by admin | Jun 6, 2022 | Massage
The benefits of aromatherapy for Men
As we all know, aromatherapy has been around for centuries and is a commonly used therapy for many, especially women.
However, it is less likely that you will find the words man and aromatherapy in the same sentence. It is rather funny that, as I myself as an Aromatherapist do treat a lot of men and they love it! and I just thought a lot about this and realised that despite my male clients, it is still promoted very much towards women or as a more feminine therapy.
Having said that, if you ask most guys what they know of Aromatherapy, you may well still receive a rather vacant stare in return as they draw blanks as to what you are even talking about. Those who have already experienced it though will speak proudly of how it helps and I have had many friends of friends come through my male client’s recommendations.
The truth is that Aromatherapy has many properties that will benefit men in today’s society. In the modern world, men must deal with different types of stress than they did in hunter-gatherer tribal times. This isn’t to say, however, that the amount of stress is not the same, it’s just a different type. The way I see it, the stress in our present-day is more of a mental fight. I am able to reflect on numerous major benefits but below I am going to let you in on male client’s comments and experiences and the major benefits that have taken place in their lives as a result of Aromatherapy. (with their permission of course).
Within the scope of this article, we will explore how Aromatherapy benefits men in modern society.
If there are any of you who do not know what Aromatherapy really is, it might be a good idea to start at the beginning and especially if you are a male reader wanting to find out how this can help you. I welcome you.
As it turns out, modern Aromatherapy was actually identified by a Frenchman named Rene Maurice Gattefosse in the 1920s. So, ladies we must be thankful to our lovely male counterpart for that. I know I am:)
Since Mr. Gattefosse was prone to burns in his lab, due to his own personal experience, he became somewhat of an expert on burns. During a fright, Mr. Gattefosse accidentally set his arm on fire and doused the fire with lavender oil.
As a result, Gattefosse reported immediate pain relief and an incredibly rapid recovery process with minimal scarring. Comparing his recent burns to the previous ones, he knew he had discovered something. As a result of the incident, Gattefosse dedicated himself to the study of Aromatherapy.
So there you go guys, nothing to be intimidated about when it comes to men’s aromatherapy.
One client states ” It has been most helpful in coping with the high levels of stress in modern life that I have experienced in my life. Until I tried Basil Oil, I was at the worst of my depression. A smell of Basil Oil is necessary to fully understand its properties. Basil oil gives me a fresh feeling at the end of the day. I have more quality time with my children and strangely I am able to let go of the stress I have had during the day. As a result, I am able to think clearly about positive aspects of life and bring myself to a pleasant place. Lemon oil has also worked for me, but I prefer Basil oil. You might want to give both a try”.
Amazing eh? When thinking about Aromatherapy for men think about how it can help during sickness. Let’s face it most men turn to kittens when a cold strikes. As a client once stated to me, ”Aromatherapy can restore you to the ‘testosterone-injected beefcake’ you once felt you were”. Ok, so I smiled, but if it works for them, who am I to say otherwise. I think it’s amazing.
Here’s another client. He states
”Let me introduce you to my two new friends, Eucalyptus oil and mint. If I’m suffering from a cold or flu, this little combo is a real knockout. I suggested to my mates that they try it out the next time they get sick. Also, another amazing essential oil I found is Yarrow oil it can also get rid of most cold and flu symptoms. It is obvious that this will only treat the symptoms, not the cause, but once you are feeling positive, it should be enough to keep you feeling positive”.
I know what you’re thinking, as a Naturopath, Aromatherapist, I must have just the best male clients, and I taught them well:) Indeed I have:)
Let’s continue on.
Men can also benefit from aromatherapy in the case of skin burns. As we all know, guys are prone to getting, cuts, scrapes and burns. A nasty work-related scrape or burn on the leg can be a real downer for the weekend, especially when you had planned a footy match with your pals. There is nothing fun about getting burns on your skin, but luckily, as mentioned previously, lavender oil is a great way to relieve them.
And another such client stated.
”When I burnt my leg at work, I thought that was it and I couldn’t play soccer, but after a few days applying lavender, it was so much better, that I was able to go back the next weekend. It’s amazing stuff. – I carry it with me now at work.”
He also reported ”I also tried Bergamot for cold sores combined with Eucalyptus oil and it provides amazing relief. Thankyou”.
In the future, aromatherapy for men is more likely to be commonplace than it is today. My partner also uses various oils and diffuses them or uses them through inhalation or in massages. I know from personal experience that it has had a tremendous effect on my relationship at home after a stressful day. We are both calmer.
Whenever he’s sick, he’s less miserable, and if by chance he gets minor damages when out working or playing sports, he’s covered there as well.
Overall, aromatherapy can be very beneficial to men. If you are having trouble overcoming stereotypes, keep in mind that it is making your life easier. When it comes to aromatherapy, there are a few risks, and you’ll need to become informed about the techniques involved to achieve your desired results.
But don’t be shy gents, let’s get you using aromatherapy and booking in your appointments to learn how this amazing and tried and tested therapy can help you, and you family.
Blessings
by admin | Jun 6, 2022 | Life
The Best Habits To Implement In Your Life
As humans, we are creatures who think, do and say out of deeply embedded habits. Each habit can either be productive or destructive for our long-term personal development, health and wellbeing.
In reality, if you think about it, your current life situation and state of being, are a direct reflection of the habits and thought patterns that you sustained and acted upon. Without a doubt, habits play a big role in our lives, as they are a vital part of our behavioral patterns, which in turn lead our lives in certain directions.
A Bad Habit
Breaking up with your bad habits and implementing new, more productive ones is without a doubt one of the toughest things to do. This is something that requires strong willpower and the desire to actually break the habit of being yourself. As we already mentioned, these habits, even the more toxic ones, feel natural, because they are what the brain knows.
The quest is to break those patterns and establish new, more productive habits. At first, this may feel unnatural but rest assured, the more you do the unknown, the more it becomes the new known. Here are some ideas for new habits you can establish to improve your overall quality of life
#1 Exercise
Besides making you look good naked, exercise can help you perform better in every aspect of your life.
Every time you do weighted or aerobic exercise, a flurry of nourishing substances is unleashed, which in turn improves the function of both your muscles and the brain.
These substances include dopamine, serotonin, endorphins and oxytocin, all of which create euphoric states that make you feel more content with everything.
#2 Eat Whole
Your wellbeing is a result of the way you treat your brain and your body. The things you put in your body (food, liquids) play a big role in all functions of your organism. It is important to remember that there are essential nutrients for the body, that we need but can’t produce on our own, internally.
The most essential nutrients are protein and fats, which are best derived from quality, well-grown animal meat and organs. While animal products should be at the core of your nutrition, you can include servings of vegetables and a carbohydrate source (potatoes, rice, other grains, etc.) to every meal.
Besides that, a couple portions of fruits a day, will also provide viable micronutrients, which will improve the functioning of your body.
Focus on whole foods!
#3 Be grateful
Though very important, exercise and nutrition are not all there is to health. The mental state you’re in will, to a big extent, determine your perception of each experience. A healthier perception of life means better overall wellbeing which therefore implies that mental practices can be introduced to your lifestyle, especially if you have a tendency to be more negative.
We spend a lot of our time digging through problems and while for the most part they look negative, problems help us thrive and improve. Try and shift your focus and perspective to one that makes you grateful for everything, even your problems.
Gratefulness allows you to feel content with what you have, instead of feeling the lack of what you don’t have. This natural mental state of abundance will, in turn, put you in a position where you can utilize it to take action on what needs to be done, in order for you to have what you want/need.
#4 Be in solitude
People are social creatures and as such, many of us tend to always be surrounded by people. However, just like some philosophical teachings suggest, the biggest breakthroughs come in solitude.
This is why it is important for you to have meetings with yourself, to analyze experiences, create a mental map of the future and last but not least, unwind from the overwhelmingly social world we live in. Remember, life is not all about goals and achievements. Sometimes you have to take a seat back, relax and look at things from a third perspective.
#5 Read
As cheesy as it is, reading is one of the best habits you can implement in your lifestyle. Think about it, people write books when they are at the peak of their creativity, when they want to share something with someone.
Books are the best way to gain knowledge from people that have been through things, and also the best way to train the creative/imagining part of your brain (i.e fiction books).
Conclusion
At your very core, you are a very complex, biological deep-learning machine, which you write the code for through your thoughts, emotions and behaviors.
For the most part, your daily life is 95% automatic, which is the exact reason why you should consciously engage in creating new and better habits.
Recognize and target your bad habits and try to replace them with things that support the work of your body and brain!
by admin | Jun 6, 2022 | Mind
Why You Shouldn’t Suppress Your Feelings
How Bottling Up Your Emotions Harms You And Others
American writer Mark Twain once said that “anger is an acid that can do more harm to the vessel in which it is stored than to anything on which it is poured.”
Although not psychologists, many of us can attest to that feeling and feel that by keeping our emotions and thoughts to ourselves, we damage our psyche in the process.
We don’t advocate lashing out in anger or fits of jealousy, but there are entirely normal and productive ways in which even the most complicated and conflicted feelings can be communicated or expressed.
In The Context of a Relationship
Whether it’s a romantic, familial, or a relationship between friends, there are fundamental truths and principles to all of them, one of which is that conflicts are inevitable.
However, instead of us being scared of disagreements, we must patiently discuss them in a way in which both parties can talk and see where they diverge.
It can be hard to face something uncomfortable about your partner or point out something you dislike about a friend’s behavior, especially if these people are very close to you.
But the alternative is to hide the little arguments, to let slip the minor disagreements until no one can start any conversation because that would inevitably unearth all these hidden criticisms.
In fact, this is the blueprint for a divorce, as people don’t want to ruin the image of their perfect love and either swallow their critiques, convince themselves that’s not really a problem in the other person, but themselves, or even worse – get gaslit into thinking it’s their fault for finding faults in their partner.
Usually, this pattern of avoidance, or on the other extreme – overly confrontational behavior, results in the mentality that it’s easier just to hide all these complicated, built-up feelings and pour them somewhere else.
Faux Stoicism
Some of you may be familiar with the ancient Greeks’ school of thought, in which keeping your thoughts to yourself and taking on life’s hardships with an unchanging stone face is venerated.
In all fairness, stoicism, or at least this interpretation of it, is quite popular in the modern conception of how a “man” is supposed to behave.
While the term ‘toxic masculinity’ is commonly connected to this problem, I prefer faux stoicism, as real stoicism consists of being a rock for your friends and family, taking even the worst of news with an unrelenting smile and embodying humbleness, instead of the “macho” perception of unfeeling human robots.
In this way, the same principles the Greeks laid out can be turned around from something that inevitably emotionally stuns people and often isolates them too, into a mindset that doesn’t limit but builds up traits like patience and humbleness.
At The End
While there is a time and place for everything, it is important to know that your feelings matter. They might seem ethereal, as opposed to the material, physical world, but the very reason you, the human being, are affected by them means they’re just as tangible as a salary or a papercut.
Keeping your emotions and thoughts bottled up will only lead to festering, such as when an act of annoyance leads to resentment, envy, or hatred, an offense leads to depression, self-loathing, and feelings of worthlessness. We have close ones for a reason, and their friendship means nothing if they can’t be there to hear you out.
If you don’t feel like anyone cares to listen, art was invented to let out the indescribable things we feel – some of the greatest songs, paintings, sculptures, movies, and books were just another way for their authors to let go of those feelings in a beautiful way.
So hey! If something’s bugging you from the inside, find a way to express it!
by admin | Jun 6, 2022 | Yoga
TOPIC – YOGA
Exercise for Your Whole Body: Sun Salutation (12 Steps)
It’s common knowledge that practicing yoga is beneficial for our health. Not only does it stretch and tone our muscles, but it also promotes relaxation of both the body and mind. Additionally, yoga has the ability to open up our chakras, energy centres, and our heart. Therefore, starting and finishing our day with some gentle yoga exercises can be an excellent way to improve our overall well-being.
The Sun Salutation ranks high among the most favoured yoga sequences.
Salutations to the sun (a greeting or acknowledgement to this wonder) represent one of the all-around yoga exercises. It works the whole body, for an overall stretch. To soothe stiffness and to wake up your body in the morning, do it once or twice as a minimum daily. You can of course repeat more times than that and I sometimes find about six rounds really wakes up both my body and mind and yet also leaves a very calming after effect and I am ready to greet the day.
At night, repeating the exercises multiple times will help you relax and it certainly helps me to drift off. Insomniacs or those with other sleep disorders often find that six to twelve repetitions are enough to get to sleep more easily. Why not give it a go.
Below is a step by step guide to the Sun Salutation.
- Place your palms together and thumbs against your chest while standing with your feet slightly apart.
- While inhaling deeply, raise your hands over your head, gently bend backwards as far as you can- don’t overdo it- and tighten your buttocks. Hold for three seconds.
- While keeping your knees straight, exhale slowly and slowly bend toward the floor until your fingertips touch the floor outside of your feet. In case you can’t touch the floor, get as close as you can.) Tuck your head in toward your knees.
- Inhale steadily and slowly, bend your knees, and place your fingertips outside your toes on the floor (if they are not already there). As far as you are able, slide your right foot back, while your right knee is elevated an inch or two (a lunge position). Lift your head as high as possible and gently arch your back.
- Before exhaling again, now slide your left foot back until it is beside the right one, and with your weight supported on your palms and toes, straighten both legs so that your body forms a flat plane. Your stomach should be drawn in toward the spine.
- Slowly exhale, bend both knees to the floor, bend with your hips in the air, lower your chest and forehead to the floor.
- Taking a deep breath inhalation, look up and bend your head back gently, raising it, followed by your upper chest, and then your lower chest. From the navel down, your lower body should be on the floor, and your elbows should be slightly bent. Maintain this position for three to five seconds.
- Exhaling slowly, lift your hips to the point where your feet are flat on the floor, your arms must be straight, and your legs should be straight. You will now be in an inverted V shape.
- Taking a deep breath, step forward with your right foot as in position 4. Let your foot rest flat on the ground between your fingertips. Your left leg should be almost straight behind you, with the knee slightly elevated off the ground. Raise your head, look up, and arch your back.
- As you exhale, place your left foot next to your right one. Straighten your legs and trying to keep your fingertips on the floor, try to touch your head to your knees as in position 3.
- Slowly inhale, curl the body back up, raise your arms up and stretch back as in position 2. Don’t forget to tighten your buttocks. Hold for three seconds.
- Slowly exhale, lowering your arms to your sides. Relax. Repeat the series.
I hope you enjoyed the practice and that you will make it part of your daily routine. If you struggled a little, it will get easier and easier as you go, I promise, you will be getting more flexible and more confident, just keep going with it and it will not be long before you are bending like a pretzel, true yoga style.
by admin | Jun 6, 2022 | Diet
Your Diet is Over, Now What? | How To Reverse Diet
For many people, fitness appears to be something that has a start and an end date, as if you just have to do the right things for your body just for a certain period of time… This is the reason why you see trends like 90-days fat loss challenges, 30-day strong core challenges, etc, etc.
Well, the thing is that such trends are not really sustainable and won’t yield consistent results. Especially when it comes to dieting, there are many things to acknowledge, if you want to make your results last. In this article, we are going to break down the process of dieting and weight loss, how it affects the body, and what you should do once you reach your desired shape.
What Is Dieting?
A “diet” is a sort of nutrition regimen, that puts your body in the so-called “caloric deficit”. This simply means you are eating less food than your body needs to maintain its weight. When you are in a caloric deficit, your body starts burning fat to compensate for that deficit of energy. (1) And while for you this may mean looking better and feeling good about yourself, for the body it is controlled starvation.
Metabolic adaptations
During a period of time eating in a caloric deficit, your body recognizes that there isn’t sufficient energy. To deal with this problem, the body slows down all of its processes to ultimately preserve energy. (2)
The longer you are on a caloric deficit, the slower your metabolism gets and what was once your caloric deficit, eventually turns into maintenance calories.
Taking diet breaks of 2 weeks every 2-3 weeks of dieting can be used as a tool to mitigate the decreases of your metabolic rate.
These are periods of eating at maintenance, where no significant changes in weight should be observed.
Your Post-Diet Approach
Now, as you just learned, throughout your diet, your metabolism slows down and you lose weight. At one point, you will reach the desired body shape… And then what? Well, the short answer is – Keep doing what you were doing in the first place! That is, being active, eating good food, recovering well, and staying hydrated.
Nevertheless, due to the fact that your metabolism is slower at the end of your diet, there are things you have to do, in order to avoid sudden weight gaining.
Yo-Yo Dieting
Most people who lose a lot of weight, gain all of it and some more back in TWICE AS LESS TIME as it took them to lose it. This is because people think of losing weight as a process with a start and end date.
And the truth is that it really isn’t. Weight loss is about a shift in habits, which is sustained over the long term and made a functional part of your self-care routine.
How To Keep The Weight Off
Here are our best tips to keep the weight off after losing it:
- Slowly increase your calories
By slowly upping your food intake, you will signal the body that it is safe, has energy, and can speed up its processes.
If you give the body too much energy (food) too suddenly, you will gain quite some fat.
On the other hand, however, if you increase food gradually and keep activity high, your metabolism will skyrocket!
- Gradually increase training intensity
During a period of weight loss, your training intensity and effort output are slightly lower, due to the deficit of energy.
After you have reached your desired shape, however, you can transition into adding more food to your daily nutrition plan but also increasing training intensity.
This means, increasing the working weight, but also the number of sets, repetitions, and times you reach muscular failure.
- Monitor, adjust & stay consistent
Keeping good track of your nutrition and workouts after your diet is over is essential if you want to keep the weight off.
Quite simply, your main goal is to avoid spikes in weight gain – Just like you avoid weight loss spikes during fat loss periods.
Conclusion
Weight loss is a gradual process, to which the body responds by slowing down its metabolic processes.
As you diet down and exit the diet, you are in a state where your metabolism is just slower and you are more prone to gaining all the weight back.
This is why, you have to utilize something like a reverse diet, where you gradually increase your caloric intake, training intensity while keeping track of your progress and adjusting the plan along the way.
In doing all of this, you maximize the possibilities for you to lose weight and keep it off, creating a new set of behavioral patterns & habits.
References
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6086582/
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18025815/
