It’s easy to recognize how great you feel when you eat well. When you make healthy eating a habit, this sense of wellbeing can become your new normal. That’s because you’re laying a foundation of broad-spectrum nutrition that’s essential for encouraging your body to thrive.

To maximize your health you need consistent, high-quality nourishment. Use your diet and supplements to stockpile the solid foundational nutrition your body can draw from always.

Build Health Brick by Brick

Consider the idea of foundational nutrition. Just like a home stands atop a strong foundation, your body builds its health on a base of broad-spectrum nutrition.

A healthy, complete diet is full of micro- and macronutrients—vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates, fats, proteins, and it even includes water. Like bricks, these pieces of your diet fit together to support your body in all it does to keep you feeling your best. Whole foods and essential nutrition give you a firm footing and solid start toward the goal of overall wellness, and cells need water to support healthy, proper function.

These bricks in your dietary foundation need mortar to hold them together. A high-quality dietary supplement acts a lot like that glue. Supplements can provide a variety of nutrients that might not be prevalent in your real-world diet. These fill the nutrient gaps that exist when eating perfect isn’t possible. And they can help strengthen your nutritional foundation when your body needs extra support.*

How does foundational nutrition benefit your body? Basically, in every way:

Ensures basic dietary requirements are met
Builds up stores of important vitamins and minerals
Supports the immune system*
Maintains brain health and cognitive function*
Helps preserve heart and lung health*
Supports the body’s defenses from free radicals and oxidative stress*

Your body does its best when your diet provides more than the bare minimum you need to survive. A wealth of resources from a nutritious diet amplifies your health and your body’s ability to maintain that feeling of well-being—no matter what life throws at you.*

Essential Nutrition and Your Health

The word “essential” comes up a lot when talking about nutrition. Nutrients are considered “essential” when they cannot be made by your body, so they have to come from your diet. Vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates, fatty-acids, and amino acids are all essential nutrients.

These nutrient bricks are used by your body for everything you do. You secure that foundation by laying new bricks of essential nutrition every day. Since carbs, fats, proteins, vitamins, and minerals are all important, make sure you supply your body with plenty of each from your daily diet.

When your eating isn’t as healthy as it should be, you start to miss out on the nutrients that keep you in tip-top shape. So, secure your nutritional foundation with a wide variety of healthy foods and help reinforce it with supplementation.

Weather Life’s Storms with Foundational Nutrition

Broad-spectrum nutrition is necessary to maintain your health during physically trying times. Busy lives bring a host of issues that can send your body into survival mode. Stress, poor sleep, and fatigue are just a few of the ways your body is challenged.*

One example comes from your immune system during busy times. When germs are everywhere one of your best defenses is a nutritious diet. Bacteria and viruses thrive in bodies unprepared for battle. They pick on cells and systems that don’t have the support to fight back.*

That’s why it’s important to lay a strong foundation of essential nutrition. Your body can make better use of dietary resources when there’s plenty available—instead of scrounging for vitamin, mineral, or macronutrient morsels.

Another area supported by foundational nutrition is your body’s response to stress. Work (whether in or outside the home) really takes a toll on your body. A nutritious diet can help alleviate some of that stress. A body flush with vitamins and essential nutrients can dedicate more energy to help balance stress levels.*

Focusing on broad-spectrum nutrition may even help provide more restful sleep. Healthy eating supports healthy sleeping, especially when your diet is full of the B vitamins that regulate melatonin, the sleep hormone. And a good night’s sleep is one of the most effective ways to combat stress and support your immunity.*

You can be prepared to handle the curveballs life throws at you by maintaining that foundation of good nutrition. Combat germs with a great diet. Sleep better and stress less by acquiring broad-spectrum nutrition. A carefully laid base of essential nutrition makes all of this possible.*

Broad-Spectrum Nutrition Helps Create Opportunities for Your Body

Foundational nutrition has benefits beyond fulfilling your body’s basic needs. That’s because the roles of vitamins and minerals are magnified in the body as you build your nutritional foundation. Everything from nutrient storage to additional benefits at advanced levels are possible when you have a strong nutrient foundation.

When you cultivate broad-spectrum nutrition, you store up certain essential nutrients for later use. Vitamin B12 is an example of an essential nutrient that can be stockpiled for future use—if your body has all it needs. Your liver can save extra B12 from your diet for up to four years.

Red blood cells need B12 to work properly and transport oxygen throughout your body. In times when your diet doesn’t supply ideal levels of vitamin B12, the liver springs into action. It taps into the stock to help restore normal levels and maintain red-blood-cell health.*

Antioxidants keep working in your body long after your diet has met your daily requirements. Two examples: Lutein and lycopene. These two powerful antioxidants work tirelessly to help support the health of your eyes.*

When reserves of vitamin A, another natural antioxidant, are built up, it takes on other important tasks. This includes fighting harmful free radicals and helping clean up oxidative damage. Vitamins C and E work in much the same way. Extra vitamins C and E help support your cardiovascular system and immunity.*

Your bones also thrive when your diet includes broad-spectrum nutrition. Vitamin D’s primary role is helping your bones absorb calcium. Once your daily threshold levels of vitamin D are met by your diet, it can work on other important jobs. Vitamin D works on supporting healthy brain function and helping to protect your heart and immune system.*

A strong nutrient foundation helps your body to thrive—not just survive. Powered by the extras in your diet, essential vitamins and minerals help your health and maintain your wellbeing.*

Be Consistent For Lifelong Health

Like any structure, a nutritional foundation requires consistent upkeep. That’s where supplements can take center stage. A broad-spectrum multivitamin and multi-mineral—and other quality nutritional supplements—can help fill dietary gaps to assist in maintaining the constant level of nutrition necessary for healthy living.*

Supplements can be taken daily as a source of essential vitamins, minerals, and other important—but not essential—micronutrients. To maximize their benefit, be consistent with your supplementation. Take your supplements every day, as directed—which may mean with meals for ideal absorption.

Consistency with your healthy diet and supplements means your body can rely on them as solid sources of great nutrition. Creating this base of nutritious foods puts your body on the path to wellness every day. And you’ll be on your way to setting a stable footing for living your best life.

ECLS Energy

3 SUPERCHARGED REV3 ENERGY® MOCKTAILS FOR ANY SEASON

9 August 20199 August 2019 tdslsupport

Rethink and Reenergize Your Happy Hour

Energy drinks have become part of our day-to-day life. As eyelids begin to droop in the mid-afternoon, the glorifying effects of caffeine can help pull us through the midday slump. Crack a crisp can, and off you go.

But have you ever studied the ingredients of these energy revivers? They can pack a punch of caffeine and other stimulants, but you’ll often feel the crash that comes from unnatural sources.

USANA’s Rev3 has a different approach—cleaner ingredients for more organic energy. Rev3 utilizes a proprietary Energy Complex with L-carnitine, tea, ginseng, Rhodiola, cacao, ribose, citrate, malate, and coenzyme Q10. It supplies your body with ingredients to support energy metabolism at the cellular level. Clean ingredients help to enhance mental alertness and stamina with caffeine from natural sources, making Rev3 an optimal choice for your afternoon boost.

Rev Up Your Afternoon Habit

The energy of warm weather and fresh ingredients entices throwing summer parties and becoming more creative in the kitchen. It’s the perfect time to get creative with your afternoon Rev3 pick-me-up. Enchant your day—and your taste buds—with classic mixers infused with a light and refreshing pomegranate flavour for a revitalizing oomph that’s far beyond ordinary.

Mocktails to Fuel Your Every Day

Mix up a single mocktail anytime as a fancy way to boost your afternoon, or multiply each recipe to share at your next event, happy hour, or hosted brunch with friends.

Hibiscus ReviverDried exotic hibiscus flower can be found at most grocery stores. It infuses your mixtures with an interesting touch that’s both floral and tart. Here it mixes with Rev3 to liven up a classic drink, taking your party—or afternoon—to the next level of luxury.Ingredients· 2.5 oz. Rev3· .5 oz. hibiscus simple syrup (see below)· .75 oz. grapefruit juice squeezed fresh· .75 oz. lemon juice squeezed fresh Build this exotic concoction in a rocks glass. Add ice, and get creative with embellishments—a fresh flower, mint sprig for colour, whatever your heart desires. Hibiscus Simple Syrup· 1 bag dried hibiscus flower (about 2 cups)· 2 cups coconut sugar· 2 cups water bring the mixture to a boil until the coconut sugar dissolves completely. Add dried flowers to steep and let mixture cool completely. Once cool, remove flowers to extend the life of this enchanting mixer.

easy mocktail recipes Sunrise/Rev and Rise

Rev Sunrise/Rev and RiseGinger, citrus, and the subtle addition of lychee bring depth, brightness, and sophistication to this perfect brunch beverage. Shake off the groggy feeling left behind from your morning to-do list and amp up your eggs with the power of Rev3.IngredientsDime-sized piece of peeled ginger.5 tsp. coconut sugar5 oz. Rev3.5 oz. lychee syrup1/2 lemon squeezed fresh.75 oz. orange juice, squeezed freshMuddle fresh ginger with coconut sugar until pieces are broken up. Stir ice and remaining ingredients in a large mixing glass with a tall bar spoon. Strain into a large rocks glass over fresh ice. Garnish with a cherry, orange wheel, or anything that brightens your day.

Rev RefresherThere’s nothing like a cooling beverage to infuse your remaining work hours with bright new ideas or to rejuvenate conversation. Mix up a Rev Refresher to enliven an afternoon work session or gathering.IngredientsLarge pinch fresh mint.5 oz. simple syrup1/2 lime squeezed fresh1 oz. pineapple juice2 oz. Rev3Tear and bruise a healthy pinch of fresh mint leaves (careful not to muddle, the leaves will turn brown). Stir remaining ingredients in a large mixing glass with a tall bar spoon. Add leaves to Collins glass and pour additional ingredients into glass. Fill to the top with ice and serve with a tall straw. Garnish with leftover mint leaves or a pineapple wedge.

Healthy Cove

POLLEN PREPAREDNESS: DEALING WITH SEASONAL ALLERGIES

25 June 201925 June 2019 tdslsupport

Your body has a large, complex, and well-trained security force protecting you from the constant barrage of foreign invaders trying to get in. You call it your immune system. And it’s a network of cells, tissues, and organs working together to provide full-time, full-body protection. Without your knowledge, your immune system identifies and attacks a wide variety of day-to-day threats. All while distinguishing these pathogens from your healthy tissues. But this amazing system is sometimes tripped by less evil objects, like pollen. And that’s where your seasonal allergies start.

The symptoms of allergies—running nose, watery eyes, and sneezing—make sense when you consider the role your nose, mouth, and eyes play. They’re easy entry points for invaders, so your tears and mucus are equipped with an enzyme called lysozyme. It’s capable of breaking down the cell walls of numerous bacteria. Your saliva is armed with antibacterial compounds. And your nasal passages and lungs are coated in a protective shield of mucus and lined with mast cells—a type of white blood cell.

Any bacteria or virus that wants to gain entry through these passageways must first successfully navigate through these important defenses. Harmless substances—those that do not pose a threat to your health—also get caught up in these defenses. They are mistakenly targeted for destruction by your immune system. And that’s only the most basic answer for what causes allergies.

But there’s so much more worth exploring, especially if you’re familiar with the runny, watery, sneezy world of allergies. Let’s dive deeper.

Seasonal Allergies: What They Are and How They Happen

An allergen is typically a harmless substance that can trigger an immune system response that results in an allergic reaction. This is considered a type of immune system error.

A seasonal allergy (also called allergic rhinitis or hay fever) is your immune system overreacting to harmless substances in the environment during certain times of the year. Hay fever originally received its name because of the symptoms that people experienced during the summer months when hay was harvested.

Pollen is the most common allergen in sufferers’ seasonal allergies. This fine, powdery substance is produced by trees, grasses, weeds, and flowers mainly during the spring, summer, and fall. Pollination is the transferring of pollen grains from a male part of a plant to a female part so that reproduction can occur. This works when pollen is released into the air, picked up by wind, or carried by insects, bats, and birds to fertilize other plants of the same species.

Pollination is a very important step in the life cycle of many plants. But pollination can be miserable if you experience seasonal allergies.

These tiny, harmless pollen grains float around in the air and can find their way into your nasal passages. This can trigger an immune response inside your nose. That could lead to sneezing, runny or stuffy nose, teary eyes, and an itchy nose, or throat. While these symptoms may sound and feel like a cold, they are not caused by a virus. It’s just your immune system overreacting to that “harmless” plant pollen.

While it can be confusing to determine if you have seasonal allergies or a cold, there are some unique differences:

Seasonal allergies do not cause a fever.
Any mucus secretions you may experience are typically thin, runny, and clear.
Your nose, throat, and ears may feel itching and you may have rapid bouts of sneezing.
Seasonal allergy symptoms usually last longer than seven to 10 days as they are tied to pollen production and counts.

How Do Seasonal Allergies Develop?

You weren’t born with seasonal allergies. But you can develop them over your lifetime.

It all begins with exposure to an allergen (molecules with the potential to cause allergy). You’ve been around them all your life without difficulty. But suddenly your body decides a certain allergen is an invader that must be destroyed.

When this happens, your immune system studies the allergen and makes highly specialized proteins called IgE antibodies to act against it. That’s just in case another exposure occurs. Once your body is sensitized, your immune system maintains a lasting memory of that allergen. This process is called priming.

At your next exposure, your previously made antibodies recognize the allergen and turn on special immune cells to fight and destroy it. These IgE antibodies are specific to a particular antigen. For example, if it is ragweed pollen, the IgE antibodies produced by your immune system only attack the pollen from ragweed.

The chance of developing an allergy starts in your genes. While you can’t inherit specific allergies from your parents, the tendency toward developing allergies is passed down. Children with one allergic parent can have up to a 50-percent chance of developing allergies. And with two allergic parents, it can be an 80-percent chance. Anyone can experience allergies, but children tend to be affected more often than adults.

Allergies can take years to develop. And having one allergy can make you more likely to get others. There’s also a threshold for people who have allergies. So, you can handle a small exposure, but too much launches your body into an allergic response. That activates mast cells in nasal tissues and triggers the release of the histamine from basophils and eosinophils (types of white blood cells).

Histamine is an organic compound that causes the symptoms most often associated with allergies. They’re responsible for the itchy nose, throat, or skin; watery eyes; sneezing; cough; and a runny or stuffy nose.

Seasonal allergy sufferers are familiar with antihistamines. These medications are often used to block the effects of histamines. And it’s the most popular way to deal with the symptoms of seasonal allergies.

The Dreaded Season of Allergies

Allergy season is determined by where you live, and what you’re allergic to. Those with pollen allergies likely dread spring, summer, or fall seasons when pollen counts are at their highest levels.

But what pollen producers are most closely tied to what season? Here’s a quick, simple guide:

SPRING: Trees (like oak and birch) are the significant source of pollen during spring months. In some areas, they can begin producing pollen as early as January.
SUMMER: During the summer months, grasses (like ryegrass and timothy-grass) are a top source of allergy-causing pollen.
FALL: Weeds are the top allergy offenders during the fall. This is especially true for ragweed, which grows in almost every environment.

Having one allergy makes you more likely to get others. So, if one year your ragweed symptoms seem more severe than usual, you may also be reacting to another allergen that’s sharing the air.

How Seasonal Allergies Can Cross Over to Food Allergies

Allergies can interact in other unexpected ways. For example, up to a third of people with certain pollen allergies also develop allergies to foods that contain similar proteins. This is called pollen-food syndrome, or oral allergy syndrome.

It’s caused by cross-reacting allergens found in both pollen and raw fruits, vegetables, or even certain tree nuts. It means that you could experience an itchy mouth; a scratchy throat; or lip, mouth, throat, and tongue swelling.

The symptoms of pollen-food syndrome are usually confined to the mouth and throat. That’s because these proteins are sensitive to gastric enzymes, so they are rapidly degraded upon ingestion. That limits the extent of the reaction. In addition, these proteins are sensitive to heat, so cooking the offending food doesn’t cause the same reaction. In most cases, the symptoms subside once the offending food is swallowed or removed from the mouth.

Although not everyone with pollen allergies experiences pollen-food syndrome, the following are the commonly associated pollen allergens and foods:

Birch pollen: apple, almond, carrot, celery, cherry, hazelnut, kiwi, peach, pear, and plum
Grass pollen: celery, melons, oranges, peaches, and tomato
Ragweed pollen: banana, cucumber, melons, sunflower seeds, and zucchini

All About Allergy Testing

You may have a guess about what causes your allergic reactions. But testing is the only way to know for sure.

Allergy testing can be done as a skin prick or through blood testing. Both methods are used to help determine what substances you may be allergic to. These tests are provided by medical doctors specializing in the immune system and the treatment of allergies. And they are given in addition to a thorough physical exam and health history.

Skin allergy testing is the most common. It’s considered a reliable method to test for certain types of allergens. For this procedure, a tiny amount of select allergens are put into your skin by making a small indentation “prick or scratch” on the surface of your skin.

The skin allergy test determines specific allergies based on how your skin reacts. And the results show up pretty fast. Reactions on the skin occur within about 15 minutes.

If you have allergies, a little swelling and redness will occur where the allergen(s) were placed in your skin. For example, if you are allergic to birch pollen, but not ryegrass pollen, only the birch pollen will cause redness, swelling, and possible itching. The spot where the ryegrass pollen was applied will remain unaffected.

If you’re tired of the seasonal allergen battle, these tests can help determine which allergens trigger your symptoms. And testing can help determine what steps you need to take to avoid your specific triggers. It also helps identify prevention measures or treatments likely to work best for you.

Train Your Immune System

Depending on the type of allergy you have, it’s possible to train your immune system to become less responsive to certain allergens over time—with the help of an allergist or immunologist. Desensitization or immunotherapy is a preventive treatment for allergic reactions to certain substances, including pollens.

Immunotherapy involves giving gradually increasing doses of the immune-offending allergen either under the tongue or as an injection into the skin. The incremental increase in dosing changes the way your immune system reacts to the allergen over time. This can help reduce the symptoms of an allergy when the allergen is encountered by your immune system in the future.

Before starting treatment, it is important for your allergist to help you identify which pollens or other substances trigger allergy symptoms. Skin and sometimes blood tests are performed to confirm the antibodies to specific allergens before therapy can begin.

For those tired of seasonal sneezing fits and constant doses of antihistamines, immunotherapy is a long-term way to address the way your immune system responds to allergens.

Tips for Seasonal Allergy Avoidance

If your nose is driving you crazy, what can you do? Pollen can be difficult to dodge. But avoidance remains one of the best ways to control exposure to allergens during allergy season.

To minimize your exposure to pollen:

Stay informed of your local pollen counts by checking the internet or other community sources
Remain indoors when pollen counts are high
Avoid exercising outdoors early in the morning
Keep car windows rolled up while driving
Avoid gardening or yard work when pollen counts are high
Wear a pollen mask when outdoors
Consider investing in a home air purifier
Stay indoors on windy days and during thunderstorms
Keep doors and windows closed
Wear sunglasses while outside to keep pollen out of your eyes
Vacuum often to keep allergens out of your home

Beat the Allergy Season Blues

One of the best ways to combat the impact of seasonal allergies is through knowledge, preparation, and action. Knowing what pollens you’re allergic to, controlling exposure, and treating the symptoms before they become overwhelming can help you navigate the perils of pollen season.

East Coast Life Solutions carries a full line of doTerra essential oils and USANA Health Sciences supplements to help you build your immunity and relieve allergy symptoms. (links are on our home page)

We are always looking for people to join our healthy lifestyle team, which is very rewarding to pass along great values and education to others. Please use the contact page to get in touch.

ECLS Energy

GET ALL YOUR ZZZ’S WITH THESE SLEEP HACKS

1 June 201928 May 2019 tdslsupport

In today’s overly connected world, it’s easy to keep scrolling, scrolling, scrolling, sun-up to well past sundown. Being connected 24/7 has upsides: business and personal connections can happen anywhere, any time. You can call your cross-country sibling, message a funny cat video to your favorite aunt, send a roommate a passive-aggressive rent reminder. The possibilities online are endless.

These incredible advancements in communication and productivity also have their downsides. More than one-third of American adults don’t get enough sleep. We willingly deprive ourselves with every swipe, tap, and like. And there are countless other reasons why you may feel tired during the day. In fact, there’s a whole science behind it. One of the most common causes of fatigue is the lack of quality sleep.

Here’s some good news: no matter how poor your bedtime habits currently are, you always have the power to get your sleep schedule back on track. Read on to assess your current sleep habits and learn how you can better catch all those sweet, sweet Z’s.

What Sleep Does

There are oh so many reasons to get an adequate amount of sleep. Not only does your body spend this time repairing itself, a healthy amount of sleep can improve mood, help with weight management, reduce stress, lower your risk for serious health problems, offer clearer thinking, improve your work and school performance, and more. The CDC recommends adults get between seven and nine hours of sleep per night.

While scientists don’t entirely understand everything snoozing does for the human body and mind, we definitely know what happens when we don’t get enough of it. Even one night of sleep deprivation may result in daytime sleepiness, a foggy mind, physical and mental fatigue, difficulty concentrating, even memory impairment. Oh, and it turns out beauty sleep isn’t just an expression. Cellular stress is another result of sleeplessness, and it can show on your skin.

Practice Your Z’s

Lucky for you, even if you’re sleep deprived, there’s hope! Like any healthy routine, it all starts with making the effort until it’s a habit. Here are seven simple ways you can improve every snooze:

Maintain a consistent sleep schedule, even on weekends. Avoid sleep inertia by committing to a consistent sleep schedule seven days a week. Don’t worry about a few late nights a week, just make sure to wake up at the same time every day. Your body will adjust the next night by getting more tired, earlier. You’ll also find yourself waking up before your alarm more often, refreshed and ready to take on the day. It’s truly one of the greatest feelings on this earth.
Avoid stimulants like alcohol, sugar, and caffeine well before bedtime. The afternoon struggle is all too real, but turning to that pick-me-up cup of coffee may have adverse effects when it continues to pick you up at 10:00 p.m. Similarly, sugar and other simple, processed carbs will cause a spike and crash in blood sugar, affecting your circadian rhythm. Alcohol can help you get to sleep (nightcap, anyone?), but it actually interrupts rapid eye movement (REM), one of the five key stages of the sleep cycle.
Turn off the electronics an hour—or two—before slumber. You’re probably already familiar with the dreaded blue light flowing from our screens. Not only does this light throw our circadian rhythm off, long-term exposure may cause macular degeneration. Give your eyes a rest by avoiding screens for at least an hour before bedtime. Pick up a screen-free habit such as reading, meditating to sleep sounds, or other relaxing activities.
Develop a nightly skincare routine. Any excuse to treat your epidermis is a win-win for you and your skin. Adopting healthy skincare habits is good for any time of day, particularly as part of a nighttime routine—and it’s another excuse to avoid electronics. Put on some relaxing music and get to pampering.
Workouts are awesome for sleep—if you time them right. Regular exercise is a great way to promote a good night’s sleep, but it’s all about timing. Working out too close to bedtime will leave your body wide awake and wired for the next exciting activity. Instead of yoga too late into the evening, take a time-out with some mindfulness practices.
Chill out. When your core temperature drops, it’s a signal to your body to produce melatonin. Drop the temperature a few degrees, shower, wear fewer layers to bed, and throw on some socks—no, really.
Keep a sleep diary. Take a quick minute in the morning to jot down roughly what time you went to bed and what time you woke up, how many times you woke during the night, and how refreshing your sleep was. Make a short note of what you did the day before which may have contributed to a better or worse night’s sleep. You may be surprised how your new habits positively contribute to sleep quality!

Of course, life has a habit of derailing our best-laid plans. Whether it’s a rowdy pillow fight, the absolute need to watch the new episode of MasterChef Junior, traveling through too many time zones, or any number of other reasons, it’s unavoidable, at times, to end up restless at the end of the day. When you need occasional extra help to get into a sleepy-time state, consider a non–habit forming melatonin supplement. An extra dose of melatonin can help support your body’s natural circadian rhythms for those challenging nights. One option is Pure Rest™, USANA’s fast-acting melatonin supplement.*

Nighty Night

What are your go-to tips for getting the best sleep? For me, it was taking a step back and realizing I needed to make sleep a priority. Once I scheduled in time to wind down—and swapped my phone for a good historical fiction and some tea—the rest fell into place.

Drop your advice below!

*THESE STATEMENTS HAVE NOT BEEN EVALUATED BY THE FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION. THIS PRODUCT IS NOT INTENDED TO DIAGNOSE, TREAT, CURE, OR PREVENT ANY DISEASE.

Healthy Cove

HEALTHY GRAZING BOARDS: A QUEST FOR FLAVOR AND FRIENDSHIP

28 May 201928 May 2019 tdslsupport

Almost every great adventure begins with a reluctant hero fighting against seemingly unconquerable odds. But it ends with a victorious feast, new friends made, and lessons learned. It may seem like a stretch, but this is no different from my first experience making a charcuterie board.

Also known as a gazing board, this party platter urges you to find the best food you can and share it with those you care about (or want to impress). And you can make it as healthy as you want. From the herbal, nutty aroma of exotic cheeses to the sweet, sour flavor of pickled olives surrounded by wild berries and fresh veggies—be your own hero as you embark on the unforgettable adventure of making and presenting your first grazing board.

Searching for Flavor

Your first obstacle is to find all the ingredients you need. Because you’ll need a lot of them. As you make the quest to look for unique foods, seasonal fruits, and the freshest veggies you can find, you’ll discover you must search out boutique grocers in every corner of the land.

Go all out with your ingredients. And remember, quality and abundance are key. It also helps to know early on there really isn’t a wrong way to make a grazing board.

Cheese and meat: Traditional charcuterie focuses more on cheeses and cured meats. For healthy options, try fresh cheeses, like Mozzarella or Ricotta, instead of aged ones. And go with lean protein options like eggs or shaved turkey. For more healthy ideas, click here.
Fruit and veggies: pickled olives, grapes, and berries go well with traditional cheeses and meats, but don’t be afraid to pile your board with all kinds of healthy, tasty options. You can easily ditch the meat and cheese and make veggies the centerpiece if you want. This is your chance to go to the local farmers market and discover something new.
Everything else: Don’t forget all the delicious extras you can add. Pistachios, almonds, and other nuts are great for adding flavor and texture. You can also include sweet or savory jams and jellies, mustards, or other pickled items or garnishes. Herb sprigs and flowers can bring even more color and aroma to your board.

You’ll quickly learn that searching for the perfect parts of your grazing board is a real-life adventure. It will get you out into the community discovering new flavors and cultures, supporting local businesses, and encouraging you to meet new people and places.

If you want to make a vegan grazing board, check out this article.

Crafting an Experience

Now that you have all your fancy, fresh, and unique ingredients, you can actually build your board and craft an experience of gastronomical grandeur. This is the second trial you—as the hero of your story—must overcome. But, as with the first, you’ll quickly realize it’s just another part of your awesome, new adventure.

Find your foundation. You can use a glass or ceramic platter or go with a wooden board. Just make sure it’s the right size for what you want to do.
Start by placing the two or three largest items like cheese wedges, bowls of jelly or olives, or large vegetables.
Begin filling in the spaces working from bigger items to smaller ones. Keep everything bite-sized, and try to keep similar items together.
Add some style and asymmetry by placing items in threes. You can go with an elaborate design you find online or just make your board a chaotic cornucopia.
Add the finishing touches with herb sprigs, flowers, berries, nuts, and seeds.

This is your chance to showcase all the delicious goodies you’ve found on your journey. Find foods with striking colors and try to complement them. Make it your way and add your style. There really aren’t any rules as to what can or can’t be on a grazing board. If you love gardening, it could be filled with all of your home-grown vegetables. Or if you want to focus more on protein options, you could go more traditional and cover it with cheese and antipasti.

The experience you craft is in your hands. For design ideas click here.

Celebrating Your Journey

Now that your board is complete, you need some friends and loved ones to share it with. So invite them over for a relaxing evening and good food. Place your board in an easily accessible location, typically close to the drinks.

Then stick around and share your healthy grazing board with pride. You traveled far and wide, discovered new places and flavors, and now you get to have some fun and tell your stories. Where and how you got the ingredients really can become the main talking point around your board. So get ready to be the expert on the heirloom tomatoes or locally sourced fresh cheese you included.

Nothing is quite as photogenic as a well-made grazing board. So make sure to snap plenty of nice photos and share them, along with your stories, on social media as well. It’s a great way to showcase healthy habits in an artistic way that’s all you.

You’ve broken out of your comfort zone. You’ve fostered a community of people you care for. You’ve had a healthy adventure and created something to be forever proud of. But it’s not the end of your story, because you can always do it again. Maybe next time you’ll add some mango pieces or a bowl of fresh salsa.

Here at East Coast Life Solutions, we know that it’s easy to get off track. Healthy food tips and ideas make it easy to keep going in the right direction. When there is good healthy food at your fingertips you are less likely to be tempted to indulge in less healthy temptations.

And we know many of you are already healthy grazing board experts. Please share your tips and tricks below to help us new adventurers on our journey.

Healthy Cove

MINDFUL LIVING IS HEALTHY LIVING

26 May 201922 May 2019 tdslsupport

Describing mindfulness can be hard. So, let’s do a little thought experiment and try some mindful living for a minute.

Imagine you’re walking through a city, enjoying the fresh air, and delighting in the bustle and energy of the streets. You take a seat on a bench near a busy intersection, safely tucked away from traffic. You’re happy to rest for a moment and take in the sights and sounds. What goes through your mind as you witness the traffic?

You might notice the make, model, and color of each car that passes. Perhaps you take note of how fast a particular car whooshes by. Maybe you see another car run a red light. You allow yourself to observe these visual cues and understand them as information, without the need to interpret them as good, bad, wrong, or right.

This basic analogy is what many practitioners use to describe mindfulness. Let’s unpack it to dig deeper into this important, but elusive concept.

What is Mindfulness?

If you imagine the busy street as your brain, then the different cars represent your thoughts. They could be about your worries, fears, or stressors. They might represent your hopes, wishes, and desires. People in your life may populate your thoughts. All those thoughts are cars traveling on the street of your brain.

Mindfulness is immersing yourself in that moment-to-moment awareness, free of judgment. It allows for these thoughts to enter your mind, move through, and disappear without wreaking havoc. That means as you think of a worry, hope, or person, you do so without judging yourself for thinking about it.

An example of mindful living might help clarify things. You feel worried about missing an impending deadline. Mindfulness would suggest that you acknowledge the deadline and your body’s reaction to it with a bit of emotional distance.

Most people don’t practice this detachment. That allows negative thoughts to loop. If the loop continues uninterrupted, the result can be anxiety, stress, worry, and preoccupation. But, if you aim to witness your thoughts in the same way you would a harmless car driving safely by you, you’re likely to avoid those negative pitfalls. Additionally, allowing a bit of space from emotions provides clarity of mind and mental focus.

Mindfulness is about staying in the present. So, returning to the car metaphor, mindfulness is not craning your neck to see if the car that passed will turn off the road up ahead. It is also not turning to see how far traffic has backed up. When you’re simply observing each car as it enters and exits your field of view, you’re practicing mindfulness.

The Benefits of Mindfulness

As the modern world continues to blaze by, many are turning to mindfulness to slow life down. The recent growth in the popularity of mindfulness has created a call for research to investigate the benefits of more mindful living.

Practitioners have long claimed many benefits for mindfulness. Among them are stress reduction, less emotional reactivity, freedom from rumination, mental focus, and relationship satisfaction.

Researchers have started to test these hypotheses. They do it by assigning study participants to a mindfulness-based intervention or a control group. Then researchers take various measurements to determine the effects of each intervention.

In one investigation, researchers looked at nearly 40 studies that include mindfulness-based interventions. They found mindfulness programs helped reduce stress, anxiety, and depression in patients with psychiatric disorders. In certain studies, they also concluded that mindfulness practice, paired with traditional therapy, is effective in preventing relapse into depression for certain patients.

Another study has shown promising results for regular practice of mindfulness through meditation. In this particular case, participants learned how to meditate over a two-month period. Researchers took images of participants’ brains before and after the program and found changes in the amygdala, an area of the brain responsible for emotional processing. The scan showed that the amygdala was less active after meditation. Then participants were shown emotionally charged images and the same brain scan was repeated. Comparing pre-meditation scans to those taken after viewing emotional images revealed something interesting.

Researchers saw that the decrease in activity of the amygdala held, even when the participants weren’t actively meditating. This finding is promising, as it shows that the benefits—in this case, less emotional reactivity—are long-lasting, even when meditation or mindfulness is not being actively employed.

Another group of researchers studied attendees of an intensive mindfulness retreat. After the 10-day retreat, the participants, experienced less rumination—when compared to a control group who didn’t attend the retreat. The retreat group also exhibited better attention and focus when assigned to a performance task.

It’s not uncommon to hear about a new trend from a friend and be skeptical. Even if your friend shares a personal, compelling anecdote, it may feel too good to be true. But when the trend in question is mindfulness or mindful meditation, the jury’s no longer out. Science shows that health benefits of mindfulness do exist. So, hesitate no longer and hop on the bandwagon.

Tips for Mindful Living Every Day

Slow down. It’s easy to move through life on autopilot, going through the motions without consciously connecting with each action, decision, or person you encounter. One trick is to think about the transitions throughout your day and how you can move through them more slowly and intentionally. This could be the moment after you wake up and before you get out of bed. Maybe it’s the moment after you finish one work task and start the next. When these transitions are rushed, it divorces your mind from your body, turning autopilot back on. In these transitional moments, pause to breathe and check in with your mind and body. This will give you a chance to collect your thoughts and ready yourself for whatever comes next.
Use all of your senses. Mindfulness doesn’t just have to be turned on when life gets stressful. Tuning into your body and all of its sensations can help you stay engaged in mindfulness. Listening, seeing, tasting, touching, and hearing fully can help you stay grounded in each moment. With this mindset, an ordinary task can turn into a sensory experience. For example, take gardening. What does the soil feel like? Does this new sprout have a smell? Consider the vibrancy of the colors throughout the plant. If it bears fruit, what does it taste like? What sounds do you hear as you’re outside tending to the garden? When you stay in the moment and ask yourself these questions, it’s nearly impossible to ruminate on the past or worry about the future.
Keep a gratitude journal. Start by jotting down three things you were grateful for each day. This practice will encourage you to slow down and reflect on your day. Consider why you’re grateful for each list item, how they make you feel, and how they add to your life. Journaling can help you curate a more positive outlook and perspective. If this resonates with you, create longer lists or expand each entry.
Focus on brain health. Mindfulness is all in your head—focusing your brain on the present and striving for non-judgment. So, it’s also a time to think about supporting your brain. That means eating foods rich in B-vitamins, omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin D, antioxidants, and vitamin E. And your brain also has to be exercised to keep it in tip-top shape. Practice being mindful about using your brain each day. You can do that by playing a musical instrument, taking classes (anything from cooking to math), learning a new language, memory games, playing a new sport, and more.
Practice self-compassion. Non-judgment is the key to mindfulness. But requiring your mind to be present and non-judgmental can feel like a tall order. You may not do it successfully every time. And that’s OK. Be forgiving and kind to yourself. It’s the best way to ensure you’ll come back to the present and continue forward.

Another Taste: Eating Mindfully

In the modern world of busy schedules, traffic, and technology, it’s hard to find time to focus on eating well. When time is short, meals are often the first thing to take a hit. It means a meal might start in a drive-through lane and finish while you’re driving. Or perhaps it’s a plate of leftovers quickly reheated in the microwave and eaten standing up.

Not giving yourself moments to slow down and eat in peace will only add to the rushed pace of the day. And unsurprisingly, the result might leave you feeling stressed, anxious, and with an upset stomach.

When you take the alternative approach and choose to eat with dedicated intention, you unlock more opportunities to practice mindfulness. It doesn’t matter whether you make a meal from scratch or you pick up one that’s prepared. Eating mindfully calls on all of your senses, bringing you into the present.

What does it smell like? Does the aroma transport you to another place or memory? If you’re eating with your fingers, what does it feel like? Is it soft, crumbly, or flaky? What does it feel like once you put a morsel in your mouth? Does it melt, dissolve, or bubble? What does the food taste like? Does it make your mouth pucker or hit your sweet tooth?

Engaging all of your senses requires that you take your time and tune into each sensation. This behavior makes for a more enjoyable, relaxed meal. An added benefit is that eating slowly will allow you to sense when you’re full more quickly. This means you’re less likely to overeat unintentionally. That’s a bonus whether you’re trying to lose, gain, or maintain your weight.

Paying attention to the general feel and feedback from your whole body will help you remain in touch with what your body needs and when. When did you last eat? How does your body feel? What cues is it giving you and what are they saying? Remember that your body knows best. It only asks you to listen to its cues.

Make Mindfulness Your Mantra

Mindfulness requires a subtle shift in how you move throughout your day. While the change is seemingly small, the impact can be large. Being mindful allows your body and mind to let go of stress, negative thought patterns, and associated behaviors.

When you toss aside those patterns and distractions, you liberate yourself. You’re likely to find more creativity, productivity, and energy. By committing even a few moments a day to mindfulness, you start a habit that sets you up for a healthier day and overall lifestyle.

Healthy Cove

THE NERVOUS SYSTEM: UNDERSTANDING HOW YOU’RE WIRED

22 May 201922 May 2019 tdslsupport

Just like a powerful computer, your body is always taking in data and using it to make decisions. But you have nerves instead of a circuit board and a brain rather than microchips. Together, your nervous system directs your body’s functions according to the messages it receives.

Think of the central nervous system as a biological command center. It integrates information from your surroundings and tells your body how to react. And the nervous system does all this while letting you focus on living your life. So, you don’t need to consciously worry about responding to every stimulus you encounter. That would be exhausting.

To save you the mental energy, you need your nervous system to perform voluntary and involuntary actions. Without it, you couldn’t control your arms and legs, maintain a steady heart rate, or breath.

Here’s some other involuntary reactions that rely on your nervous system:

Vision
Blinking
Sneezing
Fight-or-flight responses
Withdrawal reflex (pulling your hand away from a hot stove)

Your nervous system also helps you:

Walk
Talk
Clap your hands
Brush your hair
Exercise

The reach of your nervous system is enormous. Every part of your body is hardwired with nervous-system tissue. You can pick up information from your hands and feet, as well as your joints and gut.

Now it’s time to plug into your nervous system and get a sense of how much it does for you. And also learn about the parts and mechanisms that make your nervous system function.

Anatomy: Nervous System Parts

At its most basic level, your nervous system is a collection of specialized cells called neurons, and supporting cells called neuroglial cells or just glial cells. A neuron can conduct electricity and secrete chemical messengers called neurotransmitters. Each nerve cell can pass on information, and receive information from stimuli inside and outside your body. Glial cells surround neurons. Their role is to provide support and protection for neurons.

Neurons have a cell body—just like all other cells. This is called the soma, and it’s surrounded with tiny, finger-like extensions. These are called dendrites. And they receive stimulation from the nerve cells next door.

Protruding out of the cell body is the axon—a long projection that carries electrochemical impulses. Axons are surrounded by a fatty tissue called the myelin sheath. This insulates the axon and speeds up signal transmission. Think of the myelin sheath as the insulation that surrounds the wires in your electronic devices.

The neuron ends at the axon terminal. That’s where signals created inside the nerve cell are sent to the next neuron. Nerve impulses are transmitted from the axon terminal of one neuron to the dendrites of the next. The space where nerve cells meet up and exchange information is called the synapse.

Neurons link up between their dendrites and axon terminals and create a thick, rope-like shape. This bundle of neurons is called a nerve. They pick up signals from your internal organs and outside world and propel the messages towards your brain.

There are thousands of nerves in your body. And they vary in size. The longest nerve is called the sciatic nerve. It stretches from the base of your spinal cord to your foot. The trochlear nerve is one of the smallest. It’s in charge of the rotational movement of your eye.

After neurons and nerves come the bigger organs of the nervous system—the spinal cord and brain.

The spinal cord is essentially one large, thick nerve with a direct connection to your brain. The bones in your spinal column provide structure and protection. That allows messages to travel uninterrupted to and from your brain along the spinal cord.

If you think about your nervous system as a computer, then the brain is the system’s hard drive. It receives every message gathered by your nerves via the spinal cord. Then it interprets that information and initiates a response.

When you want your body to perform an action, it’s your neurons that start working first. They send electrochemical impulses to the brain through the nerves and spinal cord. Your brain returns the necessary instructions to complete the task along the same nerves.

In the next section, you’ll learn more about this process, the role of nerves, and the actions your nervous system can help you accomplish.

How the Nervous System Works

Your body is great at tackling the hard work of your everyday life. And the nervous system is no exception. It divides up the job of sensing and responding to stimuli between its two parts—the central nervous system (CNS) and the peripheral nervous system (PNS).

The CNS is the control center of the nervous system. It includes the brain and the spinal cord. All the nerves that branch out from the spine are part of the PNS. Though they operate in tandem, it is important to highlight them independently. That’s because each section of the nervous system has a unique role and function.

Central Nervous System

Your CNS is the boss of your body. It is responsible for coordinating the messages it gets from the PNS to provide the appropriate physical response. This process is called integration.

The wire-like nerves in your body get stimuli from your environment and send those signals to your brain. But the nerves in your hands and feet aren’t plugged directly into your brain. Instead, your spinal cord makes a single connection at the base of the skull.

Protected by bony vertebrae (the bones of the spine), your spinal cord is the cable that collects the information from all over the body. Acting as one large conduit to the brain, your spinal cord can deliver large amounts of data from a single port, rather than thousands of smaller ones.

This makes it easier for your brain to integrate all the sensations you experience with the right actions and movements. And when it’s time to respond to messages, it can send out instructions in bulk. This takes some work off your brain’s plate by leaving the sorting and delivery work to the spinal cord.

Peripheral Nervous System

All of the nerves in your body (except the brain and spinal cord) are collectively known as the peripheral nervous system or PNS. It’s the job of the PNS to use nerves to sense information about your environment. Your voluntary and involuntary actions, reflexes, and intentional movements are initiated by the PNS.

The PNS communicates back and forth with your brain and spine and lets the central nervous system know what the rest of the body is doing. The PNS does this with specialized nerve cells called afferent and efferent neurons.

Afferent neurons are also known as sensory neurons. They send messages to your CNS. They deal in sensory information like sound, taste, touch, and smell. When you touch sandpaper, or smell a cake baking, your afferent neurons take that stimuli to your brain.

To respond to those sensations, your PNS uses efferent neurons. These carry messages and instructions away from your CNS. Efferent neurons can also be called motor neurons. They do just what their name implies—triggering muscle contraction and movement. Motor neurons make it possible for you to scratch your fingers against the rough sandpaper. They also allow you to take a bite of that delicious-smelling cake.

Both afferent and efferent neurons are present in nerve fibers. So, your PNS can send sensory information to your brain and receive a motor response along the same nerve. You need this kind of back-and-forth communication for voluntary movement.

The nerves of the PNS also manage things outside of your conscious control—involuntary reactions to your environment.

A major example of your PNS at work is your fight-or-flight response. This kicks in when you perceive that you’re in danger. It can also turn on when you’re worried and scared. At that time, your body experiences involuntary changes when you feel stressed.

Take speaking in public, for example. As the moment approaches, you might notice your heart start to race and your palms sweat. Your mouth might even get dry.

These symptoms indicate that your peripheral nervous system is working as it should. Salivary glands, skin cells, and your heart muscle get messages from your brain via the PNS to adjust their behavior to keep you safe. When you take a couple of deep breaths and settle your nerves (pun intended), your heart rate returns to normal. You feel safe and are no longer afraid.

The peripheral nervous system operates a complementary response to fight or flight, often called rest and digest. Your nerves send instructions down from the CNS to calm your body when it’s not in any danger. So, your breathing is steady and your muscles and gut are relaxed when you’re not experiencing stress.

Again, all of these changes occur on their own. You can thank your PNS for running on autopilot so you don’t have to worry about elevating your heart rate when something makes you nervous.

And without a peripheral nervous system, decisions and directions made by the CNS would have to be carried out directly by your brain and spinal cord. The central nervous system may call the shots when it comes to responding to sensations and stimuli. But the PNS is the link between your body and your brain that gets the job done.

Nervous System Technical Support

It’s pretty wild to think that electrochemical impulses are shooting up and down your nerves as you pause to read this article. Your nervous system is always working. So, make sure you’re doing your part to keep your electrical wiring up to code. There are a couple great ways to support and protect your nervous system.

Minimize Stress

Remember all the work your nervous system does to prepare your body for fight or flight? When stresses from work, school, or family life don’t let up, it can be hard for your nervous system to ease out of this involuntary response.

If your mind feels clouded with worry, it can be hard for your brain to efficiently integrate all the messages from your nerves. Sometimes this stress can even manifest itself in physical pain.

Combating stress and returning your body to the rest-and-digest phase will give your nerves a break. Deep breathing, mindful meditation, and exercise are all great ways to take a load off. If possible, try easing your mental strain by eliminating unnecessary work or burdens. And ask for help from family and friends when you need it.

Eat Whole Foods with Healthy Fats and Antioxidants

The myelin sheath covering the axon of your neurons are made of fatty tissue. So is your brain, the head of the central nervous system. That’s why you should choose food that reinforces these important structures.

That means healthy, unsaturated fats, like omega-3s. These are liquid at room temperature, but are also found in solid foods. You can find these healthy fats in avocados, nuts, seeds, fatty fish, and olive oil.

Another great way to protect your brain long-term is by eating foods rich in antioxidants. Berries and other brightly colored fruits and veggies are excellent sources. Antioxidants help protect brain tissue from damage by free radicals. They also support memory and cognitive function.

Try to incorporate these nutrients—and others, like magnesium, iodine, and a variety of vitamins—in your diet. Switch out foods with unhealthy fats (fried foods and prepackaged foods) with healthier options (grilled salmon or walnuts.) Make a brain-boosting smoothie with lots of berries and green veggies.

There are plenty of tasty ways to take care of your nervous system. And your hard-working brain, spinal cord, and nerves deserve the love.

ECLS Energy

5 TIPS TO RECLAIM YOUR TIME: WHY YOU MUST OPT OUT OF THE CULT OF BUSYNESS

22 May 201922 May 2019 tdslsupport

To do list in a car on driving wheel and hand holding phone - busy day concept

The bad news: Your relationship with time is more than likely toxic.

You’re overscheduled, stretched too thin, and find it difficult to focus on the present moment. You probably respond with, “busy,” when people ask how you’re doing. The worst part? You don’t feel like you have the power to take control of your time.

Whether you joined voluntarily or not, you’re a card-carrying member of the cult of busyness—the ever-growing group of people whose anxiety is rising because they don’t feel like they have enough time to get everything done. You’re among the hordes of multitaskers who scramble to squeeze the most out of every minute, rolling through life as a ball of stress, only to collapse into an exhausted heap at the end of every day.

How Busyness Took Over and Why it Keeps Getting Worse

It’s not your fault. You weren’t born to be a slave to your schedule. You just got swept up in an unhealthy cultural trend.

But how did so many people become obsessed with time and productivity?

When the world was filled with agrarian (or farming) societies, the passing of time was indicated by the sun and the seasons. Leisure time was a marker of wealth. But with the rise of the Industrial Revolution, the measurement of time became inextricably connected with productivity. Time was money. And the more a person worked, the more valuable he or she was perceived as being.

The technological era has again reshaped people’s relationship with time, creating a driving need to optimize as much of your life as possible. There are the same 24 hours to work with in every day as our agrarian and industrial ancestors had. So, society had to get smart about maximizing people’s skill sets to accomplish more moment-to-moment. With productivity reigning supreme, moments of leisure, rest, and relaxation are often looked at as wasteful or lost opportunities to accumulate wealth.

The result? Many people are held captive by their schedules. You might feel compelled to be seen as productive and, by extension, valuable. Put simply, your lack of time has become a primary marker of your worth. Signaling to others how busy you are implies you’re highly in-demand.

With most people having a digital device at their fingertips around the clock, it’s easy to feel like (and perpetuate the feeling) that everyone else is being productive around the clock. So, you need to compete. Ever had a coworker send emails at midnight? Do you receive group texts from your friends at 5 a.m.? Previous rules of decorum around personal time have been obliterated by both a compulsive need to be seen as hard workers and the variety of ways to communicate instantaneously.

Scientific Evidence for the Cult of Busyness

When someone messages you at odd hours, it triggers a feeling that you need to respond—out of good manners and to show that you, too, are available and productive around the clock. When you’re stuck in a cycle of responding to various stimuli, you don’t feel in control of your time. It’s dictated by others.

Experts studying the evolving relationship with time refer to this feeling as “time poverty.” But contrary to how time-starved many people feel, in reality, we have more free time than any previous generation.

“There is a distinction between objective time, which you can measure, and subjective time, which is experiential,” explains philosopher Nils F. Schott, the James M. Motley Postdoctoral Fellow in the Humanities at Johns Hopkins University.

When you’re preoccupied with the tug of war between what you want to do and what you should be doing, you’re missing opportunities and the ability to enjoy the moment. And you’re likely spending too much time on tasks you feel are urgent—regardless of their importance—and too little time on tasks that are important in the long run, but lack in-your-face urgency. For example, you might respond immediately to an email that pops into your inbox, but put off exercising for weeks (or months, or years).

Some studies show that busy people make better health choices (the thought being that having limited time forces better planning). But it’s no coincidence that as schedules become more hectic, the number of people who say they feel stressed and anxious has increased.

Feeling time-starved, like you’re always behind and will never catch up with life’s demands, can lead to stress, increased feelings of anxiety, and mental distress. Anxiousness can negatively impact sleep quality, which leads to poor planning and decision-making. Thus the cycle continues.

Reclaim Your Time with These 5 Tips

Finally, it’s time for some good news: Experts say there are ways to reverse the harmful effects of time poverty.

Simply put: do less.

Yes, that’s easier said than done because it requires understanding and protecting your priorities. Time is a precious resource, one worth fighting for. Recognizing that you have the power to control how you spend your time is the first step to reclaiming it.

Here are five practical tips to escape the cult of busyness:

Track your time. It may seem counterintuitive to pay more attention to your time in order to free yourself of its suffocating restraints. But it’s only by knowing where you’re devoting your minutes and hours that you can begin to reclaim them. After listing all of your activities in a diary, you’ll likely find that you have more free time than you think you do. That big-picture look can also help you prioritize what’s important, so you can focus more time on that. Time tracking can also help you pinpoint the time-sucking activities you need to eliminate.
Stop multitasking. It’s bad for your brain in the short term—and possibly lowers your IQ in the long-term. You may feel like you’re accomplishing more, but studies show multitasking is less productive than devoting your focus to one task or project at a time. And it will negatively affect the quality of your work and could diminish your cognitive function to that of an 8-year-old. To kick the multitasking habit, look to the results from your time diary to identify the window of time you’re most productive. Schedule your most mentally challenging tasks for this period of time. Remind yourself that a majority of the time, what doesn’t get done today can wait until tomorrow.
Ditch the guilt. Give yourself permission to opt out of the rat race. Set boundaries for your time and don’t feel bad for enforcing them. Feeling like you’re failing as a parent because you aren’t spending enough time with your kids? It’s time to let yourself off the hook. Parents today spend more time with their children than parents did 40 years ago. Instead of feeling guilty about the time you aren’t spending with your family, focus on making the time you do spend with them as high-quality as possible. Leave work at the office as much as possible and use your paid vacation time to make memories. You’ll set a great example to your children of what it looks like to honor your priorities and live mindfully.
Choose the right kind of rest. It may be tempting after a hard week to spend the weekend on the couch binging your favorite shows. But your mind won’t register that passive activity as rest. Instead, choose a more mindful form of rejuvenation: read a book, take a walk, meditate, do yoga, practice hygge, call a friend or family member. As is typical with any form of self-care, however, if it’s not scheduled and prioritized, it can become the first thing cut when your schedule gets extra unruly. Remember to book time to refill your tank. It’s also a good idea to have the occasional “device detox,” where you put the phones, laptops, and tablets away and enjoy the company of others. The texts and emails will be there when you return.
Take baby steps. Choose one time-reclaiming activity to implement. Use your time-tracking journal to help you identify areas in your life that consistently encroach upon your personal time and start there by creating realistic boundaries. Maybe you’ll decide to turn email notifications off or not to check texts after 8 p.m. After you’ve successfully incorporated that habit into your daily routine, choose another area to tackle. Keep going until you feel like you control your time instead of the other way around.

The Time is Now

The tornado of tasks sweeping you up—and your anxiety about dealing with all of them right now—isn’t all your fault. You’ve been sucked into the cult of busyness like so many people today.

Unlike others, you now understand how people end up paralyzed by productivity, and how technology has accelerated the perception (and reality) of busyness. And you have time-management tips to help you reclaim your time.

Don’t wait to take control over your schedule. Step off the non-stop treadmill of emails and projects and other people’s needs. Your time is invaluable and finite. So, reclaim your time and wrestle back dominion over your days.

ECLS Energy, Healthy Cove

5-DAY RESET™

13 May 201913 May 2019 tdslsupport

START THE JOURNEY TO A NEW YOU WITH USANA® 5-DAY RESET™

Change isn’t easy. But don’t stress! Sometimes a small success is all it takes to jumpstart a big transformation. That’s the idea behind the USANA® 5-Day RESET™ kit. In only five days, you’ll be on your way to a healthier you.*

By eating balanced, low-glycemic foods, you can overcome your cravings and begin losing weight** without feeling hungry. RESET will help you get in the habit of eating healthier, exercising, and making smarter lifestyle choices.*

Want more tips for managing your weight? Check out our weight-management checklist.

What’s Included in the 5-Day RESET Kit?

The 5-Day RESET kit comes in two varieties, so you can choose the Nutrimeal with the protein source that’s right for you. One contains a mixture of the French Vanilla (soy protein) and Dutch Chocolate (soy and whey protein). Or you can choose a non-soy, plant-based option that contains only packets of the mildly flavored Nutrimeal Free.

Each kit comes with the following:

15 Nutrimeal™ single-serve packets—USANA Nutrimeal is formulated with a healthy ratio of complete proteins, beneficial fats, fiber, and low-glycemic carbohydrates to help you maintain your energy levels. Go to the Nutrimeal product page for more information.
5 USANA^® Probiotic stick packs—USANA Probiotic blends two of the most documented strains of good bacteria that help bring balance to your belly and support your gut microbiome.* Go to the Probiotic product page for more information.
10 (5 AM & 5 PM) HealthPak™ packets—USANA HealthPak helps you get the optimal amounts of important micronutrients.* It includes
USANA^® CellSentials ™ (Vita Antioxidant, Core Minerals); USANA^® MagneCal D™; and the CellSentials Booster, which is made exclusively with USANA InCelligence Technology^®. Go to the HealthPak product page for more information.
Program guide and tracking card

The 5-Day RESET Program

The 5-Day RESET is a calorie-conscious program based on eating balanced, low-glycemic meals and whole-food snacks.

General guidelines:

Women should strive to consume approximately 1,200 calories per day
Men should strive to consume approximately 1,500 calories per day

Every day, you will simply replace three meals with a Nutrimeal shake, take your supplements, and eat whole-food snacks.

You may eat more snacks than are listed here. And you can mix fruit, vegetables, or unsweetened milk (dairy or plant-based) in your Nutrimeal shakes for a little variety. Just make sure to keep your calories near the recommended amount, or you may not experience the results you want. Also try to limit your fruit to three servings a day. Fruit juice is discouraged.

You will also want to turn off the TV and do some kind of low-impact exercise like walking for 20 to 30 minutes every day.

Sleeping for 7-9 hours is also recommended. This will help keep you from looking for more snacks to help bump up your energy if you’re sleep deprived. And if you are sleep deprived, you can consume black coffee or tea while on the 5-Day RESET.

Daily Routine

Breakfast

Nutrimeal shake mixed with 10-12 oz. of water
Add Probiotic to your morning shake
AM HealthPak

Mid-Morning Snack

Lunch

Nutrimeal shake mixed with 10-12 oz. of water

Afternoon Snack

Dinner

Nutrimeal shake mixed with 10-12 oz. of water
PM HealthPak

Other Tips

Always take your supplements with food
PM HealthPak may also be taken with your PM snack, if preferred
Aim for at least 64 oz. of water each day
Incorporate an eating cutoff time two hours prior to bed

Snack Suggestions

Your snacking options are endless. But the goal is to eat whole foods. And you’ll feel fuller, longer if you aim to mix a little protein and fat with your carbohydrates.

2 hard-boiled eggs, sprinkled with salt and pepper to taste, along with a sliced medium bell pepper or 1 ½ cup of sugar snap peas
1 cup plain Greek yogurt with ½ apple or ½ banana (optional: add a dash of cinnamon for an extra kick of flavor)
20 whole, raw almonds with ½ cup of mixed berries or 1 cup snap peas
2 cups raw veggies (broccoli, celery, cauliflower, cucumbers, snap peas, mushrooms, etc.) with 5 Tbsp. hummus of choice
3–4 cups mixed green salad (lettuce, kale, spinach, cucumbers, bell peppers, etc.) with ½ cup cooked legumes (chickpeas, kidney beans, lentils, etc.) and 75–100 calories of salad dressing OR replace legumes with boiled egg and 2 oz. lean meat of choice
1 small baked sweet potato, 1 cup cooked broccoli with 3 Tbsp. parmesan cheese or 1 Tbsp. butter or plant-sterol butter substitute
1 medium fruit (orange, apple, or pear) with 1 oz. cheese of choice
2, 1-oz. deli slices of natural, low-preservative turkey, each rolled with 1-oz. slice of cheese
3 oz. water-packed tuna or salmon mixed with 1 Tbsp. light mayonnaise or plant-based mayo substitute on 1 crispbread cracker
½ cup ripe avocado chopped with 8 grape tomatoes (add green onion and a squeeze of fresh lime juice for flavor)
1 cup cooked quinoa with 2 slices of avocado
1 cup fruit with ½ cup of cottage cheese
½ cup unsweetened natural applesauce with ¼ cup sliced almonds
2 celery sticks with 1 Tbsp. nut butter and 1 Tbsp. raisins
2 medium carrots with ¼ cup guacamole
½ cup roasted chickpeas with 1/2 bell pepper
1/3 cup roasted soy nuts or chickpeas
3 cups kale or arugula with ½ Tbsp. olive oil and pepper
20 pistachios with 1 oz. cheese of your choice
3 cups plain popped popcorn
1 cup broccoli with 1 tsp. dressing
Unlimited raw celery, cucumber, lettuce or other leafy greens

Learn More

Say goodbye to diets and hello to a new you. Learn more about USANA 5-Day RESET at What’s Up, USANA.

Nutrition Information

Nutrimeal: French Vanilla • Dutch Chocolate • Nutrimeal Free

USANA Probiotic

USANA HealthPak

Frequently Asked Questions About 5-Day RESET

How often can I repeat the RESET program?

How much fiber is in the 5-Day RESET?

Are there any known side-effects from following the 5-Day RESET?

How much weight can I expect to lose while on the 5-Day RESET?

Is the caloric level of the 5-Day RESET appropriate for everyone, regardless of weight or activity level?

Why do you recommend drinking 8-10 glasses of water each day while following the 5-Day RESET?

REUSING PLASTIC BOTTLES, AND OTHER RECYCLING TIPS

6 May 20196 May 2019 tdslsupport

I don’t know about you, but I have an inner force that makes me sincerely care about our planet and it pains me so, to see it being misused and neglected. All my life I have appreciated natures wonders and with that passion, I feel it is necessary to take action, and be consciously aware every waking moment of our surroundings. I also have a strong need to pass that sense of urgency on to others.

Since its inception on April 22, 1970, Earth Day has been celebrated with billions of people around the world taking part in locally sponsored service and global initiatives.

From installing solar panels to reduce our carbon footprint to employee-led service initiatives, USANA contributes to Earth Day values year-round. But we’ve found that not every effort has to be huge. Even simple encouragement to get outside and enjoy nature or reuse plastic bottles can make a positive impact. In that spirit, here are some easy and creative reuse and recycling hacks.

Reuse

A simple internet search returns thousands of ideas for reusing plastic bottles. Here are a few of our favorite ways to reuse USANA bottles:

Hide a Key—Glue a rock to the top of a bottle and bury it in your yard or planter to hide a key.
Camping—One of the great things about our bottles is they’re lightweight and water resistant (if closed properly). Take advantage of this to store matches, smaller toiletries like cotton balls, and organize fishing hooks and lures.
Gardening—Store seeds, or use larger bottles for windowsill herb pots.
Travel—Reusing plastic bottles for travel is a great way to keep organized. Use one to hold your earbuds, create your own travel sewing or first aid kit, or pack an empty bottle to use as a small trash container.
Organization—Do you have that dreaded junk drawer somewhere in your house or garage? That’s all right, we all do. Use old bottles to contain the small things at the bottom of said drawer—like odd buttons, batteries, paper clips, nails, and screws.

Recycle

In reality, there are only so many ways to reuse your USANA bottles, especially if you and your family take multiple supplements a day. They tend to add up quickly. But rather than chucking them in the garbage, properly recycle them.

All of USANA’s nutritional supplement bottles, lids, and outer plastic sleeves are recyclable. All the cartons are recyclable. Additionally, the shampoo, conditioner, shower gel, body nourisher, and hand therapy bottles and tubes are recyclable, as well as Rev3 cans.

The inner seals on the bottles are not recyclable, however, and some of the Celavive® packaging is not recyclable due to the airless pump system.

We encourage you to recycle the following product containers:

Conditioning Makeup Remover
Perfecting Toner
Protective Day Lotion

The following can be recycled once the dispensing pump is removed and discarded:

Protective Day Cream
Vitalizing Serum
Replenishing Night Gel
Replenishing Night Cream

Recycling is the best way to help conserve natural resources, turning waste into usable materials. And it isn’t just for plastics.

Here are some general tips on how—and what—to properly recycle.

Plastics

The general tip for recycling plastic is to recycle by shape rather than the code found on the bottom of containers. Bottles, jars, and jugs can go straight into recycling (this includes your USANA supplement bottles). Just make sure they are clean.

The recycling of plastic grocery bags often raises many questions. They should be kept out of general recycling and, instead, dropped off at your local grocery store. Once you’ve done that, consider using cloth or sturdier plastic bags.

Metals

Common metal products such as aluminum soda cans, steel and tin cans, aluminum foil, and bakeware are recyclable, but a majority of these end up in U.S. landfills. Simply give them a rinse to get rid of food waste and put them right into your recycle bin.

Paper/Cardboard

Nearly all paper or cardboard products are recyclable. So, if you have old magazines, office papers, junk mail, school papers you’ve been holding on to since you graduated (because you never know who might want to check out your old physics notes), or newspapers lying around, bundle them together and put them in your recycling bin.

Glass

Not all glass can be recycled, including glass bakeware, drinking glasses, and window glass, as they are made of different materials. Glass recycling isn’t available everywhere, so check your local guidelines before mixing glass in your recycle bin.

Batteries/Bulbs

Many batteries can be recycled, but they shouldn’t be mixed with your other recyclables. Check with your municipality or do an internet search to locate your nearest drop-off center. And for car batteries, check with a local car dealership or automotive parts store to see if they’ll accept them.

Electronics

Instead of throwing away damaged electronics, look up the manufacturer to see if they have a recycling program. Some companies may even send you a box for shipping. Your local municipality may also have special disposal days or drop-off locations for used electronics.

If your local municipality has a recycling program, double-check their guidelines to see what they do and do not accept. A quick internet search can also tell you where your nearest drop-off center is.

Learn More about Earth Day

Here are just a few places you can find more information about Earth Day, including tips on how to be more environmentally conscious.

We are must do our part to care! It can start with something as simple as picking up piece of paper. East Coast Life Solutions cares, do you?