Swanson Health Products Review

This review is a little different than others I've done in the past.  While I usually review specific products, this review is about a store.  Swanson Health Products is an online retailer and they sell LOTS of things.

Part of being organized is learning where you can save yourself time and money and creating efficiencies.  Swanson Health Products allows you to purchase vitamins, beauty products, snack items, health supplies and even beverages, all in one place.  

While there are a few places online that allow you to buy a lot of stuff, there are very few that allow you to find all natural products and healthy food.  There are even less that sell these products are reasonable prices. 

I found lots of products I know and love; VitaCoco Water, Power Crunch protein bars and Dr. Bronner's Magic Soap, just to name a few.  Shipping is just $5 and I was able to get all my supplies in one stop.  i used to have to place a bunch or orders. Swanson Health saved me time!  I'll reorder from them regularly and the time I'm not running around twon doing errands I can cuddle up with a book!

Swanson even sells their own brand of some vitamins, saving you even more money off of brand names.  You can take a peek at everything they sell here: https://www.swansonvitamins.com/

Stress Less

Thought of the day

Bestowed Review

I recently met nutritionist Heather Bauer at the Zone Perfect event and I loved her simple, no frills way to healthy eating and a healthy lifestyle.  I also learned about her Bestowed subscription service and I was curious.  Heather sent me the most recent month's Bestowed box.

I'm always on the lookout for new, healthy snacks but honestly unless I read about something yummy in magazine or see it on TV, I'm oblivious.  I am always reluctant to try things while roaming the grocery store.  As you know, healthy snacks and be pricey and I'm just not the gal to spend $5.99 on something I may not love.

Bestowed is my dream come true.  Every month five sample sized healthy snacks arrive at your door.
I love the fact that I get to try new foods without having to buy a full sized product.  I also love that I get to try things I may not otherwise look at.  I was shocked at how good the gluten free pretzels were.  I would have never given them a chance otherwise.

The service costs $15 per month and its delivered to your door.  I'm in love with the idea of giving this as a gift to a college student or busy mom.  Its a healthy treat that arrives without having to think about it every month.  For healthy eaters is a boredom buster and for kids, new products will keep them interested.

Take a peek and sign up here: http://www.bestowed.com/

High Heels

I knew I hated high heels!

Napping!

Okay since napping is my new favorite thing...I thought this was a great infographic to share!

Q and A

I've been meaning to do a Q&A post for a while now.  I hope I can answer a few of your questions and if you have any more, keep them coming!

1.  Where are you from?
I'm originally from Rhode Island. I went to college in Maine and lived there for about 8 years.  We now live in CT.

2.  How long have you been married?
We will be celebrating our 10 year wedding anniversary this September.

3.  What do you do for a living?
I own and operate both The Joyful Organizer and Social Ocean Media.  The Joyful Organizer is a professional organization and lifestyle company.  I write article, help my clients organize their possessions and speak on the topic of organization.  Social Ocean Media helps small businesses with their social media and marketing plans and the implementation of them.

4.  Where did you get your dog?
We adopted Roxy from Glen Highland Farm, a border collie rescue in upstate New York.  They are the BEST organization to adopt a border collie and they are a wonderful group of people.  You can view their site here: http://glenhighlandfarm.com/

5.  Where did you go to school?
I got my undergrad degree from the University of Maine and my MBA from Nichols College.

6.  What's a CPO?
CPO stands for Certified Professional Organizer.  There is a test that organizers can take after they have a certain number of business  hours etc.  Its very difficult and there aren't a lot of organizers with the designation CPO.  Its kind of like the bar exam for organizers.

7. How often do you do yoga?
I try to practice yoga two to three times a week.  I have three classes I keep on my calendar and I make as many of them as possible. I also try to add in one restorative class every month or more.

8.  What are you currently reading?
I've read a lot this summer including the Hunger Games series, the 50 Shades series and Discovery of Witches.  I'm currently going through my back log of fiction books and I've fallen in love with author Elin Hildebrand.

9.  How do you decide what races to run?
I try to pick races that sound fun, aren't too large and are close to my home.  I also try to pick races that are spread apart enough for training and rest.  And, being able to wear a costume is always fun!

10.  What your favorite movie?
I can't say I have a favorite movie.  I like feel good movies that aren't too sappy.  I love Dowton Abbey, Weeds and Sherlock.

Paleo Diet Infographic

The Paleo diet is something I'm reading more about and chatting with my doc about...this info graphic is quite interesting!

Vitamin Infographic

I thought this was interesting....

Book Worm

When I was a kid I always had my nose in a book. I remember reading on the bus, reading before school, and just about every where in between.  I always wanted to get back to my book.  Many of those books because part of my being and I will always love them.

As I grew older I got busy, started my own company and worked on my MBA...all of which took me away from reading and then I fell out of habit of buying books and certainly reading them.

This summer I've made a concerted effort to start reading again and more importantly, start enjoying it. Its taken me a while, and there have been books that I've trudged through and haven't really fallen into. However, there have been ones that I've loved and have brought back my love of reading.

While I don't have a complete list of what I've read, I can tell you I've enjoyed the 50 Shades Series, The Hunger Games Series, Discovery of Witches, caught up on Sohpie Kinsella's books and fallen in love with Elin Hildebrand.  I've also read a few books to deepen my understanding of yoga and meditation.

I know that there will be times where I won't be able to read as much as I have recently and I know that I won't love every book I read.  However, I do know that its a simple and inexpensive pleasure that we often over look because we can't fit it in.  I am challenging myself to find time to read at least ten pages a day. I think that's do able!

Not So Colorful

As you know I was supposed to run The Color Run recently.  I didn't know much about it until I received a race information email a few days before the race date.  I was going to travel to Maine after the race with my husband and Roxy.  The Color Run was not near our home, it was a few hours away but it was on the way to Maine.

I found out via the email that I'd have to park in a parking lot and then be shuttled to the start line.  Then, the runners would start in waves every 15 minutes.  After I finished, I'd wait until the next 15 minute color toss, then wait in a line to get back to my car.

My husband would have had to wait in the car by himself for hours and I would have been on my won running the race and waiting for the start.  I was bummed, but taking Roxy and my husband into consideration, I bailed on the race.

Turns out I made the right choice. There was an accident on the highway keeping the buses from making their scheduled rounds and people waited hours to be bused back.  I'm shocked that such a large and popular event had so many hoops to jump through and was so un-runner friendly.

I learned that its very important to know all of the details way before you sign up for a race.  I also learned that the for profit races are not as warm and fuzzy as the charity races and most importantly, maybe big races aren't for me at all!

Women's Olympic Marathon

Congratulations to Kara Goucher and Shalene Flanigan, our two female marathoners who recently competed in London's Olympic games.  Regardless of not winning a medal, their times are the best US women have put forth in a while.  And I'm happy to find out that I'm not the only one with funny running short tan lines :)

Sleeping Habits

I'm not a great sleeper.  I never have been.  I even remember when I was a little kid my parents would want me to nap and I wouldn't want to, afraid I would miss something.  Its become so clear to me now that sleep is such a vital part of healthy living and any training routine.  So I'm working on decompressing more in the evenings to trigger a relaxation response.

I've been using a few tools.  The first is reading.  It seems simple and while you can get caught up in a book and use up valuable sleeping time in a story, its a great way to distract your mind and start getting relaxed.

Secondly, I like keeping a book of lists or a journal.  It gets things off your mind and onto paper.  Its never going to be seen by anyone else but you so it doesn't have to have perfect grammar, handwriting or even make much sense.

I have been using an eye pillow over my eyes some nights.  The one I have is filled with delicious smelling things like lavender, but you can get them unscented and in all sorts of materials.  These are great for blocking everything out and just focusing on breathing and relaxing.

My other favorite thing is incense.  Its great to burn before bed.  The scent changes your perception of time and makes you relax.  While you should be careful with any fire, its great to burn a stick and put it on your bedside stand.   Incense is actually quite inexpensive and can be found lots of places online.

I'm also leaving my computer in the office, NOT taking it to my bed side stand.  I do still charge my phone there and peek at it from time to time, but I'm more cautious than I have been in the past.

So while these may not work for you, these techniques have worked very well for me.  I try to vary things from night to night so nothing feels routine.  I can even vary the scent of incense I use.  

Sleep tight!

Outdoor Yoga

As you all know I've spent some time this summer on an island off the Main coast.  That means I've been away from "my" yoga studio for some time.  I thought this would really decrease the quality and quantity of my yoga practice this summer.  I thought that it would be a sabbatical of sorts for me and I'd pick up my training in the fall.  (Kind of like how I run in the winter but its not the same as the spring, summer and fall months.)

I mentioned previously how my yoga studio owner offered a MP3 audio download of a typical class and I bought it and loaded it onto my iPod before coming out to the island.  I spread out my mat on the front deck and loaded the iPod up onto some speakers.

I really thought the practice was going to be very different from that which I have inside the studio.  I was right in some ways and wrong in others.  The purpose of the type of yoga I practice is to focus inward, on your breathing.  Its about how you feel, not how you look.

So while there is no teacher on the deck with me to adjust my position, I have learned not to care.  I'm out on the front deck, where all the neighbors can see me, the dogs can run by and my own family is sometimes in the yard.  I have learned to turn inward and focus on my practice more completely.  I no longer care if my shirt is riding up, or my hair is falling out of its ponytail.  I'm there to practice and reap the benefits that yoga has to offer me.

I do look around a little bit more than in a studio.  The birds, trees, flag and sun all entice me and they give me energy that I don't get from the hanging lights of a studio.

So while I will love getting back to a varied practice and getting back to a studio environment, I am loving my new studio, "Front Deck".  I used to think that yoga wasn't something I could do with me when traveling and now I realize that like running, its something I can do wherever I go and enjoy the scenery and energy of a new place in a way that I otherwise would not.

Joy Tee Review

If you're looking for a super cute tee shirt for yourself or a gift for the yogi in your life, look no further than this tee shirt.  

The tee shirt is made of 95% cotton and 5% lycra so it holds it flattering, feminine shape.  Its adorable design is simple and meaningful.  

The best part is that Joy Tees donates $1 of each purchase to Off the Matt and Into The World.  You can view the charity's site here:

http://www.offthematintotheworld.org/

If you'd like to get your own Joy Tee, you can find them here:

http://joy-tees.com/tees/

The tee comes in small through extra large and pink and white.  I will say they run a little small so order up if you want it a bit roomy.