HOW TO GET THE IMPORTANT ME TIME FOR YOUR HAPPINESS

HOW TO GET THE IMPORTANT ME TIME FOR YOUR HAPPINESS

By lifehack.org

Does it surprise you when someone says that me-time is good for your relationship? Studies at University of Michigan have found that the lack of privacy has been a significant cause of unhappy marriages.

There is a difference between spending time alone and quality me-time. The former could involve you checking Facebook mindlessly while waiting for your partner in a cafe. The latter could, however, mean you’d be unwinding, doing some deep thinking and rediscovering yourself. It sounds good, doesn’t it? But what if you find it difficult to find the space for yourself? Here are some tips to give you more time to recharge and thrive.

1. Wake up earlier than the rest of your family

It is not easy to do, but will be well worth a try.

2. Watch a TV show alone

Just you and the remote control, no-one else commenting on the plot or asking you to rewind a joke three times.

3. Unplug your gadget

Turn your phone off and put your tablet on do-not-disturb mode to get away from the temptation to check Twitter every ten minutes.

4. Cancel out distractions at work

Close your office door now and then. If you don’t have one, sound-cancelling headphones can also do the trick.

5. Go for a short walk during breaks

Pack your lunch box and find a bench in a nearby park to enjoy it, or simply walk around the block on your 10-minute break. You can stretch your legs and reboot your brain at the same time.

6. Ignore incoming messages for an hour

This might be ill-adviced if you are a doctor or a firefighter. Otherwise, most messages can wait for an hour. Close Gmail and Slack so you can focus on the current task, and you’ll find yourself more productive.

READ MORE AT LIFEHACK

7 THINGS THAT WILL HAPPEN IF YOU START DOING PLANKS EVERY DAY

7 THINGS THAT WILL HAPPEN IF YOU START DOING PLANKS EVERY DAY

By lifehack.org

Bodyweight exercises are gaining ground in the fitness world due to the practicality and simplicity of getting in shape using your own body weight. Planks are one form of bodyweight exercises that will never go out of fashion. Planks are one of the most effective exercises you can do. Why? Because they require a small time investment on your part, and offer the chance to achieve substantial results in a relatively short span of time.

Abdominal muscles are the only muscle group in our body that is not attached to bone. What this means is that they must provide support for our entire back and spinal column. In doing so, they also play a vital role in preventing injuries. However, for them to perform this function successfully, our core muscles have to be strong and trained on a regular basis. What all this means is that doing plank exercises every day is a great way to strengthen your core, and in doing so, support your spine.

Now, let’s focus on what will happen when you start doing planks every day:

READ MORE AT LIFEHACK

VEGAN BANANA BREAD WITH WALNUTS AND RAISINS

VEGAN BANANA BREAD WITH WALNUTS AND RAISINS

By bellaandbhakti.com

Ingredients-

150g/1 1/4 cups of buckwheat flour

60g/1/2 cup of coconut flour

60g/1/3 cup of coconut sugar

2 teaspoons of baking powder

1/2 a teaspoon of baking soda

1/4 teaspoon of salt

80ml/1/3 cup of coconut oil

60ml/1/4 cup of almond milk

1 teaspoon of vanilla

3 large or 4 small bananas

2 tablespoons of walnuts

2 tablespoons of raisins

1 teaspoon of chia seeds

Place the flours, sugar, baking powder, soda and salt in a large bowl and mix gently to evenly combine.  In another bowl, mash the bananas and add the coconut oil (as a liquid), almond milk and vanilla and whisk gently to combine.  Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix well.  Add the walnuts, raisins and chia seeds and mix gently.  Transfer the mixture into a lined baking loaf tin and bad for 30-40 minutes on 170 degrees.  Allow to cool and then store in an airtight container for a few days.  Delicious with a spread of coconut oil.

34 WAYS TO BUST A BAD MOOD IN 10 MINUTES OR LESS

34 WAYS TO BUST A BAD MOOD IN 10 MINUTES OR LESS

From greatist.com

Bad days happen. A bombed job interview, a broken coffee machine (when you really need coffee), stepping in dog poop on the way to a date—we know, life can sometimes suck. We can’t get rid of a terrible commute or an intolerable co-worker (sorry), but we do have some sweet suggestions for improving a mood regardless.

So you're having a bad day ..

1 - MINUTE FIXES

Smile. It’s cheesy, but apparently it’s true: The act of smiling really can turn a frown upside down.

Jump around. Get happy-making endorphins pumping fast with some jumping jacks, jump rope, or random flailing around (hey, no judgment here).

Sniff certain scents. Inhaling the scent of orange (or essential orange oil) or lavender can reduce anxiety and improve mood.

Chew gum. The repetitive action of gnawing on gum can promote relaxation and reduce anxiety and stress.

Ogle (or buy) some flowers. Studies find flowers provide an instant—and lasting—mood boost. Bonus: they can also make us more productive.
Eat some chocolate. As if we needed a reason other than delicious: Eating chocolate can make us feel happy.

Visualize your best self. Let’s be honest: None of us are exactly the person we want to be all the time. But imagining our “ideal” selves—calm, confident, movin’ like Jagger—can make us feel better, even when we’ve got miles to go before we get there.

Expose yourself to green. Colour psychologists say green symbolizes happiness—and can create the feeling of it, too. Throw on a green sweater, pick up a green pen, deck yourself out like the most dedicated of Leprechauns, and it’s possible your mood will be over the rainbow.

Light a candle. We discovered this hands-on at Greatist headquarters: Flickering flames (as long as they’re contained!) can burn away stress and help us feel better all around.

READ MORE AT GREATIST

WHAT IT REALLY TAKES TO RECOVER FROM PAIN AND LOSS

WHAT IT REALLY TAKES TO RECOVER FROM PAIN AND LOSS

From oprah.com by author Gary Zukav, taken from his book The Seat of the Soul

Most people try to help you feel better when you are in emotional pain, but they don't know how. For example, when my first engagement ended (about 25 years before I met Linda Francis), friends sympathized with me, empathized with me and tried to console me. "Don't worry," they said. "It takes a little time to heal." 

They were incorrect. It takes far more than time to heal. Romantic love is often, as it was in my case, "romantic need." But my friends did not know that and they recommended the usual prescription: Get another relationship. They also didn't know that my next relationship would bring the same things into my awareness that my previous one had if I did not change myself. 

They thought the causes of my suffering lay in the external world. Their remedy, therefore, was to change the external world. But changing the outside world in order to feel better, or safer, no longer works. Human consciousness—the consciousness of our entire species—is changing. We now have more than the system of the five senses to tell us about the world and ourselves. We are becoming "multisensory." 

READ MORE HERE

OVEREATING CAUSED BY A HORMONE DEFICIENCY IN THE BRAIN?

OVEREATING CAUSED BY A HORMONE DEFICIENCY IN THE BRAIN?

By sciencedaily.com

If you find yourself downing that extra piece of chocolate fudge cake even though you're not hungry, it might be the absence of a hormone in your brain that's causing you to overeat purely for pleasure.

In a new Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School study published in Cell Reports, researchers found that when the hormone glucagon like peptide-1 (GLP-1) was reduced in the central nervous system of laboratory mice, they overate and consumed more high fat food.

"The mice in which the GLP-1 deficiency was induced ate beyond the need for calories and showed an increase preference for high fat food," says Vincent Mirabella, a medical school and doctoral student who co-authored the study. "Conversely when we enhanced GLP-1 signaling in the brains of mice we were able to block the preference of high fat foods."

GLP-1 peptides are small sequences of amino acids that have many functions, including how our bodies regulate eating behaviors. They are secreted from cells in both the small intestine and the brain and are supposed to let our brain know when we are satisfied and should put down the fork.

Rutgers scientists say it has been unclear how the GLP-1 released in the brain contributes to appetite regulation. Although this is not the only reason why people overeat, the study provides new evidence that targeting neurons in the mesolimbic dopamine system -a reward circuit in the brain -- rather than targeting the whole body might be a better way to control overeating and obesity with fewer side effects.

In the study, the authors found that activating the GLP-1 hormone in the mesolimbic system hindered communication between neurons which communicate to control reward behaviours, including eating. The result was that mice consumed less food altogether and, more important, lost the preference for high fat food.

READ THE ARTICLE AT DAILY SCIENCE

ALMOND SPICE CAKE WITH COCONUT CREAM

ALMOND SPICE CAKE WITH COCONUT CREAM

By thechalkboardmag.com

For the cake:

300g/2 ½ cups almond flour

½ tsp sea salt

½ tsp baking soda

2 Tbsp cinnamon

120ml/½ cup olive oil

85g/¼ cup honey

3 eggs

1 tsp almond extract

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

100g/½ cup raisins

75g/½ cup walnuts, roughly chopped

For the coconut whipped cream:

1 can full-fat coconut milk

1 tbsp honey

1 tsp vanilla extract

Garnish with: honey, raisins, nuts, cinnamon sticks, coconut whipped cream

For the cake:

Preheat oven to 175C.  Line a 9-inch round pan with parchment paper and lightly grease.  In a large bowl, stir almond flour, salt, baking soda and cinnamon together. In a separate bowl, whisk oil, agave, eggs, and extracts. Pour into flour mixture. Blend well and then add raisins and nuts, if desired. Pour into the pan outfitted with parchment paper.   Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely and flip onto a cake platter.  Decorate with coconut whipped cream and whatever ingredients you like.

For the coconut whipped cream:

Set the can in the fridge overnight so that the coconut fat solids separate from the coconut water.  Open the can and carefully pour out the thick coconut cream. With an electric whisk, beat the cream, honey and vanilla extract on high until peaks form, about 2-3 minutes.  If not serving immediately, place the bowl of whipped coconut cream in the fridge for 15-20 minutes and then beat it again right before serving it.

HIBISCUS LIME DRINK

HIBISCUS LIME DRINK

So Delicious

Healthy Lifestyle - http://healthylifestyleforlife.webs.com/

WHY SHOULD YOU EAT HIMALAYAN PINK SALT?

WHY SHOULD YOU EAT HIMALAYAN PINK SALT

RAW BANANA AND COCONUT TART

RAW BANANA AND COCONUT TART

by theveggiesisters.gr

Ingredients(yields 2):

for the crust:

6 dates

2 dried figs

1 Tbsp raisins

1 Tbsp cashews

1 tsp flax seed

for the filling:

1 banana

1/2 tsp cinamon

1 tsp shredded coconut

for the topping:

goji berries

grapes

Instructions:

In a blender place the ingredients of the crust and pulse until they are in small pieces.   Press mixture in two tart tins and put in the fridge.   Mash banana with a fork and combine it with the other ingredients of the filling.   Take the crusts out of the tins and fill them with the banana mixture.   Top with goji berries and grapes or any other fruit you want.

VEGAN COCONUT CURRY WITH SWEET POTATO NOODLES

VEGAN COCONUT CURRY WITH SWEET POTATO NOODLES

By foodfaithfitness.com

For the Curry:

1/2 tablespoon coconut oil

1 large carrot, peeled and sliced, about a heaping 1/2 cup

1 small red bell pepper, sliced, about 1 cup

1 cup broccoli, cut into bite-sized pieces

1/3 cup onion, chopped, about half a small onion

1 teaspoon fresh ginger, minced

1/2 tablespoon yellow curry powder

1 13.5 ounce can full fat coconut milk

pinch of salt

For the Sweet Potato Noodles:

1/2 tablespoon coconut oil

1 large sweet potato, peeled, 250-300 grams

pinch of salt

For the Mango Salsa:

1 mango, large, diced, about 3/4 cup

2 tablespoons red onion, diced

1 red chili, thai, minced, adjust to preferred level of spiciness

1/2 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

1/4 cup fresh coriander, plus additional for garnish

pinch of salt

Directions

Heat 1/2 Tbsp coconut oil on medium/high heat and cook the carrots for about 3 minutes, until they just begin to soften.   Turn the heat down to medium and add in the pepper, broccoli, onion and ginger and cook until they begin to soften and brown, about 5 minutes.   Add in the 1/2 Tbsp of yellow curry powder and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.   Add in the can of coconut milk (make sure you mix it well before adding!) and a pinch of salt, mixing well.   Raise the heat to medium/high and bring the mixture to a boil. Once boiling, turn the heat down to medium/low heat and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sauce begins to thicken.   While the sauce cooks, heat the remaining coconut oil in a separate pan over medium heat.   Spiralize the potato using the 3 mm blade and then add it into the pan. Cook the noodles, stirring often, until they just begin to wilt, about 10 minutes. Season with salt.   While you wait, toss together the diced mango, red onion, Thai chili, apple cider vinegar and cilantro in a medium bowl. Season with a pinch of salt.   Divide the noodles between two plates and top with the curry. Garnish with the mango salsa and extra coriander.

FIG AND CHERRY BITES

FIG AND CHERRY BITES

By theclevercarrot.com

Serves: 24 mini balls

INGREDIENTS

14 dried figs

200g/1 c. dried cherries (or cranberries)

150g/1 c. chopped hazelnuts (or walnuts)

30g/⅓ c. dark chocolate chips

½ tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. vanilla

1 tbsp. honey

70g/1 c. unsweetened coconut flakes or shredded

INSTRUCTIONS

Before you begin, line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Add the coconut flakes to a large bowl for rolling. Note: if using large coconut flakes (instead of shredded), pulse them 1-2 times in a food processor for smaller pieces. They will be easier to roll this way.

In a large food processor, add the cherries and hazelnuts. Pulse 2 or 3 times until roughly chopped. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.  Now add the figs, cinnamon, vanilla and honey to the food processor.  Run the machine until the figs form a sticky paste.   If your mixture is not quite sticky enough, add a teaspoon of water or juice to bring everything together.  Add back the cherries, hazelnuts, and chocolate chips and pulse 2 or 3 times to combine the mixture. Taste and add more maple syrup if necessary. Remove the blade and get ready to start rolling.  Using a small cookie scoop (or 1 tbsp. measuring spoon) form the mixture into balls and transfer right into the bowl of coconut flakes. Roll them around to coat and place onto your lined cookie sheet. Repeat until you have used up all of the mixture.

CHOCOLATE COVERED STUFFED DATES

CHOCOLATE COVERED STUFFED DATES

By paleogrubs.com

Ingredients

35g/1/2 cup unsweetened coconut flakes

2 tbsp honey

1/2 tsp cinnamon

Pinch of salt

4 tbsp coconut oil, melted, divided

75g/1/2 cup almonds, chopped

400g/2 cups pitted Medjool dates

90g dark chocolate

Instructions

Add the coconut flakes, honey, cinnamon, salt, and 2 tablespoons of melted coconut oil to a food processor.  Pulse until a smooth paste is formed.  Set aside.  Prepare a baking sheet with wax paper.  Make a slice in the dates and fill with a small amount of the coconut flakes mixture or the chopped almonds.  Melt the chocolate in a glass bowl in the microwave along with the remaining coconut oil.  Stir to combine.  Use a fork to dip the dates into the melted chocolate.  Place onto the baking sheet.  Sprinkle with additional coconut flakes or chopped almonds if desired.  Place in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to harden.  Serve cold.

5 NEW THINGS YOUR BLOOD TYPE SAYS ABOUT YOU

5 NEW THINGS YOUR BLOOD TYPE SAYS ABOUT YOU

By prevention.com

There's a lot your blood can say about you and a lot it can't.  Search the web, and you'll dig up articles tying one of the four major blood types (A, B, AB, O) to everything from diet dos and don'ts to partner compatibility.  But there's just not a lot of research to back up those claims.

On the other hand, some solid research has linked different blood types to higher rates of certain diseases and there are other, subtler ways your blood may affect your life:

1.  Your allure for mosquitoes

People with blood type O may be up to twice as likely to attract certain species of mosquitoes than people with other blood types, finds a study from Japan's Institute of Pest Control Technology.  But it's not all bad news for O's: Other research shows you're less likely to suffer from the deadliest forms of malaria—a disease transmitted by mosquitoes—possibly because deadly malarial proteins don't stick to type O blood cells the way they do to other types.

READ MORE AT PREVENTION

CHOCOLATE CASHEW CREAM CUPCAKES

CHOCOLATE CASHEW CREAM CUPCAKES

By rawrevive.com

Chocolate Base

128g/1 cup Raw Cacao Powder

220g/1 cup melted Raw Cacao Butter

100g/1/3 cup honey

1 tablespoon Vanilla Bean Powder

Cashew Cream

150g/1 cup Raw Cashews

105g/½ cup Coconut Oil

120ml/½ cup Filtered Water

1 teaspoon Vanilla Bean Powder

Chocolate Base

Melt the raw cacao butter double boiler method.  Combine cacao powder, honey and vanilla bean powder in a bowl. Add the melted cacao butter and whisk until smooth.  Line a muffin tin with paper cupcake liners.  Pour chocolate mixture into a funnel or measuring cup and pour into cupcake liners about 1/2 full.  Put muffin tin into freezer to set for 1/2 hour.

Cashew Cream

Combine all ingredients in a high speed blender until smooth.  Place cream into a glass container and set for 1/2 hour in the freezer to thicken.

Assembly

Remove the muffin tin and cashew cream from the freezer.  Place cashew cream into a pastry bag and swirl cream onto chocolate bases in the muffin tins.  Garnish with your choice of raw cacao nibs, nuts, goji berries or coconut.  Keep in fridge until eaten.

4 ELECTROLYTE RECIPES YOU CAN MAKE AT HOME

4 ELECTROLYTE RECIPES YOU CAN MAKE AT HOME

By lifehack.org

Sports drinks were once only popular with athletes, but today their popularity has soared outside of the world of sports. But should you drink sports drinks?  If so, did you know that instead of paying the high prices for sports drinks you could always make them in your own kitchen?

Should You Drink Electrolyte Drinks?

Today there is a huge fuss about electrolytes – but what are they are and do we really need them?  Electrolytes are essentially vitamins and minerals such as calcium, sodium, magnesium chloride, hydrogen phosphate and hydrogen carbonate.  These vitamins and minerals are essential for our survival.

A person eating a balanced diet usually won’t need to replace their electrolytes with a drink.  However, there are instances when eating a balanced diet is simply not enough.  Humans constantly push their bodies to the limit.  Athletes, for example, constantly work their bodies causing them to sweat.  When you sweat, you lose electrolytes.  It is this reason that has made sports drinks such as popular drink among athletes for years.  But losing electrolytes isn’t just a problem for athletes; anyone doing physical labor can lose electrolytes.  Pregnant women often find their bodies need more electrolytes even if they eat a very balanced diet!

So, while you don’t necessarily have to drink a sports drink containing electrolytes, if you are pushing your body to its limits it could be one of the easiest ways you can restore your electrolyte levels while simultaneously quenching your thirst.

Benefits of Creating Your Own Sports Drink

There are many benefits to choosing to make your own sports drink in your kitchen instead of just heading to the store to buy them.

Save you money – This is by far one of the biggest benefits you will find.  After just a few trips to the store to buy name brand sports drinks, you will find that if you just buy the proper ingredients, you can save a lot of money compared to just purchasing them at the store.

Know Your Ingredients – If you are buying the ingredients and making them yourself, you know exactly what is going into each homemade sports drink.  When you buy a sports drink in the store, you don’t know for sure where their ingredients came from and what they quality of each ingredient is that you are putting into your body.

Flavour Variety – One of the best parts of making them yourself is you can create and customize the flavours of your drinks to your tastes.  This allows you to create new flavours so you aren’t limited to the flavours you will find at your local Grocery Store.

READ MORE AT LIFEHACK

CHERRY PIE

CHERRY PIE

By littlemoondragon.blogspot.fr

For the Crust

240g/2 cups of almond flour

70g/1 cup shredded coconut

105g/1/2 cup coconut oil, melted

85g/1/4 cup honey

1/4 tsp salt

For the Filling

300g/2 1/2 cups cherries, sliced and pitted

1 tbsp honey

Mix together all of the crust ingredients.   Separate evenly into two bowls and chill for at least half an hour.  While your crust is chilling, slice and pit the cherries.   Preheat the oven to 190.  Use one of the parts of the crust and press into the bottom of a pie dish and bake for 10 minutes.

Put the honey and cherries into a small saucepan and heat up with a lid on.  Stir occasionally.  When your mixture is boiling turn off the heat and leave to cool.  While your filling is cooling, roll out the other part of your crust between 2 sheets of parchment paper.  It should be about a quarter of a centimeter, but don't worry about it being perfect.  Pour the filling on top of the bottom crust and spread it out evenly. Add the crust on top as best you can as the pastry is very delicate and may fall apart a bit, just patch it together, it will be ok as it is a crumble pie.   Use a fork to make a few holes in the top so that steam can escape.  Bake at 175C for 25 minutes.  Leave to cool.

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF EATING CHERRIES?

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF EATING CHERRIES?

Do you have gout, or diabetes or you need something to help you sleep.  Eating cherries can help with all of these problems.  Read all about it at the link below.

READ MORE AT ORGANIC MEDIC 

COMPELLING REASONS TO EXERCISE AND EAT RIGHT THAT AREN'T WEIGHT LOSS

Compelling Reasons to Exercise and Eat Right That Aren't Weight Loss

By greatest.com

If the latest infomercials and magazine covers are any indication, it seems like weight loss is on everyone's minds these days. And while a healthy weight is a good goal, when it comes to eating right and exercising, it shouldn’t be the sole focus. In fact, when you tally all the reasons to eat well and exercise, we're not even sure it should make the top 10. Face it: The number on the scale is not a reliable indicator of overall health. Even worse, according to one study, people who diet or exercise just to lose weight quit a lot sooner than people who make healthy changes for other reasons . Oh, and they really don't lose weight in the long term. The researchers found that the most successful motivation for sticking to a healthy lifestyle was "feeling better about themselves" for women and "better health" for men.

And yes, those are both great rationales to exercise and eating right, but they're just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to all the good things you’ll bring into your life. Here are 45 science-backed reasons to start living a healthier life today that have zilch to do with your weight.

1    Works as an Antidepressant

Whether you suffer from the winter blahs or have chronic depression, the blues can make everything in life feel harder. Antidepressant medications have been a godsend for many people, but one study found that depression sufferers who did aerobic exercise showed just as much improvement in their symptoms as people on medication. In fact, after four months, 60 to 70 percent of the subjects couldn’t even be classified as having depression. Even better, a follow-up to the study found that the effects from the exercise lasted longer than those from the medication.

READ MORE AT GREATIST

CRANBERRY AND NUT BARS

CRANBERRY AND NUT BARS

By twenty8.com

INGREDIENTS

140g almonds

100g cashews

150g various nuts and seeds roughly ground together

50g dessicated coconut

120g coconut oil

120g almond butter

30g honey

2Tbsp chia seeds

70g cranberries

4drops Orange essential oil

Instructions

Place almonds and cashews into a Food Processor and process until desired consistency.  Add nuts/seeds and pulse 4-5 times until coarsely ground - chunky is better.  Stir through dessicated coconut.  Melt coconut oil and stir in honey, salt and orange oil.  Pour into nut and seed mix, and add cranberries until well combined.   Spoon into lined baking tray and smooth out with spoon or spatula. Refrigerate a few hours then slice into even sized pieces. Store in fridge or freezer!

GARLIC HERB AVOCADO CASHEW CREAM CHEESE

GARLIC HERB AVOCADO CASHEW CREAM CHEESE

From onegreenplanet.org

VEGAN GARLIC HERB AVOCADO CASHEW CREAM CHEESE

INGREDIENTS

75g/½ cup raw cashews

240ml/1 cup water

1 medium avocado

60ml/¼ cup lemon juice

½ teaspoon Italian seasoning

¼ teaspoon granulated garlic or 1 minced clove

salt, to taste

Instructions

Soak the cashew in the water overnight or at least 2 hours.  Drain off any left over water that was not absorbed by the cashews. Add the drained cashews, avocado, lemon juice, Italian seasonings and garlic into a blender.  Blend until smooth, stop and scrape down the sides and repeat until the mixture is smooth.