Tips in Summer
1. Give Your Diet a Berry Boost
If you do one thing this summer to improve your diet, have a cup of mixed fresh berries -- blackberries, blueberries, or strawberries -- every day. They'll help you load up on antioxidants, which may help prevent damage to tissues and reduce the risks of age-related illnesses. Blueberries and blackberries are especially antioxidant-rich.
A big bonus: Berries are also tops in fiber, which helps keep cholesterollow and may even help prevent some cancers.
2. Get Dirty -- and Stress Less
To improve your stress level, plant a small garden, cultivate a flower box, or if space is really limited, plant a few flower pots -- indoors or out.
Just putting your hands in soil is "grounding." And when life feels like you're moving so fast your feet are barely touching the stuff, being mentally grounded can help relieve physical and mental stress.
3. Floss Daily
You know you need to, now it's time to start: floss every single day. Do it at the beach (in a secluded spot), while reading on your patio, or when watching TV -- and the task will breeze by.
Flossing reduces oral bacteria, which improves overall body health, and if oral bacteria is low, your body has more resources to fight bacteria elsewhere. Floss daily and you're doing better than at least 85% of people.
4. Get Outside to Exercise
Pick one outdoor activity -- going on a hike, taking a nature walk, playing games such as tag with your kids, cycling, roller blading, or swimming -- to shed that cooped-up feeling of gym workouts.
And remember, the family that plays together not only gets fit together -- it's also a great way to create bonding time.
- Always apply suncream
It is important to use a suncream lotion of at least SPF 30 in order to protect your skin from harmful UV rays. For sensitive skin, a mineral-based sunscreen is best. Don’t sit in the sun in peak hours between 10am and 4pm in order to minimize UV radiation. If you are planning to be out in the sun for a long period of time, reapply suncream every two to three hours.
- Drink plenty of waterDuring the hot summer months, heat and sweat can leave your body dehydrated. A lack of water is harmful to your body and can also make you crave food when you’re not actually hungry. It is incredibly important to keep yourself hydrated by drinking at least eight to nine glasses of water a day. Bored of water? Add some low calorific flavoring to water such as a piece of fruit, or opt for healthy alternatives like green tea or coconut water.
- Beware of ‘healthy’ smoothies
Fruit smoothies are a great way to get your five-a-day and keep refreshed throughout the summer, but watch out for smoothies made with frozen yoghurts or ice cream as they can be extremely calorific.
A healthy smoothie should be made with fruit, juice, low fat-yoghurt and ice. Use any fruit you might have or have kept in the freezer, and throw it all in a blender to make a perfect summer drink.
- Exfoliate
Summer means an increase of dead skin cells so it is important to exfoliate your skin to keep it smooth and silky. You don’t need to buy any expensive products to achieve that summer glow; simply use a loafer for a light scrub or make your own exfoliation lotion using a handful of oatmeal, milk and yoghurt.
- Keep up the exercise regime
Before you hide those running shoes in the wardrobe, remember summer exercise doesn’t have to stop because of the rising temperatures. Instead of working out outside, change your exercise plan and take it indoors. Join a gym, take up a step class, or get a group of friends around for an afternoon of exercise DVDs.
- Get wet
Summer is the perfect time of year to get wet! Boring runs in the cold wintery weather can be swapped for a summer swim at your local pool or gym. Start by swimming for 10 minutes and increase the time over the following weeks by doing front crawl, breaststroke or backstroke to mix up your cardio workout. A 30 minute session of this full body workout will burn almost 400 calories! If swimming laps isn’t your thing, join a water aerobics class or create your own aerobic workout with jumping jacks, marching and jogging in water.
- Olive oil
Olive oil is a healthy fat which contains essential fatty acids that help skin resist UV damage. These fatty acids are also part of the cell membranes that keep in all that moisture your body loses through heat and sweat during the summer. In order to protect your skin and keep it supple, consume about 1 tablespoon of olive oil daily or add it to a healthy salad or fish dish in order to get all those essential fatty acids.
- Protect your glossy locks
Our hair suffers a lot during the summer. Constant heat, sun damage and chlorine takes a toll on our hair and can leave it feeling limp and dull after the holidays. If you’re planning on swimming a lot during the summer, it is advisable to use anti-chlorine shampoo and conditioner to help neutralize the chlorine from your hair. If possible, minimize the use of hairdryers, straighteners and other heating products. Towel dry your hair, apply a handful of mouse and revel in beachy summer waves.
- Eat healthy by the pool
When the sun is beating down, the idea of seeking out the nearest ice cream stand is seriously tempting. Stay strong by being prepared, and pack a cooler full of healthy snacks and juices. Fill your ice-box with ice, bottled water, sandwiches, vegetable sticks with hummus, yoghurts and endless amounts of fruit.
- Take up a new hobby
Summer is the perfect time to take up a new activity. Gardening is a great way to enjoy the outdoors and will actually help you burn some calories! Planting a herb garden is a fantastic way of getting your hands dirty, having quick access to some healthy flavours for your summer meals and, if you have kids, get them involved in playing outside.
If gardening isn’t your thing, get some inspiration from Wimbledon and try your hand at some tennis or golf. Pilates is the perfect alternative for some alone time in the garden. Roll out a towel and have some fun trying out planks and some breathing techniques in the sun.
Water conservation in the home...
1. Check faucets and pipes for leaks
A small drip from a worn faucet washer can waste 20 gallons of water per day. Larger leaks can waste hundreds of gallons.
2. Don't use the toilet as an ashtray or wastebasket
Every time you flush a cigarette butt, facial tissue or other small bit of trash, five to seven gallons of water is wasted.
3. Check your toilets for leaks
Put a little food coloring in your toilet tank. If, without flushing, the color begins to appear in the bowl within 30 minutes, you have a leak that should be repaired immediately. Most replacement parts are inexpensive and easy to install.
4. Use your water meter to check for hidden water leaks
Read the house water meter before and after a two-hour period when no water is being used. If the meter does not read exactly the same, there is a leak.
5. Install water-saving shower heads and low-flow faucet aerators
Inexpensive water-saving low-flow shower heads or restrictors are easy for the homeowner to install. Also, long, hot showers can use five to ten gallons every unneeded minute. Limit your showers to the time it takes to soap up, wash down and rinse off. "Low-flow" means it uses less than 2.5 gallons per minute.
You can easily install a ShowerStart showerhead, or add a ShowerStart converter to existing showerheads, which automatically pauses a running shower once it gets warm.
Also, all household faucets should be fit with aerators. This single best home water conservation method is also the cheapest!
6. Put plastic bottles or float booster in your toilet tank
To cut down on water waste, put an inch or two of sand or pebbles inside each of two plastic bottles to weigh them down. Fill the bottles with water, screw the lids on, and put them in your toilet tank, safely away from the operating mechanisms. Or, buy an inexpensive tank bank or float booster. This may save ten or more gallons of water per day.
Be sure at least 3 gallons of water remain in the tank so it will flush properly. If there is not enough water to get a proper flush, users will hold the lever down too long or do multiple flushes to get rid of waste. Two flushings at 1.4 gallons is worse than a single 2.0 gallon flush. A better suggestion would be to buy an adjustable toilet flapper that allow for adjustment of their per flush use. Then the user can adjust the flush rate to the minimum per flush setting that achieves a single good flush each time.
For new installations, consider buying "low flush" toilets, which use 1 to 2 gallons per flush instead of the usual 3 to 5 gallons.
Replacing an 18 liter per flush toilet with an ultra-low volume (ULV) 6 liter flush model represents a 70% savings in water flushed and will cut indoor water use by about 30%.
7. Insulate your water pipes.
It's easy and inexpensive to insulate your water pipes with pre-slit foam pipe insulation. You'll get hot water faster plus avoid wasting water while it heats up.
8. Take shorter showers.
One way to cut down on water use is to turn off the shower after soaping up, then turn it back on to rinse. A four-minute shower uses approximately 20 to 40 gallons of water.
9. Turn off the water after you wet your toothbrush
There is no need to keep the water running while brushing your teeth. Just wet your brush and fill a glass for mouth rinsing.
10. Rinse your razor in the sink
Fill the sink with a few inches of warm water. This will rinse your razor just as well as running water, with far less waste of water.
11. Use your dishwasher and clothes washer for only full loads
Automatic dishwashers and clothes washers should be fully loaded for optimum water conservation. Most makers of dishwashing soap recomend not pre-rinsing dishes which is a big water savings.
With clothes washers, avoid the permanent press cycle, which uses an added 20 liters (5 gallons) for the extra rinse. For partial loads, adjust water levels to match the size of the load. Replace old clothes washers. New Energy Star rated washers use 35 - 50% less water and 50% less energy per load. If you're in the market for a new clothes washer, consider buying a water-saving frontload washer.
12. Minimize use of kitchen sink garbage disposal units
In-sink 'garburators' require lots of water to operate properly, and also add considerably to the volume of solids in a septic tank which can lead to maintenance problems. Start a compost pile as an alternate method of disposing food waste.
13. When washing dishes by hand, don't leave the water running for rinsing
If your have a double-basin, fill one with soapy water and one with rinse water. If you have a single-basin sink, gather washed dishes in a dish rack and rinse them with a spray device or a panful of hot water. Dual-swivel aerators are available to make this easier. If using a dishwasher, there is usually no need to pre-rinse the dishes.
14. Don't let the faucet run while you clean vegetables
Just rinse them in a stoppered sink or a pan of clean water. Use a dual-setting aerator.
15. Keep a bottle of drinking water in the fridge.
Running tap water to cool it off for drinking water is wasteful. Store drinking water in the fridge in a safe drinking bottle. If you are filling water bottles to bring along on outdoor hikes, consider buying a LifeStraw personal water filter which enables users to drink water safely from rivers or lakes or any available body of water.
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