A Home in Harmony First!
Breathe Easy
If you have heard me speak at any point, whether in person, on the radio, Internet or TV you have inevitably heard me say, “Your home either supports and nurtures you or it drains your energy.” This is true on all levels… psychologically, physically, and spiritually. Today I want to make the connection between your home and your physical body. Most people don’t realize what an important role your home plays in your level of health. In this article we will focus on the health of your home & body and give you simple solutions to create the healthiest environment for you.
The air you breath as you walk around outside is filled with industrial pollutants. Studies have shown that the 5 most toxic industrial chemicals were found in the tissues of 100% of those sampled. 100%! This is an important statistic to understand because it suggests that as you and I go about our day we are inadvertently breathing in toxic substances as we walk down the street or go to the park. Unfortunately these toxins become stuck in our bodies and create havoc including dis-ease. Well, if that statistic isn’t bad enough, studies have shown that our indoor environments are many times more contaminated with pollutants than the air we breathe outdoors. The average person brings home 80,000 chemicals in the products they purchase.
Let’s look at two…
Fragrance is in so many products that literally touch our lives. According to the National Academy of Sciences, 95 percent of the compounds used to make fragrances are synthetic materials derived from petroleum or petrochemicals in a laboratory. These chemicals are known to create dis-ease in the body. Fragrance has been categorized with second hand smoke. It is in everything from toilet bowl cleaning products to perfume. Begin to eliminate the amount of items that you bring home that have fragrance in them.
Although there is greater awareness in recent years about VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds), ambiguity still exists around what they are and the degree to which they impact health. Let’s clear up any questions. “Organic” in “volatile organic compound” signifies that the substance contains carbon. “Volatile,” means that the compound evaporates easily at room temperature. This means it is easy to breath in. Unfortunately, VOCs are actually linked to cancer; respiratory issues; and damage to the liver, kidneys, and the central nervous system. Unfortunately VOCs are in many household products including cleaning products, hairspray, dry-cleaning, carpeting and paint (just to name a few!) VOCs also have a cumulative effect on the body. The more exposure creates more damage. With so many household items off-gassing noxious VOCs, it is important to be proactive in decreasing their impact—or to eliminate them, if possible. One simple solution to diminish the level of VOCs in your space is to choose no-VOC paint. Milk paints and recycled paints are a great option. When you do decide to paint that perfect hue for your home haven, make sure you throw the windows open and ventilate for as long as possible!
Begin to develop an understanding of what you are bringing into your home and breathing in. Your home either nurtures and supports your health or it depletes you and creates dis-ease. Designing a healthful haven will positively impact your health, vitality and overall well-being.
If you would like guidance to begin living your Inspired Life feel free to connect with me for a FREE 20 Minute Home in Harmony Lifestyle Private Call by clicking here!
Happy Soaring!
XOXO
Mood and Food
At Home in Harmony Headquarters we are always excited to share ways to help you live your best life! In some articles we focus on the many different ways to design an inspired home, sometimes we focus on building a strong, healthy body, we may look at ways to find calm in the midst of chaos or we find inspiration around passion & purpose. Each of these areas or ‘pillars’ is critical in helping you design your inspired life. In this 2nd article, in the two part series on food, color, mood and energy we will look at the role food has on your overall sense of well-being. This subject makes me wonder, if you knew you could change your mood with food, would you choose different options on your plate? Let’s take a look at the relationship between your mood, the food you consume and simple solutions to help you find great health and happiness!
Have you ever noticed feeling tired, irritable and melancholy after your midday snack? Maybe you went to the vending machine, coffee shop or snack drawer to nibble on something sweet or salty to help stave off hunger until dinner or give you a little sugar boost to get you through the rest of the day. But, after thirty minutes you find yourself irritable and wishing you could take a nap. Or, after a super-size meal you are ready to go put your feet up and sleep it off. This sharply contrasts the experience of sipping on a green smoothie or nurturing your body with fruits and vegetables. Well, come to find out, there is science behind your experience and it shows that food plays a major role on your mood!
Skip the Sugar
It has been proven that simple carbohydrates like sugar, found in candy, sugary drinks, and cookies, bring your mood down. To elevate your mood try some complex carbohydrates that are high in fiber. These can be found in the tan shades of the whole grains. Your body will convert these feel good complex carbohydrates into serotonin that calms your state of mind and decreases your appetite.
Omega 3’s
It amazes me that food can help change our moods. Research shows that low levels of Omega 3 is linked to depression, pessimism and impulsivity. Add a little pink to your diet with some wild salmon that is loaded with this beneficial nutrient.
Iron & Thiamine
Research has shown that a lack of iron can create depression and fatigue. According to the Dartmouth Undergraduate Journal of Science, getting to little thiamine can create inactivity, fatigue, a decrease in self-confidence and overall wellbeing. Include the dark green color of kale to help increase your iron and thiamin.
Fat
Consuming products that are high in saturated fats have long-term ramifications. The extended impact has been linked to dementia and depression. The immediate effect is that it leaves you feeling sluggish and worn out. It is no wonder that after my chocolate peanut butter cup on Mother’s Day I was ready for a nap!
When you begin to look at food as something that can nourish and nurture you OR deplete and depress you it is easier to make healthy choices that support your life and well-being in every way! So, again I ask… If you knew you could change your mood with food, would you choose different options on your plate?
If you would like guidance to begin living your Inspired Life feel free to connect with me for a FREE 20 Minute Home in Harmony Lifestyle Private Call by clicking here!
Happy Soaring!
XOXO
What is the Color of Your Food?
This week’s blog is one in a two part series on food, color, mood and energy!
Part 1: The Color of Food
Have you ever noticed the color of the food you are eating? I mean, overall? If you had to take an average day, let’s say yesterday, what was the main color? What were the spectrum of colors you included in your food fuel yesterday? I ask because our food affects our moods, energy level and overall vitality. In our family, we did a lot of celebrating this weekend. On Saturday we celebrated with an extravagant lunch overlooking the Atlantic Ocean on the south coast of Boston with the great grandma (age 93) and the grandmas (they’d prefer I didn’t mention their ages). On Sunday, my crew treated me to a bountiful brunch, tennis with one of my girls and golf with my son followed by a meal cooked with love by my husband and son. My son also picked up chocolate peanut butter cups to share after our round of golf. Needless to say, the colors on my plate over the weekend were more of the deep chocolate brown variety. It was all decadent, delicious and fun but the festivities and the colors I chose left me feeling tired and foggy. Have you ever felt that way? These were not colors that nourished my mind, body and spirit (although the people and surroundings were!).
It is important to choose fuel for your body that creates optimum vitality, which creates vibrant living! This weekend was a catalyst for me to want to renew, revitalize and refresh my body, mind and spirit. I’m doing my bi-annual wellness and detox cleanse. It always helps me feel energized, enthusiastic and passionate about life after doing a cleanse! Experts recommend doing a cleanse at least two times a year. Some of my clients have shared with me after implementing the cleanse steps I recommend that “I feel great. I have more energy, feel less tired in the am and my clothes are baggy!” These are the natural results of cleansing and clearing out the debris that bogs your system down. Similar to taking time to clear out the clutter in other areas of your life, it is important to take care of your body and remove unwanted toxins accumulated from the chemicals in our environment and food. Creating a colorful spectrum of food on your plate can increase your energy, lower your risk of cancer and give you vibrant health! Choosing foods based on color can be an additional strategy to help bring your body, mind and spirit into harmonious balance. Just beginning to notice what colors make up your daily plate is the first step to designing your inspired life! It is amazing how fast and dramatic the results you can have when making small changes to the fuel you decide to put in your body.
Let’s take a look at the spectrum of color you can choose to put on your plate…
Green
We all know how important it is to include greens on our plates. Sometimes it can be challenging if you are looking for something other than a salad for lunch and dinner. I have begun to include as many green veggies and fruits as possible in the first meal of my day. That way I know that I am putting fuel in my body that will sustain me for the rest of the day. It also helps me be confident in knowing I will get in the many servings of green I hope to achieve. My day usually begins with a green smoothie or juice along with a chunky mix of avocado & egg. This power packed punch is a nutrient dense breakfast that will stave off hunger, elevate my mood and increase my energy. (Green Smoothie recipe: 1 organic cucumber, 1 green pear, 3 large romaine leaves, large slice of lemon & coconut water, ice, blend well)
Orange
I love carrots, orange peppers and pumpkin! These orange foods are high in beta-carotene and vitamin c that supports vision, healthy skin and a strong immune system. Including orange on your plate can make you feel healthy, see better and look good… why wouldn’t you chose the color orange for your plate?
Red
The red foods contain something called phytochemicals, like lycopene, that aid in heart health and reduce the risk of cancer. Take advantage of the summer season and the bounty of red ripe tomatoes and radishes!
Purple-Blue
The purple and blue family of foods is rich in antioxidants and phytochemicals. That means they diminish the risk of cancer, support mental clarity and contain chemicals that have an anti-aging effect. I always share with my detox participants that blueberries collagen promoting which means they help to decrease wrinkles! I sprinkle blueberries on and in everything!
Nature amazes me each and every day! The fact that we have fruits and vegetables available to us that can nourish, nurture, heal, harmonize and energize you and I is incredible. Begin to use the colors on your plate to bring you great health, happiness and harmony!
If you would like guidance to begin living your Inspired Life feel free to connect with me for a FREE 20 Minute Home in Harmony Lifestyle Private Call by clicking here!
Happy Soaring!
XOXO
Color…Chaos or Calm?
I LOVE playing with color! Thankfully when I am designing spaces I am able to use color to create the feel, mood and atmosphere that will touch the mind, body and soul of those entering the space. I look around our world and am so thankful for the colors and textures that we are able to look at through the lens of life. What makes me even more excited about color is understanding that color is not only fun to look at but that it affects us both psychologically and physiologically! Yes, that’s right, it actually has an impact on your mood and biology. It can make you hungry, angry or harmonious. It really is important to be mindful of what colors you are including in your life and begin to understand how they impact you. In this weeks article we will take a deeper look into the spectrum of color, how to choose the best color and the ways it can help you create home, health and happiness!
I also want to take a moment to acknowledge and welcome the thousands of new members of the Home in Harmony Community! We are really excited you are here! I also want to say thank you to the members of our community that have been with us for a while. Your continued support and encouragement allows us to enthusiastically grow and expand. Please let my team and I know how we, at Home in Harmony Headquarters, can support you best! I hope the information we provide you enables you to find inspiration in designing inspired living and creating home, health and happiness! I also want to share that we have some exciting things on the horizon based on feedback we received from the super successful Home in Harmony Master Class! So, keep on the lookout! Also, we would love for you to hop on over to Facebook or Twitter and join the conversation!
I have had many conversations around the topic of color. Recently, we were finishing up a corporate design project for a law firm in Connecticut and everyone who came through the door would mention how they loved the chosen colors from the cool grays to the soothing ocean hues. At a staging project in Boston we discussed which colors to incorporate to make the environment feel inviting and a place one would want to stay. I choose colors based on the needs of the inhabitants, how it will work with the lighting of the space and how it coordinates with the colors that are already there. Let’s look at how to choose colors that will help you design an inspired home and life!
Psychology & Physiology Needs
Studies have shown that color affects our physiology and psychology. For instance, blue is scientifically proven to produce a cooling effect on the body (physiology) and a calming effect on the mind (psychology). It is also known to diminish hunger. Red, on the other hand, is considered a power color associated with authority, aggression and prestige (think about the red carpet or the power tie). Red accelerates your heart rate and increases feelings of hunger and aggression. When designing a space it is important to take into consideration what type of space would benefit you the most and what you hope to achieve in the space. If you are feeling agitated and anxious you might benefit from calming or cooling tones. If you are depressed or lethargic a splash of vibrant color might be just what you need. First assess where you are and what you need. Next, determine what type of space will support you the most. Once you have evaluated these two things you will be in a position to choose colors that help your home, health and happiness.
Lighting
Have you ever noticed that a paint color looks much different in the paint store under fluorescent lighting in comparison to when you get it home? Or, have you ever loved a color in a magazine and put it on your own wall to find out it doesn’t look the same? This is because color is impacted by light. The color will look different under overhead lighting, lamp lighting and northern or southern natural light exposure. Natural light will give you the ‘truest’ sense of the color because it has a neutral balance of the warm and cool ends of the light spectrum; the warmer end of the spectrum being yellow and the cool end being blue. Interestingly colors that are most impacted by light are the grays, taupes, blues, greens, lavenders and mauves. I once painted a Show House room in one of my favorite colors, Benjamin Moore’s Wedgewood Gray, and when people entered the space they often thought that each wall was painted in a unique color. However, all the walls were Wedgewood Gray. It was just how the light played with the undertones making it look green hued on one wall, tinged blue on another and cement gray on yet another. When choosing a color for your home, I recommend painting a large sample board with the color and watch how the light influences it during the day & night and with the lights on & off. This will help you determine if you love the color in all its complexity!
Compliment & Coordinate
An entire home can feel out of balance because there isn’t a graceful flow of colors. It is important to notice all of the colors you are utilizing in a space to make sure it is congruent. This will help you feel balanced and harmonious. Your surroundings can bring a sense of grounding, ease and grace into your life when the colors coordinate and compliment one another. Competing palettes create dis-ease, restlessness and agitation. Choose colors that support you and carry those colors throughout your space. If your kitchen is blue, be sure to incorporate blue tones throughout your home to make it feel consistently congruent. This will give a sense of balance and harmony to your space. When your space feels harmonious it nurtures your mind, body and spirit allowing you to be the best you can be.
Choosing colors can be a tricky process. The good news is that when you break the process down it diminishes overwhelm and anxiety. Color selection should be a fun and fascinating process. It allows you to look at your life through a lens that sees the spectrum of colorful possibilities in designing your inspired life.
If you would like guidance to begin living your Inspired Life feel free to connect with me for a FREE 20 Minute Home in Harmony Lifestyle Private Call by clicking here!
Happy Soaring!
XOXO