Well-Intended Wins to Beat the Heat

The mid-August heat is in full effect so I have a few ideas to help you chill this week – both mentally and physically.

1. Eat your water.  Harvard Health suggests that a healthy person needs 30 to 50 ounces of fluid per day and food provides 20% of your daily intake assuming you’re making the right choices.  Add some in-season hydrating whole foods to your meals this week (via salad or smoothie maybe?) like watermelon, strawberries, peaches, cucumbers, lettuce, zucchini, and bell peppers…among my favorite.  And choose organic, please!
2. Chill out: cool your body and your mind with some deep, yogic breathing and a restorative ambiance.  We often don’t breathe deeply from our belly, instead, taking too many shallow breaths from the top of our chest creating neck and shoulder tension among other issues.  When you breathe deeply you should feel your hand rise and fall when you put it just below your belly button.  It takes some practice so read a little bit more here.  You may also want to experience the health and sleep benefits of relaxing music.  By nature, I am a high-wired personality…and I’m working on that.  So in our house, we are always playing some relaxing music to reduce tension and create a sense of calm.  My favorite sources of relaxing music are “Yoga Radio” or “Spa Radio” on Pandora as well as the “European Spa” album on Spotify.   And if you want to complete your full zen experience, this lavender soy candle will really bring the spa to your home – I just can’t get enough of that scent!
3. Clean up your soap.  While you’re in the shower this week rinsing off the inevitable sweat, take a quick inventory of the products you’re using and check their clean rating on Think Dirty.  Toxins in our products are making their way into our bodies and wreaking havoc in a number of ways.  I’m not a scientist, but I hear it’s bad…so maybe try to migrate even a few of your products to a better choice in efforts to start improving your health and sustainability.

I hope you all have a cool and womp-womp-free week!