Earlier this year, The New York Times asked a selection of experts: What is the one health tip you learned in your work that you swear by?
OGN featured half a dozen of these recommendations last week, and so many of you clicked on the article, that we thought you would like some more...
I’m a big fan of making fancy ice cubes by freezing lemon or lime juice with chopped berries or pineapple and herbs. These little flavor-packed cubes turn plain water into a refreshing, luxurious treat - with added vitamin C. Emily Haller, Dietitian.
When you’re stuck at something - writing the first lines of a letter, painting a picture, coming up with creative ideas at work - spend five minutes coming up with the worst ideas you can. Allowing your words to flow pushes you to focus on the more abstract or general idea before your overcritical instincts snuff it out. Adam Alter, Marketing professor at N.Y.U. and author of Anatomy of a Breakthrough.
“Stop, Breathe, Be” is a three-second brain reset to help manage anxiety in the moment. The instructions are in the name: Stop whatever you’re doing, take a brief pause. Take a deep breath in and out. Be grounded in the present moment. “Stop, Breathe, Be” gets you out of “What if?” thinking and back to what is, in the here and now. Dr. Aditi Nerurkar, Harvard physician specializing in stress and burnout.
When I need to clear my mind, I turn to what psychologists call “soft fascination” by engaging in simple activities - like washing dishes, folding laundry or gardening - that require little mental effort, giving the mind freedom to wander, make connections and find solutions. When I feel like I have too many mental tabs open, I’ll drive in silence or take a walk without my phone. Before long, answers to questions that have been weighing on me spontaneously come to mind. Lisa Damour, Clinical psychologist.
A couple of times a day, I consciously drop my shoulders, sigh and think to myself: “Let go.”
Sherry Cormier, Psychologist and bereavement trauma expert.
Short bursts of intense exercise — burpees, sprints on a bike, taking the stairs at work — are both physically and metabolically valuable. I make sure to put them into my life a couple of times every week. Dr. Jordan D. Metzl, Sports medicine physician at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York.
Last week's Simple Health Tips Experts Swear By