Author: Richard C. Trotter
If there’s one thing in life you don’t want to take chances on, it’s raw meat. While delicious in their cooked forms, raw chicken, burgers, and more can be unwelcome carriers of bacteria…especially if you don’t know the best way to thaw meat. The first step: Don’t leave frozen meat on the counter. While your grandmother may swear by this method of thawing out meat, it is not safe. (Odds are, she also never wore her seatbelt and her kids didn’t have car seats.) However, for the scatter-brained (or busy!) among us, it’s easy to forget to defrost meat until…
While many people in their 40s are aware of Alzheimer’s disease, it probably doesn’t feel like an immediate threat. That makes sense, because most people with the condition don’t show symptoms until they’ve passed their 65th birthday, according to the National Institute on Aging (NIA). If Alzheimer’s runs in your family, though, your risk might be on your mind well before your sixth or seventh decade. There’s no proven way of absolutely preventing Alzheimer’s. But there are steps you can take—especially when you’re younger—to help keep your brain sharp for years to come. “Making healthy choices when you’re younger is…
It’s hard to avoid talk of big goals and life-changing resolutions at the start of the year, and if the new year energy has you itching to work toward an ambitious fitness goal right now, that’s great. But there’s an important truth that can get lost in the new year’s resolutions narrative: You don’t have to be chasing big goals all the time—in fact, it’s unsustainable for your mind and body. Taking some time off from focusing on fitness gains can set you up for more success in the future. Just look at professional athletes, arguably the fittest humans in…
For some people, managing high blood pressure means keeping an eye on your numbers and seeing a doctor for medication. But your lifestyle can also play an important role in maintaining healthy blood pressure, too. While it’s important to practice some of these habits at all times of day (like drinking plenty of water and eating balanced meals), the evening is an especially important time for lowering blood pressure and unwinding after a long day. “Studies have shown that blood pressure elevations at night (and during sleep) are especially detrimental as they’re associated with a higher risk of cardiovascular events,…
This would take no time at all on downhill skis. I could barely hear my thoughts above the loud grind of my cross-country skis that I held stiffly in pizza mode (meaning, I was pointing my skis together into a wedge shape rather than having them protrude straight out into vertical lines). I did this to control my speed—which, to be clear, was that of a snail—as I scraped down the gentle, groomed hill. But, slow and steady, I had a smile plastered across my face. Cross-country skiing was new and different to me, but learning to do it with…
Traditionally, a “safe word” is used during rough or BDSM sex to let your partner know they should stop what they’re doing—either because it’s painful or uncomfortable, or you just want to take a little breather. But when my husband and I recently found ourselves letting small disagreements transform into huge blowout arguments, I began wondering: Why not apply safe words to conflict? The idea was that by using our chosen phrase right when we began to feel activated, we could press pause before we started raising our voices, saying something we didn’t mean, or otherwise acting in a hurtful…
New month means crafting a *short* list of low-lift resolutions I’ll actually want to stick to for the remaining weeks. At the top of my “ins” for February are hydration with a purpose and boosting gut health (while mindless scrolling and drinking coffee before water are decidedly on the “outs”). A new addition to my daily routine helping me accomplish some of these goals: Mayawell’s bubbly prebiotic sodas. Needless to say, prebiotic sodas aren’t exactly new by any means. However, this Mexican-owned, Austin-based beverage company (which launched in early 2020) is the first of its kind whose sweetening agent (agave!)…
What is a good goodbye in 2024? We have become accustomed to being ghosted (or worse, ghosted and then gaslighted about it) or ghosting, rather than simply saying we aren’t interested. Many of us take relationship breaks instead of owning up to the fact that we want to break up. Others simply deny endings by punting on the invitation for drinks or making excuses that work is “crazy”—anything to get out of having to gracefully end the would-be relationship or situationship. This is all for good reason: Goodbyes are hard, full stop. Saying goodbye and officially ending a friendship or…
Let’s talk about a concept that is often misunderstood: a ‘cleanse’. I sometimes like to say ‘reset’ instead. It’s definitely not about juice fasts or restrictive diets and mindsets. In fact, those usually do more harm than good. A true cleanse is a total body (and mind!) renewal. It involves making conscious choices to fuel your body with the right foods and nutrients that will help you feel energised, refreshed and rejuvenated. The hard-working liver plays a key role in this process of revitalisation. As one of the body’s primary detox organs, it processes all the toxins, heavy metals and…
About 29 years ago, I stole my mother’s boobs. At least, that’s the story my sister and I have been hearing since we were old enough to understand we could be at fault. Her boobs didn’t stand a chance against us being born, she’d say, regularly reminding us that we “ruined” her breasts—me most of all. Though my sister and I were both breastfed, only I adopted the self-soothing habit of grabbing at my mom’s nipple like a nipple bandit. I’d roll it between my fingers to fall asleep, and when the nipple was no longer available to me, I…