The Pursuit of Wellness: December 2014

Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Bid FareWELL to 2014!

It has been a great year! I have grown in both my yoga and meditation practices, two things which I feel have assisted me in finding an inner calm that has benefited me tremendously as a person. I also spent a majority of the year (8.5 months to be exact) pregnant causing me to be extremely health conscious which has paid off. And then again while recovering and attempting to regain my physique and an optimal state of health and wellness. A goal in which I am well on my way to achieving...but more on that later!

For now though I would like to look back on the year here at "The Pursuit of Wellness". I began this blog in April as an assignment for one of my college courses. I discovered my love of blogging and in June when the course ended I set out to continue blogging and make it my own. I have wrote 55 posts, shared 14 recipes, and posted 88 pictures/videos portraying my passion for health and wellness to the 1667 viewers who have visited my blog.

Here's a look at some of my top posts for the year:

1. Mindful Driving

2. Easy Cheesy Crackers

3. Health Benefits of Having a Pet

4. 9 Pregnancy Wellness Essentials

5. Making a Healthier Gingerbread House

As we set out to say goodbye to 2014 and welcome 2015 please celebrate responsibly. I want to wish you all health, wealth, and happiness in the New Year! I am excited to see what 2015 brings!

DISCLAIMER: The content on this blog, www.mind-bodypursuit.blogspot.com, represents the thoughts, ideas, and experiences of its author and should be taken as such…with a grain of salt. It is for entertainment purposes only and not intended to prevent, diagnose, or cure. Before trying any new physical activity, dietary plan, supplementation, complementary and alternative therapy, or other wellness tip please seek the guidance of a qualified professional.

Tuesday, December 23, 2014

Color Your World Healthier

It seems like everyone I talk to lately is busy busy busy...friends, family, coworkers, classmates, myself included. This fast-paced lifestyle seems to be the new normal. I get so caught up in my to-do list that when I do take a few minutes to relax I start to get anxious feeling like there must be something I should doing that I have forgotten about.

In fact, a few colleagues and I were discussing recently how we don't seem to have time to do things just for fun any more. Typically whatever we are doing is for a specific purpose...checking off that mile long to-do list. All this constant mental activity and stimulation can be bad for our health and well-being. Our minds need that downtime to unplug and recharge.

In the past few months I have been seeing multiple articles on coloring for health and have been wanting to write about it myself. This seemed like the perfect time to do so. The articles discuss the possibility of coloring as a means of reducing stress by decreasing activity of the amygdala which controls our emotions. It can also relieve stress by providing a distraction from our worries as we focus on the colors and lines of the pictures. The colors themselves even allow us to explore our emotions on another level. Additionally, the articles suggest coloring can enhance creativity and motor skills.

Kids have been having fun coloring for years...maybe they can teach us a thing or two about mental relaxation. It's simple and also quite a cheap form of therapy when you consider a coloring book and box of crayons can be purchased for about $1 each.

With the holidays coming up our regularly hectic lives get that much busier as we deal with social events and overcrowded stores that more likely resemble madhouses. The whole family can get creative and unwind by coloring together with festive themed printables such as this cure snow globe found at: http://www.freefunchristmas.com/christmas-coloring-pages/

Resources:

Hawkins, A. (2014). Combat stress by coloring. Good Housekeeping. Retrieved from http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/health/wellness/coloring-to-relieve-stress

Naughton, R. (2014). Coloring can help adults combat stress. Fox2Now. Retrieved from http://fox2now.com/2014/10/28/coloring-can-help-adults-combat-stress/

Santos, E. (2014). Coloring isn't just for kids: It can actually help adults combat stress. Huffington Post. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/10/13/coloring-for-stress_n_5975832.html

Monday, December 15, 2014

Making a Healthier Gingerbread House

The other night as I was driving home from work the roads were covered in fresh snow. While it wasn't the most fun drive ever, it sure was beautiful. So beautiful in fact that I didn't hardly mind having to drive so slow! Everything sparkled like glitter had been tossed all over the place.

I love this time of year, I know I said that about fall and guess what...you will probably hear me say it come spring time too! The holidays though have always been a favorite of mine. I just enjoy all of the activities and traditions that I get to share with family and friends this time of year. My heart is full with wonderful memories of baking cookies, picking out Christmas trees, finding that perfect gift for someone, sled riding, snowman building, all kinds of great food, Christmas Eve at the farm, and many holiday parties. I love decorating too...even my pc gets a little festive touch!

This year I am all about adding a touch of wellness to the holidays. This past weekend I got together with my sister-in-law, niece, and nephew to make gingerbread houses. This seemed like a great opportunity by coming up with some healthier decorations for them. It was actually really fun and gave our imaginations quite the workout too!

To start we used whole-wheat graham crackers to build our houses and for the frosting there honestly just isn't that great of a way to make it health so we had to give a little there. For my house I went with a walnut cereal shingles, coconut snow, cranberry window panes, a walnut walkway, and almond and pistachio landscaping. These are just a few items that I had on hand at the time, but I came up with a list of other great options to try as well. Please feel free to share any other ideas you have!

Healthier Gingerbread Decor

Dried Fruit such as golden and dark raisins, cranberries, cherries, apples, strawberries, pineapple, papaya, kiwi, shredded coconut, banana chip, figs, date.

Nuts and seeds such as walnuts, peanuts, almonds, pistachios, cashews, macadamia nuts, pine nuts, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds.

Fresh Herbs to add a little greenery like mint leaves and rosemary sprigs.

Whole cranberries (a healthy holiday staple...see why here).

Various cereals and granola for fun texture.

Miscellaneous snacks such as crackers, pretzels, and popcorn.

Dark chocolate chips, chunks and shavings for a hint of sweetness.

Coffee beans!

Friday, December 5, 2014

Let It Go: A Simple Meditation for Those Little Daily Annoyances

Some days it just seems like NOTHING can go right...you spill your coffee, accidentally delete the project you were working on, run smack into the kitchen counter, shut your finger in the door, and pretty much drop everything you touch. That was my day in a nutshell. When it's just one of those days there's really only two things you can do: either get frustrated with each mishap until you are boiling over with anger or learn to accept them for what they are, let them go, and carry on. The latter is just what I decided to do. I am happy to be at a point in my life where I realize that most things just aren't worth getting worked up over. So this simple and easy meditation is how I have begun to react in these situations to stop my frustrations dead in their tracks. So far I have been pleasantly surprise and very pleased with the results. I hope it helps you as well.

Let It Go Meditation

1. Close your eyes and take a deep breath in.

2. Visualize the trigger of your frustrations.

3. On the exhale say the words "let it go" or another mantra that speaks to you.

4. Feel your frustration begin to dissipate.

5. Repeat 5-10 times...or as long as needed.