Wine & Wellness Wednesday: Learn Something New and Rewire Your Brain

I recently tied a knot in a different direction from how I’m accustomed to tying knots.

It felt odd.

It also felt as if I’d strengthened my little grey cells, as Hercule Poirot might say.

I also recently resumed learning how to knit. I’ve crocheted for years, and I’m really good at flat things, but don’t ask me to make a sweater! Knitting always seemed harder. I also have a weird urge to make socks. (Yes I know! It's a long way from flat things to socks.)

It also felt odd.

And it felt really good.

It’s a known fact that learning new things strengthens the brain. Computer games, or mobile brain games on smartphones, have been pushed out for a long time as ways to strengthen the brain and help prevent memory loss. Learning to do tasks in different ways is sometimes critical, for example if someone has had a brain injury or if someone is temporarily incapacitated due to a less critical injury, such as a broken ankle or broken arm. Learning to do tasks in different ways can also be useful in strengthening the brain, although apparently not as much as learning something completely new.

So while you may not think about strengthening your brain as being a health topic, maybe it’s time to rethink that! ;)

Cheers! Here’s to your health! What new thing are you going to learn?

Wine & Wellness Wednesday: Clearing Clutter Made Me Giddy!

Yesterday morning I did a bit more puttering around my house, trying to get various bits & pieces put away, moving piles, eliminating piles, and clearing clutter. I cleared out one small section that had been driving me particularly batty and was instantly, absolutely giddy at how it felt to have something so small cleared up.

It made a huge difference in my morning.

I thought back to a post from early in 2016 about de-cluttering and its benefits on health, and I thought it would be a good time to revisit the topic. :)

Cheers! Here's to your health and finding something that makes you giddy. ;)

February 17, 2016: De-Cluttering

I’ve been trying to figure out what one change I could work on this week to improve my health (mental/physical/emotional) and I realized that clutter drives me crazy. (I know, I know. “Drives??”)

Clutter impacts your health in multiple ways. Think about it! Dust. The more piles of stuff around, the more opportunities for dust to collect. And then when you do finally move the pile, you breathe in more dust. And there’s sneezing. And headaches. And having to clean more. Plus the fact that the clutter is intimidating and frustrating and eventually the guilt or aggravation over not dealing with the clutter can start eating away at you and making everything worse. Add to that the feeling that things are closing in on you…well, I think you get the point.

I am terrible at remembering to put things away. It seemed until this week to be worst with clothes. Not wanting to take the ten steps to put away a sweater or hang up a pair of pants just seems silly. So I started putting the clothes away. It felt like an accomplishment! I put things in the kitchen cupboard that had been on the counter since the last time we bought groceries. I removed a pile of miscellaneous papers that had been on a shelf and put them where they must be dealt with before I can sit on a particular chair again. (Ok, so that was just rearranging the pile…but I’m going to deal with it! Really!) And when someone is going to come over? Ok…for some people maybe you think “They are good enough friends not to care.” But generally there’s the panic-stricken “OH NO PEOPLE ARE COMING WHERE DO I PUT THINGS” feeling that makes it hard to enjoy anticipating company.

Clutter can be a cause of stress and depression. (It can also be a result of stress or depression.) There can be any number of causes (or results). What is one way to get back some of the control or peace or pleasure in your space, reduce your stress, and increase your mental and physical health? Clean one pile. Put something away instead of leaving it on the back of the sofa. Hang up the coat. Put the keys on a rack. (That way, you’ll always know where they are!) Decide on places to put stuff; if you don’t have somewhere to put it, how can you put it away? Be kind to yourself. Take it one step at a time. You didn’t end up with a cluttered, dusty space all in one day.

Cheers! Here’s to your health!

Wine & Wellness Wednesday: Gratitude, Positivity, and a Guest Post

Tomorrow is the last day of November, and November is the month of Thanksgiving, and traditionally there’s lots of talk about what we are grateful for. That’s a good thing to keep in mind on a daily basis.

I’m grateful for a regular practice of meditation and journaling every morning, and I start every journal entry with the same three questions every day:

  • What am I grateful for today?
  • What am I positive about today?
  • What are my creative intentions for today?

At the end of 2016, I posted about feeling gratitude and what I was grateful for last year. (I’m including the link to that post in the comments.) Thinking about gratitude and positivity and my daily journaling let me to thinking about something a good friend of mine, Robert Caverty, has been doing. He started a daily positivity practice. I asked him recently why he’d done so and how he felt he benefited. I’m very grateful to Robert for sharing his experience with me and allowing me to share his words here.

Cheers! Here’s to your health!

Robert Caverty: So, I had been suffering some major depression and was struggling to claw my way back. At some point I realized the problem wasn't going to go away on its own, so I did a bit of research and found that one of the biggest hurdles for depression is the fact that your brain feeds on reinforcement - so when you're feeling down, you think negative thoughts, which makes you feel down, repeat ad nauseam.

Just like trying to not think of a purple elephant, the trick isn't to get yourself to stop thinking about it, but to fill your mind with something else and build on those reinforcements.

The original journal concept was to write three things I liked about the day (regardless of how important they are - could be as simple as "I held the door open for someone"), saying them out loud as I wrote them (for stronger reinforcement) each night, then reread them aloud in the morning.

At first, it was really hard to come up with things to write, and I still struggle with jotting down the first positive at times, but I found each positive made the next one easier to find, so that by the third or fourth or fifth, they start flowing easily. I also found over a few weeks that I noticed more positives throughout the days, since I was slowly (somewhat unintentionally) training myself to look for them.

After a few months, it became habit. Day-to-day troubles became less and less bothersome; I started becoming more productive at work and more able to focus on solutions when presented with a problem. My relationship with my son started improving, and parenting became less about the chore of keeping a child alive and well developed, and more about the joy and shared experiences of life.  I stopped seeing problems, and started seeing opportunities in their place. The world didn't change, but my perspective did.

Getting started (and getting over the slightly hokey-ness of the whole process) was the hardest bit, but if I could pinpoint one tool that's helped me come back from the brink, that list would be it!

Wine & Wellness Wednesday: The Power of a Smile

I realized recently that three of my favorite meditation mantras include the word “smile” in them.

I realized a long time ago that every time I think that word when I am meditating, I do indeed actually smile. :)

Breathing in, I calm my body.
Breathing out, I smile.
Dwelling in the present moment,
I know this is a wonderful moment.

In, out.
Deep, slow.
Calm, ease.
Smile, release.
Present moment, wonderful moment.

Waking up this morning, I smile.
Twenty-four brand-new hours are before me.
I vow to live fully each moment and to look at all beings with eyes of compassion.

All three of these are also from writings by Thich Nhat Hanh. I’m pretty certain that isn’t a coincidence.

Nothing is more annoying, especially if you don’t feel like smiling, than hearing someone say, “Hey! Smile!” or “Why aren’t you smiling?” or similar things. (We won’t go into RBF in this post; I promise!) A forced smile probably won't do anyone any good. Browbeating someone into smiling may do more harm than good. However, oddly enough, a fake smile can actually provide some of the same benefits as a genuine smile.

Oh, but a truly genuine smile, even when you don’t feel like smiling but you’re putting a good face on it anyway? Or a genuine smile when you do feel like smiling and you want to share? That has the power to move mountains. Or at least make your day better, and make someone else’s day better as well.

Smiling is contagious. Smiling releases neuropeptides that fight stress. Smiling releases endorphins and can help relieve pain.

Smiling is spectacular!

Cheers! Here’s to your health! :)

By the way, in February of 2016, I posted about the power of smiling and the power of laughter. Smiling is related, but not entirely the same thing. I’ve added both of those posts to this site; they were originally only posted on Facebook and LinkedIn.

Wine & Wellness Wednesday: Laughter (02/10/2016)

Last week, I talked about how a smile is good for your health. My husband suggested laughter as a topic for Wine & Wellness Wednesday! This week, I want to go a step further and talk about how laughter is good for your health.

I think you’ll agree with me when I say there’s some kind of excellent feeling that comes after a really good laugh! Even thinking about how it feels to laugh really well makes me smile. I’m talking about the laughter that comes with positive emotions, specifically, or true humor; not the kind that goes with laughing at someone out of malice. I don’t think that would have the same effect.

If even a fake smile can have benefits, can faking laughter also have benefits? Absolutely! You’ve heard “fake it ‘til you make it,” right? Starting to laugh at nothing and for no reason can eventually turn in to actual, honest-to-goodness laughter, and there’s a benefit in that for you. There’s even a laughter party on the phone that you could dial in to every day! I haven’t participated in way too long, but when I have dialed in, I’ve felt really good for quite a while afterwards. It’s laughter yoga! It’s better when shared!

Here’s a challenge for you! Find some time every day to laugh. If you don’t find it happening naturally, make it happen! Dial in to the laughter party on the phone. (The info is available on Facebook. Let me know if you’re interested and I’ll point you in the right direction!) Sit down and laugh for no reason, even if you don’t think it will work. Pop a funny movie in the DVD player and fast forward to the funniest bits. Laugh a while! Check in with yourself afterwards; how do you feel? Laughter really is the best medicine. :)

Cheers! Here’s to your health!

Wine & Wellness Wednesday: Smiling (02/03/2016)

I found myself wondering recently whether smiling could have a positive impact on health. I thought it was exceedingly possible, as I can feel myself relax a bit and feel my stress levels drop slightly even when I smile only at myself and for no particular reason.

Yes! Smiling is good for you. :) (It’s good for other people, too.) It can reduce your blood pressure, heart rate, and help you recover from stress faster. It is also possible that smiling will help you retrain your brain in positive directions.

Does it have to be a genuine smile? (It would be the best thing, wouldn’t it?) Nope! A genuine smile may be best, but a fake smile is the next best thing.

This is not one of those “Smile! You’ll be prettier!” or “Smile! You look too serious.” posts. Those aren’t helpful comments; they’re downright rude and annoying.

This is one of those “When you smile, you do good things for your body!” And now, I think I’ll smile while I meditate. :)

Cheers! Here’s to your health!

Wine & Wellness Wednesday: Eat Your Cabbage. Or Kohlrabi. Either Works!

I want to talk about cruciferous veggies. Specifically, I want to talk about cabbage & kohlrabi. (Yes, I like broccoli & kale & cauliflower & Brussels sprouts. I’m simply limiting this topic to cabbage & kohlrabi specifically! AND cauliflower had its own post not that long ago!)

I like cabbage.

I like kohlrabi.

I knew I liked cabbage.

I didn’t know I liked kohlrabi, until recently.

I’ve had cabbage both raw & cooked and enjoyed it, although I do find large hunks of purple cabbage in salads completely baffling.

I think maybe sort of once upon a time I’d had kohlrabi but I didn’t remember anything about it, other than it was vaguely cabbagey.  (Cabbage-ish? Cabbage-y? Whatever!) I have now discovered that I particularly like fresh kohlrabi peeled and cut up and even lightly salted. It’s crunchy, a tiny bit sweet, and very filling. One of these days I’m going to grate some into coleslaw. I may even try cooking it in something!

Also? Weirdly? I have absolutely, positively zero idea WHY…but kohlrabi plants remind me of mandrake plants, specifically the mandrake plant Professor Sprout pulls out of the ground in one of the Harry Potter books (and movies). Don’t worry. If you plant kohlrabi, it won’t scream at you when you harvest it!

I digress. Back to cabbage & kohlrabi. (And yes, by extension, back to the rest of the cruciferous veggies!)

Vitamin K. Cancer-fighting compounds. Iron. Antioxidants. Compounds that may fight inflammation and help prevent heart disease. Dietary fiber. Improved digestion. Low in calories. Doesn’t all of that sound great??

Have some cabbage. Or kohlrabi. Or broccoli. Or cauliflower. Your health will thank you!

Cheers! Here’s to your health!

Wine & Wellness Wednesday: Washing Your Face Is Good for Your Health

Google has failed me.

My Google-fu is no longer as strong as it was.

For the first time, Google has failed to return search results that I can utilize to confirm and support my theory.

I’m on my own here.

I’m not sure I can cope!

<insert laughter here>

For several days over the past weekend, I went swimming late in the day. I showered afterwards so as not to sleep in the chlorine. Each of the following mornings, I had no reason for a full shower.

I washed my face instead. It felt weirdly glorious. I didn’t need a full shower, however, washing my face felt like a fresh start to the day, like I was ready for anything. At the end of the day, washing my face feels like I’m ready to call it a day and be done, like I’ve cleaned off the dust and detritus of the day, both mental and physical.

We look at New Year’s Day as a fresh start. Some people say Mondays are their favorite days, because they are fresh starts every week. The simple act of washing your face can be a fresh start twice a day, and that’s a wonderful thing both for your mental and physical health!

Cheers! Here’s to your health!

Wine & Wellness Wednesday: Take a Vacation!

Back in 2016, I posted (and then re-posted) this topic about vacations and taking down time. As I look forward to a long weekend away (a mini vacation, if you will), I go back to this topic and it’s still relevant.

Down time matters.

Vacation time matters.

Relaxing matters.

Scheduling fun time matters.

We all need breaks from our routines, even as we take some of our routines with us when we take those breaks. :) (For example, meditating, journaling, and exercising are routines I try to take with me everywhere I go! I also stick to my gluten-free menus and mostly, usually, healthy eating. But not always!)

Take a day. Take two days. Take a week! Take time away from your everyday responsibilities and take time for yourself. Your health will thank you. Your brain will thank you! Going back to work and being more productive means your colleagues will thank you! :)

Cheers! Here’s to your health!

http://www.makeonechange.today/new-blog/2016/6/1/wine-and-wellness-wednesday-take-a-vacation

Wine & Wellness Wednesday: Find Joy

I'd been wracking my brain to think of a topic for this week, and one of these days I'll get around to the health benefits of kohlrabi. Really. I will. (In case you're helplessly curious!)

Several sad occurrences this week reminded me of just how important it is to find joy in life, not only in big events like weddings or births or other major things, but in little, everyday occurrences that frequently go unnoticed or even ignored. 

A conversation with good friends. 

A kiss from my husband. 

A cuddle with the dogs. 

A sighting of a flicker on the evergreen tree in our front yard. 

The fleeting glimpse of glowing golden leaves against a stormy sky. 

The silence when the gusts of wind have paused. 

All of these and more can produce moments of joy. 

Finding joy in those moments, or recognizing them when they happen, can be extremely rewarding. 

They can also be good for your health. Joy & happiness can, in cumulative fashion, help lower blood pressure and heart rate, and the happiest people have lower rates of heart disease. Experiencing joy & happiness can strengthen your immune system. Being open to joyful moments can help reduce stress and increase your enjoyment of the world around you!

Cheers! Here’s to your health!

http://bookofjoy.org

https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/six_ways_happiness_is_good_for_your_health

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-cynthia-thaik/joy-health_b_4612156.html

 

Wine & Wellness Wednesday: Spinach (Again)!

Whoops! I fell asleep last night before posting my Wine & Wellness Wednesday topic! That’s what I get for fighting a cold…

Back in June I posted about spinach, and it is one of my very favorite foods! It’s spinach season again and we’ve had wonderful greens from our CSA (which also happens to be from one of our favorite farmers market vendors). So it’s spinach for the theme this week again!

Cheers! Here’s to your health!

http://www.makeonechange.today/new-blog/2017/6/14/wine-wellness-wednesday-spinach

 

Wine & Wellness Wednesday 06/14/2017: Spinach!

Just like Popeye the Sailor Man, if you eat spinach you’ll get healthy & strong!! :)

Well…maybe that’s a bit of an exaggeration, but not by much!!

I’ve become so obsessed with spinach that this spring I decided to try growing some. So far, it’s doing pretty well, although in Iowa we’ve recently had extremely hot weather very early, so I’ve put my spinach in a shadier, cooler spot to try and extend its growing season. (Spinach doesn’t love super hot weather.) I’ve eaten some of the spinach from my little garden and it’s pretty tasty. We really enjoy the spinach that comes from our CSA box (community-supported agriculture), and frequently buy it from the farmers market as well.

And naturally, being of a curious disposition, I went looking for information on the health benefits of spinach. I knew, vaguely, that spinach is good for me. The specifics border on overwhelming, and of course some of the claims are going to be hard for science to confirm. (Are you paying attention? There won’t be a quiz later. Ha!) Spinach is a good source of the following nutrients: iron, vitamin K, vitamin A, vitamin C, folic acid, vitamin B2, manganese, and magnesium. It also contains high levels of chlorophyll, thanks to those lovely, dark-green leaves, along with beta carotene and lutein. Phytochemicals such as beta carotene are believed to have anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties. Spinach is also full of fiber and water, so it’s good for the digestive system. (One drawback to spinach is the oxalate content, which is a problem for people who have or have had kidney stones.)

I’m one of those people who likes spinach both cooked and fresh. I love it in salads, and sometimes I use only spinach in a salad instead of lettuce or a mix. I also love throwing it into cooked dishes, whether the instructions say to do so or not. For example, if we are traveling and have a hotel room with a microwave, I’ll make and freeze scrambled egg muffins. Basically, I sauté together a little bit of ham, onion, red bell pepper, and spinach, throw that mix into greased muffin tins, add beaten egg and cheese, and bake them in the oven. Voila! Breakfast we can take on the road, easily reheat, and it’s good for us.

Do you like spinach? If you do, what’s your favorite spinach recipe? If you don’t, try it sometime mixed into a salad; you may find your tastes have changed and you like it now. :) (Also, the BBC Good Food link has recipes!)

Cheers! Here’s to your health!

http://foodfacts.mercola.com/spinach.html

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/270609.php

https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/ingredient-focus-spinach

 

 

Wine & Wellness Wednesday: Cauliflower!

Cauliflower! It’s not just the veggie-that-everyone-leaves-on-the-relish-tray any more!

Whew! That was a really long, moderately ridiculous hyphenated thing I just did there.

Let’s get serious for a minute.

When was the last time you heard someone say, “I just LOVE cauliflower!”?

I’ll wait.

Still waiting.

(Maybe it’s you. Maybe you’re the one who says it! That’s super cool if it’s the case!)

I feel as though cauliflower is the little brother to broccoli that no one likes. That was definitely the case for me for a long time. Then not long ago I made a cream soup using cauliflower instead of milk, and last week my husband made a shepherd’s pie using mashed cauliflower as the topping instead of mashed potatoes. Both of those recipes were AMAZING.

What else is amazing? The nutrient value for cauliflower! One cup of cauliflower has around 25 calories and 5 grams of carbs in one cup. One cup of potatoes has around 115 calories and 26 grams of carbs. Zoikes! Cauliflower has vitamin C, vitamin K, and fiber. What’s that mean? Other than it’s good for you, you can eat more and feel better about it, but it’s so filling you probably won’t want more.

What’s your favorite way to eat cauliflower?

Cheers! Here’s to your health!

 

Wine & Wellness Wednesday: Cool As a Cucumber!

Ok. I have a confession to make. I might be a tiny bit obsessed with the Darlington variety of cucumbers. (Although recently I’ve also found lemon cucumbers very tasty.)

Yes, I’m being specific. And maybe a little silly. :)

I tried a cucumber recently at work and just about lost my mind because it was insanely sweet and delicious. It was almost like eating candy, and yet it was cool and refreshing at the same time. I asked the greenhouse owner what kind of cucumber it was. Darlington. That’s now the magic word in cucumber varieties in my life. :)

Yum!!!

Why eat cucumbers?

Cucumbers are approximately 95% water. They’re great for helping you stay hydrated through food intake. (Don’t forget to drink water, too!) Cukes are full of nutrients such as vitamin K, vitamin C, and potassium. Research is in the very early stages on whether the compounds in cukes can help fight cancer or heart disease. Cucumbers also contain dietary fiber, and that’s good for you too!

To peel or not to peel? That’s entirely up to you. Sometimes the skin on a cucumber is thin enough to be pleasant to eat, and sometimes it’s not. Cucumbers are great in salads, in dressings such as tzatziki sauce (mmmm Greek food), or fresh as snacks. One thing I haven’t tried yet is actually cooking the cucumbers, as heating up something I’m accustomed to eating cold & fresh seems odd. But I might try it soon!

What’s your favorite way to eat cucumbers?

Cheers! Here’s to your health!

Wine & Wellness Wednesday: An Apple a Day

No, I don't mean the Apple iPhone. Or iPad. Or any Apple product.

I mean the fruit. :) 

Ok, I’m going to be super candid for a moment.

I’m fairly certain I’m terrible about eating fruits & vegetables. Whatever the recommended daily serving may be, I’m pretty sure I’m not getting enough. Although recently I’ve had a fair amount of garden fresh produce, and that makes a huge difference! Cucumbers, apples, strawberries, and tomatoes, oh my! (Insert Wizard of Oz earworm here!) They taste better than veggies and fruits from the grocery store, too! I love fresh veggies and fruits; I’m not always great at remembering to eat them. (Although come to think of it, I do a lot of cooking with veggies so maybe I do better than I think!)

I did enjoy a tasty, juicy, orchard-fresh apple today. :)

I found myself wondering about the phrase, “An apple a day keeps the doctor away.” So, it being what I do, I went looking for both the origin of the phrase, thank you Wikipedia, and actual science behind why it’s valid. Because, y’know, that’s me. I get curious about stuff. :)

Wikipedia says, "First recorded in the 1860s, the proverb originated in Wales, and was particularly prevalent in Pembrokshire. The first English version of the saying was 'Eat an apple on going to bed, and you’ll keep the doctor from earning his bread.' The current phrasing ('An apple a day keeps the doctor away') was first used in print in 1922.“

Apples are good for you. Soluble fiber and 84% water. A flavonoid (quercetin) that may help reduce the risk of certain cancers. Vitamin C. Phytonutrients.

Maybe they won’t keep the doctor away. But apples (and other fruits!) will help you stay healthy!

How do you like your apples? :) And please don’t just say, “In apple pie!”

Cheers! Here’s to your health!

Wine & Wellness Wednesday: Mindset

Whether you think you can, or think you can’t, you’re right!

You’ve heard the phrase. Maybe you’ve even said the phrase to someone else! Maybe it’s a little corny, or cutesy, or a little too cheerleader-ish…that doesn’t make it inaccurate!

I recently finished reading an extremely interesting and useful book, MINDSET, by Carol Dweck. The primary focus of the book is the differences between the fixed and growth mindsets, which I found useful. This morning, seeing the book on my table made me think about mindset and health.

Super short summary of the mindsets: the fixed mindset believes that who you are is essentially established and can’t be changed much; the growth mindset believes that learning and growing and changing is not only possible, but achievable and desirable. (Honestly? It’s considerably more involved and the book is exceptional and I highly recommend reading it.)

What is your mindset about your health and the current state of wellness in your life?

Where do you wish you could make changes? Where do you know you need to make changes?

What’s stopping you?

You heard me. (Well, you read me, anyway, since this is a blog post and not a podcast.)

What’s stopping you?

Whether you think you can, or think you can’t, you’re right.

Think about that for a minute.

Put yourself in the growth mindset for a minute.

What could you accomplish, related to improving your health and wellness, using the growth mindset?

Let’s say your health goal is to lose ten pounds. That’s an achievable number, and it’s achievable no matter what your current weight may be. I strongly believe that! Maybe you’re in the habit of drinking three cans of pop every day. That’s a lot of calories you don’t really need. The fixed mindset might say, “I need those three cans of pop every day to be happy.” The growth mindset might say, “I can substitute a glass of water for one can of pop a day for a week and see how I feel.” Maybe you’re not in the habit of getting exercise and starting seems overwhelming. The fixed mindset might say, “I have never been active so why start now?” The growth mindset might say, “It could be a good thing to try going for a five-minute walk.”

Do you see where I’m going with this? YES! This fits in with my philosophy that anyone is capable of making one sustainable change a week to make long-term improvements in health and wellness.

Whether you think you can, or think you can’t, you’re right!

(Another way to think of it is rewording the little engine that could. “I know I can, I know I can,” or “I know I will, I know I will!”)

What growth mindset change are you going to work on today?

Cheers! Here’s to your health!

Wine & Wellness Wednesday: Organic & Natural & Chemical-Free

Labels, labels, labels. We are surrounded by labels and we are told, “This label is good and that label is bad and this label is better.” In August of last year I did a post on what the labels on fruits and vegetables mean, and I kept thinking I wanted to go back and revisit the difference between organic and natural and chemical-free. This could be super confusing! Let’s see if, for this #winewellnesswednesday, we can sort a bit of it out. :) 

Note that for my purposes, these labels relate to food.

Merriam-Webster defines organic as “relating to, yielding, or involving the use of food produced with the use of feed or fertilizer of plant or animal origin without employment of chemically formulated fertilizers, growth stimulants, antibiotics, or pesticides.”

Merriam-Webster defines natural food as “food that has undergone minimal processing and contains no preservatives or artificial additives.”

It’s harder to find a specific or standard definition for chemical-free, so for my purposes I’m going to define it as “food grown or prepared without using chemically-formulated fertilizers, growth stimulants, antibiotics, or pesticides.” Yes, I swiped some of the Merriam-Webster language. There’s a reason for that.

Organic is good. Chemical-free is good. Natural is good. All of these are good.

Side note: eating fresh veggies, whether they are organic, chemical-free, or produced using chemical pesticides? Fresh veggies are ALWAYS good for you. Buy what you can afford, but try to buy fresh veggies. One of the best feelings in the world is walking outside to my small veggie garden and picking an orange cherry tomato (Sun Gold variety, if you’re curious). I don’t spray for bugs, and I used a little bit of fertilizer, and nothing tastes better than a fresh tomato straight off the plant.

Organic labeling requires producers to follow certain stringent guidelines that vary by country. There is a considerable amount of work that goes into obtaining and maintaining the organic label. Someone chose to go organic to avoid putting extra amounts of pesticides and herbicides onto their plants and into the environment. It can be expensive, time-consuming, and so some producers will choose to avoid the label and call themselves chemical-free instead. Chemical-free also means that someone is choosing to avoid putting extra amounts of pesticides and herbicides onto their plants and into the environment.

All of these labels are good. Personally, I have bought and will continue to buy produce with both labels. I will, honestly, also continue to buy conventionally-raised veggies depending on where I am and what my budget will allow. Whether organic or chemical-free, you’re getting food with a minimum amount of pesticides, and whatever way you slice your apple, that’s a good thing. While I enjoy some highly-processed foods, I am tending toward preferring natural foods with minimal processing. (I will not go so far as to advocate eating raw meat! Some processing is necessary for food to be safe to consume!) And processing the foods yourself at home? That’s a big difference from getting a packaged dinner at the grocery store.

Cheers! Here’s to your health!

Wine & Wellness Wednesday: Mindfulness

I love this line from an article on mindfulness, from the web site www.helpguide.org.

“Did you notice whether you felt well-rested this morning or that forsythia is in bloom along your route to work?”

For one thing, forsythia is one of my favorite spring-blooming shrubs.

For a second thing, paying attention to whether or not I feel well-rested is a good thing to try and do.

Both things demonstrate the importance of mindfulness and being present in your day-to-day life.

Mindfulness is generally defined as focusing on what you are doing, feeling, or thinking right now, rather than trying to think about EVERYTHING ALL THE TIME RIGHT NOW ALL THE THINGS.

Specifically, Wikipedia defines mindfulness as “the psychological process of bringing one's attention to experiences occurring in the present moment, which can be developed through the practice of meditation and other training.”

If you think about it, you can probably come up with dozens of examples on your own. I can think of a few. Sitting with friends, focused entirely on the conversation instead of thinking about what’s for dinner or what’s on the to-do list for the next day. Watering plants at the greenhouse and listening to the wind and the birds and simply enjoying the sunshine and the breeze. Sitting on the patio watching dragonflies dance. (I’ve noticed that for me, many mindfulness moments come while I’m outdoors!)

When I’ve allowed myself to be mindful, to be present with what I’m doing or with the people around me, I feel calmer, more peaceful. My blood pressure drops. My mind feels more settled.

I’ve also noticed that dogs are just about the most present, mindful creatures and we could learn a lot from them. They are fully engaged with what they are doing in each moment without worrying about the past or the future. (Except sometimes when they think food should be showing up!)

The first step is to pay attention to what you are doing in a given moment. A different first step is to practice meditation and bringing your thoughts back to your breathing. A different first step…you get the idea. Everyone could have a different approach to being more mindful in their lives!

What are you going to do today to be more mindful and more present in your life?

Cheers! Here’s to your health!

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mindfulness

https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/compassion-matters/201303/benefits-mindfulness

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tenzin-norbu/mindfulness_b_1789607.html

https://www.helpguide.org/harvard/benefits-of-mindfulness.htm

 

Wine & Wellness Wednesday: Walking! (Yes, Again...!)

There’s a reason I keep coming back to the topic of going for a walk.

It’s exercise, and it can be easy. It doesn’t have to be for very long, and it doesn’t have to be very fast.

And in the United States, we don’t walk enough. TIME magazine recently shared walking data from around the world; the study followed 700,000 people in 46 countries.

Guess where the US ended up on that list?

Go on, guess. I’ll wait.

Got it yet?

30th. 30th out of 46 countries for average daily steps.

The average number of daily steps taken by Americans in the study was 4,774. I don’t know about you, but I don’t always get to that on a daily basis, and then there are days when I exceed that by a lot. So I know I can do more walking! (Parking further away from the store is one way, and I’m back to that habit most days.)

At the same time, any steps you take are more than you were taking when you were just sitting still. :)

It’s also a good time to get in some meditation. Um…huh? Think about it! If you’re out for a walk by yourself, or even with your dogs, or even with a companion, you can decide to be silent. To focus on breathing. To focus on how your feet feel as they hit the ground. How does your breathing change? Take your thoughts and bring them back to your body when you start contemplating the 99 things you need to do that day. Listen to the wind. Listen to the traffic. Listen to the birds. Listen to your heart. I went out for a brief walk this afternoon with my dogs and as my thoughts wandered, I kept coming back to focus on our movements, and being together, and being intentional about going out. Picking up poop wasn’t the most meditative moment, but overall it was a really good walk. :)

What are you going to do to walk more and try to bring the average number of steps up?

Cheers! Here’s to your health!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/danny-and-katherine-dreyer/walking-meditation_b_1790035.html

 

 

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Original post: 12/23/2015

I have my wine, it’s Wednesday, and it’s time for another #winewellnesswednesday! J So far I’ve talked about wine & water; the alliteration will (temporarily) stop after today’s topic, which is walking!

Yesterday, I decided to take advantage of moderately nicer weather and no precipitation (although a very grey day, at least at lunch) and take our dogs for a quick walk around the block. Twenty minutes and two laps of the block later, the dogs acted as though they were worn out, and I felt invigorated and ready to tackle the rest of the day. I’m glad I didn’t wait to go walking until Wednesday, considering how wet, cold, wild, and generally icky today’s weather is! Maybe I should be having mulled wine instead!

Walking! It’s good exercise, and if you’re not accustomed to exercising on a regular basis, it’s a great introduction to getting moving. I am accustomed to exercising regularly, and I still really enjoy going for walks. J Most of the time when we go places, we’ve started a new habit of parking a little farther away from the destination so we’ll get a little extra walking in when we run errands. Yes, I said most of the time. If it’s pouring down rain or if there’s a sub-zero windchill? Nope! I’m parking as close as I can get! Walking is also great for improving your mood and getting your energy revamped to dive into whatever comes next.

Call walking the gateway drug to more activity if you like; call it whatever you want if you get up & get going! Take headphones and listen to music or a podcast or a book. Take a friend and have a conversation. Take your dogs. Take a walk through a park, or around your neighborhood, or around the mall. Take a hike! (Walk on a treadmill if the weather is truly awful.) And take care of yourself by adding some movement to your day, or changing your routine to incorporate a little more walking.

Cheers! Here’s to your health! :) 

http://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/health-topics/weight-control/walking-step-right-direction/Pages/walking-step-right-direction.aspx

 

 

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