaps a quiche with some summer vegetables? The bottom line is we need to increase our intake of vegetables, some way, somehow. Have vegetables as part of your normal breakfast. Bacon and eggs, with a side of onions and mushrooms? Pan-seared halloumi with some seared broccoli? Maybe even a bowl of porridge with some blackberries and cherries?

Eating At All Hours

Since the lockdown has broken our normal routines, we now eat at abnormal times. Do you find yourself having dinner later than usual? Perhaps you have it earlier and then can’t stop yourself from snacking. Well, now is the time you should stop eating and snacking at the wrong times and get your life clock back to where it should be.

Solution

You can do this by not eating breakfast for one day. You will then be hungry at lunch and have a chance to reset your eating habits to where they should. This only works if you are eating too much, however.

A poor diet has indeed become the norm. We shouldn’t get too comfortable with our poor eating habits and no longer use the lockdown as an excuse. Let’s take a more proactive approach in what we eat, how much of it, and when.

Thank you for reading!