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    Healing Benefits of Infrared Saunas

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    Trying out the new infrared sauna at work! One of the perks of downtime is getting to use the sauna! This one has auto chromotherapy light change with all the different colors of the chakras. That is pretty cool! Also this one has the lowest EMFs which is really important.

    Infrared saunas use special lamps that heat your body from the inside out. Infrared, near and far infrared saunas are known for their ability to promote detoxification. By heating tissue several inches deep. And it feels amazing. 😉

    There are several benefits to infrared saunas over the others, as these offer greater tissue penetration and interaction with chromophores in your body. Chromophores are light-sensitive molecules in your mitochondria and water molecules that absorb light.

    Mitochondrial dysfunction is at the heart of most health problems and chronic diseases, including many signs of aging. Regular exposure to infrared through the sun and/or sauna is a powerful strategy to improve your health.

    Some of the health benefits of these saunas are:
    ✨Reduces stress & fatigue
    ✨improves appearance of skin
    ✨helps joint pain
    ✨ improves heart health & lowers blood pressure
    ✨detoxifies
    ✨improves immune system
    ✨relieves muscle pain
    ✨increases metabolism 
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    A Dip into Essential Oils

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    Doterras Family Essential Kit is perfect if you are just starting out and getting to know the oils. It has all the essential ones you need! It comes with 5ml bottles of:
    Lavender, Lemon, Peppermint, Melaleuca (TeaTree), Oregano, Frankincense, Deep Blue, Breathe, DigestZen, On Guard and On Guard and Peppermint beadlets.
    But what do you do with these oils? They are not just for diffusing that is for sure. Here is a break down of the uses of these oils.
    Lavender is best known for its calming and relaxing qualities. Here are a few of my favorites:
    Skin irritation including sunburn: Add 2-3 tablespoons of doTerra Fractionated Coconut Oil to 5-7 drops of doTerra Lavender. 
    Relaxation and tension release: Add 3-4 drops to a diffuser or apply to the back of the neck and temples.
    Beautiful aroma in your home: Add 3-4 drops to a diffuser, sit back and let it work its magic!
    Cooking: Add 1-2 drops to a cake of biscuit mixture and a tiny amount to frosting mixture - yum!
    A good night's sleep: Rub a drop or two on the bottom of feet or put a few drops on your pillow. 
    Lavender blends well with: Bergamot, Citrus Bliss, Marjoram and Basil essential oils.

    Lemon: It's known for its purifying properties and so it can be used to cleanse and deodorize surfaces and the air. It also aids digestion and supports healthy respiratory function. Here are just a few ways to use Lemon essential oil:
    Start your day with a refreshing, cleansing drink: Add 1 drop (just one! This oil will last you!) to a glass of water. It will naturally cleanse the body and aid digestion.
    Lift and energize your mood and help cleanse and purify the air and surfaces: Add 3-4 drops  to a diffuser for a fresh, bright and clean smelling home. 
    Add a sweet lemon zing to your smoothie or dessert without the sugar: Add 1 drop to a smoothie.
    Natural cleaning agent: From glass cleaner, to all-purpose cleaning sprays, using your Lemon oil as part of your household cleaning routine is a wonderful way to eliminate nasty chemicals. 
    Get rid of sticky residue: If a price tag has left a sticky mark then add a bit of Lemon oil to a cloth and gently rub.
    Lemon essential oil blends well with: Grapefruit, Lime or Bergamot essential oils to bring out the bright energizing scent of Lemon. It goes well with spicy essential oils like Wild Orange and Cinnamon. It also compliments Douglas Fir and Wintergreen.

    Peppermint: So. Many. Uses! This oil is amazing! Let's dive straight into just some of the ways you can use it:
    A fresh, energizing addition to water, smoothies and coffee: Add 1-2 drops to your smoothie or coffee for a refreshing twist. Add 1 drop to a cup of water with some sliced fruit for a deliciously infused drink. These tasty drinks will help promote healthy respiratory function and clear breathing.
    A quick pick-me-up: Wake up your senses and promote a feeling of energy by putting 1 drop in the palm of your hand and inhaling deeply. 
    Pimp our massage oil and shampoo: Add a drop or two to your favorite massage oil for a cooling and soothing feeling. Add Lavender as well, and you've got the perfect mix. Add a drop to your shampoo to pamper your scalp.
    Repel bugs and spiders: Many bugs don't like the potent smell of Peppermint, so add 1-3 drops to a cotton ball and put in the corner of the rooms the creepy crawlies love the most!
    A soothing and relaxing aroma: Add 2-3 drops to your diffuser.
    Peppermint oil blends well with: Lavender, Lemon, Melaleuca, Oregano (all included in the Family Essentials Kit), Eucalyptus, Grapefruit, Rosemary, Marjoram, and Cypress. Try a blend of two or more in your diffuser.

    Melaleuca (Tea Tree) There are endless other ways to use this versatile essential oil:
    Purify and freshen the air: Add 3-4 drops to your diffuser. 
    Purify and tone the skin, and soothe occasional skin irritations: Apply 1-2 drops of doTerra's Melaleuca oil to the irritated area/spot. Use with doTerra's Fractionated Coconut Oil if your skin is sensitive. Add 1-2 drops to your facial cleanser or moisturiser for added cleansing properties.
    Natural cleaning agent: Just like doTerra's Lemon oil, Melaleuca is great for cleaning purposes as it protects against environmental and seasonal threats with a wonderful scent.
    Melaleuca blends well with: Peppermint, Lemon (included in the Kit), Eucalyptus, and Lavender.
     
    Oregano: Oregano essential oil can help support a healthy immune system, healthy digestion and respiratory function, is an excellent source of antioxidants and can even be used as a household cleaner.
    Because of Oregano oil's high phenol content, caution should be taken when diffusing or inhaling - only one to two drops are needed. This oil packs a punch! When applied topically, Oregano should be diluted with doTerra Fractionated Coconut Oil.
    Natural household cleaner: This is a powerful cleansing and purifying agent, so it is ideal for surfaces and countertops. Add 10 drops to 300ml of water and use in a clean spray bottle.
    Help maintain healthy immune function and support healthy digestion: Add one drop to a glass of water each day.
    Add flavor to your favorite Italian meals: One drop of Oregano essential oil can replace one tablespoon of ground oregano.
    Combine oils: Some essential oils work even better when they are combined with a second oil. Combine Oregano and Peppermint (included in your Family Essentials Kit), for a more powerful result. Try this combination in your diffuser.
    Diffuse in your home for a cleansing, green, sharp aroma: Add 1-2 drops to your diffuser.
    Oregano oil blends well with: Peppermint, Lavender, Melaleuca (all included in the Kit), Basil, Rosemary, Bergamot, Cypress and Cedarwood,
     
    Frankincense: My favorite! This is known as 'the king of essential oils', and for a good reason! The fact that it comes in the Family Essentials Kit is one of the reasons I got this Kit! It's one of the more expensive essential oils, so it makes the Kit incredible value. Frankincense is a powerful essential oil known for its ability to beautify and rejuvenate skin when applied topically, and promote cellular health and immunity, among other benefits. Great for those with vertigo- one drop under the tongue and vertigo improves!!! The aroma promotes feelings of satisfaction, peace, relaxation and overall wellness.
    DIY room spray: No more nasty chemical room sprays! Try combining Frankincense with one of the oils it blends well with (Lemon, Lavender, Grapefruit, Wild Orange, Lime, Geranium, Sandalwood and many others). 
    Relieve stress: If you're feeling a bit overwhelmed and stressed, apply Frankincense to the bottom of your feet (1 drop should be enough) to help you relax and balance your mood.
    Revive dry hands and fingernails: Add a few drops to a moisturizer to help hydrate your skin. Why not buy an non-fragrant, toxin free lotion and have it to hand whenever you want to combine it with an essential oil. There's something quite satisfying about turning an inexpensive lotion into a luxury Frankincense cream!
    Frankincense blends well with: Lime, Lemon, Wild Orange, Lavender, Cypress, Rose, Sandalwood, Ylang Ylang and Geranium.
     
    Deep Blue: blend of eight essential oils: Wintergreen, Camphor, Peppermint, Ylang Ylang, Helichrysum, Blue Tansy, Blue Chamomile, and Osmanthus.
    *The Deep Blue bottle is the one with the bigger cap - used to differentiate it from other oils because it should not be ingested.
    Growing pains: If your children are having a growth spurt and their legs are feeling the effects of 'growing pains' and occasional aches, combine a few drops with doTerra's Fractionated Coconut Oil and rub onto their legs before bedtime.
    Soothe muscles before and after exercise: Rub a few drops on muscles before and after exercise to reduce discomfort. Combine with a carrier oil such as doTerra's Fractionated Coconut Oil for sensitive skin.
    Tension headache: Rub a few drops on the back of your neck and temples.
    Massage: Either combine with a carrier oil such as doTerra's Fractionated Coconut Oil or your favorite massage oil for a deeply soothing massage.
    Soothe joint and muscle pain: If you suffer from joint aches use Deep Blue! Rub directly onto affected joints.
     
    Breathe: (Respiratory Blend) Breathe is a blend of eight essential oils: Laurel, Eucalyptus, Peppermint, Melaleuca, Lemon, Ravensara, and Cardamom.
    It is known for its ability to maintain feelings of clear airways and helps cool and invigorate, promoting feelings of easy breathing. It can also be used to help you have a restful sleep. It has an airy and fresh mint aroma.
    Promote clear airways: Rub a few drops onto chest at bedtime so you can breathe in the cooling and invigorating vapor.
    Diffuse for a restful sleep: Fill your bedroom with a fresh and minty aroma and you will feel calm and restful.
    Reduce seasonal threats: When the seasons are changing, you're spending more time outdoors, or you're feeling the effects of the seasons, diffuse 3-4 drops of Breathe, rub on the bottom of feet or add a few drops to the palm of your hands and take some deep breathes in.
    Breathe blends well with: Peppermint, Wild Orange, Bergamot and Lime.
     
    Digestzen: (digestive blend)  has the nickname as the 'tummy tamer' blend! It's a blend of seven essential oils: Ginger, Fennel, Coriander, Tarragon, Anise, Caraway and Peppermint that combine to help ease occasional stomach discomfort, maintain a healthy gastrointestinal tract and aid digestion. It has a spicy, sweet, minty, licorice aroma.
    Assist your digestive system: Add 1 drop to a glass of liquid or other drink.
    Soothe occasional stomach upsets: Rub 1-2 drops to your writs, temple, bottom of feet or stomach. Massaging it directly onto your stomach will be soothing and comforting. Combine it with Fractionated Coconut oil so it is easier to massage.
    Aid digestion of heavy meals: If you're off on holiday or are going to a family get-together, add a few drops to a glass of water and drink.
    Travel sickness: Rub DigestZen on your stomach before or during a journey to ease sickness and nausea.
     
    On Guard: (protective blend) This is the oil for anyone who can't help but reach for the hand sanitizer on a day trip - this is your new alternative!
    On Guard is a blend of five essential oils: Wild Orange, Clove, Cinnamon, Eucalyptus and Rosemary - it even sounds clean! Here are just a few ways to use the pure essential oil:
    Naturally support the immune and respiratory system: Add one drop of On Guard to a glass of water and drink.
    Sense a bug or the sniffles lurking?!: Defend against sniffles, by proactively rubbing it onto feet. Combine 1 tablespoon of Fractionated Coconut Oil with 1-2 drops of On Guard.
    Natural hand cleanser: Make up your own little bottle of hand cleanser by combining On Guard with Fractionated Coconut oil. 
    Natural household cleaner: For a natural, nontoxic cleaner, add a couple of drops of doTerra On Guard to a small spray bottle with water and white vinegar and use as an effective all-purpose surface cleaner. It's got a lovely warm, woody, spicy aroma as well.
    Immune boosting smoothie or coffee: Add a few drops to your homemade smoothies. Given its spicy, woody aroma, it might not taste great with all smoothies.
    Uplifting, purifying and energizing aroma: Add 3-4 drops to a diffuser to cleanse the air and surfaces and create an uplifting, purifying and energising fragrance throughout your home.

    Hope this helps! Where to get this amazing kit? Click here:
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    Aging Gracefully

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    One of the questions I get asked a lot is do you work out? I have to admit I love that because it makes me feel good that people notice.  Then come all the questions about what kind of workouts I do. When I mention strength training most people think they don't need to do that...that they need to do cardio in order to lose weight.  They couldn’t be more wrong and here is why!  

    Strength training builds muscle and increases your metabolism but did you know that it does much more for you as far as your health goes?

    * Weights improve immunity - Immune strength depends on the availability of the amino acid glutamine. Your muscles have to supply the glutamine to your immune system in order for it to work. Therefore the more muscle you have the more abundant the glutamine supply, and the better your immune system works and helps fight free radicals!

    * Weights develop strong bones - By stressing your bones, strength training increases bone density and reduces the risk of osteoporosis.

    * Weights combat Diabetes - New studies published between 1995 and 2000 show that weight training has an unexpected benefit - it improves glucose tolerance in patients with Type 2 (adult-onset) diabetes.

    * Weights help protect your joints and your back - More muscle power means you put less strain on joints and connective tissue when lifting or exerting.

     * Weights raise testosterone - Did you know that strength training is one of the best exercises to raise testosterone levels in men and women!  With strength training the levels of both testosterone and growth hormone rise dramatically.  This is the youth hormone! 

    * Keeps you young - Since loss of strength and muscle mass are the prime causes of most age-related diseases a lifelong strength training program is one of the best insurance policies for a better quality of life for both men and women.

    * Avoid muscle loss - Beginning at age 20, adults lose about one-half pound of muscle each year partially due to decreased activity levels. Strength training can help to slow down or reverse this muscle loss.

    * Healthy for your heart - Strong muscles can perform better with less oxygen meaning the heart doesn't have to pump hard when you are active...this is also good for your blood pressure.

     * Reduce body fat - Muscle tissue burns as much as 15 times more calories per day than does fat tissue...even at rest!

    * Improve your sense of well-being - Strength training can boost your self confidence, improve your body image and reduce the risk of depression...gotta love that!

    There are several options to pick from when doing strength training exercises, you can use resistance tubing, free weights, weight machines or your own body weight. Mix it up and see what works best for you. 

     Beachbody offers a lot of choices when it comes to this so check it out!  Best part is you can do it at home on your own time.

    ​Hope that helps you to understand how important it is to incorporate strength training into your workouts!
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    Stress Hack

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    Essential oils are becoming my ultimate stress hack recommendation!
    .Here’s the deal...Stress can make us exhausted 😩 and it creates a host of other unwanted symptoms if not dealt with! 
    .The best way to overcome stress is by protecting your energy. Spending time in relaxation or meditation and deep breathing each day can help to lower your stress levels. By focusing on your own self-care you will get your mind and body back in balance 💗.
    .When we 👃 inhale an essential oil, it immediately enters our body affecting our system more quickly than any over-the-counter digestible remedies. I am all about anything holistic!
    .I also pair the oils with crystals during these stressful times. The crystals I love are amethyst, black tourmaline, rose quarts and clear quartz during stressful times.
    💫Stress Relief Blend💫
    .12 drops Lavender Essential Oil 
    9 drops Frankincense Essential Oil 
    9 drops Wild Orange Essential Oil

    Directions:
    Add essential oils to a10ml rollerball. Top off with Fractionated Coconut 🥥 Oil. (if you don’t have a rollerball, you can mix this in a jar and use it that way.
    .Roll the blend over your pulse points, palms, heart and temples. To experience instant relief from stressful moments-roll the blend over your palm and take 3-5 deep breaths so that the aroma goes straight to the limbic brain and calms down the amygdala.
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    Why Vegetable Oils Are Unhealthy

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    This keeps coming up and I have to share this! Let’s talk vegetable oils. In case you didn’t know- vegetable oils are bad. Bad for your health and bad for the environment. First- these do not come from vegetables! These are oils that have been extracted from various seeds. The most common include rapeseed (canola oil), soybean, corn, sunflower, safflower, and peanut. Unlike coconut oil or olive oil that can be extracted by pressing, these oils have to be extracted in very unnatural ways.
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    Cholesterol and saturated fat are essential to good health. Even now, despite the fact that heart disease, cancer and diabetes rise at an alarming rate while butter consumption is down, vegetable oil consumption is at an all time high. People are still believing the hype and buying this non-healthy food like product. 
     
    I have to share this just so you can see how these oils are made!
    Step 1: Find some “canola seeds.” Oh wait, they don’t exist. Canola oil is actually made from a hybrid version of the rapeseed… most likely genetically modified and heavily treated with pesticides. (never a good thing)
    Step 2: Heat the rapeseeds at unnaturally high temperatures so that they oxidize and are rancid before you ever buy them.
    Step 3: Process with a petroleum solvent to extract the oils.
    Step 4: Heat some more and add some acid to remove any nasty wax solids that formed during the first processing.
    Step 5: Treat the oil with more chemicals to improve the color.
    Step 6: Deodorize the oil to mask the horrific smell from the chemical processing.
    Sounds like something you want to put in your body?  And the sad truth is, this oil is in so many things like processed foods (cookies, crackers, breads,salad dressings etc) and can wreak havoc on your health.

    Along with the continued myth about saturated fats and cholesterol, these oils are promoted as healthy because they contain monounsaturated fats and Omega 3 fatty acids. And that’s what advertisers focus on to draw you into the fake health claims. But it definitely doesn’t paint the whole picture..

    Vegetable oils are bad because they contain very high levels of polyunsaturated fats (PUFAs). But did you know that the fat content of the human body is about 97% saturated and monounsaturated fat? Our body needs fat for rebuilding cells and hormone production.
    These fats are highly unstable, they oxidize easily. Oxidized fats cause tons of inflammation and mutation in cells. This is liked to all sorts of health issues from heart disease, cancer, endometriosis, PCOS, gut issues etc..

    Most vegetable oils come from genetically modified sources and that is never a good thing. So...what is safe to use? Traditional oils should be cold-pressed. Organic when possible (especially when dealing with animal fats as the fat is where toxins/pesticides are stored). Do the best you can, and try not to get overwhelmed.  Being aware is the best tool you can have! 

    Here are the healthy oils:  
    Coconut oil, Grass-fed butter, Extra Virgin Olive oil, Avocado oil

    Here are some oils to be used sparingly:
    Walnut oil, Flaxseed oil, Macadamia nut oil

    So to refrain here is a list of oils to avoid!   
    Canola oil, Corn oil, Soybean oil, "Vegetable"oil, Peanut oil, Sunflower oil, Safflower oil, Cottonseed oil, Grapeseed oil, Margarine, Shortening and any fake butter substitutes

    The other issue is eating out….just be aware that most restaurants use vegetable oils because they are cheaper and don’t have any flavor. Something most people don’t notice is that they do have issues with these oils but because they are in so many foods, its become “normal” to feel that way. Once you remove them from your diet, i guarantee you will feel better
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    Legs Up The Wall

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    Something in common I am seeing with my health coaching clients is they all tend to have high cortisol levels = high stressors both internally and externally. Most people know about the external stressors, traffic, financial, work, relationship…these are easy to see. But it is the internal stressors that go undetected. These are environmental toxins, food intolerances, medications, emotions, scented candles/air fresheners, EMF’s, blue light and the list goes on!

    When we are in this stressed state its activating our sympathetic nervous system which is part of the autonomic nervous system. Commonly known as the flight or fight system.😜 The other part is the parasympathetic nervous system which works to relax and slow down the body’s response to stress.(rest and digest)😌

    Here is something to help get you back to that parasympathetic state! Its super easy and all you do is put your legs up the wall! Thats it! I usually do this for 5-10 min daily. You can focus on your breathing as you do this.

    This pose also reduces edema, promotes circulation, it releases lower back tension and it’s super calming.🙏