12 Fabulous Reasons To Take Cold Showers

Seriously, regular cold showers are incredibly beneficial and incredibly healing.  They can improve circulation, help boost white cell activity, dissolve tension, bring more blood flow to your organs, help your body detox, balance hormones,  revitalize chakra’s and cleanse the auric field.

1: Mood booster:

It gives you an instant rush, leaving you feel awake and alive.  Cold water releases natural endorphins into your blood stream and brain. It shifts your mood. There are many scientists who even believe cold showers can help alleviate symptoms of depression.

2:  Releases stress and tension:

Tension is generally blocked energy and a cold shower helps move and shift that blocked energy.  Better energy flow equals a more relaxed and less stressed you.

3: Improves circulation:

Cold water stimulates blood flow to the core of your body bringing better blood flow to your organs and glands.  Improved blood flow equals more oxygen and a healthier you.

4:  Flushes out toxins:

The cold water contracts your muscles to encourage the flushing out of toxins.  With improved circulation the removal of toxins and pathogens is far more efficient.

5:  Clears negativity from your aura:

When your aura is strong it acts as a protective shield.  When fragile or damaged it can leave you drained and depleted.  Cold showers are excellent for cleansing, uplifting and strengthening the energy field around your body.

6: Cleanses your chakra’s:

Cold water is known to spin your chakras.  Its such a simple way to cleanse and revitalize them.  Make sure the cold water reaches all chakra’s, in particular the throat chakra which can often get missed if your neck is not fully open and extended.

7: Strengthens your immune system:

Improved circulation, more efficient removal of toxins and better oxygen flow throughout your body all support a healthier immune system.

8:  Speeds up the healing process:

For all the above reasons your body is working more effectively in healing and repairing itself from illness.

9:  Restores your energy levels:

Each cold shower boost the flow of energy throughout your body, releasing fatigue and lethargy.  You are left feeling refreshed and uplifted.

10:  Brings you fully into your body and fully into the present moment:

Without a doubt having a cold shower brings you 100% into the present moment.  It is very difficult for the mind to wonder if you are in the middle of a 1 minute cold shower.  You are totally focused on your body in the here and now.  Try and worry about something else when you are having a cold shower. It’s kind of impossible.

11: Cheap and environmentally friendly:

Cold showers are a very green thing to do.  It costs virtually nothing plus you are saving energy by not using hot water.  I personally only have a 3 minute cold shower due to our current water restrictions.

12:  Clears negative thinking:

Our cells contain water, and water holds memory of our thoughts, beliefs and lifestyle.  Regular cold showers help clear those cells of negative thinking supporting a more positive way of being.


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Plants To Improve Your Home’s Air Quality

Clean Your Air With Three Plants

According to Rentokil, it only takes three large plants to reduce volatile organic compounds in your air by around 50-70 percent, in a room the size of 120 sq meters.

If that’s the case, then grab yourself a bunch of these plants and clean up the air in your home. This should be especially important for pregnant mothers or families with infants and small children. Improve the health of your home and the environment in general by eliminating these compounds from the atmosphere.


Here is a list of plants which you can use to clean the air in your home.

Dracaenas
This is an architecturally pleasing plant from Africa which is quite suitable for any room of your home. It’s said to be best at filtering Trichloroethylene and Benzene from our air. If you have a lucky bamboo plant, you’ll also be happy to know that it is a form of Dracaena.

You can find out more about Dracaenas and the different species, including the more popular Lucky Bamboo species, here.

Chrysanthemum
This is the perfect gift for Mothers’ Day. Give you mother a potplant with a Chrysanthemum in it and she’ll be pleased at the sight and fresh smell. These flowers also filter Trichloroethylene and Benzene from the air but they have the added benefit of replacing it with an interesting smell.

Take a look at this page for more on how this plant can improve your livelihood.

Devils Ivy (also called as 'Money Plant' in South Asian countries)
Perhaps my favourite plant to keep in my room has to be Devils Ivy or Epipremnum aureum, as it’s known scientifically. It’s a fast growing, hardy plant which can be grown hydroponically and filters Benzene from the air.

It’s a great little plant to have and you can keep taking off cuts and sticking them in water to get them to grow from bottles in every room of your house. I’m very proud of the little one I have growing on my desk and sometime these holidays I hope to recycle some bottles for some off-cuts I’ll make. This plant comes highly recommended.

Check out more details about this plant at Wikipedia and the Potho Production Guide.

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Cold shower guidelines

I’ve gathered notes and fliers over the years from many different naturopaths and holistic healers.  Here’s a collection of facts and variations that I hope you find as helpful as I did.

Have one when you get home from work:

As I mentioned before, I feel this is one of the most beneficial times to have a cold shower.  Helps clear negativity from your energy which you may have been exposed to during the day.

Essential times to have a cold shower:

Many practitioners recommend 2 or more cold showers a day.  This is particularly essential if you are working on shifting a physical or emotional problem.  The majority recommend at least 3 a day. First thing in the morning, when you get home from work and before you go to bed.

Start cold, warm, then finish cold:

The most common approach is to alternate.  Start with a cold shower, washing yourself  normally with warm water and then finish with cold water.  If you can’t start with a cold shower (not just yet anyway) at the very least finish with a cold shower.

Avoid when menstruating:

It’s quite a common recommendation to only have warm showers during your moon day cycles.

Start with 15 – 30 seconds:

Start small and gradually work up to 1 or 2 minutes.

Begin with your feet then move to your knees and legs.  Gradually introduce the cold water to all parts of your body.  Some practitioners  say its not absolutely necessary to get your head wet, just your face and back of neck (an important energy location)

Be sensible:

Little and often is far more effective than eight minutes at once.  Be mindful if you are feeling weak, listen to your body and start with small steps.

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Benefits Of A Bicycle

Benefits Of A Bicycle

Benefits of Cold Water Showers

While doctors may no longer instruct their patients to take a cold bath and call them in the morning, a shot of cold water can still impart real health benefits:

Improves circulation
Good blood circulation is vital for overall cardiovascular health. Healthy blood circulation also speeds up recovery time from strenuous exercises and work. Alternating between hot and cold water while you shower is an easy way to improve your circulation. Cold water causes your blood to move to your organs to keep them warm. Warm water reverses the effect by causing the blood to move towards the surface of the skin. Cold shower proponents argue that stimulating the circulatory system in this way keeps them healthier and younger looking than their hot water-loving counterparts.

Relieves depression
 Lots of great men from history suffered bouts of depression.  Henry David Thoreau is one such man. But perhaps Thoreau’s baths in chilly Walden Pond helped keep his black dog at bay. Research at the Department of Radiation Oncology at Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine indicates that short cold showers may stimulate the brain’s “blue spot”- the brain’s primary source of noradrenaline — a chemical that could help mitigate depression. I guess a bout of the blues isn’t so bad after all.


Keeps skin and hair healthy
Hot water dries out skin and hair. If you want to avoid an irritating itch and ashy elbows, turn down the temperature of your showers. Also, cold water can make your manly mane look shinier and your skin look healthier by closing up your cuticles and pores.

Strengthens immunity
According to a study done in 1993 by the Thrombosis Research Institute in England, individuals who took daily cold showers saw an increase in the number of virus fighting white blood cells compared to individuals who took hot showers. Researchers believe that the increased metabolic rate, which results from the body’s attempt to warm itself up, activates the immune system and releases more white blood cells in response.

Increases testosterone
During the 19th century, many doctors and ministers recommended that young men take baths in cold water to reduce the sin of “self-pollution,” i.e. whacking off. Cold water was thought to extinguish a man’s flaming carnal desires. There was even a ghastly device invented on this principle.

How wrong they were! The same study by the Thrombosis Research Institute cited above showed that cold water showers actually increase testosterone production in men. Increased testosterone levels not only boost a man’s libido, but also his overall strength and energy level. If you’re looking to increase your testosterone, instead of juicing up like Mark McGwire, hop into a cold shower.

Increases fertility
Trying to become a dad? Cold showers are good for your little swimmers. Your testes aren’t meant to get too hot; that’s why they hang outside your body. Sperm counts decrease when the temperature of a man’s testes increases. Experiments done in the 1950s showed that hot baths were an effective contraceptive. Men who took a 30 minute hot bath every other day for 3 weeks were infertile for the next six months. More recently, the University of California at San Francisco did a study with men who were exposed to 30 minutes of “wet heat” (hot baths and such) a week. When the men cut this exposure out, their sperm count went up by 491%, and their sperm’s motility improved as well. While switching from a hot to cold shower may not have as dramatic an effect, if you’re trying to create some progeny, it surely won’t hurt.

Increases energy and well-being
Every time I end a shower with cold water, I leave feeling invigorated and energized. Your heart starts pumping, and the rush of blood through your body helps shake off the lethargy of the previous night’s sleep. For me, the spike in energy lasts several hours. It’s almost like drinking a can of Diet Mountain Dew, minus the aspartame. And while it hasn’t been studied, many people swear that cold showers are a surefire stress reducer. I’m a believer.


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Energy Saving Tips For Home

Lighting

• Switch off lights and fans when not required.
• Replace bulbs with tube lights & CFL(Compact Fluorescent Lamps).
• Utilize natural light by using electronic chokes & regulators.
• Optimize use of lights in malls, multiplexes & hotels.
• Turn off the lights when not in use.
• Take advantage of daylight by using light-coloured, loose-weave curtains on your windows to allow daylight to penetrate the room. Also, decorate with lighter colours that reflect daylight.
• De-dust lighting fixtures to maintain illumination.
• Use task lighting; instead of brightly lighting an entire room, focus the light where you need it.
• Compact fluorescent bulbs are four times more energy efficient than incandescent bulbs and provide the same lighting.
• Use electronic chokes in place of conventional copper chokes.

Electric iron

• Select iron boxes with automatic temperature cutoff.
• Use appropriate regulator position for ironing.
• Do not put more water on clothes while ironing.
• Do not iron wet clothes.

Fans

• Replace conventional regulators with electronic regulators for ceiling fans.
• Install exhaust fans at a higher elevation than ceiling fans.

Washing Machine

• Use after 10 PM or before 10 AM.
• Run washing machine only with full load.
• Use the shortest cycle time.
• Always wash only with full loads.
• Use optimal quantity of water.
• Use timer facility to save energy.
• Use the correct amount of detergent.
• Use hot water only for very dirty clothes.
• Always use cold water in the rinse cycle.
• Prefer natural drying over electric dryers.

Geyser

• Use before 10 AM.
• Switch off when not required.
• Reduce thermostat setting from 60º to 50º C.
• Use Solar Water Heater - a good replacement for a electric water heater

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Power Saving Tips For Air Conditioner

ACs are possibly the biggest cause of any summer power crisis. Every time one more AC is switched on and every time the temperature is lowered by one more degree, a huge load is added to the system. We can however work towards uninterrupted power – if we give up ‘freezing’ for ‘cool enough’. Let’s all go 24 this summer - it's actually quite comfortabl 

• Ensure proper sealing of doors and windows.
• Set thermostat at 24º C for optimum cooling.
• Clean AC filter every month.
• Use film / tinted glass on windows.
• Prefer air conditioners having automatic temperature cut off.
• Keep regulators at "low cool" position.
• Operate the ceiling fan in conjunction with your window air conditioner to spread the cooled air more effectively throughout the room and operate the air conditioner at higher temperature.
• Seal the doors and windows properly.
• Leave enough space between your air conditioner and the walls to allow better air circulation.
• A roof garden can reduce the load on Air Conditioner.
• Use windows with sun films / curtains.
• Set your thermostat as high as comfortably possible in the summer. The less difference between the indoor and outdoor temperatures, the lower will be energy consumption.
• Don't set your thermostat at a colder setting than normal when you turn on your air conditioner. It will not cool your home any faster and could result in excessive cooling.
• Don't place lamps or TV sets near your air-conditioning thermostat. The thermostat senses heat from these appliances, which can cause the air conditioner to run longer than necessary.
• Plant trees or shrubs to shade air-conditioning units but not to block the airflow. A unit operating in the shade uses as much as 10% less electricity than the same one operating in the sun

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