6 Relaxation Techniques for Your Biggest Stress Triggers

Your son can't find his backpack (again) and your husband still hasn't fixed the leaky toilet (three weeks later). Stress is everywhere—and though you may not be able to control what causes it, you do have power over how you react to it. And keeping your cool is a key to safeguarding your heart.

"Stress sets off a surge of hormones, like adrenaline and cortisol, in your body," explains WD heart health expert Michelle Albert, MD. "Elevated levels of these hormones can harm your heart because they raise your blood pressure and cause inflammation." So it's important to develop ways to cope when life becomes tense. Keep clicking for six speedy strategies that'll calm you down.  Read More ›

10 De-stressing Methods Put to the Test

From relationship troubles to overwhelming workloads, lots of things can stress you out. Thankfully, there are a slew of strategies that promise to help you feel better fast. But do all of them really work? We challenged real women to try out 10 of the most recommended stress busters. 

Peel an Orange and Eat It

Why It’s Supposed to Work: Peeling releases a satisfying scent and triggers you to anticipate the refreshment of the fruit, says Coral Arvon, PhD, Director of Behavioral Health and Wellness at the Pritikin Longevity Center in Aventura, FL. Once you eat it, your blood vessels relax and blood pressure lowers, adds Nieca Goldberg, MD, Medical Director of the Joan H. Tisch NYU Langone Center for Women’s Health in New York City. 

Posted 4/15/2013  6:00:00 PM By: SparkPeople Guest Blogger : 8 comments   6,592 views

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6 Ways to Increase Your Energy

 Click here for more tips to increase your energy from Family Circle.
 
More from Family Circle:
 

• 14 Natural Energy Boosters
• Stress-Free in an Instant
• 7 Ways to Stay Relaxed Behind the Wheel 

What helps you stay energize throughout the day?

Join our Rise and Shine challenge this April! Read More ›

How to Wake Up with More Energy

Discover ways to revamp your sleep routine so you can feel great in the morning.

Get Sleep Savvy

As you sleep, your body builds up its supply of a hormone called cortisol, which is then released throughout the day to help give you energy. Cortisol levels should be highest in the morning and depleted by nighttime, so you'll get the zzz's you need. Click through to learn how to get the most of your slumber, so you can be ready to move in the morning.  Read More ›

5 Easy Ways to Better Value Your Time

Everyone on the planet has one incredible thing in common.  Every week, we are each given 168 hours to do what we please, to create and share our worlds, to make choices that decide our future, and to fill our hearts up with what makes them beat with excitement.  What wakes us up in life and how we spend our time are one in the same. 
 
The time I have today, teaching yoga and building a new business, is completely different than when I worked a 9-to-5 gig.  My goals with practicing yoga and writing balance each day, as well as my love for CrossFit and Pilates.  I like having a full plate at the beginning of each day and slowly clearing it as the day goes along.  Except for on weekends, where I don’t do any "work" at all (only occasionally subbing for yoga classes). 
 
My goal is to end each day with the satisfaction that it was well spent.  I want to be able to sit back, enjoy a glass of red wine, and know that I contributed to something bigger than myself.  Knowing this, over the past couple of years I have developed ways to utilize my time to its fullest.  These five tips speak to me, and hopefully to you as well.  Read More ›

7 Ways to Beat Stress

It's been a long, long day. You skipped lunch, ran 50 errands, and now you realize that your whole head is aching, you are seriously cranky, and every muscle in your body is sore. Your life, as they say, is out of control. But that doesn't mean you have to suffer. "There's a lot you can do to relieve stress, even in a single moment, if you prepare yourself," says Herbert Benson, M.D., director emeritus, Benson-Henry Institute for Mind-Body Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital. Next time you're feeling frenzied, frustrated, and fed up, try one of our instant serenity tips.  Read More ›

6 Reasons Why You Feel Exhausted

Some days you know exactly why you feel worn out: maybe a curfew-breaking teen kept you up past your bedtime or your coughing kid has you coming down with something. Other days it's a mystery. "So many of my patients come to me saying they're tired and they don't know why," says endocrinologist and metabolic specialist Eva Cwynar, M.D., author of The Fatigue Solution. The reason may be one (or more) of these six energy suckers. If they have you dragging your heels, we've got easy fixes for putting pep back in your step.
 
Drain #1: Skipping Sex
When patients go to Dr. Cwynar complaining of burnout, she always tells them: Have good sex. "Making love boosts your body's production of adrenaline and endorphins -- hormones that increase alertness and energy," says Dr. Cwynar. For a rarin' start to your day, set aside some time in the morning. "I know you're thinking that you have to prepare for work, make your kids their lunches, and it doesn't seem like you can find the time," says Dr. Cwynar. But a quickie before the children wake up can be just as satisfying as a longer session on date night, plus it'll give you the get-up-and-go you're seeking.  Read More ›

7 Quick Mood Boosters

Brighten your spirits in no time flat with these easy tricks.

Reach for the sky
 
Get on your feet, look to the ceiling and stretch your arms straight up, spreading your fingers. "The simple act of standing prompts a boost in circulation, delivering oxygen- and energy-rich blood to your cells," explains psychotherapist Kimberly Willis, PhD, author of The Little Book of Diet Help: Expert Tips and Tapping Techniques to Stay Slim for Life. And smile as you hold the stretch: It will trigger the release of feel-good brain chemicals.  Read More ›

Reconnect with Your Inner Optimist

Editor's Note: SparkPeople is thrilled to share with you this blog post from the team at meQuilibrium.com, a site whose mission very closely aligns with our own. meQuilibrium helps you dial down  the negative effects of stress by coaching you to take control of your thoughts, emotions and lifestyle habits with a unique online program.
 
Together SparkPeople and meQuilibrium are committed to making you healthier and happier, one step at a time. At the end of this post, you'll learn how to get a FREE 6-week unlimited access to meQuilibrium, including a special 30-day introductory stress-relief program, as a gift exclusively for SparkPeople members! Don't miss this limited-time offer!
 
Stress can derail our best intentions to adopt and maintain healthy habits.  It’s easy to make poor decisions when stress levels rise. In fact, according to the American Psychological Association, highly stressed people are 30% less likely to eat a healthier diet and 25% less likely to exercise. People try to alleviate stress in unhealthy ways like overeating and sedentary activities like watching TV.
 
Just like managing your weight, managing your stress is about becoming aware of your choices—and making better ones. meQuilibriumcan help you dial down the effects of stress by coaching you to better manage your thoughts and emotions.  Our philosophy is this:  You can’t annihilate stress itself, or completely change your circumstances.  But you can change your response to stress.  The concepts you’ll learn, paired with a little practice, will help you do just that. And when you start to shift your stress response, you’ll find that can do lots of things you never thought you could. 

In Search of Your Inner Optimist

Optimists sometimes get a bad rap. If you tend to be a sunny-sider, chances are you’ve been criticized for being unrealistic, impractical, a dreamer, maybe even dumb. There’s this tough-guy—and we think, defensive—response to life and its unpredictability, and that response is: Life sucks and then it’s over.

We’ve gotten the (wrong) idea that cynicism and realism go hand-in-hand, and that there’s just no room for optimism, unless we want to embarrass ourselves. Well, we disagree. Read More ›

5 Minutes to Less Stress

Are you feeling tense? Do you suffer from back pain or stiffness? Whether you're an experienced yogi or a fitness newbie, whether you can touch your toes or are very inflexible, this 5-minute yoga-inspired stretching routine can help you unwind anytime of day or night.

You don't need any equipment, and, as long as you have a floor you can kneel on, you don't even need a yoga mat. Since it's just five minutes, you can even do this in your regular clothes.

If you're spending a lot of time in the car this holiday season, give this routine a try! For your convenience, I not only provide detailed instructions below, but I also created a printable, downloadable, pinnable graphic for you (scroll down!)

Child’s pose:

Starting in a kneeling position.
 
Keep your knees together but separate the feet and allow your bottom to rest on the floor. Roll your calves away from your thighs (use your hands) to help you get comfortable.

For a deeper stretch:
Sit back on your heels, shins together, tops of the feet pressing onto the mat. (Place a rolled-up towel between your heels and hips to ease this stretch.)

From here, start to lower to the floor. Your belly will rest on or between your thighs, and your forehead will reach towards the mat. (Place a towel or a yoga block under your forehead if it won't reach the floor.

Stretch the arms alongside the body, with the fingertips facing the toes, to stretch between the shoulder blades.

TIP: Roll your forehead back and forth across the mat with your arms along your sides to help alleviate sinus congestion.
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The 5 Worst Things You’re Doing to Yourself

Editor's Note: We know the holidays can be a busy time and that stress is a leading cause of emotional eating and other habits that can negatively impact your efforts to be healthy and happy. That's why SparkPeople is thrilled to share with you this blog post from the team at meQuilibrium.com, a site whose mission very closely aligns with our own. meQuilibrium helps you dial down  the negative effects of stress by coaching you to take control of your thoughts, emotions and lifestyle habits with a unique online program.

Together SparkPeople and meQuilibrium are committed to making you healthier and happier, one step at a time. At the end of this post, you'll learn how to get a FREE 6-week unlimited access to meQuilibrium, including a special 30-day introductory stress-relief program, as a gift exclusively for SparkPeople members! Don't miss this limited-time offer!
 
You’re not a masochist, and yet, this time of year, you could possibly pass for one. You take on more than you could possibly do and aspire to even more. You raise your standards, your expectations, and your stress levels—all in the name of good cheer and a happy holiday.
 
What? Does it have to be like this? We don’t think so. You can change your experience of the holidays—but you have to aware of what you’re doing first. Let’s start with five things you’re doing to yourself that are making things way harder than they have to be. Read More ›

7 Ways to Ward Off Holiday Stress

Stress comes in infinite forms, and this time of year, it's hitting us on all sides. Be pro-active and take steps to reduce your stress level, integrating some of these products into your daily routine. Whether you give these to someone you love or treat yourself, we think you'll start to enjoy the holiday season a little more!

New Acupressure Roller Wood Foot Massager Stress Relief: We have thousands of nerve endings in the bottoms of the feet, so it's no wonder that a foot rub feels so good, especially at the end of a long day! When there's no one around (or no one willing around) to give your feet a rubdown, grab one of these and start rolling. Your feet thank you in advance.

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Stop Waiting! 4 Ways to Live in the Moment

Editor's Note: SparkPeople is thrilled to share with you this blog post from the team at meQuilibrium.com, a site whose mission very closely aligns with our own. meQuilibrium helps you dial down  the negative effects of stress by coaching you to take control of your thoughts, emotions and lifestyle habits with a unique online program.  The company was founded by Jan Bruce, best known for founding the company body+soul/whole living and the magazine of the same name. Chris "SparkGuy" Downie and our team has known Jan for quite awhile, and together we're committed to making you healthier and happier, one step at a time. At the end of this post, you'll learn how to get a FREE 6-week unlimited access to meQuilibrium, including a special 30-day introductory boot camp, as a gift from SparkPeople!

How much of your life do you spend waiting? Not just waiting in line, but biding your time, waiting for the right moment, the right opportunity, the right person to come along? How much of our time is spent waiting for your life to get better, or for it to just show up?

Leo Babauta, author of The Effortless Life and founder of zenhabits.net, asks this question in a recent post called "How to Wait Less." He writes: What if we stopped waiting, stopped trying to make dreams and goals come true, stopped wishing and anticipating? What if that good life is already here, and the only way to live it is to stop looking forward and notice what we already have?

Of course, there’s something great about anticipation—we love having something to look forward to, even if we hate waiting for it to arrive. While the anticipation of something better propels us forward and keeps us optimistic, there’s a definite downside: It takes us out where we are right now. If we’re not careful, we start to believe that the present is something to be tolerated, rather than enjoyed.
As any Buddhist worth his salt will tell you, all we have is now. This is it! The future is a figment, and our past is unchangeable. So, the best chance we have is to work with what’s right in front of us.

Sure, things could get better later (and in this economy, it’s what everyone’s banking on). Where and how you direct your attention and focus determines what your life feels like now. And isn’t that just as important?

Here are some ways to get plugged in to the present (the future will take care of itself): Read More ›

Hungry at Bedtime? Three Smart Solutions

Get ready for a shocker. You may have heard that anything you eat after 8 p.m. immediately turns into extra pounds. But it’s not true. When you eat isn’t the key. How much you eat is.
 
Too many calories, whether they’re consumed in the morning, afternoon or night will equal weight gain. However, it is best to spread your calories throughout the day. That’s because food is meant to be used for energy—energy you need more during the day while shuttling your kids to practice as opposed to the night when you’re sleeping. Still nervous about eating so close to lights out? Follow these tips to calm your head and curb your hunger.  Read More ›

75 Easy Stress Busters

Just Breathe

Whether your tension is small-time or big-league, unwind with our smartest stress-less advice from the past 75 years.
 




Instant Tension Zappers

1 | Take three deep breaths—5 seconds in, 5 seconds out—to slow your heart rate and the pace of your stress hormones. April 2010

2 | Copy a cat: Stretch and then shake it out. February 1963

3 | Sing a favorite song. You'll breathe more fully and the increased oxygen will do your body good. May 2000

4 | Hang your head forward as if it were a heavy ball, then move it slowly to the side, back, side and front. Repeat. Circle around twice in the opposite direction. July 1975

5 | Sit up straight. When your shoulders are back, you open up your chest and breathe more freely. April 2010
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