Source: http://greatist.com/live/meditation-and-exercise-help-depression?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=feed_http–greatistcom-

If you’re suffering from depression—or even just occasional negative thoughts—combining meditation and exercise can help, according to findings from a recent study.1 After meditating and working out for two hours per week, depressed students reduced their symptoms by 40 percent. Students who were healthy to begin with saw a benefit too: They thought less about negative situations. The study was pretty small (only 52 students)—nowhere near the size needed to extrapolate—but the findings are exciting, especially considering that hundreds of free meditation and fitness apps are just a click away.

The researchers say the effectiveness of this combo has a lot to do with attention. Many people who suffer from depression have trouble drawing their focus away from negative thoughts. Exercise has been shown to help your brain grow new cells, and meditation helps you focus. “If you do two activities that elicit the relaxation response, help you focus on the present, get you out of a negative mindset, and reduce the amount of stress hormones pumping through your body, you will rewire your brain and feel happier,” says Ronit Levy, Psy.D., clinical director of the Bucks County Anxiety Center.

This strategy may not work for everyone, though. There’s a big difference between negative thoughts and painful feelings, which many depressed people experience, says Jeffery Rubin, Ph.D., a psychotherapist and meditation teacher.

The participants in this stud…

Source: http://www.runningonrealfood.com/my-experiences-after-6-weeks-of-vegan-iifym/

Hey guys, I actually wrote this post on plant-based flexible dieting quite a while ago but never got around to publishing it. I wanted to share it now so you can catch up on how my first go at vegan IIFYM ended up going. An update to all this, I took about 6 months off tracking…

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The post Vegan IIFYM: More on Plant-Based Flexible Dieting appeared first on Running on Real Food.

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Source: http://greatist.com/live/do-brain-games-work?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=feed_http–greatistcom-

With just 10 minutes of gaming three or four days per week, you could stave off dementia, memory loss, and achieve “full potential in every aspect of life.” Sound too good to be true? It is. These were the claims that popular gaming app Lumosity made—and the ones that cost it big.

In January the FTC settled with Lumo Labs, the maker of Lumosity, for a cool $2 million for deceptive advertising. “Lumosity simply did not have the science to back up its ads,” Jessica Rich, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, said in a press release at the time.

Lumosity was the fall guy, but it’s tough to blame the app. Brain training isn’t science fiction future—it’s big business today. One report puts the brain health industry at $6 billion by 2020. And with an aging America, it’s no surprise that a wonder-drug game for your brain sounds so appealing.

What the Science Says

“The battle is that the marketing can get ahead of the science,” says Paul Reber, Ph.D., professor and director of the Brain, Behavior, and Cognition Program at Northwestern University. “And the science is a messier process.”

“Messier” means there’s currently no clear answer. Brain training, at least in the form of playing Angry Bird-esque games, is bogus.1 What those games do, Reber says, is make you better at playing those games. This phenomenon, called a practice effect, is one scientists have known about for a long time. You’ve als…

Source: http://greatist.com/live/body-positivity-culture-wars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=feed_http–greatistcom-

It’s finally happening. You guys, it’s finally happening! The body-positive revolution is happening, and it will be televised… and tweeted, Periscoped, and Instagrammed. I’m usually not this chipper about the state of body acceptance and weight stigma in the world, but too many first steps have been made this year for this whole body-diversity trend we’re seeing to be a fad.

None of the things I’m gonna celebrate here adds up to much individually. But together? Together they’re a sign that, as model Ashley Graham said in her TEDx talk called Plus Size? More Like My Size, “This is the generation of body diversity. The current is changing.” Take a look at the evidence:

1. Ashley Graham and Ronda Rousey on the COVER of the SI Swimsuit Issue

It was a big deal when curvy model Ashley Graham made it into the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue in 2015 in a mere advertisement. One year later? Homegirl is on the damn cover—and she’s owning it. There are three different covers this year, the other two featuring kick-ass UFC bantamweight champ Ronda Rousey and straight-size Brigitte-Bardot-esque model Hailey Clauson.

The ads don’t disappoint this year, either: Online swimwear shop Swimsuits For All is running three full pages featuring not one, not two, but three diverse visions of beauty all wearing the same gold swimsuit: the gray-haired 56-year-old Nicola Griffin, the aforementioned Ashley Graham, and British model/activist Philomena…

Source: http://greatist.com/live/skin-care-tips-worst-advice?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=feed_http–greatistcom-

From strict dietary restrictions to crazy home remedies and insanely expensive (not to mention insanely tiny) jars of “miracle” products, there are a lot of suspect skin care solutions swimming around out there.

And no one has heard more unfounded, questionable, and downright wrong advice than dermatologists. To help us separate fact from fiction, we asked top docs about the worst skin care advice they’ve ever heard and why it’s bogus.

1. Your behavior is to blame for your breakout.

“People blame themselves and think they’re doing something wrong. But you break out because of factors beyond your control. People think they’re transferring bacteria to their face by touching it a lot or by sleeping on the same pillowcase. Or they blame their diet. But acne is purely a result of your genetics. It’s important to take away that blame to have people treat it the right way.”

— Katie Rodan, M.D., co-creator of Proactiv and Rodan + Fields and adjunct clinical assistant professor of dermatology at Stanford University School of Medicine

<img src="http://greatist.com/sites/default/files/styles/article_main/public/woman-shopping-drugstore_0.jpg?itok=-bM04rwJ" alt="11 skin care rumors to stop believing. "…

Source: http://greatist.com/eat/healthy-salad-dressing-recipes?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=feed_http–greatistcom-

Salad dressing can make or break your meal. You know the drill: A plate of naked greens? Drab. Greens drizzled with an outrageously good dressing or vinaigrette? Masterpiece.

These seven recipes have flavor combinations (like Greek yogurt and cilantro or chipotle pepper and lime) that taste so good, you’re sure to keep coming back for more. Major bonus: All take about five minutes to whip up.

Sweet

Photo: Diet Hood

1. Maple Balsamic Vinaigrette

If your favorite go-to dressing is EVOO with balsamic vinegar, you have to try this variation. It makes the tried-and-true combo sweeter and spicier with the addition of maple syrup and mustard.

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Source: http://greatist.com/live/overcoming-adversity-trauma?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=feed_http–greatistcom-

From a major heartbreak or loss of a loved one to a serious illness, accident, or professional setback, life can lob you some serious curveballs.

Certain factors, like your home life and strength of your IRL social network, can help determine how quickly you’ll bounce back. But what also matters is what you do in the days, weeks, and months following a traumatic event. These actions set the tone for how quickly and effectively you steer yourself back from disaster.

If you’ve found yourself smacked in the face by reality, hang on. With this expert-backed advice, you can begin to get back on the right track, even when you feel like everything is falling apart.

4 Steps to Reset 1. Get your feet on the ground.

When your world gets rocked, your trust in the world around you, other people, and sometimes even yourself is thrown into question, says psychiatrist and trauma specialist Sudhir Gadh, M.D. As a result, you may feel less stable, more afraid, and see your day-to-day realities as far more threatening than they truly are.

“When we’re hurt—emotionally or physically—we naturally want to find a corner to hide in and despair over how or why something awful has happened to us,” Gadh says…

Source: http://greatist.com/live/boskke-cube-planter?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=feed_http–greatistcom-

Boskke Cube

Have you ever killed a plant? We have, and there’s nothing like the sorry sting of unintentionally murdering something you paid for—ya killed it, ya killed it real good. Anyway, we’ve finally found a way around the whole situation while still keeping our Insta game strong: the Boskke Cube. Fill the futuristic-looking planter with water, and let its self-regulating ceramic disk give the roots exactly the amount of water they need, saving you from constantly wondering what more your plants could want from you. Don’t you give them everything? Haven’t you tried to make them happy? Well, now they don’t need you (until the well runs dry, which should be once a month). It’s better this way. No one dies. Enjoy the green!

I Want This
$29.95

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Source: http://greatist.com/live/dry-january-benefits-of-giving-up-alcohol?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=feed_http–greatistcom-

This isn’t a preachy list of the miraculous health benefits of giving up alcohol. I won’t tell you that I sprang out of bed every morning with endless energy, ready to crush my workouts and tackle my to-do lists.

I won’t tell you that I lost weight, saved a bunch of money, or woke up with an instantly clear complexion, radiating an alcohol-free glow.

The truth is, I didn’t experience any major physical changes when I gave up drinking for 30 days in January. But I did learn something huge about myself—something that completely changed the way I view a glass of wine or bottle of beer.

Rosé-Colored Glasses

Why did I want to stop drinking? For one, Dry January is officially a trend in the wellness world, and as a health editor, I was curious. The other big reason: I’d never actually tried not to drink.

I had my first sip of alcohol back in high school (tequila from a friend’s parents’ liquor cabinet, naturally). Since then it’s played a pretty constant role in my life. From casual parties to college fraternity ragers, the ritual of having a few drinks became as ingrained as going to class or out for a run.

Alcohol eased the awkwardness of my freshman year of college, when I knew no one. It helped push me past my inherent shyness to meet new people. I was always into books and school, so drinking was also a way to prove there was more to me than good grades and studying.

<img src="http://greatist.c…

Source: http://greatist.com/live/mental-health-instagram?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=feed_http–greatistcom-

You may recognize Jessica Walsh, a graphic designer living in New York, from a project she did in 2013 with creative partner Timothy Goodman entitled “40 Days of Dating.”

After revealing her past struggle with anorexia, anxiety, and depression as a part of their new project, “12 Steps of Kindness,” Walsh received messages from friends and colleagues about their own mental health battles. She was so moved, she created a site called Let’s Talk About Mental Health to share stories about how so many people deal with this every day.

Walsh also transformed snippets of those powerful narratives into eye-catching graphics for an Instagram account of the same name (@letstalkaboutmentalhealth) to help fight the stigma surrounding mental illness. See for yourself in the inspiring examples below. Then read the full-length personal stories on the project website.

“I became strong enough to fight for what I want in life. I learned that fear isn’t real and that I have the power to face it. I learned that nothing in life is worth falling apart over. I realized I could survive anything.”

— Dana, 29, Connecticut, USA

“I’m always…