Body & Soul

So, this is our last post in our blog. The video explores the expectations and realities of the body and soul, and health, both mentally and physically.  Each member filmed videos on their respective topics and compiled all the videos together to create this:  https://youtu.be/NnLH8TBaID8     Hope you enjoy our 'Expectations vs. Reality' video =)

Beauty is not always the physical aspects of an individual, it is also important to have a healthy mindset. Many people tend to be beautiful on the outside but can be completely different on the inside. This includes having low self esteem and not respecting yourself/loving who you are, as you are. It is so important to have self confidence and to learn to love and respect yourself. No one can be perfect and that is okay! However this isn't as easy as it sounds. It takes time and commitment to work towards a goal. Positivity plays a huge role in helping you reach the goal of having a healthy mindset. Being positive about yourself and the life you have can really impact the future. For example: -Motivating yourself to work out and exercise in anpositive way (so that no harm is done to the body) -Eating healthy and keeping your body in a positive mood -Do things that make yourself happy -Cut out things that give you unnecessary stress or thought -Compliment yourself daily -...

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder but we often attempt to accentuate our features with makeup. SO what exactly is in make up products and should we trust these substances that we apply to our bodies? Could makeup actually be bad for you? Make up is used all around the world by many women, men and can be used on a daily basis, for fashion, modelling, or just for fun! Make up varies for everyone and is used in many different ways, creating many different kinds of makeup looks. There are many products that vary is their uses to the skin and face. These include: -Foundation (gives coverage/evens out the overall skin tone) -concealer (conceals spots and blemishes/acne scars/dark circles) -coutour palette (consists of different shades of brown powder to contour the face) -highlighter (highlights the peaks of the face such as the nose bridge, cheekbones, cupids bow) -powder (sets all the makeup on the face) -bb cream (combination of sunscreen, foundation and moisturiser) -lip prod...

Sleep deficiency can disrupt a person’s day to day plans, making them feel fatigued and still sleepy when they wake up in the morning. You may have sleep deprivation if you feel sleepy while doing these activities: Sitting down while in a public place, for instance the movies, a meeting, or a classroom Being in a car for an hour without a break Sitting down and having a conversation with someone Sitting silently after eating lunch Sitting in the car and being stuck in traffic Reading Watching TV Sleep deficiency can create issues with your learning, focusing, and responding. You might experience trouble making decisions, resolving problems, remembering things, maintaining your feelings and behavior, and dealing with change. Also, you may find that it takes you longer to complete everyday jobs, you make more mistakes, and you have a slower reaction time. If reading this post has caused you to be able to relate and identify with the indications mentioned,...

So often people say why they struggle to eat healthily is because they don’t have time.... agree? Well, one way to minimise time spent cooking healthy meals is to prep them before hand so all you have to do is heat it up and enjoy. Of course, this means you’d have to dedicate some time to prep meals for the week. Sunday would be best as it’s the weekend and the food will still be fresh for the week ahead. Here are some meal prep ideas and where to find the complete recipe:   Meals in jars, such as salads or oatmeal breakfast, are rising in popularity and they are one of the best ways to prep for work lunches, as they are tidy and efficient. Check out some of the links below for some great salad jar recipes: http://dailyburn.com/life/recipes/mason-jar-salads-recipes-healthy-lunch-ideas/ https://www.buzzfeed.com/carolynkylstra/mason-jar-salads?utm_term=.etAj0wXW2b#.ikxzlAYXam Following on from the last post about smoothies, bag the ingredients beforehand ...

Anxiety is the most common mental health illness, in which you feel stressed and constantly under pressure. Any type of anxiety is a serious condition that makes it hard to cope with everyday life. There are many versions of anxiety such as; Social phobia, Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), Panic disorder etc. What causes this anxiety is not a single factor but a combination of things. These factors are things such as; ongoing stressful events, a family history of mental health conditions, having other mental health conditions and the list goes on. If you feel you may be suffering from one of these conditions there is a range of treatments and effective ways to you can help yourself. These treatments range from Seeing a therapist to going to acquire medical treatments. Combating any mental health issue is hard but there is countless amount of support and group support programs available.  Anxiety can be prevented in some cases by having sufficient sleep and avoiding stressful e...

Self-Harm is a severe problem that arises from poor mental health. Self-harm means any behaviour which involves the deliberate causing of pain or injury to oneself this usually occurs as a way of dealing with or trying to cope with distressing or painful feelings and emotions. This mental health issue is harmful to the victim and to their surrounding family and friends and can cause emotional pain and destress. Self-harm is sometimes seen as a cry out for help due to a amalgamation of depression, stress, anxiety etc.  The road to recovery is emotional, seeing a psychologist is a great stepping stone as they can assist you come to terms with those suicidal thoughts and can encourage you to stop and reiterate that life is good and meaningful. The best you can do is offer to help or to encourage the person to get help. There is more help available through countless helplines such as; Kids helpline (1800 55 1800) and lifeline (13 11 14), do not hesitate to call these hotlines, someon...

Don’t want to spend too much money on the gym membership? NO WORRIES Try these easy & cheap tricks to live a healthy lifestyle: •Floor exercises Movies & TV is a great distraction while doing miserable crunches. •Dance  Spin to your favorite song! Make the moves • Go outside and run Enjoy the weather. Make the effort to at least be outdoors for 30 minutes. •Community service Help build a house or dig a ditch or help someone whose moving houses. • Local park I used to LOVE those work-out tour things at the park. Just go jump on stuff. • Get a dog Dogs are a great excuse to get outside. Just don’t forget your mom jeans. HA • Clean your house really fast Look skinny AND have a clean house! •Free tennis courts I can just about guarantee that you have free tennis courts within a few miles of you. •Youtube Workouts There are probably millions of YouTube workout videos. No excuse this time! • Babysit Kids wil...

Making sleep a priority will give you many benefits! Apart from improving your health not just right now but also in the future, you are likely to realise that your moods throughout the day have changed for the better, and you are able to get more done during the day.    Here are some tips that hopefully will help you to improve your sleeping habits: Make your bedtime and your waking-up time the same every day. This is especially important for children. Try to stay on track with your sleep program when it comes to the weekends, by keeping the time difference as no more than an hour. Staying up later and sleeping in the next morning can disturb your body clock. The hour before your bed time should be used as time to wind-down. Stay away from vigorous exercise as well as TV’s, computers, and phones. The bright light from the screens may indicate to the brain that it’s time to be awake. Heavy, large-portioned meals shouldn’t be consumed within a couple of hours of...

Being aware with what affects your skin will assist you in protecting your face and body. Some people think that exfoliating and cleansing your face/body for long periods of time in fact leaves your face squeaky-clean, but in reality, it can cause damage and can strip your skin of its natural oils, compromising its barrier. This can cause dehydration and irritation of the skin. Therefore, it is crucial to avoid cleansers that contain hard surfactants. Another common question that is always asked in the skincare sector is whether or not junk food affects breakouts. SO far, no studies have shown a direct correlation between junk foods and breakouts/acne. However, it is said that high-glycemic foods cause acne and breakouts. Inflammation is known to aggravate acne and high-glycemic foods such as rice, sweets and sugary drinks, can raise insulin levels really quickly, increasing inflammation. Therefore the key to healthier skin is to limit these types of triggers and balance them out wi...

So I’ve recommended something healthy to eat but what about something healthy to drink?  Say no more, because here are some smoothie recipes that are healthy and delicious.  Grape-Berry Protein Shake  Per 16-ounce serving:  340 calories  10 g fat  43 g carbs  9 g fiber  25 g protein  Ingredients: 1 teaspoon dry chia seeds  2 scoops DailyBurn Fuel-6 in vanilla  1 ½ cups seedless red or purple grapes  ½ cup blackberries  1 teaspoon flaxseed oil  ½ cup water  Process:  Blend until smooth.  Protein Frosty Shake Per 16-ounce serving:   261 calories  6.5 g fat (.5 g saturated fat)  30 g carbs  510 mg sodium  6 g fiber  26 g protein Ingredients:  2 scoops DailyBurn Fuel-6 in chocolate  1 cup unsweetened almond milk  ½ banana  2 cups ice  ½ teaspoon xanthan gum  ¼ te...

The amount of sleep you need will change as you get older, beginning with the most amount of sleep needed as a baby and slightly decreasing from then on wards. Check out the link below to view a chart of general guidelines for various age groups: How much sleep is enough? Naps are a common way for some people to respond to tiredness. However, although they can give a quick burst of alertness and performance, they can't actually make up for lost sleep, and cannot compare to night-time sleep. For some people, days off work are used to “catch up on sleep” by taking naps throughout the say as well as sleeping in. This is an indication that you are not getting enough sleep, and it can actually mess up your sleeping pattern. If you have any concerns you could start a sleep diary whereby you record your number of hours of sleep each night, how you feel when you wake up in the morning, and whether or not you become tired throughout the day. Sharing this information with your doct...

Mental Illness is a condition which causes serious disorder in a person's behaviour, thinking and mental health. There are many different causes of mental illness such as; genetics, stress, substance abuse, infections, personality factors etc. WebMD’s article “Causes of mental illness” provides heavily detailed information on these causes.  - Genetics - mental illnesses may run in families. ‘Experts believe many mental illnesses are linked to abnormalities in many genes rather than just one or a few and that how these genes interact with the environment is unique for every person’ (Causes of mental illness, 2017WebMD).Mental illness occurs from the interaction of genes and other factors such as stress and substance abuse which can trigger an illness within a person who has inherited susceptibility to it.  - Substance Abuse - Substance abuse has been liked to anxiety, depression, paranoia and other mental health problems. This is because users become dependant to the pa...