Join the Release Well-Being Center Wellness Challenge!
If you’re curious about a particular wellness routine or ritual, the world has given you a golden opportunity. Social distancing creates perfect conditions for experimentation. With limited outside contact and more control than usual over dietary and environmental variables, it’s the perfect time to implement a new wellness habit and observe the effects in real time! Below are a few suggestions to be your own lab rat and try a new wellness approach.
You can try one of these on your own or join the Release 30 day Wellness Challenge!
All participants will receive 2 Bliss Day Passes, good Monday – Friday until October 31st, 2020 (Value $100) AND be entered into a drawing to win a Mini-day of Release (60 minute spa service, lunch and Bliss Day Pass, Value $140). Five winners will be selected.
To participate, send the following information to rebecca@releasewellbeingcenter.com: by April 20th.
Your experiment of choice. Select one of the choices below or something else that you are curious and about and that is accessible during quarantine.
The results you wish to achieve with this new practice. Is there a specific health issue that you want to mitigate? Are you hoping to reap a particular benefit?
Some (at least 3) pics or videos of your experiment with notes. We will share on social media, and tag you with your permission, so we can all learn from your experiments as well as our own.
Share your results. At the end of the 30 days take an honest look at how things have changed — if they have changed, and tell us about it.
Below are some ideas for new wellness approaches. Try one of these or anything else that you have heard about and have wanted to try. We look forward to hearing about your experience and results!
Oil Pulling
The practice of oil pulling began is a 3,000-year-old Ayurvedic practice of swishing a tablespoon of oil (like coconut or olive) around your mouth every morning for 10 minutes. Yes, that’s right — 10 minutes. The practice is supposed to cleanse your teeth and gums of bacteria. Here’s how it works: the coconut/olive oil sticks to the oil in the cell membranes of the bacteria in your mouth, and so when you spit it out, you’re also spitting out the bad stuff.
How to Oil Pull:
Put 1-2 teaspoons of oil into the mouth.
Swish for 10 minutes. The oil will get thicker and milky as it mixed with saliva during this time and it should be creamy-white when spit out.
Spit oil into the toilet or trash can. (Avoid the sink so as not to produce clogs over time!)
Rinse well with warm water.
Brush your teeth as usual.
Besides eliminating plaque and bacteria, oil pulling is supposed to do a lot of other things too. Purported benefits include whitened teeth, better breath, reduced headaches, clearer skin, and increased energy. Ayurveda advises oil pulling to purify the entire system; as it holds that each section of the tongue is connected to different organ such as to the kidneys, lungs, liver, heart, small intestines, stomach, colon, and spine.
Dry Brushing
Your skin, the largest organ in the human body, is an organ of elimination. One third of your body’s toxins are excreted through the skin and dry brushing helps to unclog pores and excrete toxins that become trapped in the skin.
Here is how to get started:
Purchase a natural (not synthetic) bristle brush with a handle so you can reach all areas of your body.
Get naked and stand in the shower to catch the falling skin.
Begin brushing by starting at your feet and moving in long sweeping motions toward your heart. Always brush toward your heart.
Brush several times in each area, overlapping as you go.
Take care as you brush over more sensitive areas. Your skin will become less sensitive the more you dry brush.
Once you’ve brushed your entire body, jump in the shower.
After getting out of the shower, pat skin dry and apply body lotion.
Continue to dry brush your entire body every day. Remember to clean your brush with soap and water once a week. Leave to dry in a clean, sunny spot to avoid any mildew accumulation on your brush.
Benefits of Dry Brushing:
Lymphatic Support: The lymphatic system is a major part of the body’s immune system. It is made up of organs and lymph nodes, ducts and vessels that transport lymph throughout the body. Many of these lymph vessels run just below the skin and proponents of dry brushing claim that brushing the skin regularly helps stimulate the normal lymph flow within the body and help the body detoxify itself naturally.
Exfoliation: This benefit is often noticed the first time a person dry brushes. The process of running a firm, natural bristled brush over the skin helps loosen and remove dead skin cells, naturally exfoliating skin. Dry brushing is one of the simplest and most natural ways to exfoliate skin.
Clean Pores: The added benefit of exfoliating the skin, is clearing oil, dirt and residue from the pores. Though it isn’t recommended to dry brush the face unless you have a special, more delicate brush, dry brushing helps improve pores on the rest of the body.
Increased Energy and Blood Flow: One theory is that because it increases circulation, it also increases energy.
Gratitude Journal
Grab a notebook and a pen and follow these few steps to get your gratitude on.
Go for depth over breadth: Elaborating in detail about a particular person or thing for which you’re grateful carries more benefits than a superficial list of many things.
Get personal: Focusing on people to whom you are grateful has more of an impact than focusing on things for which you are grateful.
Try subtraction, not just addition. Consider what your life would be like without certain people or things, rather than just tallying up all the good stuff.
See good things as “gifts”: Thinking of the good things in your life as gifts guards against taking them for granted. Try to relish and savor the gifts you’ve received.
Savor surprises: Try to record events that were unexpected or surprising, as these tend to elicit stronger levels of gratitude.
Revise if you repeat: Writing about some of the same people and things is OK, but zero in on a different aspect in detail.
The benefits of gratitude journaling:
Improves physical health: Grateful people experience fewer aches and pains and report feeling healthier than other people.
Boosts psychological health: Gratitude reduces a multitude of toxic emotions, from envy and resentment to frustration and regret.
Higher self-esteem. Gratitude reduces social comparisons. Rather than becoming resentful toward people who have more money or better jobs—a major factor in reduced self-esteem—grateful people are able to appreciate other people’s accomplishments.
Gratitude increases mental strength: For years, research has shown gratitude not only reduces stress, but it may also play a major role in overcoming trauma.
Grateful people sleep better: Spending just 15 minutes jotting down a few grateful sentiments before bed releases daily stresses, allowing you to sleep better and longer.
Tongue Scraping
Tongue scraping has long been an important part of the recommended Ayurvedic daily routine. Have you ever noticed a film or coating (which can range in color from clear to white, yellow, or green) on your tongue in the morning? If so, your body may have a build-up of digestive impurities which is the result of incomplete or inefficient digestion. This can compromise the digestive and immune systems. This simple, yet important, method of cleaning the tongue removes the toxic coating or film before it gets reabsorbed by the body.
Here’s How to Scrape Your Tongue:
Grab your tongue cleaner: There are specific designated Tongue Cleaner designed for ease and efficiency. In a bind, the front of a silver spoon can be used in place of a tongue cleaner. Why silver? Silver is known for its antibacterial properties.
Relax your tongue: A relaxed tongue allows your scraper to contact maximum surface area, place the scraper as far back on the tongue as comfortable. Gently yet firmly, scrape the entire surface from back to front.
Clean your scraper: Rinse the scraper well with hot water after each use.
Repeat as necessary: Continue this process 5-7 times, until your tongue looks clean, and pinkish or red in color.
Below are some benefits to consistent tongue scraping.
Good Morning Mouth: Tongue scraping will eliminate nasty morning breath. Scraping your tongue first thing in the morning removes impurities, leaving your mouth feeling fresh and clean.
Ease Digestion: Digestion starts the minute food enters your mouth. The body and mind work together to tell the body just what you are eating and how to break it down. However, when the taste buds are blocked, food may be unrecognizable and the receptors in the tongue become unable to convey the right messages to your brain. A vicious circle of poor digestion starts. When the food you eat is not digested properly, digestive impurities are created. They builds up not only in the mouth but also in the body, where they clog and block the flow of vital nutrients, hinder the transfer of information between all the various functions of the body, and lead to occasional constipation. Tasting your food properly is an essential part of digestion. Tongue scraping cleans the taste buds on the tongue, allowing them to work efficiently and to send the right messages to your brain, strengthening the digestion process.
Boost Immunity: The build-up of digestive impurities eventually weakens the immune system, and the tongue is the first line of defense in this system. The removal of these toxins prevents them from being reabsorbed into the body, and allows the immune system to work more efficiently.
Drink ENOUGH water
Most of us understand and know that hydration is essential for our health. It’s been proven time and time again in dozens of studies that even mild levels of dehydration can negatively impact your physical and emotional abilities. Yet, so many of us find it hard to stay hydrated during the day. Engaging in a water challenge can be a fun way to incorporate this practice into our daily routine.
Trying to drink more water every day can be more difficult than it sounds. Try these tips below to stick to it and get the volume in:
Calculate the amount of water that’s right for you: You can calculate how much water you need to drink by dividing your body weight in pounds in two. The result is the number of fluid ounces you need to drink every day.
Add flavor: You can add a little bit of excitement and flavor by steeping fresh fruit (grapefruit, strawberries, lemon), veggie slices (cucumber, ginger, celery), and herbs (basil, mint, lavender) in your carafe.
Drink a glass after every bathroom break: Start a habit by linking drinking water with one of your most common daily activities—going to the bathroom. Getting up from your desk for a bathroom break? Stop by the kitchen to chug a glass of water. It’s just another way to build the habit into your daily routine.
Sip before every meal: If you are making dinner at home, sip while you cook and prep. If you’re out at a restaurant, ask for water when the server comes around to take drink orders. If you’re waiting for your lunch to heat up or your toast to pop, drink water while doing it.
Use an app to track: Keeping up with how many glasses you’ve finished can be easy, and fun, with the help of a free app like Daily Water Free or Daily Water.
What are The Benefits of Drinking Enough Water
Can help clear your skin within just one week of drinking recommended amount daily.
Helps to maintain normal bowel function: Water helps to cure constipation problems that are often a result of dehydration.
Provides a natural headache remedy: Dehydration is a common cause of headaches, so try drinking a full glass of water before reaching for pain killers.
Controls calories: Choosing water over caloric beverages helps to trim
calorie intake and it is definitely healthier.
Increases energy: Proper hydration boosts concentration, focus and energy levels.
Flushes out toxins: Drinking enough water rids the body of waste by speeding up elimination through sweat and urination.
While society is in a medically-induced coma due to Covid 19, it is a great time to experiment with new wellness approaches. We hope you will join our challenge. This can be a fun, community-building experience as we encourage each other, hold one another accountable and learn about new wellness techniques!