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Resveralife Eat Well Guide: Best Fruits and Vegetables this Winter

Some hot chocolate, a blazing fire and cozy blankets… mmm… Winter certainly has its own set of charms, but fresh fruits and vegetables are usually not known to be one of the highlights of the winter season. It can become very challenging to find fresh produce during the winter months, particularly in the colder climates. But, luckily for you, you don’t need to survive on just onions or potatoes throughout winter. All you need to know is what to buy and you should be able to enjoy a regular supply of fresh fruits and vegetables throughout the winter season. This Resveralife Eat Well Guide from Vine Vera helps you understand the best fruits and vegetables to eat this winter.

 

The Best Fruits and Vegetables for Colder Climates

 

Potatoes

Potatoes usually get a lot of negative publicity, but there is a reason they are a staple food in many cuisines around the world. Potatoes are very inexpensive, highly filling and they offer your body with Vitamin C, proteins, potassium, folic acid and magnesium. The best part? They are available throughout the year.

Cabbages

Cabbages are extremely healthy as well as budget friendly. They are full of Vitamin C, Folate and Vitamin K and they also offer you with a rich dose of antioxidants, Glucosinolates and fiber. Certain studies also indicate that cabbages can help to reduce the risk of diabetes and cancer. Although cabbages can be found from the month of July, there are a number of cold weather varieties that harvest throughout the winter season.  This vegetable is best eaten raw as a part of your salad.

Brussels Sprouts

Brussels Sprouts, otherwise known as mini cabbages, are known to be as healthy as their elder cousins. They can protect your DNA from oxidative damage and they also offer you with antioxidants that fight cancer. And since Brussels Sprouts are mainly harvested between the months of September – February, you have a steady stream of fresh ingredients throughout the winter.

Onions

Onions are an ideal way of flavoring almost all of your food items – right from those pastas and soups to those grain salads. Onions offer your body with a rich dose of fiber and Vitamin C and they can also help you to reduce your bad cholesterol levels and increase the good cholesterol levels. Like potatoes, onions are available throughout the year.

Beets

Beets are deep red in color and they have an earthy flavor to them. Beets are extremely unique vegetables that contain an antioxidant known as Betalains. This antioxidant can protect you from a number of degenerative diseases and they also fight cancer. Furthermore, beets are very rich in Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Folate, Potassium and Vitamin B. Unfortunately, fresh beets are only available from the spring season till the fall season.

Carrots

Your parents might have been wrong in making you gulp down all that milk because of its “so called” benefits, but it turns out that they were spot on when it came to those carrots. Carrots are rich in an antioxidant known as beta-carotene. Beta-carotene gets converted into Vitamin A and helps to strengthen the immune system and gives you healthier eyes and skin. Although carrots are mostly available through the fall season, a number of varieties are actually harvested during the winter months.

Parsnips

Parsnips might look a lot like carrots and have a similar rich and earthy flavor, but they offer you with loads of goodies like fiber, Vitamin C, folate and potassium. They go well with most winter soups and are usually at their best during the late fall and early spring seasons.

Sweet Potatoes 

Sweet Potatoes are full of Vitamin C, Vitamin A, antioxidants, fiber and beta-carotene. They are also known to be low on the glycemic index, thereby making them an ideal option for weight conscious people. Moreover, sweet potatoes can be found throughout the year.

 

The Best Fruits and Vegetables for Warmer Climates

 

Citrus Fruits

Citrus fruits are more than enough to help you last the winter seasons. They might not be the best options for your teeth, but they are very beneficial for your skin and your body. They are loaded with Flavanoids and Vitamin C and they can also help in reducing the risks of Alzheimer’s disease, cancer, diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, cataracts and cholera. Some of the best citrus fruits to look at include lemons, blood oranges, grapefruits and oranges. Moreover, citrus fruits only become ripe for picking between the months of October – March.

Pomegranates

Pomegranates are one of the oldest fruits in the world. They date all the way back to the Greco-Roman era. Pomegranates are also known to be one of the most nutritious fruits because of the presence of anti-inflammatory ingredients and antioxidants. This fruit can help you with issues like high blood pressure, high cholesterol and heart attacks.

Dark and Leafy Greens

Greens like kale and collards are an ideal option for your winter diets. They are rich in Vitamin E, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, iron, manganese, calcium, Vitamin K, potassium and antioxidants. They are also known to be extremely low in calories and can fit almost any dish.

Fennel

Fennel has a taste that resembles that of licorice and it is definitely one of the most delicious vegetables on the planet. It is sweet and crunchy and it is also known to be very healthy. Fennel is rich in a compound known as Anethole as well as ingredients like Vitamin C, copper, magnesium and potassium. Fennel is usually available from the fall season till the spring season.

Writing "Good Morning" on chalkboard

Resveralife on Live Well: Have Better Mornings

Ever found yourself struggling to cope up with things in the morning? Ever felt like you never have enough time in the morning? Of course you have. Almost everyone goes through the same feeling every morning and struggles to get done with their daily chores before leaving for work. Resveralife brings you some exciting Live Well tips to help you have better mornings.

Live Well Tip # 1 – Think more

The mornings are usually quieter and you feel more contemplative. The best time to think is during the mornings. So make the most use of it. You can use your mornings to schedule your tasks, consider your options and plan out your day. This should help you increase your efficiency and make your day more productive.

Live Well Tip # 2 – Keep a track of your morning habits

If you’re always running late in the mornings, chances are that you’re wasting time somewhere. Streamline your morning routine and get rid of any time wasters. Chalk out a list of must do’s and revise it to device the perfect morning schedule. More importantly, make sure that you stick to it. It should take some time getting used to, but this tip should definitely help you unclutter those morning hours.

Live Well Tip # 3 – Eat less at night

One of the best ways to enjoy better mornings is to eat less at night. Save up on the big meal for your mornings. This should help you channelize your energy and keep you fresh throughout the day.

Live Well Tip # 4 – Enjoy your skin care routine

If you have access to a luxurious skin care collection and follow a proper morning skin care routine, you are really in for a treat. Pampering your skin the first thing after a bath not only helps you to make it look younger and healthier, it also helps you feel refreshed and rejuvenated.

Live Well Tip # 5 – Space out your coffee intake

If you’re one of those who use caffeine to jumpstart your morning routines, it really makes sense to space out your caffeine intakes and enjoy smaller caffeine boosts. Space out the caffeine throughout the morning hours and chances are that you’re going to enjoy the rest of your day. An even better option would be to switch to something more healthy like green tea.

Live Well Tip # 6 – Exercise

Exercising the first thing in the morning can help you stay fresh throughout the day. This helps you to tell your body that it is time to become active. Moreover, you should also see the condition of your skin and health improve over time with regular morning exercises. If you’re not much of a jogging person, simply do as many pushups as you can, wait for 30 seconds and repeat the entire set twice.

Live Well Tip # 7 – Understand your peak performance times

Different people have different peak performance times with inspirations arriving at different times. However, it is not always possible to reschedule your work timings. Therefore, learning more about your personal energy schedule can work wonders in terms of improving your day and making your mornings easier.

Which of these tips helped to make the biggest difference in your morning routine? Let Resveralife know by sharing your thoughts in the comments box below.

Nude model reflecting on body image

Resveralife on Body Image

Body image simply implies to how one thinks and feels about their body. It involves a number of things such as your emotions, thoughts, actions and perceptions with regards to your body. Body image doesn’t necessarily comprise of what you see when you look into the mirror or what other people think about your body. It essentially deals with how you feel about your body as a whole. Most people end up having the wrong impressions about body image. Having a good body image isn’t necessarily about having a slim-trim figure or looking flawless. Having a good body image is all about feeling happy and satisfied with your body. Things like over-exercising, dieting, low self-esteem, anxiety and depression are more than likely to ruin your body image. To sum up, the term body image simply defines the way a person perceives his/ her body to be and assumes that others perceive the same. Body image is most often affected by social pressure, social media, television, friends and family.

What do the Statistics say?
All you need to do is to read the statistics to understand how people perceive their bodies to be.

  • About 91% of the women are believed to be unhappy with their body image. As a result, they resort to things like dieting in order to get their bodies in shape.
  • Body image is closely related with self esteem. Many adolescents have low self esteem because they “think” that they have a poor body image. This leads to problems like eating disorders, suicidal thoughts, depression, substance use or early sexual activities.
  • Approximately 5.58% of the girls in college feel the need to maintain a particular weight.
  • Almost 40% of the women and 20% of the men have considered getting cosmetic surgeries done. These statistics are the same for all ages, races, and genders.
  • Students who are subjected to mainstream media are more likely to relate body image to looking sexy rather than relating it to their overall appearance.
  • About 95% people having eating disorders are aged between 12 – 25.
  • 38% men sacrifice at least one year of their life in their search for the “perfect body”.
  • Almost 23% of the men and 45% of the women who belong to the healthy weight bracket feel that they are overweight.

How to Improve Your Body Image
Improving your body image has nothing to do with looking sexy, having flawless skin, maintaining a particular figure or whitening your skin tone. There are a number of things that you can do to improve your body image, but first and foremost, you need to transform the way you look at your body. It’s not about looking hot or sexy. Its about feeling happy and satisfied with what you have.

  • Surround yourself with positive, supportive relationships. Although we have nothing against magazines or tabloids, many of them are useless when it comes to helping you improve your body image. A number of tabloids promote negative thoughts by showing you how overweight you are or shaming you for being too skinny. This leads to negative perceptions which ultimately leads to negative relationships. You need to ensure that you fill your surroundings with people who have a positive approach to life and are supportive of you, irrespective of how you “look”.
  • Exercise regularly. Be grateful for what your body is able to do rather than how it appears to be. You don’t have to over-exert yourself or participate in extreme sports to maintain that perfect body image. All you need to do is go for regular jogs and appreciate the fact that your body allows you to move from one place to the other. Hitting the gym is a great idea as well. But, make sure that you hit the gym for the right reasons, and not to “improve” your body image.
  • Eat a healthy, balanced diet. Research has proved that almost all young women and more than half of middle aged women have resorted to things like dieting. Dieting helps you to lose your weight quickly, but the moment you stop, you’re likely to gain it back. This “weight loss, weight gain” seesaw is extremely perilous for the body and it leads to a number of health problems and heart diseases. People who resort to dieting are also known to be susceptible to eating disorders. The best thing to do is to regulate your diet and eat healthy food.
  • Set realistic goals for self-improvement. You need to understand that not a single person is “perfect”. Each human being has his or her flaws. This is what makes us unique. This is what creates and defines our identity. Try to understand that even those perfect looking celebrities have “issues”. Try to set realistic goals for yourself and keep reminding yourself that “real” people are never perfect. Perfect people are only good for one of those wax museums.
  • Avoid negative self-talk. Research has shown that our brains can’t figure out the difference between things that it thinks, says or hears at some level or the other. Therefore, if you tell a person that he/ she needs to lose a couple of pounds, it is the same as telling yourself that you need to lose a couple of pounds. Avoid negative thoughts and don’t dissuade others. Remember, your brain is likely to take in all that information and feel that the messages were directed towards you.
  • Pamper Yourself. Indulge in things like therapeutic massages, proper sleeping hours, relaxing bubble baths or luxurious spa sessions. Pamper your body whenever you get the chance. If you feel good physically, it becomes much easier to enjoy your body and love it for what it is.

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