Let your garlic breath be loud and proud because April 19^th is National Garlic Day! Although the origin of this day remains a mystery, we are overjoyed that there is a day to honor the magical, pungent little clove. What you should do to celebrate all that garlicky goodness is head to the kitchen and cook up a garlic feast!

Garlic can do some amazing things and we want to share what it can do with you!

Keeps Your Warm:

Although you may not want your breath to smell like garlic, it is certainly a powerful, immune-boosting herb with antibacterial and antiviral properties. Garlic is a natural vasoldilator, which means that it helps to widen blood vessels and prevents blood cells from clumping. In case you were wondering what else garlic does, it works to improve the health of your heart and lowers glucose metabolism in those with diabetes.

Helps With Ear Infections:

This may sound a little odd, but putting a few drops of garlic oil (or an entire garlic clove) in your ear is a great natural remedy.  The compounds in garlic help to attack the bacteria or virus in the inner ear, while the antiseptic properties of garlic work to inhibit the infection from spreading.

Aids Digestion:

Garlic has antiviral, anti-inflammatory, and antibacterial properties, and it acts as a prebiotic, which helps to nourish beneficial gut bacteria. It also helps to cleanse the colon, making it an overall digestive helper.

Helps To Kill Parasites:

Garlic has been known to treat intestinal parasites for quite some time. It works to kill harmful microorganisms and encourages the removal of heavy metals from the body.

Gets You Goin;

Garlic may seem like an odd food to be on an aphrodisiac list because it has a lasting effect on your breath. If you both eat it, though, there won’t be any problems! Ancient Egyptian priests were actually forbidden to eat garlic because they feared that they wouldn’t be able to control their desires. Allicin, known for lowering cholesterol, helps to increase blood flow.

Try one of the following garlic recipes and let us know how you like it.

Roasted Garlic & Cauliflower Hummus With Pesto:

The roasted garlic in this hummus really takes it to a whole other level. Swirl in the kale pesto for a great flavor combination that is both earthy and fresh.

Click here to make the recipe.

Garlic Lime Cashew Zoodles:

The sauce in this recipe knocks this dish out of the park. You’re taste buds are going to be impressed with the layered flavors. If you want to crank up the heat a few notches, don’t be shy with the chili paste.

Click here to make the recipe.

Roasted Garlic & Red Pepper Sauce With Zucchini Noodles:

You don’t have to eat a mound of carbs if you want to eat pasta. Spiralizing zucchini to make noodles is great substitute! If you have secret sauce ingredients or family recipe ingredients that you’d like to add to this recipe, go ahead and season away!

Click here to make the recipe.

Sources:

https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/garlic-day/

https://nationaldaycalendar.com/days-2/national-garlic-day-april-19/

http://www.top10homeremedies.com/superfoods/top-10-artery-cleansing-superfoods.html

https://www.dherbs.com/articles/spice-up-your-love-life-with-these-aphrodisiac-foods/

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Digestion is a natural bodily function, yet a lot of people are embarrassed to talk about their digestive health. If digestive discomfort is neglected, serious health problems can occur. A 2014 survey indicated that about 74% of Americans were living with digestive problems. Whether the symptoms are bloating, gas, indigestion, abdominal pain, or diarrhea, a person’s way of life can be interrupted by poor digestion.

If healthy digestion is what you seek, it has to start with the food you eat. If you eat unhealthy foods, then your body usually pays for it. Things like processed foods, meats, or dairy products can take up to three times longer than fruits, vegetables, legumes, or nuts & seeds for the body to digest. When you eat food, enzymes in your saliva begin to break down the food you are chewing. Acids and enzymes continue to break the food down when it enters the stomach. The food then enters the small intestine, where the body takes the nutrients it needs and sends the waste to the large intestine for elimination.

Whether you are trying to lose weight, live healthier, or feel less gassy or bloated, improving your digestion is always beneficial. Use these eight herbs to help naturally improve your digestion.

Chamomile:

In addition to calming the nervous system, naturally relieving nausea, and soothing heartburn, chamomile is a great herb for relief from gas and bloating. It aids digestion and can help remedy stomach cramps, IBS, and colitis.

Cumin:

Cumin, much like coriander, is a great digestive spice that helps cool the digestive system and boost digestive strength. It also helps with the proliferation of good microbes, and it aids with the detoxification of the digestive tract. It has a powerful taste, but makes up for it with powerful properties that can help reduce gas and bloating.

Fennel Seeds:

Fennel seeds have been widely used in Ayurvedic medicine for years. They help to boost lymphatic flow, but they also combat bloating and gas in the digestive tract. Not only do fennel seeds strengthen the digestive system, but they also help alleviate cramping, nausea, and gas.

Ginger Root:

Ginger helps to stimulate saliva, bile, and gastric juices, which can help stimulate healthy digestion. The easiest way to reap the benefits of ginger is to brew it into a tea. Pour hot water over freshly sliced ginger root. Stir in 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon and 1 teaspoon of raw, organic honey and consume it; you should feel digestive relief shortly after.

Dandelion: 

Dandelions are abundant in a variety of vitamins and minerals. They have been used to natural remedy various health conditions, and sometimes people use them as a mild laxative, which can be beneficial for those with constipation.

Slippery Elm:

Slippery elm, which is obtained from the inner bark of the red elm tree, may be helpful in remedying irritated tissues in the digestive tract. You can obtain slippery elm powder and make it into a tea. Take 1 teaspoon of the powder, 1 teaspoon of raw honey, and put them in 2 cups of boiling water. You can add cinnamon for added flavor if you like. Drink this concoction once or twice a day.

Orange/Lemon Peels: 

Both orange and lemon peels help increase the natural secretion of digestive juices. This can help your body break down food more efficiently and can contribute to better waste elimination. Additionally, the peels also improve digestion and can help relieve gas.

Peppermint: 

Peppermint is an excellent herb for those with IBS because it calms digestive spasms and can relieve gas. Additionally, it helps to relieve stomach pain, especially if you consume it after eating a meal.

Sources:

http://lifespa.com/five-spices-digestive-world/

https://www.consciouslifestylemag.com/herbs-for-digestion-healing/

http://guthealthproject.com/8-herbs-improve-digestion-infographic/

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Strength training is a great way to build muscle and burn fat. It can help you retain existing muscle and boost your metabolism in the process. It helps to boost the metabolism by increasing your Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR). Your RMR is the rate at which your body burns energy at a complete rest. For every pound of muscle you gain, your RMR increases by 30-50 calories, meaning your body must use more calories to maintain muscle than it does to maintain fat.

In addition to boosting your metabolism, strength training is a great way to boost your mood, relieve anxiety, decrease stress, improve cholesterol levels, and improve overall blood flow. This is enticing to a lot of people, but some people get intimidated or don’t know where to start. We have several workout routines in our Articles section that can help ease you into strength training, so you aren’t going from zero to sixty and setting yourself up for failure.

Have You Done Workout Training?

If you have never done any of the exercises that you come across, always start out with your bodyweight. Let’s say you encounter an exercise that requires dumbbells. Hold two water bottles or two things that are very lightweight to take the place of dumbbells. The idea behind not using any additional weight is to focus on form. Maintaining correct form is more important than lifting heavy. Doing exercises improperly can increase your risk of injury.

Adding Weight:

Dumbbells are great strength training tools. While most gyms have an array of dumbbells, you may only need a couple sets or an adjustable dumbbell set at home. Additionally, dumbbells are less intimidating than barbell training, e.g. bench presses, squats, or deadlifts. They also help you work harder at balancing during the exercise.

What Are Reps & Sets?

A rep, or repetition, is a single movement through a range of motion and back again. A full movement, from start to finish, of a squat, push-up, dip, or pull-up is considered to be a single rep. A group of reps is called a set. If the exercise calls for two sets of ten reps, you will do ten consecutive reps, rest, and repeat ten reps.

Combos:

Most of our workouts are combo exercises, especially if you are using our second and third exercise guides. By using combo workouts, you don’t have to exercise for long periods of time. Additionally, you exercise various muscle groups when you do combo exercises, as opposed to doing exercises that focus on a specific area of the body. The important thing to remember is to not rest between combos.

We hope you enjoyed these strength training tips and wish you well on sculpting your body.

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Herbs bring a lot of powerful flavors to the table. They contain potent medicinal properties, which have been used by various cultures for thousands of years. A lot of people have small herb gardens, and those who don’t have gardens like to purchase herb bunches from the store. After you harvest herbs or bring them home, how often do they go bad before you use them? Drying your fresh herbs may be the solution to this problem.

Difference Between Dried & Fresh Herbs:

There are a lot of herbs and spices, all of which have varying nutritional benefits. Cinnamon, for example, is only consumed in its dried form and has been known to regulate blood sugar levels and promote weight loss. Green herbs like thyme, rosemary, mint, or oregano may have some nutrients that get lost in the drying process, but this doesn’t mean that they aren’t beneficial.

Comparing Nutritional Content Of Dried & Fresh Herbs:

For this comparison, we are going to use basil as an example. One ounce of fresh basil provides you with 30% of the daily value of vitamin A, 145% of the daily value of vitamin K, 8% of the daily value of vitamin C, and contains 88mg of omega-3 fatty acids. One tablespoon of dried basil, on the other hand, provides you with 4% of the daily value of vitamin A, 43% of the daily value of vitamin K, 2% of the daily value of vitamin C, and only contains 33mg of omega-3s. It is evident that the numbers decrease, but there are still nutritional benefits of consuming dried herbs, especially if you dry them yourself.

Method #1: Air Dry Your Herbs

Air-drying your herbs is probably the easiest method for drying herbs. After picking your herbs or buying a few bunches from the store, wash them under some cool water. Make sure that your herbs are held together in bunches. You can use a light rubber band or string to tie up the stems. Lightly pat the herbs dry with a paper towel. Once they are dry, attach them to a string (using a clothespin and string works fantastically) and hang them stem side up in an open space that has a breeze. You can also place them near a ceiling fan.

Now, you wait. Pay attention to them to make sure they aren’t growing mold. Once they have dried, take them down and process them separately in a coffee grinder of food processor. Store them in separate glass airtight containers and use them as you please.

Method #2: Dehydrate Your Herbs

This method takes much less time than air-drying your herbs. Wash your herbs and pat them dry (detailed in Method #1). Place the herbs and stems on your dehydrator trays and set them inside your dehydrator. Dehydrate your herbs at 115 degrees F and check them periodically to see if they are dried. Drying times will differ depending on the type of dehydrator you have; it may take a couple hours or it may take eight hours. Once they have dried, take them down and process them separately in a coffee grinder of food processor. Store them in separate glass airtight containers and use them as you please.

Now you have two awesome methods for drying your herbs. They aren’t devoid of nutrients just because they are dried!

Sources:

https://nutritionovereasy.com/2011/04/do-dried-herbs-and-spices-have-nutritional-value/

https://morningchores.com/drying-herbs/

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Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) is a common gastrointestinal disorder that can either cause diarrhea, constipation, abdominal cramping, or even bloating. Even though symptoms of IBS are uncomfortable, it does not change your bowel tissue or increase your risk of developing colorectal cancer like Crohn’s Disease. IBS is a chronic condition, but people can keep symptoms under control by managing diets, lifestyles, and stress.

Symptoms of IBS:

Because IBS can affect each person differently, people will experience varying symptoms, but the primary symptom is abdominal discomfort. If you are a woman, symptoms can worsen during menstruation. Symptoms of IBS can include:

• Abdominal bloating
• Constipation
• Abdominal cramping
• Gas
• Diarrhea
• Mucus in the stool
• Loss of appetite
• Sudden urge to have bowel movements

Natural Remedies For IBS

Exercise:

Exercise can be a beneficial remedy for those with IBS because it helps stimulate proper intestinal contractions. Additionally, exercising may help to relieve stress and anxiety, both of which can induce symptoms of IBS. If you don’t exercise regularly, you may want to start with low-intensive exercises like walking, swimming, riding an exercise bike, Tai Chi, yoga, or even Pilates. It is recommended to exercise 30 minutes a day for five days a week to see positive effects.

Drink Water:

Hydrate, hydrate, and hydrate some more. When you have IBS, it is important to drink water because energy, caffeinated, or alcoholic drinks can make diarrhea worse, and carbonated drinks can induce gas or bloating. It is recommended to drink half your bodyweight in ounces of water each day. If you weigh 150 pounds and divide that by two to get 75, you should be drinking 75 ounces of water every day.

Change Your Diet:

It can be beneficial, for IBS symptoms as well as overall health, to avoid processed foods, dairy products (especially if you are allergic to them), meats, fried foods, sugars, salts, and stimulants. These foods can often inhibit proper digestive function or worsen symptoms of IBS. Switching to a more plant-based diet can help regulate gastrointestinal health and eating fibrous fruits and vegetables can help firm up stools or promote bowel movements.

Avoid Certain Foods:

Certain foods are notorious for producing gas. It can be optimal to eliminate these foods from your diet to decrease the amount of gas you have. These foods include beans, cabbage, cauliflower, bran, Brussels sprouts, pears, raisins, onions, and the list continues. Additionally, you should avoid carbonated drinks, eat slowly, and chew your food thoroughly.

Use Ginger:

Use ginger as a natural remedy any chance you get! Ginger helps to stimulate saliva, bile, and gastric juices, which can help stimulate proper digestion. The easiest way to reap the benefits of ginger is to make tea. Pour hot water over freshly sliced ginger and stir in 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon and 1 teaspoon of raw, organic honey. Drink this once or twice a day until IBS symptoms subside.

Slippery Elm:

Slippery elm, which is obtained from the inner bark of the red elm tree, may help heal irritated tissues in the digestive tract. You can obtain slippery elm powder and make it into a tea. Take 1 teaspoon of the powder, 1 teaspoon of raw honey, and put them in 2 cups of boiling water. You can add cinnamon for added flavor if you like. Drink this concoction once or twice a day.

Sources:

http://www.healthline.com/health-slideshow/ibs-home-remedies-that-work

http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/ART00680/Irritable-Bowel-Syndrome-IBS.html

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Being that magnesium is the fourth most abundant mineral in the body, you could say that it is kind of important. Magnesium has several functions in the body and brain. Most people, however, do not get enough of this mineral. While there are plant-based, magnesium-rich foods you can consume, we are bringing you a magnesium body butter to help replenish magnesium levels, which works to improve sleep and reduce anxiety.

The majority of magnesium in the body is found in bones, while the rest is found in soft tissues, fluids, and muscles. Magnesium is necessary for cells to function properly. Involved in more than 600 biochemical reactions in the body, magnesium aids with protein formation, gene maintenance, muscle movements, nervous system regulation, and energy creation. The bottom line is that magnesium is necessary for a healthy body, but most people don’t get the amount they require.

What Is A Magnesium Deficiency?

About 80% of Americans are deficient in magnesium, but they don’t know it. Some people mistake symptoms of magnesium deficiency as part of natural life or other health conditions. General fatigue, poor sleep, regular headaches, digestive troubles, or feelings of stress or anxiety are common symptoms of magnesium deficiency.

Causes of Magnesium Deficiency:

• Consuming too much caffeine
• Eating junk food (especially processed sugars)
• Excess stress
• Poor sleep patterns

Benefits of Magnesium:

• Reduces stress
• Increases energy
• Soothes muscle cramps
• Improves sleep quality
• Calms nerves

Ingredients For Magnesium Body Butter:

• ½ cup unrefined cocoa butter
• ½ cup virgin coconut oil
• ¼ cup magnesium oil
• 10 drops lavender essential oil
• 10 drops cedarwood essential oil
• 10 drops frankincense essential oil
• double boiler
• 4oz glass jars for storing body butter

Instructions:

• Using a double boiler, melt the cocoa butter. Once it is melted, add the coconut oil and melt.
• Add the magnesium oil, mix well, remove from the heat, and allow the mixture to cool for 30-60 minutes in the refrigerator. The mixture should be completely solid.
• Remove the mixture from the fridge and add to a mixing bowl or cake mixer. Whip the mixture for 3-5 minutes.
• Add the essential oils and whip for an additional 5 minutes, or until you have a light and fluffy consistency like whipped cream.

How To Use

For Muscle Cramps: Massage one teaspoon of body butter on the affected area to relieve tension.

For Relaxing Sleep: Before bedtime, massage 1 teaspoon of body butter on the bottom of each foot, and rub a thumbnail size amount on the back of the neck.

For Stress & Headaches: Massage a small amount of the body butter on the back of your neck near the base of your skull. It is also beneficial to massage a small amount on the temples and forehead, but be careful to avoid getting the body butter in your eyes.

Sources:

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/10-proven-magnesium-benefits#section2

https://oneessentialcommunity.com/calming-magnesium-body-butter-essential-oils/

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