Everyday Wellness Blog

Let’s face it, we’ve all had days (or weeks) where nothing seems to go our way. Hectic, busy days can leave you feeling like there’s no relief from the endless list of things that need to get done. Taking some time to relax after a stressful day will help you feel refreshed and ready to conquer the rest of the week. Here are five easy ways to unwind any night of the week.

1. Work Out: Exercise helps reduce stress hormone levels in your body. It also stimulates the production of endorphins which act as a natural mood stabilizer. While the idea of working out after a long day may seem daunting, once the task is done, you’ll feel re-energized and ready to go again. 
   
   
   
2. Turn Off Your Phone: There's increasing evidence that spending too much time on your smartphone can lead to depression and other related health issues. Turn your phone off every once in a while – disconnect from the world, and connect with yourself. Spending time alone with your thoughts will force you to resurface anything that's been bothering you. Then you can face it, and then move on. If you are constantly distracted by your smartphone, you could be left dealing with these emotions longer than you need to.
   
   
   
3. Play A Game: With everything going on in the world, sometimes you just need to turn off your mind and escape. Whether its video games or sports, get your pent up aggression out with a competitive match. One recent study suggests that digital games can help you recover from a long day just as well as traditional mindfulness apps can, but without feeling like a chore.  
   
   
   
   
   
4. Take a Warm Bath: Sometimes a nice, warm bath is all you need to shut off your mind and soothe your soul after a long, hard day. There's no better way to relieve muscle tension while also improving blood circulation. The best part? A warm bath will help you fall asleep sooner, making it the perfect way to end your stressful day. 
   
   
   
5. At-Home Spa Day: If these were normal times, we could splurge on pedicures, manicures, and massages. But that doesn't mean you can't bring the spa home to you! Have dry skin from excessive hand washing? Our Moisturizing Gel Gloves and Socks* are the perfect at-home treatment. When the inner gel lining comes into contact with your skin, it warms up to your body's temperature, slowly releasing a therapeutic blend of botanical oils including Jojoba Oil, Olive Oil, and Grape Seed Oil. After each use, your hands and feet will feel smooth and hydrated. 

Want to shut off the world and disappear for a while? Consider our Warming Eye Mask. Simply put the mask in the freezer or microwave and drift off to dreamland, forgetting why you were even stressed in the first place.

Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes, including humans. The best way to de-stress is to take care of yourself. With most of the United States still on lock down, now is the perfect time to practice self-care.

SOURCE: https://www.psychologytoday.com/

As the coronavirus continues to upend daily life, educators and parents find themselves assessing and re-assessing the best schooling options for the upcoming year. Not thinking about school until it's time to go back is one way to enjoy the last few weeks of summer, but maybe not the most beneficial. For some, this can make going back to school even more challenging. Whether your child will be learning remotely or in the classroom, take a look at our suggestions on the easiest way to confront those back to school jitters.

1. Talk about going back to school: Most kids experience some degree of stress or apprehension about returning to school, even under normal circumstances. Find out what worries them by asking them directly. You can offer support and calm their fears by normalizing these types of experiences. Explain to your child that their feelings are not unusual and they'll overcome them once they've had time to settle in. Fear and bravery can co-exist.
   
   
   
2. Set up a routine: A routine helps your child understand the balance between enjoyable tasks such as playtime and functional tasks such as getting ready for the school day. Adding a child-friendly calendar or task sheet will give your child a sense of independence. They'll learn to enjoy getting their tasks done without having to ask Mom or Dad what to do next. Most parents are more lax on bedtimes during the summer months. Implement the new sleep and chore schedule 2 weeks before going back to school as it will help your child ease into the new normal.
   
   
   
3. Get organized: Set a designated study place and time. Your child should understand that a certain time each day is set aside for studying and completing homework. Let your child help choose their study time, keeping in mind that most experts agree children benefit from time to unwind directly after school. If they don't have homework, the reserved time should be used to talk about their day, read for fun, or work on an upcoming project.
   
   
   
4. Encourage questions & listen: Take time out, free of distractions, to talk to your child. Encourage them to ask as many questions as they want and answer them honestly to the best of your ability. Children are surprisingly resilient and can adapt just as well as we can, given time. But they often have tons of questions. So when your child asks, make sure to listen, try to understand not just to respond.
   
   
   
5. Most important, set a good example: Use those calendars for yourself, too. Take time each night to lay out your clothes for the next day. Keep to-do lists of your own. Staying organized will help add stability to the home while also offering everyone a sense of independence.
   
   

It's important to have an open and straightforward conversation with your child about what to expect this upcoming school year. Kids need help to learn and understand how to make responsible choices and follow school safety procedures before school begins. We wish you all a happy and healthy 2020-2021 school year!

Sadly, celebrating Labor Day may feel different this year, but that doesn't mean it's canceled! As the unofficial end of summer, Labor Day weekend is usually our last chance to experience some fun in the sun. Make the most of your three-day weekend by creating special memories with friends and family. We're sharing our top 5 social distance friendly activities to enjoy this Labor Day.

1. Host a Small Cookout: Labor Day barbecues are an American tradition. Invite a few of your closest friends and grill up some meat and veggies to send summer out with a bang. Go potluck and include your friends and family by asking them to bring their favorite side dish or dessert. The CDC recommends small outdoor gatherings, which means an intimate cookout is a perfectly safe alternative to big BBQ parties.
   
   
   
2. Think & Buy Local: During these times of adjusting to a new normal, our favorite local stores are suffering most. Consider shopping or eating locally to help support your favorite small-town businesses. They might have online stores to keep your shopping contact-free!
   
   
   
3. Gather Virtually: Missing your family, friends, and loved ones? Consider hosting a virtual get-together. Just because you can't be together in person doesn't mean you can't enjoy some quality time together. Grab a few games, some snacks, and hop on to ZOOM or FaceTime to connect. It's important to remember that you can still enjoy the company and be there for each other.
   
   
   
4. Host an Outdoor or Virtual Movie Night: As we all know, the safest place to gather right now is outside. Consider purchasing a projector and have a movie night in your backyard. You can also consider hosting a virtual movie night and stream your favorite flicks with your favorite friends.
   
   
   
5. Whatever you do, be safe: It's easy to let your guard down when you're having fun, especially as we try to enjoy the last days of summer. As long as you practice social distancing, wear a mask, and wash your hands, there's no reason why you can't say goodbye to summer in style. 

We hope these ideas inspired you to create some fun and exciting Labor Day plans! Whatever you decide to do, get out there and enjoy this weekend with your loved ones.

From all of us at NatraCure, have a safe, fun, social distanced Labor Day!

We’re saying you should try it, but you probably want to know what is first, right? Pre-cooling is pretty much just as it sounds. It’s all about lowering the body’s core temperature through heat removal immediately before a workout. Because the amount of heat stored in your body will limit the duration of exercise at a given intensity, you’ll exercise more efficiently if your body’s temperature starts from a lower baseline. 

Think about it this way: Exercise causes your body’s temperature to rise. The harder you work, the more rapid this rise will be. That is where pre-cooling comes into play. Pre-cooling allows you to start exercising with as cool a body temperature as possible. 

When you run or exercise on a hot day, your body must cope with both the heat of your environment and the heat produced by your muscles. Over two-thirds of the energy produced by your muscles is lost as heat. When it’s hot, your body automatically tries to cool you down by sending more blood to your skin. This results in less blood flowing to your acting muscles. Pre-cooling helps reduce the amount of blood sent to your skin, meaning more oxygen-rich blood can flow to your muscles. This helps lower your heart rate and improve endurance. 

3 Pre-Cooling Techniques to Help Boost Your Performance this Summer:

1. Cooling Vest

   Generally worn on the outside of your clothing and available in a few different designs, cooling vests and jackets help prevent heat exhaustion and overheating by keeping your core body temperature lower. Evaporative cooling vests are one of the most popular styles. As the cool water in the fabric interacts with sweat, the water slowly evaporates, providing a cooling effect.

2. Applying Ice to Skin

   
   Applying ice to your body will drastically reduce your body’s core temperature before a workout. For maximum effect, ice should ideally be applied to areas with high blood flow, such as your neck or between your thighs. Note: Applied incorrectly, ice may cause frostbite and damage to the delicate tissues of the skin. So be sure to have a layer of material between you cold source and your skin. Doctors do not recommend icing your skin for longer than 20 minutes.

3. Cold Shower

   
   Taking a cold shower or bath before a workout can help reduce the risk of your body's core temperature rising too quickly. Bonus: showering pre-workout also helps keep the sweat from your future workout clean, mitigating the risk of acne or fungi.

We think these pre-cooling tactics may be helpful for exercise enthusiasts and athletes competing in hot or humid conditions. The cooling relief may not last your whole workout, but you will feel cooler and perform better, especially in the beginning—and who wouldn’t want that? Give these techniques a try and let us know what works best for you!

Summer is all about fun in the sun, but it’s also a time of year when certain injuries and illnesses tend to pop-up more frequently. Spending time outdoors, around water, in the woods, and playing sports can lead to concussions, fractures, sunburn, dehydration, allergic reactions, and other unpleasant conditions. But don’t worry, we’ve got your back! We’ve compiled a list of some of the most common summer-fun-killers and how best to treat them.  

1. Heat-Related Illnesses: Heat emergencies have multiple phases – heat cramps, heat exhaustion, and heatstroke. While all three stages of heat-related illnesses can be quite serious, they can also be easily avoided. Our top tips: stay hydrated, wear loose clothing, protect yourself against sunburn, and know your body’s limits and be cautious if you’re at increased risk.

2. Burns & Cuts: Burn yourself on something hot like a grill, curling iron, or stove? If it’s smaller than a quarter, rinse it with cool water for at least 20 minutes, then cover loosely with gauze. Change the bandage daily and watch out for signs of infection such as redness, pus, or swelling. Cut yourself? Apply pressure with a gauze pad until the bleeding slows substantially or stops. Flush the wound with water for at least two minutes; pat dry, cover with gauze, and secure with tape.

3. Sports Injuries: The most common summer sports injuries include ankle, knee, elbow, and shoulder sprains. Most of these minor injuries can be treated using the R.I.C.E method. Our top tip: use a FlexiKold Gel Cold Pack to reduce swelling around the injury, decrease bleeding into the tissues, and minimize muscle pain and spasms. 

4. Bug Bites: We all know that the best way to avoid mosquito and bug bites is to avoid the outdoors. But that wouldn’t be much fun, would it? When you head outdoors, use insect repellents or bug spray. Show extra vigilance when you’re in areas with standing water as bugs tend to flock to these pools of water or places that have recently experienced significant rainfall. Our top tip for treating bug bites: apply a Circle Gel Pack to the infected area. These 4-inch gel packs are perfect for small bumps and bruises!

5. Sunburn: In most cases, sunburn can be easily treated. But the best way to treat sunburn is to avoid it in the first place. Sunburn is caused by ultraviolet light from the sun. So the best way to prevent it is to stay out of the sun during peak hours, apply sunscreen, wear sunglasses, and cover yourself with UV protective clothing. Our top tip for treating sunburn: re-hydrate yourself. You can also cool and soothe your skin with a moisturizer such as an Aloe Vera gel. It’s also imperative that you stay out of the sun until you are completely healed.

While some of these injuries can be scary, by taking preventive measures and swiftly treating any injuries, you can still enjoy a carefree, injury-free summer!