My Top 10 Quirky Health Habits
Let me start by saying, the following 10 items are not quirky to me. They are normal to me! However, I realize they are not mainstream and might seem a bit curious.
Here are my quirky health habits:
1. I take my shoes off as often as I can. In fact, if I hike with shoes, I change out of them when I get back to my car. I’ll put on a sandal or go barefoot or switch to an Ugg boot that fits like a slipper. I’m sensitive to any constriction of my feet and try to minimize it at all times.
2. I take my bras off as often as I can – especially sports bras! As soon as I don’t need them, they’re off.
3. I always acknowledge the placement of the sun. I find people really oblivious to it – and I was for years – but tuning into the trajectory of the sun fortifies circadian rhythms. I am an all-star sleeper and I attribute that to being aligned with the sun.
4. I don’t wear sunglasses for the same reasons as #3.
5. I unplug my laptop when I am using it. I read that the EMFs (electro-magnetic frequencies) are significantly reduced when devices are not plugged into a power source. So as much as I can, I charge my phone and laptop when I’m not using them.
6. Not all of the time, but a lot of the time, I lie on the floor of my living room when watching TV. It’s grounding but the real reason I do this is because it ends up being very much like a pseudo- yoga class. It’s anti-couch potato!
7. I use kitchen ingredients in my bath. Adding 1/2 cup of baking soda is soothing to skin. For aroma, I’ll use mint leaves, sprigs of rosemary, lemon or orange peels. Salts are great detoxifiers, and a scoop of coconut or olive oil helps add moisture. No need to go to the drug store – there are already so many exciting options already in your house.
8. I hug trees. I love trees and think of them as gurus. They are extremely high vibe and I feel that hugging them raises my vibration.
9. I don’t drink iced beverages. I ask for “water no ice” at restaurants and on airplanes. Iced beverages irritate my stomach, and they also make me shiver, tightening up my whole body. Room temperature water is my preferred drink.
10. I self-massage key organs. I do “kidney massage” where I take my thumbs and press into my mid-back where my kidney’s are located and rub. I do “liver massage” where I press into the liver at the right front of my torso. And I also do “colon (or sometimes called stomach) massage” where I dig my fingers along my lower abdomen from right to left. Every Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) practitioner I’ve ever worked with says these are detox organs and by massaging them, we may assist in detoxification. *Remember to not press too hard – there should never be pain.
Yup, my family thinks I’m a weirdo, but I wanted to share with you the littler things that help me feel my best. If one of these quirky health habits resonates with you – try it. (If they all seem crazy, please ignore this post!) BOTTOMLINE: you do you. I think the important thing is: enjoy taking care of yourself. I bet enjoying self-care is probably the healthiest habit of all!