By Eric, Customer Service Specialist
Do you have both a morning and evening regimen of natural pill popping? Perhaps you take natural supplements to address a specific condition? Maybe it’s for general health and wellness, for disease prevention… Do you take a tincture to calm down when you feel anxious and another to give you energy? Do you take an herb when you feel sad? A few to help you sleep?
If you answered yes to all of these questions then congratulations, you’re like me! And, like me, possibly a bit out of balance - finding quick solutions while still avoiding deeper lifestyle improvements that may require a bit more effort, but are totally worth it.
At Cambridge Naturals, we try to balance effective herbal and supplemental supports with holistic recommendations for healthy lifestyle. Here is a reminder of some basic ways to honor your body, mind and spirit that support a healthy life brimming with equanimity and a general sense of well-being:
Sleep. It’s the cornerstone of health and happiness! If you’re not getting enough (roughly seven to nine hours per night), herbs and extracts can definitely help. And, relying on those alone may not support your longer term healthy sleep needs. It’s a healthy expectation to feel energized when you wake up. Consider this:
Sleep feels good. Go to bed early so you can experience more of it.
Avoid bright lights and screens for an hour before bedtime.
Try playing a YouTube video of soothing sleep-promoting music or a guided meditation when you go to bed.
Choose a cool room temp, snuggling under lots of blankets, as opposed to a warm room.
Use progressive muscle relaxation techniques.
Practice deep, slow breaths.
For supplements, consider deeper, long term solutions like adrenal health formulas that support those very important organs responsible for regulating your healthy cortisol levels.
Eat a nutritionally diverse plant-based diet. If sleep deprivation is your issue, consider avoiding eating meat at your evening meal. Pizza and chocolate may not be the best choices either - pizza is loaded with difficult to digest grease and eating chocolate before bed may keep you buzzing all night long. If you’re craving a late night snack, try a banana. Bananas are rich in many of the ingredients found in natural sleep support supplements such as potassium, magnesium, tryptophan and vitamin B6. They even promote the production of melatonin.
Exercise. For increased energy and to feel better in your body, consider committing to an exercise regimen, preferably three or more times per week. It can help to bring a buddy to the gym or yoga studio for mutual motivation! If you’re physically able, walking is an excellent, low-impact exercise that can have an amazing impact on mood and fitness in the long run. Consider 30 minutes a day.
Meditate. You’ve heard it from lots of people! Maybe you used to do it, and just need to get back into it. Consider waking up an extra 20 minutes early every single day to meditate. It may seem like a drag until you are actually meditating, and then it feels so right. There are countless wonderful methods, but if you just can’t get into them, try a guided meditation on YouTube, possibly one with positive affirmations about your day ahead. There are also several apps including Headspace and Insight Timer which offer free meditations!
Gratitude. Improve your mood and outlook on life through gratitude! If you think you don’t have much to be grateful for, you are a perfect candidate for this technique:
Make a list of 10 things you are grateful for, big or small. I will start you off with my own list:
I am grateful for the opportunity I had to help raise my stepson.
I am grateful for my warm winter coat.
I am grateful for the beauty of trees when their branches are covered in snow.
I am grateful for blue skies….
It’s easier than you think to come up with 10 things. Write them down and say them out loud. Consider doing o this every day for a week. Then, challenge yourself by writing down and reciting a list of 100 things you are grateful for! Focusing on the positive can change your life in dramatic ways.
While none of these healthy lifestyle suggestions come in a capsule, they can be benefited by taking the right supplements and herbs for you personally, in moderation. Cause you don’t want to end up like this guy!
This blog series is for general health information only. This website is not to be used as a substitute for medical advice, diagnosis or treatment of any health condition or problem. Users of this Web site should not rely on information provided on this website for their own health problems. Any questions regarding your own health should be addressed to your own physician or other healthcare provider.
