Guest post: Underrated Activities That Promote Whole Health

Underrated Activities That Promote Whole Health

By Brad Krause

Eat breakfast, don’t drink too much, smile and be happy — these are pretty basic aspects of a healthy lifestyle. But if this is all you are doing, you are seriously missing out. There are many ways to cater to your self-care needs. From the ancient practice of bath therapy to modern-day motivators, the following are a few of the most under-appreciated ways to live your best life.

 

Take a Warm Bath

The ancient Romans provided public bathhouses, and it wasn’t to ensure proper hygiene. Bathhouses were considered meeting places, but they also provided heat, warmth, and relaxation. Traditional Medicinals explains that bath therapy, also known as balneotherapy, is used to relax muscles and promote skin health. A warm bath in the afternoon is a great way to center your thoughts and settle in for another important aspect of self-care: sleep.

 

Go to Bed Early

Sleep is good for you for many reasons. It allows your body to recover from daily trauma and gives your mind an outlet to process the billions of bits of information that were thrown at you during the day. Make a conscious effort to get eight hours of sleep every night, and you will quickly realize that you have more energy, less stress, and feel better overall.

 

Exercise

 

It’s no secret that physical activity is crucial for your health. However, it is important to note that you don’t have to conform to a specific exercise program to reap the benefits. You also do not have to be 25 and in the best shape of your life to work out. In fact, seniors benefit just as much — and probably more so — than their recent-college-grad counterparts. No matter your age, you can get regular exercise by attending workout classes at a local facility, setting up a workout space at home, or simply doing things that would make you more active during the day like going for a walk or taking the stairs to work.

 

Track Your Activities

Exercising occasionally is not enough. One of the biggest benefits of working out is that it can help reduce the effects of stress. Keep yourself motivated to move by tracking your daily activities. For example, the Apple Watch Series 4 is great for seniors since it includes a built-in heart rate monitor. Of course, if you don’t want to spend several hundred dollars on a fitness tracker, Digital Trends lists several models that are less than $100, including the Withings Move, which looks more like a tradition analog timepiece.

 

Try Acupuncture

Acupuncture is not a new-age treatment. This ancient practice predates modern medicine by hundreds of years. A non-invasive healing treatment, acupuncture — especially when combined with Chinese medicine and herbs — can help you with issues such as constipation and bronchitis. Acupuncture also offers emotional relief for insomnia, stress, and depression. Visit a local acupuncturist for your personalized therapy.

 

Eat for Gut Health

You may be surprised to know that your gut plays a vital role in your overall health, from weight management to your mood levels. That’s because the gut contains many different strains of bacteria, each responsible for specific bodily functions. For example, Bifidobacterium helps to keep your intestines healthy and produces essential vitamins like B12. Meanwhile, L. helveticus and B. longum both act as mood boosters. Keeping a well-balanced environment in your gut will help these bacteria thrive and improve your health. The key is to eat the right foods for your gut and take supplements that promote gut health.

 

Drink More Water

How much water do you drink every day? If you’re like most people, probably nowhere near enough. This is unfortunate because adding a few extra glasses of H2O to your day flushes your kidneys, normalizes bowel function, and can even reduce the risk of cancer. You can add fresh fruit to your glass for a refreshing drink that’s full of flavor if you don’t like plain water.

 

Everything you do has an effect on your health. From sneaking a 30-minute warm bath to lying down on the acupuncture table, the above ideas are simple, inexpensive, and effective ways to give yourself a boost from the inside out. Try a few or try them all. You won’t regret your decision, and you’ll feel much better for it.

 

Image via Pexels

May 2019

NEW SELF-HELP BOOK: Finding Rays of Sunshine

Newest (albeit lowest quality, most cheesy and random) self-help book is now available…

Have you ever felt down-in-the-dumps, stuck-in-a-rut, blue? We all have. Sometimes it is hard to shake it off. We are all looking for happiness but it is good to have a starting point. That is what this self-help book is. Listing ideas that could help you to feel light and enthusiastic about life, I am here to offer a helping hand to guide you behind those dark clouds while we look for rays of sunshine.

 

Moving Compost

We’ve actually got around to ‘turning’ a compost heap over.

That is quite and achievement here. We often fill compost heaps so high that we can’t possibly turn them over without creating a collapse similar if Everest gave way.

But we did it, in two hours in the rain. We kind of had to do it because, well, I needed more space for the onions and garlic. I’ve planted somewhere around 250 onions… we were given quite a few but it was good seeing as the cats have already dug some up…

But yes – back to composting – why do we ‘turn’ compost over? Why do we compost in the first place? Why not chuck it in one of those bins?

For shame.

Right, compost: organic matter that has been decomposed and recycled as fertiliser and soil amendment. Compost is the KEY ingredient to organic farming. Despite the slug pellets, that is what we aim to do.

Have you ever read The Running Hare by John Lewis-Stemple? Do, its great.

You make your compost out of basically anything in the garden – that can be cut grass, leaves, old plants, some people choose not to include their weeds but I do because I like dumping them somewhere and feeling like I am recycling. You can also put your food waste in it. This might attract rodents, of course, but what about your tea bags, banana peels, veg scrapings? Those are all really good to rot down and so not worth giving to the bin man. You can put cardboard and paper on too – covering the heap with cardboard is a good way of helping it to rot down.

But why should I compost?

1. Saves money – do you know how expensive compost is?
2. Saves resources and reduces negative impacts on the environment by avoiding chemical fertilisers.
3. Improves soil – it feeds it with a diversity of nutrients, improves soil drainage and increases soil stability.

Compost takes time. It can look messy. But it is so worth it for a gardner. It is an investment.

So, if you don’t know already, ‘turning over’ the compost bed is aerating it. It gives it a flush of oxygen that encourages the bacteria breaking it down not to remain sluggish. It therefore speeds up the process, sometimes by weeks.

To aerate your compost, fork or shovel the compost into a newly set up enclosure next door to it. It is that simple. If your pile isn’t as big as a mountain.

March – sowing and growing

There are too many plants that can be started off indoors/outdoors in March to name! But here are a few to get you started…

Carrots – Carrots – sown one trench outside under fleece

Spinach – Salad – Spinach – planted out ‘Turaco’ spinach sown last autumn in a cold frame with fleece and started off indoors ‘Barbados’ and ‘Emelia’, onto ‘Samish’ soon…

Lettuce- Salad – Lettuce – planted out lettuce sown last winter in the cold frame with the spinach and sown some seeds indoors

Radishes – Salad – Radish – sown outdoors under fleece between other crops

Celery – Celery – batch sown indoors

Celeriac – Celeriac – ”

Courgettes – Courgettes – sown indoors

Squashes – have yet to plant ‘Honey Bear’ and ‘Sunburst’

Quinoa – Quinoa – batch sown indoors

Chickpeas – Sown indoors, first time trying them this year!

Broad beans – Broad Beans – ready to plant out under fleece

Peas – started off indoors but can be sown directly now – post hopefully coming soon…

Okra – Okra – couple damped off so planted some more indoors

Rocket – Salad – Rocket – sown indoors, not doing so well…

Watercress – sown indoors

Herbs – sown the parsley and coriander so far

Fenugreek – damped off, need to sow some more indoors

Cucumbers – Cucumbers – sown indoors, doing best at moment, please stay that way!

Tomatoes – germinated very well indoors

Potatoes – time to think about planting them outdoors under a lot of earth and some cover

Turnips – just sown some

Purple Sprouting Broccoli – just sown some (as well as some more Calabrese Broccoli) indoors AND just harvested first batch of last year’s crop the other night to have with some of the last dug up potatoes from last season with baked beans, cheese and frozen homegrown runner beans – yum!

Leeks – Leeks – indoors

Spring Onions – indoors

Beetroot – indoors, on my list

Cabbages – Cabbages – ‘Red Rodeo’, ‘Advantage’, ‘Caserta’ – sown indoors

Brussels Sprouts and Brukale – Brussels Sprouts – quickly sow before it gets too late

Kale – The last of the Kale

Sweet Corn – on my list but I know from experience that I can still get away with sowing it in May, indoors

Rhubarb – Rhubarb – time to feed and start forcing

Fruit Trees/Bushes – time to feed!

There are bound to be plenty more veggies to sow/plant out as we plough on through the first month of spring. Temperatures are finally warming up but hang onto some fleece – the fruit trees might be lured into a false spring, deadly for blossom and fruit production… Make sure anything you sow outside/ plant out is wrapped up under cover, nice and snuggly. It will be a shock to the system if they are exposed to Britain’s ‘spring time’ too early!

FLOWERS TO SOW INDOORS:

French Marigolds

Cosmos

Viola

Lavender

Geraniums

Calendulas

Lupins

Sweet Peas – they are ready to plant out under cover

There are BILLIONS more… 

 

February Sowings

List of edibles you could start sowing indoors in February:

Cucumbers: Passandra, Marketmore, Crystal Lemon.  For more information on planting cucumbers, visit my cucumber page: Cucumbers

Calabrese Broccoli – Ironman F1 – Calabrese Broccoli

Cauliflower – All Year Round

Spinach – Emilia and Barbados Salad – Spinach

Peppers – Californian Wonder

Aubergine – Black Beauty Aubergine

Rocket – Salad – Rocket

Onions – bulbs (outdoors under cover) and seeds

Shallots – seeds

Brussels Sprouts and Brukale – Maximus and Petite Posy Brussels Sprouts

Lettuce Salad – Lettuce

Tomatoes – Shirley, Gardner’s Delight, Sungold, Losetto…

Radishes – Salad – Radish

First early potatoes (outdoors under cover)- e.g. Swift, Red Duke of York, Epicure, Rocket The MIGHTY Potato

Garlic (outdoors) Garlic

Herbs indoors

Beetroot – Bolthardy

Spring Onions

Cabbages – Caserta

Oriental greens – e.g. komatsuna, pak choi, mizuna, mitzuna)

Okra

Cape Gooseberries

Rhubarb (forcing time) Rhubarb

Broadbeans – Masterpiece Green Long Pod, Aquadulce Broad Beans

 

I’m bound to have missed lots – anyone got any ideas to share??

 

Books: Non-Fiction

The Shepherd’s Life – James Rebanks 

‘Some people’s lives are entirely their own creations. James Rebanks’ isn’t. The first son of a shepherd, who was the first son of a shepherd himself, he and his family have lived and worked in and around the Lake District for generations. Their way of life is ordered by the seasons and the work they demand, and has been for hundreds of years. A Viking would understand the work they do: sending the sheep to the fells in the summer and making the hay; the autumn fairs where the flocks are replenished; the gruelling toil of winter when the sheep must be kept alive, and the light-headedness that comes with spring, as the lambs are born and the sheep get ready to return to the fells.’  – Goodreads

I am one of those people who struggles to re-read books (there are only a few that I have, there are so many new stories out there) but I remember as soon as I shut this book, I announced ‘I could DEFINITELY read that again’. It was a miracle book, it came just at the right time when I needed assurance that I was not crazy to love the outdoor life. This book has got a reputation as a bit of a fashionable accessory for the coffee table but I promise you, it is one of the best non-fictions I have ever read … possibly the best because I resonated so well with the narrative. It is beautiful, funny, honest. I went to the Lake District a month afterwards (yeah, like the tourists he intensely dislikes) and walked with the Herdwick sheep in Beatrix Potter land and drooled over the Belted Galloway cows. It is a gruelling yet magical spot to live and work in. So fresh yet raw compared to cosy south of England (horrendous drive, I can’t stand car journeys). It is a book for anyone who ever dreamed of the rough-and-tough of nature or of being a hardworking farmer/land person/outdoor worker in anything. You will sympathise with his fretting of daylight hours in winter.

Meadowland – John Lewis-Stempel 

‘What really goes on in the long grass?

Meadowland gives an unique and intimate account of an English meadow’s life from January to December, together with its biography. In exquisite prose, John Lewis-Stempel records the passage of the seasons from cowslips in spring to the hay-cutting of summer and grazing in autumn, and includes the biographies of the animals that inhabit the grass and the soil beneath: the badger clan, the fox family, the rabbit warren,the skylark brood and the curlew pair, among others. Their births, lives, and deaths are stories that thread through the book from first page to last.

In Meadowland Lewis-Stempel does for meadows what Roger Deakin did for woodland and rivers in his bestselling books Wildwood and Waterlog.’ – Goodreads

Very interesting book. Lewis-Stempel pretty much documents a year in a meadow belonging to his farm. He included fascinating facts about the wildlife you would not have imagined, history about the land and animals and – the best part, spoiler alert coming up – his tractor breaks down during cutting season and he scythes the meadow the old fashioned way, by hand, using a traditional scythe. Before I read Anna Karenina and the scene where Lenin scythes, this book alone encouraged me to pick up the old fashioned tools. I love all that stuff. I know it is all just fun and games and not serious farming like Lewis-Stempel or Rebanks, but I yearn for the old fashioned days before leaf blowers and electric saws were invented – how peaceful the countryside must have been and how much more exhausting yet fulfilling the work of a countryman must have been! It is the sort of exhaustion we don’t feel anymore, sitting in front of our screens the majority of the day (well, as a student I certainly do, and honestly cannot stand it), instead of picking up the scythe and cutting the grass. It is a very interesting, knowledgable read that I thoroughly recommend.

The Worm Forgives the Plough – John Stewart Collis 

‘During the Second World War, John Stewart Collis left his comfortable life as an academic to work on the land for the war effort. His account of this time perfectly captures the city-dweller’s naivety and wonder both at the workings of nature and the toughness of life on a farm. Collis’s thoughtful curiosity leads him to explore a broad variety of subjects – from humorous sketches of the characters he works alongside to beautifully written pieces such as Contemplation Upon Ants, The Mystery of Clouds, Colloquy on the Rick and celebrations of the earthworm, the pea and potato.

Includes While Following the Plough (1946) and Down to Earth(1947).’ – Goodreads

This book I came across after Meadowland actually recommended it. It is written in the same style, documenting Collis’ experiences working on the land during the Second World War. Very interesting accounts again and not dull at all. Part Two is some more extra information about ants (so interesting) manure, potatoes, worms… just like Meadowland, before he gets onto talking about his work in a forest. This inspired me to ask for a bill-hook for my 21st along with the scythe… Another good read for anyone interested in accounts of working the land and the natural world that surrounds them.

A January Growing List

Here’s some inspiration of what to start sowing (indoors) in January:

Aubergines (I’ve sown some Black Beauty seeds)

Peppers (Sown California Wonder)

Calabrese Broccoli (Ironman)

Cauliflower (All Year Round)

Peas (Meteor)

Sprouting Seeds – think speedy cress, sunflower seeds, beansprouts, alfalfa etc.

Herbs – parsley, coriander, dill etc.

Rocket (Buzz, Trizona)

Baby Carrots (cold-frame outdoors under a lot of fleece)

Have you got any suggestions? Please feel free to share! 

 

2016 in the garden

2016.

What did well this year in the lovely veg patch?

Potatoes – chitted out from leftovers from 2015’s crop. They did very well, particularly the ‘Picasso’, ‘Foremost’, ‘Charlottes’ and ‘Purple Danube’, ‘Sarpo Nero’ types. The ‘Sarpo Mira’, light pink ones, didn’t do too well. They grew to a fabulous size but were slug attacked/wormed too much to be useful and seemed to get effected by the blight more than the others.

Spanish Tree Cabbage – thriving still almost too well. The chickens love it though!

Savoy Cabbages – did surprisingly well, still harvesting. Delicious.

Kale – grew well, a little too good for caterpillars.

Brussels Sprouts – lots of good sized sprouts, not too big not too small. Strong tasting, yummy.

Brukale – really like the taste of these and they grew really well.

Cauliflowers – very poor, not much of a surprise! Only got a few mini heads this year.

Broccoli – did very well, delicious and beautiful, looked as perfect as something you would buy in a shop. Very impressed with ‘Ironman’ and can’t wait until next year’s batch.

Purple Sprouting Broccoli – so useful and yummy to have as an early crop while you are still waiting for your other crops to get going.

Swedes – they eventually germinated and grew well. A few too many, will limit it next year.

Turnips – eventually got some to germinate. Wish I had sown a couple more.

Tomatoes – didn’t do too well, not very prolific due to our neglect but they carried on producing into this month, good little babies. A crop to look after more next year.

Cucumbers – very prolific, too prolific! ‘Passandra’ and ‘Crystal Apples’ so delicious. Miss them!

Courgettes – wow, these were prolific! We were swimming with courgettes. ‘Defender’ was true to its word and they escaped powdery mildew. Too many for us to cope with but so tasty.

Pumpkins – only grew one pumpkin and it was enough. Perfect for our Halloween carving, beautiful.

Squashes – I think I might be taking a break from growing squashes next year. We have too many in the freezer to use up. Not particularly prolific, the ‘Sunburst’ and ‘Honey Bear’ in particular but we prefer courgettes anyway and are just not a squash family at the moment. I think we need a season’s break from them.

Aubergines – did very badly, not a good growing season for them. Will try again this year. Got enough to make a ratatouille and to grill a few but they were very chewy and not at all well-developed.

Peppers – got none again this year. Bad growing conditions. Will try again next year.

Sweetcorn – did very well but got neglected by us, picked a little too late. What did get eaten was delicious though. ‘Swift’ is recommended by me after growing it for 2 years.

Quinoa and Amaranth – grew very well, shame the harvested products are still sitting unloved in the kitchen… will be grown again and hopefully find time to use them next year!

Celery – did very badly, got a nasty blight that stopped it from ever really growing to a good size. Ate all the good bits though and they were tender and tasty. Grew just the right number, unlike last year when I grew way too many.

Celeriac – have not been brave enough to try one yet – I will let you know!

Leeks – did very well. Real Seeds Company: ‘Blue Lake’. Brilliant.

Onions – ‘Electric’ got neglected otherwise they would have done as well as the ‘Radar’ ones that were SUCH a success. All our neighbours were obsessed with them. Big, delicious and just beautiful! Only just started buying onions again from the shops and it made me cry.

Shallots – only got one. Onions better all the way.

Garlic – very good and big bulbs. Enough in the ground, won’t need to pant anymore next year.

Broad-beans – didn’t do well. Only got a few and not enough to even freeze. Try again this year, needed more feeding I think.

Spring onions – finally got some good sized ones, we are getting there!

Beetroot – YES. Success, finally got HUGE beetroots. Shame I don’t like them… will be sowing a lot less next year for the few in my family and friends that do.

Carrots – done so well. Still pulling some up. Big and delicious and in good condition.

Radishes – great.

Lettuces – very prolific. Very good. Perhaps too many but it didn’t matter, the poultry got to enjoy them too!

Spinach – pretty good, not as good as the year before, will be doing more next year.

Watercress – eventually did very well, has been a life saver this winter. So much more tastier than shop stuff.

Rocket – very good, love it. Very quick and easy to grow.

Herbs – parsley, coriander, dill did very well. Summer Savoury did not.

Cape gooseberries – surprising prolific. Few too many!

Okra – just enough ,very good, surprisingly!

Fruit: plums, apples, pears all did very well, just enough for us all to enjoy. Raspberries did SO well, freezer full of them for raspberry jam. Perfect amount of blueberries, did very well too. Just enough blackcurrants for jam. Lots of redcurrants, need to make more jelly… Strawberries did very well, first time, still obsessed with strawberry jam. Gooseberries and jostaberries, tayberries, wineberries – all the crosses did well. Rhubarb was amazing, just right. 5 little new cranberries to add to the xmas cranberry sauce which was fun. Quite a few morello cherries, delicious in cake.

Peas – did pretty well, much better than previous years. Could still have done with some more for freezing for the winter. Delicious.

Runner beans – very prolific, as always! Got so many in the freezer, thank you mum. We are enjoying them as our green over these winter months. Lovely to have them on Christmas day like last year.

I have hopefully covered everything…

Next year’s ideas?: Thinking of looking at some other pulses, like kidney beans or chickpeas. Mum is dreaming of growing grains, like oats… oh dear.

Happy New Year Everyone! See you in January for planting indoors the aubergines and peppers!

The Green Prescription

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/wellbeing/health-advice/do-you-need-a-green-prescription/

I hope the link above still works, it is rather old in the news of the world timeline now. I read it in my grandma’s paper she hands onto us for the chicken houses and I was very pleased to see that someone else had discovered the benefits of being 1) outdoors when you are unhappy/stressed/depressed/insomniac/anything horrid, and 2) how gardening can strangely benefit your mental health when you are feeling blue.

As someone who was introduced to gardening in a rather bleak part of her life, I really believe in this cure. Any problems I have, any doubts are (unfortunately not completely cured, it is still not the Disney magic we all need) washed away or quelled. I do not know what it is but gardening and being outside really can lift the spirits and make someone feel top of the world.

I have read before about how the soil contains bacterium that boosts serotonin levels, the hormone responsible for regulating our mood. Humans have been aware of the healing values of gardening for a long time. Court physicians in ancient Egypt prescribed garden walks for the mentally unwell. Roman satirist Juvenal exhorted us to ‘live as a lover of the hoe and master of the vegetable patch’. Gardening was used as therapy for war veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder. As it is Mental Health Awareness Week, it is probably a good time to post this on my documenting/gardening blog. It might help someone.

So if you are very feeling low, try stepping outside and taking in a deep breath of fresh air. It really can clear your lungs and head. If you are ever feeling angry or stressed or like hitting someone or shouting and screaming, go and pick up a spade or fork and (do not attack someone) start digging in the dirt. If you are crying, weed a flower bed. If you don’t feel like eating, grow and tend your own nourishment and watch in fascination as it becomes a huge being from a tiny seed, all for you. If you can’t sleep, take a long walk or bike ride somewhere green or dig until your legs can’t hold you up anymore.

This is the green prescription and a way of life that we all probably need.