I NEED to tell you about an album. It's called Hopelessness and it's from Anohni. I could say a bunch about how much I love her but I'll just tell you to listen to the album and check out the meanings behind the songs, because she put a lot of thought into this project in a really beautiful, critical way. The first two tracks are absolutely amazing. Moving on to brownies.
These are SO FREAKING DELICIOUS. It is really challenging not to eat them all in one sitting, and normally I would, except that in this case that would have a veeery intense effect. If you don't wanna add special herbs, no worries. This isn't the first special brownie I've shared on this blog, but it IS the best. These brownies are seriously stellar and I will be making them again and again, whether I have herbs or no herbs on hand. But if you DO enjoy a little plant medication, then you are in for an extra lovely treat. They are rich, chocolate-y, not too sweet and oh-so-satisfying. As usual, the ingredients are gluten-free and mainly nuts and dried fruit (sounds like a granola bar) but the result is 100% decadent and dreamy (sounds like my kinda party). This recipe isn't too strong because I have a low tolerance so if you really wanna notice some effects I'd suggest you use more herb in the herb-infused coconut oil recipe. Stay safe and have fun!
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RAW VEGAN SPECIAL BROWNIES
[ Makes around 9 ]
Herb-infused coconut oil: 3/4 cup coconut oil 1/2 cup your fave dried herb, roughly ground
Brownies: 3/4 cup pecans 3/4 cup brazil nuts 3/4 cup dates 1/4 cup raisins 3 heaping tablespoons herb-infused coconut oil 1/4 cup cacao powder Pinch Himalayan salt 1 teaspoon vanilla extract Frosting: 3 tablespoons maple syrup 2 tablespoons melted herb-infused coconut oil 2 tablespoons cacao powder Sprinkle of fleur de sel to top
To make the herb-infused coconut oil: prepare a double boiler (place a bowl/pot on top of a boiling pot of water) then turn the heat to low. Melt the coconut oil in the top bowl/pot of the double boiler. Add the herb to the oil. Let it infuse for at least 6 hours, but preferably all day. It should become slightly green and smell pretty strongly. Check on the water in the double boiler regularly and refill when necessary. Also smell the oil occasionally to make sure it doesn't burn (as long as you keep the heat low this shouldn't be an issue since we're just using steam). Let the oil cool and then blend it up with the herb, or strain the herb out. Let solidify in a jar and keep in the fridge!
To make the brownies: throw the nuts into a food processor and grind into a fine powder. Add the rest of the ingredients and process until you get a moist dough that holds its when pressed between two fingers. Press into a lined baking pan.
To make the frosting: stir together the ingredients until smooth. Spread evenly over your brownies and leave in the fridge for a couple hours or overnight. Tip: before you add the frosting, try a brownie and wait to see how it affects you, if it's not strong enough, add the frosting. If they're a decent potency for you without frosting just use normal coconut oil for the frosting recipe.
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Motivating kids to do something that’s actually good for them can be a handful; try telling them to eat the green healthy vegetables they so meticulously pick out and put aside. Yea, you know where that one’s headed! Well, it is possible, you’re just going to have to be a tad bit clever with that and you can still manage to get the natural goodness of veggies into their systems.
But what about exercise?
The unfortunate reality is that kids rarely get the ‘healthy for you’ talk, and are more inclined towards doing things that are unhealthy – or fun. Not that unhealthy things are fun, but you probably get the point. So how exactly do you go about motivating your kids to do some sort of physical exercise as often as possible?
11 Ways to Motivate Your Kids to Exercise More Often
#1) Start small
That’s the key to it all. Trying to do too much, too soon can often end up being more discouraging as opposed to motivating. And this is one mistake that a number of parents end up making. For your kids, running 10 laps around the block might sound like a lot, but if you tell them to start with just a couple of meters, they’ll like the idea even more and they will eventually increase their threshold as time goes by. But if you’re going to overburden them in the start, they’re going to hate exercising just like they hate doing other household chores.
#2) Make them walk the dog
Walking is one of the best exercises to keep your mind and body active throughout the entire day. Not to mention, it’s great for musculoskeletal health and for decreasing the early onset of chronic illnesses such as diabetes, obesity, and cardiovascular disease. But you know how kids feel about walking – most of them don’t even like to walk to the kitchen to fetch a glass of water for themselves. So how do you motivate your kids to adopt this exercise? Well, if you’ve got a dog, then it’s pretty simple; just ask them to take the dog out for a walk and mission accomplished. Make them do it more often. Besides, even the dog could use a stroll outdoors to empty its digestive tract.
#3) Timing is crucial
Time is a big reason; if you get the timing right, you might not even have to press your kids so much to exercise. Kids usually have a favorite show or two on TV and they’re more than unwilling to move from in front of the idiot box when their favorite show is on air. Obviously, if you’re going to tell them to do anything let alone exercise during that time, they’re not going to be happy about it. Sacrifice is an important lesson to teach your kids, but you should pick a time for their exercise or fitness routine that doesn’t clash with other activities of theirs. Pick a time for a light workout when you know they won’t resist; like right after dinner, or after school?
#4) Don’t limit your ideas
Ok, so exercise isn’t just walking and working out at the gym; at least not for kids. If you want to motivate your kids into adopting a healthy lifestyle and pick up exercise more regularly, you need to add some variety to the mix so that fitness regimes don’t end up feeling and looking like a military dictatorship. Adults often forget that playing too is a form of exercise. If you make them walk the dog one day, play a game of soccer with them the next. And stacking could be the third. For kids, exercise isn’t and shouldn’t be about the gym alone; as long as it gets them moving and working some, if not all of their muscles, it’s good.
It’s not who you are that holds you back, it’s who you think you’re not.
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#5) Phone-a-friend
If you need an extra hand in the motivation department, feel free to invite one of your kid’s friends for a hike. When they know that their friend(s) is coming, they’ll be even more excited and motivated. You could even use this as an opportunity to get to know your kid’s social circle even better by inviting their entire family.
#6) Track everyone’s progress
In fact, this has to be one of the best motivational techniques ever. Set fitness and exercise goals for the entire family, keep a calendar separately for this purpose and mark everyone’s progress on it. That way, everyone knows what everyone’s up to and where they stand. Watching others progress is a great way to induce motivation especially if your kids have the competitive gene in themselves.
#7) Connect with nature
Another way to motivate your kids to exercise more often and thus live living healthy lifestyles is by getting them to connect with nature. Be it spending more time outside of home away from technology or connecting with nature in a more literal sense by indulging In outdoor yoga, the more your kids embrace nature, the closer they’ll get to it. And it wouldn’t be long before they realize how important it is to make healthy choices in life. Not only will they be motivated to love healthy, they’ll also want to eat healthy and exercise more. If not for nature, then at least do it or a cause. Is your family a bunch of couch potatoes? Well, tell them that things are about to change!
#8) The Five Minute Warning
If you’re having difficulties in getting your kids to commit to exercising, motivate them by saying that they only have to give you five minutes – which is actually long enough for anyone to break a small sweat. However, the trick is that it never ends at five. In fact, a five-minute routine usually ends up turning into more than ten, which is better. Do that a couple of times and they’ll be used to it before you even know it; you wouldn’t even have to motivate them with the five-minute line the next time.
Time is more valuable than money. You can get more money, but you can’t get more time. – Jim Rohn
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#9) Make a schedule
Once your kids are getting the hang of exercise, making a weekly schedule is going to motivate them even more. Like adults, kids too respond better to a structured schedule; it just takes them a little longer to get used to it. You might want to set a date and time for the planned exercise and write it on the family calendar – if you’ve worked on one that is.
#10) Let them pick
In fact, if there’s a particular sport or exercise your kid enjoys, try doing that more often; let them be the decision makers for once. That way, they’ll be more motivated to take part and you wouldn’t have to spend a good fifteen minutes trying to convince them over the benefits of exercise. So if your kid likes bicycling give them some care instructions on cycling and let them ride. You could even ask your kids to take charge of the family fitness program for a week. That would build their interest even further simply by being in an authoritative position. Everyone likes to play boss after all!
#11) Bring in some competition
Competitions are always a great motivator especially when it’s the parents vs. kids types. You’re obviously going to win, but if you want to motivate your kids to work harder in achieving exercise and fitness goals, and work harder in general when faced with a challenge in life, it’s the idea of keeping ahead of their competition that’s going make them successful in the long run!
Author Bio: Zyana Morris
Zyana Morris is a passionate health and lifestyle blogger who loves to write about prevailing trends. She is a featured author at various authoritative blogs in the health and lifestyle industry. You can find her using twitter @ZyanaMorris
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How to organize your spices is part of our Healthy & Whole series to inspire a lifelong passion for home cooking and a sustainably healthy lifestyle. See the entire series here.
Back in January, we talked in our podcast episode Getting Minimalist in the Kitchen about our spice drawer. The episode focused on keeping only the essentials on hand, in order to stay organized and spend less energy worrying about too much stuff. After all, the minimalist mantra is “I am intentionally trying to live with only the things I really need.“
In the episode, we admitted that much as we try to maintain an organized exterior (our kitchen, Exhibit A)…
Our kitchen
…inside those drawers it’s a different story (Exhibit B).
Before (January 2016)
Literally chaos (and not even the organized kind). Here we are in June, and the bad news is it’s taken us 6 months to take any action on our goal to have an organized “minimalist” spice drawer. But here’s the good news: we (read Alex) took the time to convert our chaos to an organized, minimalist spice drawer (Exhibit C)!
After (June 2016)
Just how did we do it? Here are a few tips for how to organize your spices (and purge the ones you don’t need!):
Get motivated! The first step is to decide it’s time. When finding chili powder adds an extra 5 to 7 minutes to a recipe (I know it’s in here somewhere), your spices might be in need of some TLC.
Take stock. What spices do you use on a regular basis? Which do you use occasionally but as a special treat, and which do you never use? If you bought a special spice for one recipe and haven’t used it in the last 6 months, changes are won’t in the next 6 months.
Purge. The shelf life of most spices is 8 months to 1 year (see this infographic for more), after which they start to lose their flavor and potency. Along with some very ancient spices, you may have one-offs you’ve never used (as mentioned above), or duplicates or triplicates of the same spice. Trash everything but the newest essentials. Just do it: your kitchen will thank you.
Organize the survivors. We removed almost all of our spices from their original containers and repacked them into glass containers with tight lids (from The Container Store – see above). The only spices we kept in their original jars were specialty spices: for example, a specific type of curry powder. Clearly label the jars.
Repack the minimalist way. Place the new beautiful spices jars into your space in the organized fashion of your choice, making sure that the most used spices are as accessible as possible. We have a large drawer set aside for spices, and the new spices fit the space perfectly. If you’re using a cabinet, consider using a lazy susan or small trays for easy storage.
Wondering what the most used spices are in our drawer?
Cumin
Paprika
Smoked Paprika
Garlic Powder
Chili Powder
Oregano
Coriander
Cinnamon
Paprika
Black Pepper
Ginger
Thyme
Cardamom
Turmeric
Chipotle Powder
Are your spices in need of organization? Let us know if this helps give you the motivation you need! What are your favorite spices? We’d love to hear.
Fractions come up all the time in everyday life, and yet, they are often a difficult concept for elementary school-aged children to grasp. One way to help kids understand fractions as concrete things is to give them real world examples. In this Teaching Channel video, third grade teacher Maria Franco teaches a lesson on equivalent fractions in which she tries to give more space for student thinking and discussion.
Instead of asking all the questions, Franco says, “I’m going to see how you guys work by yourselves.” She’s circling the room, listening for understanding and interesting solving problem techniques, but rather than asking the questions, she’s listening to her students ask one questions to another to defend their problem solving.
“You came up with you own idea. It doesn’t have to be the same as mine as long as we get the same answer,” Franco said.
First off: shout out to this album. It's pay-what-you-can, all electronic music made by South American women and it's fire. Fave track: Blue Dress.
I've been focusing on activities that make me feel good and make me a better human, they keep me distracted from my negative thinking patterns (mental illness struggles woo) and force me to put my energy into stuff that is positive for my body, mind and/or spirit. One of those activities is going to the gym regularly. I love growing my muscles and feeling strong. I love lifting weights and watching my body wooork. I love the improvements in my physical abilities I notice over time (not trying to be ableist here though!) And I love giving my body what it needs once I'm done a workout. Which is a colourful variety of whole foods, with an emphasis on protein. I like mostly fruit smoothies, sometimes with veggies or greens blended it, and directly post-workout: with protein powder added.
Ya don't HAVE to do it, I know some people out there think it's better to go 100% au naturelle and not consume any powders or vitamins or supplements of any kind, instead getting all their nutrition from purely whole foods. I'm into that as a philosophical concept, but lately I haven't had much of an appetite, and who has the time to input all their meals into cronometer.com every damn day? Not I. So I take B12 and vitamin D once a week, enjoy superfood powders like spirulina, maca, etc. and add protein powder to my smoothies. Purists can judge away but I'm just doin' me, mkay? I love Vega right now, it tastes great (although they add a little more stevia than I'd like) and has a whackload of nutrients, vitamins and minerals my body needs. It's just convenient. These days I've been into the chocolate one. There are a bunch of other amazing organic vegan protein powders out there too, and I have yet to come across one I dislike. So throw in your personal fave for this recipe, and enjoy!
GINGER BERRY PROTEIN SMOOTHIE
1 cup pineapple
1 cup frozen berries
1 cup almond milk
1/2 teaspoon ginger powder
1 scoop of your fave vegan protein powder (or a couple tablespoons of nuts or seeds)
Blend until smooth and enjoy!
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Anastasia Gnyp of Hendersonville, Tennessee, graduated from Merrol Hyde Magnet School a semester early in 2009 with big dreams. She had received a Hope Scholarship, which would help pay in-state tuition to the institution of her choice, and was planning on attending the University of Tennessee Chattanooga to major in environmental agriculture. Gnyp said at the time she dreamed of becoming a “political environmentalist.” But then her family hit a rough patch due to her parents’ divorce, and to save money on tuition, she decided to delay entry to UT and first take some pre-req classes at Volunteer State Community College, about 20 minutes from where she was living at home.
“My goal was to start at Vol State, get my prerequisites out of the way,” she said, “and then transfer to the university, in attempts to basically save on tuition with the in-state financial aid.”
But in the middle of her first semester at Vol State, she became ill with what was thought to be manic bipolar disorder and later clarified: Gnyp was diagnosed with schizophrenia.
“I had to leave school entirely, to seek treatment,” she said. “It was a whirlwind: being a teenager, being freshly in college, on the cusp of adulthood, then that [schizophrenia] happening at the same time. I couldn’t handle it all for a little while.”
Gnyp lost her Hope Scholarship for not returning to school within a year. She said that, although Hope does make exceptions for mental illness, she “got caught up in the paperwork of it,” a process she described as “extensive and complicated.” At the time, she wasn’t used to the lengthy process it was going to take to save her scholarship while juggling treatment. She found out, too late, that she had signed the wrong papers and didn’t turn them in on time.
After nearly two years in treatment, now 20, feeling much better and realizing she needed to “do something,” Gnyp decided to start over and re-enroll at Volunteer State part time, where she could stay close to home. She no longer had tuition help from her scholarship, but she’d struck a deal with her dad, an orthopedic sales rep who himself had gotten a bachelor’s degree at Wayne State University in Michigan.
“I had an agreement with my father, that he would help me with my tuition payments if I kept my grades at 3.0 or higher, and I would contribute when I could. I worked different part-time jobs throughout college — I worked at Lowe’s and as a waitress for a couple of years — sometimes two at once, while going to school.”
Gnyp said she’s grateful to have emerged on the other side with no student loans, even though getting through the two-year associate program took nearly four years, first as a part-time pre-nursing major for two years, then switching to a full-time medical lab technology major, which took a year to complete.
While her particular case may be unique, Gnyp’s path to higher education is more typical of an American college student than what is often portrayed in the media: the recent high school graduate showing up on a leafy college campus away from home for a four-year college experience. According to the American Association of Community Colleges, community college students make up 45 percent, or nearly half, of all U.S. undergraduates; 7.3 million students are enrolled in both full- and part-time two-year associate and certificate programs.
Community college students also encompass a more diverse group than four-year institutions: 36 percent of community college students are the first in their families to go to college, and nearly 30 percent are parents themselves; black, Latino and minority students make up half the student population, and nearly all students work at an outside job while attending school.
Yet Gnyp is a financial outlier, since she had financial help from her parents: 60 percent of students receive some kind of financial aid to attend community college, whether through federal loans and grants, help from the school or work study, to help meet the average yearly tuition of $3,400 (as compared to the average four-year college, which is $9,400). Since most community college students come from low-income backgrounds, many struggle to juggle multiple responsibilities, work and stay in school long enough to graduate.
“There’s a high percentage of first-generation college students, a high percentage of folks that are working full time and going to school part time,” said Karin Weaver, executive director of development at Nashville State Community College in Nashville, Tennessee. “And so they are really saying, ‘I’ve got to get my bills paid and my family fed, but at the same time I’m trying to figure out a way to get into a better job.’”
One of Weaver’s main responsibilities at Nashville State is to try to meet the financial gap between grants, loans and scholarships and what students can afford. Unlike many four-year colleges, this work can be difficult. Because many community college graduates don’t make high-level salaries after entering the workforce, many colleges struggle with small endowments, and often rely on the community and local employers for financial gifts. Weaver said that she’s always looking at how to design programs to engage donors that might interest them.
“The fundraising piece is really huge,” she said. “When you think traditional higher ed, you’ve got alumni associations, endowments — but a lot of our alum are just average folks making average wages. Some of them are coming out and going into high-level positions, but as a whole, the students we serve are low-income folks.”
Therefore, Weaver said, even with federal aid, it’s critical to keep financial gifts coming in to serve what she sees as community colleges’ vital longtime mission: helping catapult students into the middle class.
A Short History of Community Colleges
The first “junior college” was founded in 1901 in Joliet, Illinois, as a two-year liberal arts institution for students who wanted to stay close to home and then eventually finish their last two years at a four-year university. It was only after the Great Depression that community colleges began offering more job training and vocational programs similar to those being offered in Europe, especially Germany.
But it was the GI Bill, along with the Truman Commission calling for more Americans to have access to higher education, that changed everything: By the 1960s, a massive expansion of local colleges spread across the country to serve individual communities’ needs, both to expand who could go to college and to train skilled workers for better jobs. It was during the ’60s that nearly 500 of today’s more than 1,100 community colleges were created.
And while vocational education — like heating and air-conditioning certificates or engine repair — continues to be the domain of community colleges, American Association of Community Colleges’ data show that more 2014 graduates got their associates degrees in liberal arts and sciences (33 percent) than in any other field, even health care. More data from 2014 show 60 percent of community college graduates went on to earn their bachelor’s in four years or less, and 12 percent more were persisting toward graduating after four years.
From Access to Completion
Tom Bailey, who serves as director of the Community College Research Center at Columbia University, said that another shift occurred for community colleges around the 21st century mark, when the focus shifted from providing access to helping students achieve completion.
“Where we were thinking of community colleges as access institutions — which of course, they did a good job, they’re cheap, they’re ubiquitous, you can work, you can go part time,” Bailey said. “But then I would say in the early 2000s, was the beginning of what is now called the ‘completion agenda.’ ”
In the year 2000, the Department of Education began publishing graduation rates for every community college, and even taking into account the very narrow criteria used to gather the numbers (including counting all transfers, even to four-year schools, as a dropout), the numbers were dramatically low, hovering around the 20 percent mark.
“People realized that community colleges had a concentration of the types of students we’re all worked about, right? Low-income students, minority students, first-generation immigrant, all of those. People whose jobs went away because of foreign competition or technological change, and they’re coming back to get retrained, all of those were things for community college. So there was much more attention paid to them.”
Research showed that students who attained any sort of degree would dramatically increase lifetime earnings over a high school diploma, so community colleges began to concentrate on not just getting students to college, but helping them stay until they finished.
The completion agenda has sparked such initiatives as guided pathways and Obama’s America’s College Promise, which is based on the very successful Tennessee Promise program, all in support of a national push to increase community college completion by 50 percent by the year 2020.
After a long and often winding six-year process in and out of school, Anastasia Gnyp graduated on May 17, 2016, with her associate’s degree as a medical lab technician — a career path she’d heard about from a family friend and found, once she investigated, that she loved. Volunteer State had recently build a new medical division, where she said everything seemed “advanced and high tech.” Vol State offers a bridge program to local Austin Peay State University, After establishing herself in her new career in a couple of years, Gnyp is planning to earn her bachelor’s degree there.
Even though staying in school, working and managing her illness was often tough, Gnyp wanted to share her story to encourage others to keep going.
“If I had to say I was disappointed about anything — it would have been nice to go to a four-year university and lived on campus and had no distractions in my education in a matter of four years,” she said, “as opposed to the close to six-year route it’s taken me. At the same time, I wouldn’t trade my life experiences I got from staying here. So overall, I would say that my community college experience has been very positive. And even uplifting.”
Do you have a cookbook collection? In all honesty, the vast array of cookbooks in this world sometimes overwhelms me. There can only be so many recipes, right? But the more I’ve read, the more I realize that each cookbook is a unique perspective based on a one-of-a kind individual — an actual person, not an anonymous faceless author who sits in a sterile test kitchen churning our recipes. Ina Garten is a real person, and so is Giada De Laurentiis, and that person who wrote The Joy of Cooking. Each person’s story and method for combining ingredients and creating food is equally valid. So the more cookbooks the better, not the other way around!
While we were in Portland recently, we had the pleasure of spending time with dear friends Dana and John, the sweet minds behind the website Minimalist Baker. They’re the type of people where you can laugh and eat loads of Mexican food with and then turn around and be completely vulnerable and real. I was so inspired to speak with Dana about some health issues that caused a recent struggle with hair loss (which she shared about here on the Jess Lively podcast), and share about some of my own health struggles with cancer. And speaking of real life people who write books, Dana has just realized a fantastic one: a cookbook called Everyday Cooking. All the recipes are beautifully shot and plant-based / vegan. We love that her approach to eating is similar to ours: she’s not straight-up vegan, but shares plant-based recipes to inspire eating more vegetables and follows this approach most of the time (which is what we’re all about too).
Of course we gravitated to the sweet potato recipes in this book, and we had to try these thai baked sweet potatoes. The verdict? Fantastically delicious. The tahini ginger sauce and spiced chickpeas balance the sweetness of the potatoes, and topped off with a chili garlic sauce and cilantro, it became an instant household favorite. We hope you enjoy it, and check out the link to Dana’s book below. Congratulations, Dana, on a gorgeous cookbook to add to our shelves!
Preheat the oven to 400°F and rub the halved sweet potatoes with the olive oil on all sides. Place on a foil-lined baking sheet and bake for 25 minutes (or more, depending on the size of the potato), or until very tender to the touch. Set aside.
In the meantime, heat a medium skillet over medium heat. In a small bowl, toss chickpeas with the garlic powder, cumin, ginger, coriander, maple syrup, soy sauce, and chili garlic sauce.
Once the skillet is hot, add the coconut oil. Saute the chickpeas until visibly browned and slightly dried out, about 5 minutes. Set aside.
To prepare the sauce, add all of the ingredients to the same bowl used for the chickpeas. Whisk to combine. Then add 1 to 4 tablespoons hot water to thin until pourable. Taste and adjust the seasonings as desired.
To serve, place the baked sweet potatoes on serving plates. Gently press into the middle of the potatoes to make a well for the chickpeas. Add the chickpeas and top with the sauce and garnishes of choice.
Store leftovers (separately), covered, in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave or a 350°F oven until warmed through, about 20 minutes.
Are you feeling stressed out? Burnt out? Pulled in a million (bazillion) different directions?
Between juggling work, relationships, families, finances, fitness, and (those seemingly far-away) personal goals….it can feel like your mind is being whipped in a blender. . .and left pooling into a pile of grey mush. Helloooo, near-future mental breakdown?
We can all get caught up in the busyness of life sometimes. But if too many weeks have gone by where your mind is in a frenzy, be aware that your brain is taking a serious batting – watch this Brainfacts.org video if you want to stress out about stressing out (or be fired up enough to stop the cycle):
So instead of scrolling through your Facebook feed for the thousandth time, or watchingThe Bacheloron T.V. (because hey, guilty pleasures are good for you, right?), I’ve got some better tips ahead. Here are:
5 Easy, Empowering Everyday Ways to Refuel and Reset Your Frazzled Mind
#1. RUN
A walk in nature is nice and all, but there’s something about a RUN that’s truly transcendental. Want to dump off some emotional baggage, if just for a few minutes? Feel energized, light, and free? Gain some fresh perspective? Well, running as a hobby is honestly your temporary “out” (and a healthy one at that).
Science studies have proven that jogging (for even just 20 minutes)increases focus, new neuron growth, and memory retention, while reducing anger and stress,and other endless benefits. Read more in this heartfelt and fact-based analysis fromNew Yorkmagazine’s The Science of Us website.
Jogging increases focus and memory retention while reducing anger and stress.
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How To Start Running Today
Run for pure pleasure, at least in the beginning (without keeping track of minutes or miles).Start with merely 5-10 minutes, even if it’s a pathetic shuffle for a while. You may find running right away in the morning is the most rewarding. It WILL get easier with each day — just trust the process. As they say,running is 90% mental and only 10% physical.
Let your mind and thoughts drift as you stride. Focus solely on your steps or breath, or analyze every wandering through or scenario happening in your life. . .think of people you know or wish to meet, places you’ve been or yearn to visit, personal projects you’d love to start. Switch days between running with music, and without (because both options make you feel and think differently). Whatever your mood (or mode) is, just let your mind “run” wild!
After weeks of running and feeling as though your legs are on autopilot (and your mind in a world of its own), you’ll get what “runner’s high” is really all about. You’llfind elation and self-confidence come effortlessly with every stride.
#2. YOGA / MEDITATION
If you get into the groove of running (and that whole mind-body connection), how about connecting those two entities with some SOUL? Meditation and yoga, like running, have been proven to literally change the brain (in 8 weeks, based on studies), as well as helping to significantlydecrease stress and anxietywhile increasing concentration, empathy, attention, and more. Read more about the benefits in this fascinating Forbes article.
Thebody and mind are merely a vehicle of expression– whether that be physical, creative, or intellectual. But yoga and meditation together invigorate all three modes (and go beyond with thespiritual– and this doesn’t mean religion; it just means connecting with your inner emotions and beliefs. It’s that fire of passion when you love what you’re doing, or that never-resisting niggle in your soul when something’s missing.
You’ll tap into that feeling often with yoga, which offers the perfect blend offeeling powerful and softened all in one. The easy flow of moves, the strength-holding poses, and beautiful music and mantras flowing in the background feel absolutely magical (once you find the right teacher/studio for you). Your mind will feelcentered, calm, and almost childlike blissful. THIS is whatself-nourishmentis all about.
START PRACTICING YOGA TODAY
Sign up for a weekly yoga, preferably atherapeutic or restorative-focused course. Know that’ll it take time for yourself to get used to the foundation of moves, and especially to knowing how to center your mind and keep it connected to the present. If you’re a master to-do lister, this will definitely be a change of pace (and perhaps a challenge) for you. Maybe the calming atmosphere feels phony or cheesy at first. But over time and dedication, you will realize it’s anything but. You’ll especially savor thosesavasana rest periods(at the end of each class) and feel as though you’ve cocooned up and reawakened with your wings spread wide and free.
Also,slowly start integrating your mindful practice to everyday tasks. . .like cleaning that huge pile of dishes, in the midst of texting a friend or old flame, answering annoying work emails, anything. Close your eyes, take a breathe or two, andreally focus on a task without fretting or getting annoyed. If you feel anger or impatience setting in, just acknowledge it, and kindly push it away. Breathe in, and out, and bring your mind back to your task, andtreat each step or movement as a careful, considerate practice.
You will see through time how the ebbs and flows of yoga and meditation bleed into each moment, each minute, each good, mundane or terrible life experience and encounter with others.You have the power of choice in how you react. . .to EVERYTHING. Choose wisely, and kindly.
#3. ENJOY A LONG, RELAXING SHOWER
Bathing is something we all do. . .yet take for granted. You may snicker at this statement now (especially if you’re a 5-minute hop-in-and-out type), but stop and let the idea ofshowering as a self-care ritualsink in for a minute. If you don’t live alone, think of what little time you have just to be 100% by yourself. (crickets chirping). Crazy, right?!
In today’s society, even when we are “alone”, we’re attached every nano-second to checking social media and seeing what everyone else “is up to” (everyone at their brightest and best filtered looks and fun events). Just as meditation triggers and opens new circuits in the brain (because of it’scalming, self-focused practice), showering activates that same mindset. Ever wondered why you get flashes of genius when you’re finally doing nothing or settling into R&R time? Check out the science behind why ashower is power for your creativityin this mental floss magazine article.
So if you crave some pure peace (without bosses, parents, or significant others wanting or asking things of you), lock the door and get ready to indulge. Rethink of your shower as a sanctuary (and enjoy!)
START RELAXING IN THE SHOWER TODAY:
It’s your time. So take your time. No rush. Set at least 30 leisurely minutes aside for an R&R shower session.
Get the water temperature set just the way you like it (hot, cool, warm, a switch every so often, you decide). Let thewater flow freely down your back and headlike a massaging waterfall, purifying your tired, aching back and soul. Suds up, andrelish your favorite scent, your ability to smell, to breathe, to just be. You have nobody to take care of at the second but yourself. Let the day’s worries wash awayin this pure moment.
Enhance your experience with a waterproof Bluetooth speaker (withsoft, soothing acoustic tunes crooningthrough) and perhaps somewater soluble pensfor marking down ideas on the side wall (you know, those article ideas or pros/cons lists of a big decision that come rushing through you. . . finally!)
And when you turn the water off, you are finallyclean (and clear-minded), ready to start the next (or current) day witha fresh start.
#4. GO FOR A DRIVE (BY YOURSELF)
Picturean open road, withnowhere in particular to go. Windows down, vibes up, and the perfect soundtrack (of yourlife) blaring out your speakers.
Does this sound too good to be true? Like an image out of a movie, right? Let’s be real – car drives are usually a headache and a half. It’s a jammed-up highway of hell, filled with pissed off drivers, people going 15-20 m.p.h over because they’ve got somewhere so “important” to be, and usually upset, anxious passengers in the car critiquing your every maneuver. Let’s just say driving is…tense. Road rage is what it’s about.
But what if a drive could beenlivening? Amini road trip away from the mundane tasks or dramagoing on in your life?
Rethink about treating the car as a vehicle of your soul. A solo drive does wonders for your mind (especially if you just got in a fight with someone, are stuck in a situational rut, or just want some freedom). It can even get your creative wheels slowly turning again (punmaybeintended).
Is there a mini place you go you’ve always wanted to visit? A beach, or park? A new route you’ve always been curious about?
Even driving to work (if you do so by yourself), can be utilized as arelaxing ritual.
Take a new route today, andleave earlyenough so that you’re not stressed. Now the real trick:practice tryingnotto get mad at people driving differently from you(too slow, too fast, discriminating against semi truck drivers, mini vans, Escalades, or beaters). Don’t judge for once; you don’t know the people’s lives and issues resting inside those glass windows. Be considerate, and open.
Focus on steering your own wheel. Your car model type everyone sees is nothing but a surface shell. The real you exists inside, focused on the goals ahead without worry, or complaint.
When you stop at headlights, don’t get impatient. Stop, look around, enjoy the nature and people around you. The road is always in flow, cars heading off to different places, filled with love and joy, or fear, sadness or anger. Each car holds inside a unique individual, stopping and going, steady in one lane, or switching to and fro, deciding where the next best route is. Gettin’ by.
But along it all, you are the driver of your vehicle: aware, careful, yet free. Coasting along on this busy, fascinating road of life.
#5. CALMING BEDTIME RITUAL (+ GRATITUDE JOURNAL)
If you’re in a frenzied place in your life right now, I bet deep, restorative sleep is literally but a dream to you. Perhaps you go to bed anxious, angry. . .or feeling depressed. Your mind and body are exhausted, but also wound up, and restless. You hit the sack like a soldier who lost his battle, slap the lights off, and (probably) start scrolling through your Instagram account, getting peeved or sad at how beautiful everyone else’s day or night looks like.
When zzz’s finally hit, you still toss and turn all night, wake up several times during the wee morning, and feel like a bear the next morning.
Yep, you’re doing it wrong.
Sleep is not a luxury – it is anecessity. If you are frazzled 24/7, lack of sleep alone can be one of the biggest culprits. Treat your body like a temple. Build a ritual to ease your mind and body into a true, general restful state, and stick to it. Look forward to it. Let it beyourcalming oasis, even in a midst of an emotional storm.
START A BEDTIME RITUAL TODAY:
Prep for about30-45 minutes prior. Dim the lights, burn some candles, have an uplifting choice of book by you for at least 5 minutes of reading (ditch the plot-driven novels for a self-empowerment/spiritual choice). Keep the iPhone on alarm-only, and face-down at the opposite end of your bedroom. If you’re a night shower person, this is the perfect segway to winding down and preparing your body to relax and let go of the day.
But the most impactful portion of your night ritual (no matter how you do it) is this:writing in a gratitude journal.Try to list at least 5 things a day, if you can. Get inspired by this Huffington Post analysis on all the great long-term benefits of doing so.
This isn’t an adolescent diary (for those who wary). You can literallybullet-point some positive things you’ve been thinking aboutrecently, or somehighlights of your day, no matter how big or small(was it a compliment from a stranger? A smile from a cute guy at the grocery store? Your favorite tune streaming during your cubicle desk job you could care less about?) Whatever it is, list it and expand upon it if you feel up to it. Some days you may feel like the list never ends, other nights you’ll feel so down, you’re embarrassed you can’t even think of one. Just try always to list 5, and focus on the good.
You’ll find through time thatwe each have the power to choose our lens of life, through the thick and thin. Is your glass going to be half full, or half empty?
Be grateful for every experience, and you’ll always feel centered.
Author Bio: Hannah Fredenberg
Hannah Fredenberg is a retail copywriter with a passion (sometimes for fashion) but largely for psychology and lifestyle/wellness topics. When she’s not writing M-F about clothing and accessories, you can find her running outside, hitting up the yoga studio, or reading a book (or two) for hours on end. Check out her copy-writing portfolio at https://hannahfredenberg.contently.com/ or contact her through Twitter (@Hfredenberg) or email at hfredenberg@gmail.com
from Dai Manuel: The Moose is Loose http://ift.tt/28TgqF2
Ey, babes! This recipe is bomb. It's creamy, decadent, sweet and full of wholesome stuff your body wants (like nuts, chocolate and chai spices). I know I flip flop a lot on what to call vegan cheesecakes: I've gone through phases of not caring, to preferring to call them cheeZecakes, to labelling them as cream cakes, and now I've gone full circle and am back to calling them cheesecakes because while no, they don't contain any DAIRY cheese, they ARE vegan cheesecake! I've stopped calling plant-based meats and cheeses "fake", and now I simply refer to them as vegan meats and cheeses, because that is what they are. This recipe is everything you want a cheesecake to be, it's just not made with dairy. I'm not a baby cow. I'm a grown ass human being who has access to non-dairy milk, nuts, rice, oats, fruits, veggies and more - so I make the choice to eat vegan foods because it's less damaging to the planet, and more compassionate to our animal pals. Going vegan isn't gonna save the world, but it's a small step towards a more conscientious lifestyle for those of us who can make it. Please eat as many of these cheesecakes as you want.
I have some new podcast recommendations! Y'all know how much I love podcasts and this week I've only gone further down the wonderful, educational rabbit hole that they are. Pretty much all music reminds me of Jack (the love of my life who dumped me a month ago) so I've deleted the tunes from my iPod - for now, until I heal - and have replaced that space with... you guessed it: more podcasts. First up: Bad Fat Broads! A radical fat acceptance podcast hosted by Ariel and KC, it's super informative and makes me feel empowered. They are ADORABLE and very smart, allowing their listeners to tune into critical conversations around fatness, sizeism, fatshion and more. I love it. Along the same vein, I encourage you to check out The Bodcast, Bustle's body positive podcast: the quality is great and the discussions are important. Next I wanna give a shout out to Reveal: a terrific, in-depth investigative journalism podcast that gets into unexpected subjects and does a good job of addressing systemic injustices and including the voices and experiences of ladies and people of colour. Finally, on a lighter note: 2 Dope Queens! Hosted by two hilarious black goddesses (Jessica Williams and Phoebe Robinson), this podcast is mainly funny folks doing comedy and it reminds me that I CAN take everything less seriously and laugh at life. Cuz life IS kind of a weird joke after all... right?
CHAI CHEESECAKES with CHOCOLATE DRIZZLE
Makes three mini cheesecakes
Cheesecakes: 1 cup cashews 1/4 cup dates 3 tablespoons maple syrup 3-4 tablespoons water or lemon juice 3 tablespoons coconut oil 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon powder 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg powder 1/8 teaspoon ginger powder 1/8 teaspoon vanilla powder 3-5 seeds from a cardamom pod
Crust: 1/6 cup coconut flour 1/6 cup almond flour 1 tablespoon maple syrup 1 tablespoon melted coconut oil 1 tablespoon cacao powder 2 tablespoons water Pinch Himalayan salt Chocolate drizzle: 1 tablespoon melted cacao butter 1 tablespoon cacao powder 2 tablespoons maple syrup
To make the cheesecake: blend all ingredients together until smooth, thick and delicious. Set aside.
To make the crust: stir together all the ingredients until you get a semi-crumbly mixture that holds its shape when pressed between two fingers. If it's still too crumbly, add some more water. Press the crust into lined cupcake molds and then fill with the cheesecake mix. Leave in the freezer or fridge overnight. Gently remove the cheesecakes from the molds.
To make the drizzle: stir together the ingredients - ya just made chocolate sauce! Drizzle over your cheesecakes and enjoooy.
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from This Rawsome Vegan Life http://ift.tt/28Z12c7
Award-winning educator Troy Cockrum is director of innovative teaching as well as host of the Genius Hour innovation class for middle schoolers at St. Therese of Little Flower Catholic School, a K-8 parochial school on the Southeast side of Indianapolis. One of the books that’s been most influential to him as he thinks about his work helping both teachers and students find ways to innovate is Seth Godin’sLinchpin: Are You Indispensible?
Though the book was written for the business world, Cockrum finds many applications in the education world as well. According to Godin, “linchpins” are people who are in touch with their own abilities to solve problems when “there’s no rule book.” And he calls them the “essential building blocks” of great organizations, who turn their work into a kind of art. That’s how Cockrum wants teachers to think of their job, and he believes, how students should think about their work and their futures.
The conversation has been edited for clarity and length.
Cockrum: I really likeLinchpinbecause it talks about a different system and mentality that is outside the education realm. Godin may not necessarily have all the right answers because he’s not an educator, but he’s asking big questions. The book is about how to approach your job and your work with a different mentality in order to be more productive and beneficial. He mainly presents ideas to help people rethink what our current business culture should look like.
In my job as director of innovative teaching, I have two roles: I work with teachers to help them plan, and learn how to integrate more contemporary or innovative teaching methods into their teaching. And on the other side, I work with students to help them conceptualize their work. For example, if it’s using a technology tool for a project, how can we use that more creatively?
I first read the book as I was transitioning into my new job [from middle school English teacher to innovative teaching leader], and it made me rethink how we should approach a job, particularly one like mine where my goal is to help other teachers improve.
In many ways, Godin made me put into practice what I was already thinking. One of the things he talks about is seeing what you do as art as opposed to a job. A job is what you do when someone tells you how to do it, and art is what you do when you take your own path. I see teaching as an art in general. So when I’m working with teachers, I always tell them, I’m not going to give you a binder to follow step by step, I’m here to give you ideas, then I want you to take your expertise and background and meld it.
I push a lot of teachers and students out of their comfort zone, and I do that because we need to get out of our comfort zone to improve.
Godin also talks about the industrial model of teaching, and how schools were designed for 100 years ago. He says that a lot of teachers teach by fear, because it’s a shortcut to what you need to get done. It may not be the best way to teach, but you can get the kids to be compliant in a short amount of time needed in order to pass the test or whatever.
But the world is changing — our kids are not going to be in the same kinds of jobs that we are in. I’m in an environment where I’m creating my own job and a lot of other people are doing the same thing. If you think you are going to find the ideal job, you’re not — you have to make the ideal job. So, we need to teach students that; they need to be critical thinkers and problem solvers, but what does that mean? We need to teach them to have the confidence to be different, and in the same regards as teachers, to push themselves out of their comfort zone and go beyond what they thought was possible, or are comfortable doing.
Godin writes, “You have all the information that everyone else has. But if you are deliberately trying to create a future that feels safe, you will willfully ignore the future that is likely.”
