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How to Make Money Online-25 Ways to Make Money Online, Offline, and at Home

April 23, 2022 / Simeon / 0 Comments

Make money with a side gig and learn how long it will take to see the extra income, whether it’s freelancing online, driving passengers or selling your stuff.

Want to make money, but you’re not sure where to start? Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered.

And you’re not alone. More than one-quarter (27%) of Americans earned extra income from side gigs last year, according to the Report on the Economic Well-Being of U.S. Households in 2020, released in May 2021 by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.

NerdWallet rounded up 25 legitimate ways to make money — at home or out and about — and listed each option based on how fast you can get started and get paid. While most people prefer fast cash, don’t discount the “slow” gigs, as they may pay more in the long run.

How to make money online

Making money online is the sweet spot people look for in the gig economy. Whether you aspire to be a six-figure social media influencer, or are just looking to supplement your regular income with some internet gigs, we’ve found some viable options.

A man makes money online with freelance work.

1. Pick up freelance work online

Make money online through websites such as Upwork, Fiverr, and Freelancer.com. These sites offer opportunities to do a variety of freelance jobs, such as writing, programming, design, marketing, data entry, and being a virtual assistant. Fluent in a second language? Check sites such as Gengo or One Hour Translation, or drum up business through a site of your own. No matter what kind of freelancing you do, keep track of the going rate for the kind of work you provide so you know if you’re charging too much or too little. Total time: It can take a while to get your first gig.

Setup: 24 hours.

How easy to start: Easy, if you have the expertise.

Age threshold: 13+ but varies by site.

Payment speed: Varies by the site.

Need to know

Requirements

Money wins start with game plans

Find ways to save money with your cash, cards, and bank accounts all in one place.

2. Test websites and apps

Another way to make money from home is on sites like UserTesting.com. You get paid for your thoughts on how well — or not so well — certain websites and apps worked. You’ll have to pass a short test to be accepted, then you’ll be paid $10 for each 20-minute test, which involves a recording and answering four follow-up written questions. Or you could earn up to $120 to participate in a video conversation with a customer after your test.

Total time: Approval time can vary.

Setup: Less than an hour.

How easy to start: Easy, if you have the tech gear and complete a sample test.

Age threshold: 18+.

Payment speed: Seven days.

Need to know

Requirements

3. Pick up tasks on Amazon’s Mechanical Turk

Even in the age of automation, some jobs still require a human touch. Companies often outsource those jobs via services like Amazon’s Mechanical Turk. As a “worker,” the tasks you’ll be assigned can be tedious — tagging images, transcribing videos, classifying receipts — and can take anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours. Temporary employers or “requesters” set the price for each task and get to approve the finished product before paying you. That can leave room for scams, so do your research. Join a community like the MTurk Crowd forum, or the MTurk and Turker Nation subreddits, which can steer you away from shifty dealers. These communities and fellow “workers” can answer questions and give a realistic idea of how much money you can expect to make. Read more about Mechanical Turk is a way to make quick money online.

Total time: Several days to find out if you’re approved.

Setup: Depends on the task you choose.

How easy to start: Easy if you have certain skills.

Age threshold: 18+.

Payment speed: You get paid following work approval, which can take up to 30 days.

Need to know

Requirements

4. Take surveys for money

You can make money from home by taking online surveys, but don’t expect to be rolling in the dough. Survey sites don’t typically offer a big payoff, and many sites are more useful for earning gift cards than cash. Some of the more popular survey sites include Swagbucks and Survey Junkie. Read our analysis of a dozen survey sites to find out which one is best suited for you.

Total time: It will take a while.

Setup: Just minutes.

How easy to start: Very. Just register and begin.

Age threshold: 13 to 18+.

Payment speed: Varies by the site.

Need to know

Requirements

LISTEN: The Smart Money podcast answers the question, “How do I get my hands on some money?”

5. Make money from your blog as an affiliate

If you’re a blogger who gets decent traffic, you could make money by joining an affiliate network. Affiliates (that’s you) get paid when someone clicks through from the website to the partner site and buys something there. Some bloggers make a lot of money this way. Read more about affiliate marketing and other ways bloggers can make money.

Total time: It can take quite a while to build an audience.

Setup: With blog templates, building a site is easy.

How easy to start: Starting is not that difficult. Creating regular content may be another matter.

Age threshold: Any.

Payment speed: A month or two, on average.

Need to know

Requirements

6. Sell your wares on Etsy

Have a penchant for woodworking, jewelry-making, embroidery, or pottery? Sell your goods on Etsy, the go-to site for artisans selling home goods, art, and knickknacks. Etsy boasts almost 82 million active buyers and grossed over $10 billion in merchandise sales in 2020, according to the website.

Total time: It might take quite a while for customers to find you.

Setup: Can be quite involved.

How easy to start: Leaning toward “hard” on the difficulty meter.

Age threshold: 13+.

Payment speed: From the next day to seven days after a sale.

Need to know

Requirements

7. Get advertising revenue from your blog or YouTube channel

Turn your cat videos into cash videos. If your YouTube videos or blog posts draw a big audience, you may be able to make money from advertising. With Google AdSense, businesses pay to advertise around your content. The service is free, but there are requirements you must meet. Total time: It can take several weeks to get up and running.

Setup: Not that hard.

How easy to start: Depends on how good you are at producing interesting videos.

Age threshold: 18+.

Payment speed: Could take a long while to earn the first payout; then monthly.

Need to know

Requirements

8. Become an Instagram influencer

Companies are using Instagram influencers — people with large, dedicated followings on the platform — to rep their products. You can get in on the action by applying for opportunities via a marketing platform like Open Influence or AspireIQ, or by contacting the brands you want to work with.

Total time: You’ll need to stick with it.

Setup: Quick and easy.

How easy to start: Not that easy. It’s a very competitive platform.

Age threshold: 13+.

Payment speed: Varies on partnerships.

Need to know

Requirements

9. Monetize your Twitch channel

Gaming could be a way to make money from home if you have a steady following on Twitch, the go-to site for gamers. Broadcasters can receive donations from viewers and even get a share of subscription and ad revenue if they reach Affiliate or Partner status.

Total time: This can be a long game.

Setup: Quick and easy.

How easy to start: Easy to start; takes a while to build a following.

Age threshold: 13+.

Payment speed: Monthly.

Need to know

Requirements

10. Sell your photography

Turn your photographs into cash via sites like Fine Art America, which lets you upload your images to sell as prints, T-shirts, phone cases, and more. Other marketplaces for photographers include SmugMug, 500px, and PhotoShelter. Some sites require a subscription but may provide features ranging from cloud storage to password-protected galleries and a customized website.

Total time: Buyers need to find you — and like your work.

Setup: Just a few hours.

How easy to start: If you have a library of photos, you’re on the way.

Age threshold: Any.

Payment speed: Depends on your sales platform.

Need to know

Requirements

How to make money from home

Some side hustles don’t even require you to leave the house. Or if it does, it might just be a short walk around the block with a furry friend. Working from home requires a little creativity and a stick-to-it spirit.

Here are some excellent ideas for work-from-home gigs:

11. Become a dog walker or dog sitter

Love dogs? Make money by becoming a dog walker. Apps like Wag and Rover offer on-demand dog walking, so you can pick up walks when your schedule allows. If you have space (and your landlord’s permission, if you rent), you could offer overnight dog boarding. Read the fine print if you sign up for these services

Total time: Building a client base may take some time.

Setup: Takes about a week or so.

How easy to start: Love pets? You’re good to go.

Age threshold: 18+.

Payment speed: Two days to a week.

Need to know

Requirements

12. Sell unused gift cards

Make extra money by selling unused gift cards on a site like CardCash or GiftCash. These websites say they will pay you up to 92% of the card’s value. On CardCash, you can also trade in your card for one you’ll use. Total time: Depends on the popularity of the gift card.

Setup: Easy.

How easy to start: The more gift cards you have to sell, the better.

Age threshold: Old enough to have a credit card.

Payment speed: Varies by sale method.

Need to know

Requirements

13. List your spare bedroom on Airbnb

Renting out your home or spare bedroom on vacation rental sites is another way to make extra money. Be prepared to spend some money to clean and keep up the property, replace home goods and pay toward service fees. And scrutinize your rental agreement before you get started.

Total time: Demand drives success, and that depends on your location.

Setup: A listing can be created and live in hours.

How easy to start: If you have a place to rent, it’s a simple process.

Age threshold: 18+.

Payment speed: About one day.

Need to know

Requirements

How to make money offline

There are online and at-home ways to make extra money — and then there’s a third alternative: offline. This version of the gig economy may require a little more legwork, but the upside can be substantial. Here are offline ways to make money:

14. Sell your gently used clothes

A woman makes extra money by selling her clothes.

Selling clothes you no longer wear is a quick way to make some money. Start with local consignment shops for faster cash or use sites like ThredUp and Poshmark to find buyers. If you go the online route, be sure to take clear, well-lit photos of your pieces and research similar items to set competitive prices.

Total time: Varies by sales channel.

Setup: Easy and fast. You can simply go to a consignment shop or fill a box with clothes and send it in.

How easy to start: Easy. Cleaning out the closet may be the hardest part.

Age threshold: Any.

Payment speed: Varies by sales channel.

Need to know

Requirements

15. Trade in old phones, electronics for cash

Have an old phone, iPad, or gaming system lying around? Sell it on a site like Swappa or Gazelle. Check out Amazon’s trade-in program, which pays participants in Amazon gift cards — and eBay, too. If you’re in a rush, try an ecoATM kiosk, which offers cash on the spot for your device.

Total time: Lots of options, so your time spent will vary.

Setup: A breeze.

How easy to start: Easy. Have phone, cell phone.

Age threshold: Any.

Payment speed: Varies by where you sell.

Need to know

Requirements

16. Get a babysitting gig

Everyone from college students to recent retirees can make money by watching other people’s children. Word-of-mouth referrals from friends and family are still a great way to get started, but you can also create a profile for free on Care.com or Sittercity to expand your reach. Note any specialized skills, such as CPR certifications, to make yourself more marketable.

Total time: Online setup takes minutes; neighborhood referrals may take a while.

Setup: Just minutes.

How easy to start: Getting the word out is the main thing.

Age threshold: Very young if you’re using referrals. 18+ online.

Payment speed: When the parents come home.

Need to know

Requirements

17. Rent out your car

City-dwellers often don’t use their cars for days or weeks at a time. That idle time can translate to extra money with services like Getaround and Turo, which let you rent out your car by the hour or day. You take home the majority of those earnings, while Getaround or Turo takes a cut for protecting your car while it’s being rented.

Total time: Demand for your car will depend on the local market.

Setup: It takes about a half-hour to set up an account.

How easy to start: With an appropriate vehicle, it’s easy.

Age threshold: A valid driver’s license and 21+.

Payment speed: Varies by the site.

Need to know

Requirements

18. Sign up for TaskRabbit

If you enjoy putting together Ikea furniture or standing in long lines, you may be cut out for doing tasks for others. Websites like TaskRabbit can connect you with people who need help with a variety of things, such as moving, cleaning, delivery, and handyman services. The site also offers several virtual and online tasks, such as helping with a research project or data entry.

Total time: Local demand for your skills will determine the time you spend.

Setup: A couple of hours, then some time for approval.

How easy to start: Easy, though you’ll need to do some research.

Age threshold: 18+.

Payment speed: A few days after a job.

Need to know

Requirements

Back to t

19. Become a private tutor

Parlay your math, science, foreign language, or test-prep expertise into a lucrative side gig by becoming a private tutor. You can tutor people online or in person. What you charge can depend on your experience, expertise, and what’s in demand. To get started, see what types of tutors are needed on Craigslist or create a profile on sites like Tutor.com or Care.com. You can also advertise your services at local schools and community centers.

Total time: Varies by subject matter.

Setup: Can be a bit involved.

How easy to start: Students will have to find you, and that might take a while.

Age threshold: Any.

Payment speed: Usually pretty fast; often right away.

Need to know

Requirements

20. Drive for Uber, Lyft

Join Uber or Lyft (or both) and make money by driving passengers around. Just don’t forget to factor in gas and maintenance costs. You need an eligible car in good condition and must agree to a background check and a review of your driving history.

Total time: Depends on your market demand.

Setup: A few weeks.

How easy to start: Not difficult, but you’ll need the right type of vehicle.

Age threshold: Licensed to drive in your locality with one year of licensed driving experience.

Payment speed: Very fast. Either instantly or within days.

Need to know

Requirements

21. Make deliveries for Amazon, Uber Eats

Take advantage of the growing delivery trend and sign up for a service like Instacart, Uber Eats, Postmates, DoorDash, or Amazon Flex. You get paid per delivery, in most cases, and can even earn tips. A car isn’t always required — Postmates and, in some cities, DoorDash, lets you use a bike or scooter to make deliveries. However, a background check almost always is part of the deal. Learn more about how to get started with Amazon Flex, Uber Eats, and Instacart.

Total time: Depends on your market demand.

Setup: About a week.

How easy to start: Easy, if you have dependable transportation.

Age threshold: 21+.

Payment speed: Varies by the vendor.

Need to know

Requirements

22. Find work as a house sitter

If you’re willing to watch someone’s home — and maybe feed the pets, water the plants, and take out the garbage — become a housesitter. Tap your network for referrals or try out HouseSitter.com, which connects homeowners with housesitters. People often make $25 to $45 a day, according to the company’s website.

Total time: Depends on your market demand.

Setup: Minutes — or more if you try to drum up business by referrals.

How easy to start: That can depend on the need in your area.

Age threshold: Varies by the site.

Payment speed: At the end of a gig.

Need to know

Requirements

23. Sign up to be a mystery shopper

Businesses often want to know how they’re performing from a customer’s perspective. Sign up to be their eyes and ears. You can apply online via sites like IntelliShop, BestMark, and Sinclair Customer Metrics. Just beware of scams and do thorough research before signing on.

Total time: Varies by the site.

Setup: Applying takes little time, but approval can take a while.

How easy to start: Relatively easy if you have required transportation and tech.

Age threshold: May vary by site, but typically 18+.

Payment speed: Varies by company.

Need to know

Requirements

24. Find seasonal work

Need a gig for a few months? Try something seasonal, like being a lifeguard, shoveling snow, or working at a retailer during the holidays. Employers typically staff up a month or two before their busy season, so plan to get on their payroll. Check storefront windows, Craigslist, and local classifieds for seasonal opportunities.

Total time: Varies by the job.

Setup: Job searches and interviews can take weeks.

How easy to start: Not difficult, particularly if you have skills that fit your market.

Age threshold: Minimum age depends on the job.

Payment speed: Varies by company.

Need to know

Requirements

25. Put your drone to work

The market for drones is expanding. Companies hire out work like aerial inspection, photography, and land mapping. So if you’re already a drone enthusiast, why not make extra money with your aircraft? You first need to register it with the Federal Aviation Administration and obtain certification from them for commercial use. Then, you can apply for gigs as a drone pilot.

Total time: Depends on demand.

Setup: You’ll need to make time to pass a test. And then find clients.

How easy to start: If you already have a drone, you’re likely qualified.

Age threshold: 16+.

Payment speed: Varies by company.

Need to know

Requirements

Watch out for making money scams

The internet is full of opportunities to make money online or from home, but many are questionable, if not outright scams. Be wary of any “opportunity” that asks for an upfront fee, wants you to pay for certification, or requests your Social Security number or any financial information, such as your credit card number.

Still unsure if an opportunity is legit? Look for community forums, like those on Reddit, for unfiltered reviews and complaints. (Workers on TaskRabbit, Uber, and Lyft, for example, each have their subreddit.) Also, check if the company has a Better Business Bureau profile. The BBB assigns ratings based on reported complaints, business transparency, and other factors.

How to lose weight fast-These Science-Backed Tips Can Help You Lose Weight Sustainably

April 23, 2022 / Simeon / 0 Comments

Weight loss is not the answer to every health problem, but if your doctor recommends it, there are tips to help you lose weight safely. A steady weight loss of 1 to 2 pounds per week is recommended for the most effective long-term weight management.

That said, many eating plans designed to help you lose weight leave you feeling hungry or unsatisfied, or they cut out major food groups and are not sustainable. These are major reasons why you might find it hard to stick to a healthier eating plan.

Everyone has unique needs and different eating styles and tips may work better for you than someone else.

You may find you can lose weight by following a low-carb diet or a diet that has a focus on whole foods, but some general principles apply when you’re trying to lose weight.

Here are some science-backed tips to help you lose weight that include healthy eating, choosing carbs carefully, and that aim to:

reduce your appetite and hunger levels while keeping you satisfied
produce consistent weight loss over time
help improve your metabolic health at the same time

If you want to lose weight quickly, some of these tips may help, but quick weight loss is rarely sustainable. Focusing on long-term health and habits that you can stick with over time will help improve your health and are more likely to result in lasting weight loss.

How to Lose Weight in 3 Simple Steps

1. Cut back on refined carbs

One way to help lose weight quickly is to cut back on sugars and starches, or carbohydrates. This could be with a low-carb eating plan or by reducing refined carbs and replacing them with whole grains.

When you do that, your hunger levels go down, and you generally end up eating fewer calories With a low-carb eating plan, you’ll utilize burning stored fat for energy instead of carbs.

If you choose to eat more complex carbs like whole grains along with a calorie deficit, you’ll benefit from higher fiber and digest them more slowly. This makes them more filling to keep you satisfied.

A 2020 study confirmed that a very low carbohydrate diet was beneficial for losing weight in older populations

Research also suggests that a low carb diet may reduce appetite, which can lead to naturally eating fewer calories without thinking about it or feeling hungry

Note that the long-term effects of a low-carb diet are still being researched. It can also be difficult to adhere to a low-carb diet, which may lead to yo-yo dieting and less success in maintaining a healthy weight.

There are potential downsides to a low-carb diet that may lead you to a different method. Reduced calorie diets can also lead to weight loss and be easier to maintain for longer periods.

If you opt for a diet focusing instead on whole grains over refined carbs, a 2019 study correlated high whole-grain intake with lower body mass index (BMI)

To determine the best way for you to lose weight, consult your doctor for recommendations.

SUMMARY

Reducing refined carbohydrates may help curb your appetite, lower your insulin levels, and help you lose weight.

But the long-term effects of a low-carb diet are not yet known. A reduced-calorie diet could be more sustainable.

2. Eat protein, fat, and vegetables

Aim to include a variety of foods at each meal. To balance your plate and help you lose weight your meals should include:

a protein source
fat source
vegetables
a small portion of complex carbohydrates, such as whole grains

To see how you can assemble your meals, check out:

this low carb meal plan
this lower calorie meal plan
these lists of 101 healthy low carb recipes and low-calorie foods

Protein

Eating a recommended amount of protein is essential to help preserve your health and muscle mass while losing weight

Evidence suggests that eating adequate protein may improve cardiometabolic risk factors, appetite, and body weight

Generally, an average male needs about 56-91 grams per day, and the average female needs 46-75 grams per day, but many factors influence protein needs. Here are guidelines to help you figure out how much protein to eat without eating too much

0.8g/kg of body weight

1-1.2g/kg of body weight for people 65 and older
1.4-2g/kg of body weight for athletes

Diets with adequate protein may also help you reduce cravings and snacking by helping you feel full and satisfied

Healthy protein sources include:

meat: beef, chicken, pork, and lamb
fish and seafood: salmon, trout, sardines, and shrimp
eggs
plant-based proteins: beans, legumes, quinoa, tempeh, and tofu

Vegetables

Don’t be afraid to load your plate with leafy green vegetables. They’re packed with nutrients, and you can eat very large amounts without greatly increasing calories and carbs.

All vegetables are nutrient-rich and healthy foods to add to your diet, but some vegetables, like potatoes, sweet potatoes, winter squash, and corn, are higher in carbs.

These vegetables are considered complex carbs because they contain fiber, but you may want to be mindful of serving size when adding these vegetables to your plate.

Vegetables to include more of:

broccoli
cauliflower
spinach
tomatoes
kale
Brussels sprouts
cabbage
Swiss chard
lettuce
cucumber
peppers

Healthy fats

Don’t be afraid of eating fats.

Your body still requires healthy fats no matter what eating plan you choose. Olive oil and avocado oil are great choices for including in your eating plan. Nuts, seeds, olives, and avocados are delicious and healthy additions, as well.

Other fats such as butter and coconut oil should be used only in moderation due to their higher saturated fat content

SUMMARY

Try to assemble each meal with a protein source, healthy fat source, complex carbs, and vegetables.

Leafy green vegetables are a great way to bulk up a meal with low calories and lots of nutrients.

3. Move your body

Exercise, while not required to lose weight, can help you lose weight more quickly. Lifting weights has particularly good benefits.

By lifting weights, you’ll burn calories and help prevent your metabolism from slowing down, which is a common side effect of losing weight

Try strength training three to four times a week. If you’re new to lifting weights, a trainer may be able to help you get started. Make sure your doctor is also aware of any new exercise plans.

If lifting weights is not an option for you, doing some cardio workouts such as walking, jogging, running, cycling, or swimming is very beneficial for weight loss and general health.

Both cardio and weightlifting may help with weight loss and offer lots of other health benefits.

SUMMARY

Resistance training, such as weightlifting, is a great option for losing weight. If that’s not possible, cardio workouts are also effective.

Choose what’s sustainable for you.

What about calories and portion control?

If you opt for a low-carb eating plan, it’s not necessary to count calories as long as you keep your carb intake low and eat mostly protein, fat, and low-carb vegetables.

If you find yourself not losing weight, you may want to keep track of your calories to see if that’s a contributing factor.

If you’re sticking to a calorie deficit to lose weight, you can use a free online calculator like this one to estimate your calorie needs.

You can also download free, easy-to-use calorie counters from websites and app stores. Here’s a list of 5 calorie counters to try.

Note that eating too few calories can be dangerous and less effective for losing weight. Aim to reduce your calories by a sustainable and healthy amount based on your doctor’s recommendation.

A note on calorie counting

Counting calories may be a helpful tool for some, but it may not be the best choice for everyone.

If you are preoccupied with food or your weight, feel guilt surrounding your food choices, or routinely engage in restrictive diets, consider reaching out for support. These behaviors may indicate a disordered relationship with food or an eating disorder.

Talk with a qualified healthcare professional, such as a registered dietitian, if you’re struggling.

You can also chat, call, or text anonymously with trained volunteers at the National Eating Disorders Association helpline for free or explore the organization’s free and low-cost resources.

SUMMARY

Counting calories isn’t usually needed to lose weight on a low-carb eating plan. But if you’re not losing weight or on a reduced-calorie eating plan, calorie counting may help.

9 weight loss tips

Here are 9 more tips to help you lose weight:

Eat a high-protein breakfast. Eating a high protein breakfast could help reduce cravings and calorie intake throughout the day
Limit sugary drinks and fruit juice. Empty calories from sugar aren’t useful to your body and can hinder weight loss
Stay hydrated. Drink water throughout the day and aim for half your body weight in ounces
Choose weight-loss-friendly foods. Some foods are better for weight loss than others. Here is a list of healthy weight-loss-friendly foods.
Eat more fiber. Studies show that eating fiber may promote weight loss. Find fiber in whole grains, fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and these other high-fiber foods.
Drink coffee or tea. Caffeine consumption may help boost your metabolism. No need to go overboard on caffeine though and be mindful of adding sugar to these drinks
Base your diet on whole foods. They tend to be nutrient-rich, more filling, and less likely to cause overeating than processed foods.
Eat slowly. Eating quickly can lead to weight gain over time while eating slowly makes you feel more full and boosts weight-reducing hormones
Get good quality sleep. Sleep is important for many reasons, and poor sleep is one of the biggest risk factors for weight gain
While these 9 tips are a good starting point, they’re not the only things that impact weight loss. Try to reduce stress, and move your body. Read more about natural tips for losing weight here.

SUMMARY

Eating whole foods, higher protein, fiber, and less sugar can help you lose more weight. Don’t forget to get a good night’s sleep, too.

Sample meal ideas for fast weight loss

These sample meal plan ideas are low carb, which limits carbs to 20–50 carbs per day. Each meal should have protein, healthy fats, and veggies. These meal ideas are just suggestions, as everyone has different needs and food preferences.

If you’d prefer to lose weight while still eating complex carbs, add some healthy whole grains to your meals such as:

quinoa
oatmeal
whole wheat flour, bread, or pasta
brown rice
rye
barley

Breakfast ideas

poached egg with sliced avocado and a side of berries
spinach, mushroom, and feta crustless quiche
green smoothie with spinach, avocado, and nut milk and a side of cottage cheese
unsweetened Greek yogurt with berries and almonds

Lunch ideas

smoked salmon with avocado and a side of asparagus
lettuce wrap with grilled chicken, black beans, red pepper, and salsa
kale and spinach salad with grilled tofu, chickpeas, and guacamole
BLT wrap with celery sticks and peanut butter

Dinner ideas

enchilada salad with chicken, peppers, mango, avocado, and spices
ground turkey bake with mushrooms, onions, peppers, and cheese
antipasto salad with white beans, asparagus, cucumbers, olive oil, and Parmesan
roasted cauliflower with tempeh, Brussels sprouts, and pine nuts
salmon baked with ginger, sesame oil, and roasted zucchini

Snack ideas

cauliflower hummus and veggies
healthy homemade trail mix with nuts and dried fruit
kale chips
cottage cheese with cinnamon and flaxseeds
spicy roasted chickpeas
roasted pumpkin seeds
tuna pouches
steamed edamame
strawberries and brie

How fast will you lose weight?

You may lose weight more quickly in the first week of a diet plan and then lose weight at a slower but more consistent rate after that. In the first week, you typically lose a mix of both body fat and water weight.

If this is the first time you are making changes to your diet and exercise habits, weight loss may happen more quickly.

Unless your doctor suggests otherwise, losing 1–2 pounds per week is usually a safe amount. If you’re trying to lose weight faster than that, speak to your doctor about a safe level of calorie reduction.

Aside from weight loss, a low carb diet can improve your health in a few ways, though the long-term effects are not yet known:

blood sugar levels tend to significantly decrease on low carb diets triglycerides tend to go down
LDL (bad) cholesterol goes down
blood pressure improves significantly
Other diet types that reduce calories and increase whole foods are also associated with improved metabolic markers and slower aging. Ultimately, you may find a more balanced diet that includes complex carbohydrates is more sustainable.

SUMMARY

You can reach your weight loss goals by incorporating a low carb or low-calorie diet into your life, but the speed of weight loss depends on the individual.

General weight loss can sometimes improve certain markers of health, such as blood sugar and cholesterol levels.

The bottom line

By reducing carbs or replacing refined carbs with complex carbs, you’ll likely experience reduced hunger levels. Feeling hungry is often why it’s difficult to maintain a weight loss plan, so it’s important to find a way of eating that leaves you feeling satisfied.

By incorporating a sustainable low carb or lower-calorie eating plan, you can eat healthy food until you’re full and still lose weight.

Losing weight quickly may be your goal, but it’s important to think about the long run. While you may lose water weight quickly, fat loss takes longer, and developing sustainable weight loss may take longer than you’d like.

How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days- Movie

April 23, 2022 / Simeon / 0 Comments

Andie Anderson (Kate Hudson) writes how-to columns for Composure Magazine, the most successful women’s magazine in the country. After a co-worker is dumped by her latest boyfriend and succumbs to a bad case of the weepies during a staff meeting, Andie volunteers to write a column to help other women avoid the same mistakes. Her piece, “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days,” will show readers what they should not do in a new relationship. She hopes that this piece will convince editor Lana Jong (Bebe Neuwirth) that she’s capable of taking on more important projects, including writing about political issues.

Meanwhile across town, Benjamin Barry (Matthew McConaughey), an ambitious ad executive, is sick of being stuck with beer and sports promotions. He has his eye on a big account for a large diamond merchant. To prove that he can write pitches for women, he bets his boss (Robert Klein) that he get a new woman to fall in love with him; he promises to bring her to a party in just 10 days.

Andie and Benjamin meet in a bar and take it from there, each with a hidden agenda and each confident that the mission will be completed successfully. Of course, this plot contrivance illustrates the modern day phenomenon that everything in the lives of upscale professionals is peripheral to making it big in the workplace. Romantic relationships play second fiddle, and many of them are riddled with deceit. The other thing working in favor of this fabricated storyline is that it allows us to watch what it would be like for a man to exhibit the kind of equanimity usually only demonstrated by seasoned Buddhist practitioners. Benjamin proves to be very good at staying unruffled. He takes the good with the bad and is forced to set aside his preferences for this and that.

Andie serves up a smorgasbord of actions designed to send Benjamin running. During the dramatic final minutes of a Knicks basketball game, she asks him to get her a soda. After he cooks her an elaborate lamb dinner, she announces she is a vegetarian. She leaves countless messages on his answering machine and talks to his mother behind his back. She gets him a dog who then pees all over his apartment. She stocks his bathroom with feminine hygiene products, insists on going to a chick flick festival, and then barges in on his poker night with the guys.

Donald Petrie directs this spiffy romantic comedy based on a clever screenplay by Kristen Buckley, Brian Regan, and Burr Steers. Kate Hudson, who was so endearing in Almost Famous, is perky and funny as the ambitious journalist who is surprised by her own feelings toward the man she is deliberately spurning. Matthew McConaughey is a hoot as a self-absorbed male who learns that love means exhibiting patience, self-sacrifice, and the willingness to bear all things. The screen chemistry between these two is convincing. How to Lose A Guy in 10 Days explores sexual politics in many winning and funny ways and proves that equanimity in a man is a great aphrodisiac.

The special edition DVD contains an audio commentary with director Donald Petrie, cast and crew interviews, deleted scenes, and featurettes on mapping out the perfect movie and the perfect movie location.

Spiritually Literate Readings of

How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days

Disposable Relationships. We live in an age of disposable relationships. Teenagers and young adults expect to run through a succession of boyfriends and girlfriends. Some take great pride in the variety of affairs they’ve had in a year. Fifty percent of marriages don’t last because, among other things, couples don’t seem to be committed to the vows made in front of their partners, family, and friends. It’s almost as if the gaming principle has taken over contemporary relationships where playing the field and winning (self-gratification) are all important.

In How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, Andie, a women’s magazine columnist, and Benjamin, an ambitious ad executive, are players who want to be winners at work and number one in their relationships. They are perfectly willing to deceive and use their partner to achieve their self-centered goals. Nothing commendable about this but it does hit the mark as a telling depiction of modern day sexual politics.

Equanimity Practice. As part of his campaign to win a big diamond account, Benjamin is willing to do anything to stay in a romantic relationship with Andie for ten days, concluding with a party where he must show her off to his boss as a woman madly in love with him. To accomplish this goal, he is willing to endure anything and everything she does that rubs him the wrong way. Although the writers probably didn’t have the spiritual practice of equanimity in mind when they wrote the screenplay, this quality of being unruffled by troubles is exactly what Benjamin demonstrates.

Wayne Muller in Legacy of the Heart writes: “Equanimity is the ability to experience the changes in our lives, circumstances, and feelings and still remain calm, centered and unmoved. The image most often used to illustrate the quality of equanimity is that of a mountain. The mountain sits there as the sun shines on it, the rain drenches it, it is covered by snow and struck by lightning. Through it all, through all the changing conditions, the mountain remains unwavering.”

Benjamin is a mountain as Andie besieges him with the worst things she can imagine to do to a lover. Throughout it all, he is patient and accommodating. His motto: Every situation is workable. Imagine what would happen in relationships if more lovers practiced equanimity. Imagine what would be possible if marriage partners remained unruffled in the face of disappointments and difficulties. Be a mountain and know that every situation in life is workable. Those are pretty good lessons to learn while laughing along with this romantic comedy.

How to Lock Facebook Profile on Your Android or iOS App and Website

April 23, 2022 / Simeon / 0 Comments

Facebook is a great place to be social without actual physical contact. The social media platform has become an integral part of our lives as we tend to get all the information about our loved ones, friends, family, and more through the platform. However, this also means that it becomes a medium for stalkers. We all have been through this situation when stalkers keep searching your profile or unwanted people download your profile photos to create fake accounts and more.

So, to curb this, the company recently introduced a new safety feature known as Facebook Profile Lock. The feature allows users to have more control over their profiles. The feature is really helpful for those who want to completely lock their profile from strangers or stalkers. In this article, we are going to show you the easy way to lock your Facebook profile on your Android or iOS and through the mobile website. So, without further ado, let’s begin.

How does Facebook Lock Profile work?

Facebook has introduced a new safety feature known as profile lock. The feature allows users to restrict access to one’s profile to people who are not on their friends’ list. Once a user locks his/her profile, other people who are not on the friends’ list will not be able to see the profile. Furthermore, they will not be able to download profile photos and cover photos. The company says that users cannot also see photos and posts as well.

Moreover, they cannot access the Stories a user put on his profile. In addition to this, the Lock Profile feature also changes the posts that have been shared in the past from Public to friends. The timeline review and tag review also get turned on. This means others have to take permission to tag you on their posts. Moreover, only a portion of their About info will be visible to everyone on their profile. Now you know how the lock your profile feature works on Facebook, let’s take a closer look at how to lock your Facebook profile on different platforms.

How to Lock Facebook Profile on Android and iPhone?

Facebook Android and iOS applications allow you to easy to lock your profile from stalkers. Here’s a step-by-step guide for locking your Facebook profile:

Open the Facebook app and tap on your Profile
Now tap on the three-dot menu next to the ‘Add to Story’ section.
Here, you will find the ‘Lock Profile’ option. Tap on it and you will be taken to the Lock Profile page.
Tap on the ‘Lock Your Profile button to confirm.

With this, your Facebook Profile is now locked. You can also choose to unlock it by going through the similar steps mentioned above.

How to Lock Facebook Profile on Website

You can also lock your profile by going to Facebook from your desktop browser. All you need to do is follow these steps:

Type facebook.com on your browser and log into your account.
Click on your Profile to open it.
There you will see the three-dot menu. Tap on it and go to the Lock Profile option.
There will be a pop-up message showing you locking your profile works and comes with the Lock Your Profile button at the bottom. Click on it to lock your profile.

How to Unlock Your Facebook Profile?

Facebook also gives you an option to unlock your profile whenever you want. All you need to do this follow these steps:

Go to the Facebook application on your mobile or facebook.com on your desktop browser.
Click on your Profile section and click on the three-dot menu.
There, you will find Unlock Profile option. Click on it and you will see a pop-up message. Click on Unlock Profile.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What happens to profile pictures, cover photos, and feature photos when the profile is locked?

Whenever a user locks his/her Facebook profile, only those who are in the friends will be able to tap on the pictures to view them. People who are not on the friends’ list will see a smaller version of the profile picture and cover photo. However, the current profile pictures and cover photos will be visible to everyone, though they cannot open them. Moreover, only friends will be able to tag, comment, or like on the profile or cover photo.

What happens to posts, photos, albums, and more once the Facebook profile is locked?

When the Facebook profile is locked, all the profile posts, photos, albums, and stories will be only visible to their friends. One can no longer make Public posts from their profile. The same goes with photos, albums, and stories.

How to know if you are pregnant- Week by week, Month by Month

April 23, 2022 / Simeon / 0 Comments

What happens in the first month of pregnancy?

Pregnancy is divided into 3 trimesters. Each trimester is a little longer than 13 weeks. The first month marks the beginning of the first trimester.

What’s gestational age?

Pregnancy timing is measured using “gestational age.” Gestational age starts on the first day of your last menstrual period (LMP).

Gestational age can be confusing. Most people think of pregnancy as lasting 9 months. And it’s true that you’re pregnant for about 9 months. But because pregnancy is measured from the first day of your last menstrual period — about 3-4 weeks before you’re actually pregnant — a full-term pregnancy usually totals about 40 weeks from LMP — roughly 10 months.

Many people don’t remember exactly when they started their last menstrual period — that’s OK. The surest way to find out gestational age early in pregnancy is with an ultrasound.

What happens during week 1 – 2?

These are the first 2 weeks of your menstrual cycle. You have your period. About 2 weeks later, the egg that’s most mature is released from your ovary — this is called ovulation. Ovulation may happen earlier or later, depending on the length of your menstrual cycle. The average menstrual cycle is 28 days.

After it’s released, your egg travels down your fallopian tube toward your uterus. If the egg meets up with a sperm, they combine. This is called fertilization. Fertilization is most likely to occur when you have unprotected vaginal sex during the 6 days leading up to — and including the day of — ovulation.

What happens during week 3 – 4?

The fertilized egg moves down your fallopian tube and divides into more and more cells. It reaches your uterus about 3–4 days after fertilization. The dividing cells then form a ball that floats around in the uterus for about 2–3 days.

Pregnancy begins when the ball of cells attaches to the lining of your uterus. This is called implantation. It usually starts about 6 days after fertilization and takes about 3–4 days to be complete.

Pregnancy doesn’t always happen, even if an egg is fertilized by a sperm. Up to half of all fertilized eggs pass out of your body when you get your period, before implantation is complete.

What are the signs of pregnancy?

For a lot of people, the first sign of pregnancy is a missed period. Most pregnancy tests will be positive by the time you’ve missed your period. Other early pregnancy symptoms include feeling tired, feeling bloated, peeing more than usual, mood swings, nausea, and tender or swollen breasts. Not everyone has all of these symptoms, but it’s common to have at least 1 of them.

What happens in the second month of pregnancy?

The ball of cells turns into an embryo at the start of the 6th week. The embryonic stage of pregnancy lasts about 5 weeks. This is when all the major internal organs start developing.

What happens during week 5 – 6?

The embryo is less than 1/5 inch (4–5 mm) long.
A very basic beating heart and circulatory system develop.
Buds for arms and legs develop.
The neural tube begins forming. The neural tube will later form the brain, spinal cord, and major nerves.
The bud of a tail develops.
The umbilical cord begins developing.

What happens during week 7 – 8?

The embryo is 1/4 to 1/2 inch (7–14 mm) long.
The heart has formed.
Webbed fingers and toes develop.
The arms bend at the elbows.
External ears, eyes, eyelids, liver, and upper lip begin forming.
The sex organs are the same — neither female nor male — in all embryos until the 7th or 8th week. If a gene triggers the development of testes, the embryo develops as a biological male. If there isn’t a trigger, the embryo develops ovaries and becomes biologically female.

What are the symptoms of pregnancy in the second month?

Pregnancy symptoms often become very noticeable when you’re 2 months pregnant. Common discomforts like breast tenderness, feeling very tired, peeing more often, heartburn, nausea, and vomiting usually get worse. Your body produces extra blood during pregnancy, and your heart beats faster and harder than usual to carry the extra blood.

What happens in the third month of pregnancy?

The embryo becomes a fetus when you’re 3 months pregnant. The umbilical cord connects the fetus to your placenta and uterine wall. External sex organs also start to develop.

What happens during weeks 9 – 10?

The embryo develops into a fetus after 10 weeks. It’s 1–1.5 inches (21–40 mm) long. The tail disappears. Fingers and toes grow longer. The umbilical cord connects the abdomen of the fetus to the placenta. The placenta is attached to the wall of the uterus and it absorbs nutrients from the bloodstream. The cord carries nutrients and oxygen to the fetus and takes waste away from the fetus.

What happens during weeks 11 – 12?

The fetus is now measured from the top of its head to its buttocks. This is called crown-rump length (CRL).

The fetus has a CRL of 2–3 inches (6–7.5 cm).
Fingers and toes are no longer webbed.
Bones begin hardening.
Skin and fingernails begin to grow.
Changes triggered by hormones begin to make external sex organs appear — female or male. The fetus begins making spontaneous movements.
Kidneys start making urine.
Early sweat glands appear.
Eyelids are fused.

What are the symptoms of pregnancy in the third month?

Many of the pregnancy symptoms from the first 2 months continue — and sometimes worsen — during the third month. This is especially true of nausea. Your breasts continue growing and changing. The area around your nipple — the areola — may grow larger and darker. If you’re prone to acne you may have outbreaks.

You probably won’t gain much weight during the first 3 months of pregnancy — usually about 2 pounds. If you’re overweight or underweight you may experience a different rate of weight gain. Talk with your nurse or doctor about maintaining a healthy weight throughout your pregnancy.

Miscarriage

Most early pregnancy loss — miscarriage — happens in the first trimester. About 15 percent of pregnancies end in miscarriage during the first trimester.

What happens in the fourth month of pregnancy?

Your 2nd trimester begins during your 4th month of pregnancy, starting on week 14.

What happens during weeks 13 – 14?

The fetus has a CRL of about 3 inches (8 cm).
The biological sex of the fetus can sometimes be seen by looking at external sex organs on an ultrasound.
Hair begins to grow.
The prostate gland begins developing in biologically male fetuses.
Ovaries move down from the abdomen to the pelvic area is biologically female fetuses.
The roof of the mouth is formed.

What happens during weeks 15 – 16?

The fetus has a CRL of about 4.5 inches (12 cm).
Hundreds of thousands of eggs form in the ovaries of biologically female fetuses.

What are the symptoms of pregnancy in the fourth month?

Some of the early signs and symptoms of pregnancy go away when you’re 4 months pregnant. Nausea usually lessens. But other digestive problems — like heartburn and constipation — may be troublesome. Breast changes — growth, soreness, and darkening of the areola — usually continue. It’s common to have shortness of breath or to breathe faster. Increased blood flow may lead to unpleasant pregnancy symptoms, such as bleeding gums, nosebleeds, or nasal stuffiness. You also may feel dizzy or faint because of changes in your blood and blood vessels.

What happens in the fifth month of pregnancy?

When you’re 5 months pregnant, your fetus develops soft body hair and a greasy coating that helps protect the skin.

What happens during weeks 17 – 18?

The fetus has a CRL of 5.5–6 inches (14–15 cm).

What happens during week 19 – 20?

The fetus has a CRL of about 6.5 inches (16 cm). Lanugo — a fine downy hair — covers the body. The skin is also covered with vernix caseosa, a greasy material that protects the skin. A uterus forms in a biologically female fetus.

What are the symptoms of pregnancy in the fifth month?

People usually feel fetal movements for the first time during the fifth month. It may feel like flutters or butterflies in your stomach. This is sometimes called quickening.

The pregnancy symptoms of the fourth month continue this month. Heartburn, constipation, breast changes, dizziness, shortness of breath, nose bleeds, and gum bleeding are common. Your breasts may be as much as 2 cup sizes bigger by now.

What happens in the sixth month of pregnancy?

During the 6th month, your fetus starts to develop blood cells, taste buds, eyebrows and eyelashes.

What happens during week 21 – 22?

The fetus has a CRL of about 7 inches (18–19 cm).
Bone marrow starts making blood cells.
Taste buds begin to form.

What happens during week 23 – 24?

The fetus has a CRL of about 8 inches (20 cm).
Eyebrows and eyelashes usually develop between weeks 23 and 26.

What are the symptoms of pregnancy in the sixth month?

Pregnancy symptoms from the fourth and fifth month usually continue. Shortness of breath may improve. Your breasts may start producing colostrum — tiny drops of early milk. This may continue throughout the rest of your pregnancy.

Some women have Braxton-Hicks contractions when they’re 6 months pregnant. They feel like a painless squeezing of the uterus or abdomen. This is the uterus’s way of practicing for labor and delivery. Braxton-Hicks contractions are normal and not a sign of early labor. But check with your doctor if you have painful or frequent contractions or if you have any concerns.

What happens in the seventh month of pregnancy?

Your 3rd trimester starts during your 7th month of pregnancy, on week 28.

What happens during week 25 – 26?

The fetus has a CRL of about 9 inches (23 cm).
The fetus develops more and more fat from now until the end of pregnancy.

What happens during week 27 – 28?

The fetus has a CRL of about 10 inches (25 cm).
Eyelids are usually fused together until about 28 weeks.

What are the symptoms of pregnancy in the seventh month?

Your uterus continues to expand when you’re 7 months pregnant. Back pain is common. Pregnancy symptoms from earlier months continue. Dizziness may lessen.

What happens in the eighth month of pregnancy?

During your 8th month of pregnancy, your fetus is about 11 inches long, and the lanugo (the fine, soft hair that covers your fetus’s body) begins to fall off.

What happens during week 29 – 30?

The fetus has a CRL of about 10.5 inches (27 cm).
Testes usually begin descending into the scrotum from the abdomen between weeks 30 and 34 in a biologically male fetus. This is usually complete by 40 weeks.

What happens during week 31 – 32?

The fetus has a CRL of about 11 inches (28 cm).
Lanugo starts falling off.

What are the symptoms of pregnancy in the eighth month?

You may feel tired and have a more difficult time breathing as your uterus grows upward. You may get varicose veins — blue or red swollen veins most often in the legs — or hemorrhoids — varicose veins of the rectum. Hemorrhoids can be painful and itchy and can cause bleeding. You may also get stretch marks where your skin has expanded. Braxton-Hicks contractions, heartburn, and constipation may continue. You may urinate a bit when sneezing or laughing because of pressure from your uterus on your bladder. Hormones may make your hair appear fuller and healthier.

What happens in the ninth month of pregnancy?

When you’re 9 months pregnant, your fetus’s eyes and pupils are more developed, and it has more body fat.

What happens during week 33 – 34?

The fetus has a CRL of about 12 inches (30 cm).
The eyes have developed enough for pupils to constrict and dilate when exposed to light.
Lanugo is nearly all gone.

What happens during week 35 – 36?

The fetus has a CRL of about 12.5 inches (32 cm).
The fetus is considerably fatter, and the skin is no longer wrinkled.

What are the symptoms of pregnancy in the ninth month?

The growing fetus places more and more strain on your body when you’re 9 months pregnant. Common pregnancy symptoms at this time may continue through the end of pregnancy. These symptoms include fatigue, trouble sleeping, trouble holding urine, shortness of breath, varicose veins, and stretch marks. Some fetuses drop down into the lower part of the uterus during this month. This may relieve your constipation and heartburn, which is more common earlier in pregnancy. But some fetuses don’t drop down until the very end of pregnancy.

What happens in the tenth month of pregnancy?

When you’re 10 months pregnant, your fetus reaches its final stage of development and you give birth.

What happens during week 37 – 38?

The fetus has a CRL of about 13–14 inches (34–36 cm).
The fetus has a firm grasp.

What happens during week 39 – 40?

You will probably give birth around this time.

The average newborn baby weighs 7–8 pounds and is between 18–22 inches (46–56 cm) long with legs extended.
Almost all of the vernix and lanugo are gone.
It’s common for newborns to have some lanugo that disappears over the first few months of life.

What are the symptoms of pregnancy in the tenth month?

By the end of your pregnancy, your uterus has expanded from your pelvis to the bottom of your rib cage. Pregnancy symptoms in the tenth month largely depend on when the fetus drops down into the lower part of your uterus.

Shortness of breath, heartburn, and constipation usually improve when the fetus drops. But the position of the fetus lower in your pelvis causes frequent urination (peeing) and trouble holding urine (pee).

Your cervix will begin to open — dilate — to prepare for delivery. This may happen a few weeks before delivery, or it might start when you go into labor. You may feel sharp pains in your vagina as your cervix dilates.

After your newborn is delivered, the placenta and other tissues also come out of your body. This is called the afterbirth.

How to Knit – for complete newbie

April 23, 2022 / Simeon / 0 Comments

When people find out I am a knitter, they have one of several reactions: “Hey, so am I!” “Cool, will you make me a sweater?” or, by far the most frequent, “Oh, yeah, I learned once but was terrible and stopped.”

I’ve been knitting for over 20 years, and teaching friends, co-workers and strangers for about 10. It’s part of who I am, and it’s how I make sense of the world. I even wrote a book about it.

Still, when I hear that last response, I try not to blab on and on about how soothing and anchoring knitting is, nor do I spew statistics about how needlework has been proven to reduce stress hormones, or how it can help kick addiction, and even potentially prevent low-level memory loss.

I do, however, want to dispel the notion that some people aren’t “crafty” and therefore can’t knit. Anyone can! It doesn’t take some special crafting gene, and you don’t need superhuman dexterity (or even a lot of patience). You just need to follow a few basic rules and, most important, you have to want it.

That sounds … simple. So why do so many people give it up?

Who really knows! People quit lots of things for lots of reasons. That said, there are a couple of common, easily avoidable mistakes that make new knitters (and their teachers) stumble.

Pop culture and general wisdom will tell you that your first project should be a scarf. Do not do this! Scarves take forever to finish, they show errors very obviously and, most of all, nobody really wants one. For a lot of people who quit early on, “I gave up on knitting” actually means “I gave up on knitting a scarf I grew to hate.”

Instead, after you’ve mastered the basics of knitting — don’t worry, we’ll get to that — try your hand at a hat. They take far less time, mistakes are much less obvious and hats are beloved by everyone who has a head. They’re more complicated, but that means you’ll learn more on your first real go-round.

Another reason new knitters give up is that projects can sometimes drag on, so try to give yourself a deadline for your first: maybe you’ll want to wear the completed item on an upcoming trip or to give it to someone for their birthday.

Last, accept that it’s O.K. to be bad at something when you’re first starting out. As adults we so rarely try things we’ve never experienced before, and there’s truly something liberating in sucking for a week or two before finally getting the hang of it.

How to get started with materials

First, acquaint yourself with your local yarn store (your LYS). Smaller, independent shops tend to be more personal — though generally more expensive — while big box stores like Michaels and JOANN are often less pricey and less intimate.

If going to a physical location isn’t an option, you can order your materials from an online store like WEBS, which stocks an enormous variety of yarn, needles and notions at all price points, or Knitpicks, which carries its own affordable house brands. If at all possible, touch your yarn before you buy it, because not only are you going to spend an inordinate amount of time with it, you’re also going to want to actually like the end product.

For those first few projects, generally you’ll want yarn that’s medium-weight, otherwise known as worsted — not as thin as dental floss nor as thick as rope — and make sure to read its label to figure out which size needles you should buy to go along with it (generally sizes 6 to 9). Don’t worry too much about your first needles; the size is the important thing, and what they’re made of (bamboo, aluminum, plastic) and how they look (straight versus circular) is more a matter of preference than anything else.

You’ve got all your stuff. Now what?

It’s time to figure out what kind of student you are.

If you learn best in an in-person or group setting and don’t mind potentially spending some time and money, contact your LYS to find out when and how they teach beginners. Sometimes the price of admission is just buying the materials there, and often it’s more for longer, more intensive courses.

A lot of local libraries, religious institutions, and YMCA-type establishments offer knitting groups, and online databases like Meetup.com can be a great way to find circles or even just teachers in your area as well. And if you learn best one-on-one, find a friend, family member, neighbor, or member of a community group who’s willing to go over the basics with you.

If you prefer to learn on your own and you’re willing to invest some cash, check out a fee-based online course like those offered by Craftsy, which provides video tutorials and step-by-step instructions for students of all levels. You can preview each instructor’s videos to see if you like their vibe, their speed, and their voice — an important thing, especially because you’ll have to rewind at least a few times before you get the steps down.

If you prefer to learn from a book, I recommend “Stitch ‘n Bitch: The Knitter’s Handbook” by Debbie Stoller; this is the book that taught me everything my grandma didn’t, from seaming to sweaters, and it’s all written out in simple, easy-to-understand language.

Finally, you can buy preassembled kits of materials that come with directions for beginners. I like the ones sold by We Are Knitters, but fair warning: Kits like these can cost more than it would be to buy the materials à la carte. Still, they’re designed to go along with their accompanying pattern, and the quality is generally high.

If you’re not willing or able to spend money, there are plenty of free online resources, although, without some structure or oversight, the risk of quitting can increase. The videos from KnittingHelp.com are clear and well-paced, and I often send students there when they panic in the middle of the night and text me asking how to pick up a dropped stitch. As with Craftsy, it might take some digging around to find an instructor that you like.

Time to sit down and get started

Congratulations: You’re ready to knit!

Block out a chunk of time in your schedule to put some initial time into whichever learning method you prefer. It should be at least a couple of hours with minimal interruptions at first (although soon you should be able to knit and listen to a podcast or watch TV). When you’re first starting, try to do multiple sessions in a short period — a good beginner’s pace is about three times per week.

Give yourself time to learn the following techniques: casting on, the knit stitch, the purl stitch, decreasing, increasing, and casting off. Each of these will take some trial and error, but once you know them, you’ll be able to make most beginner patterns. (And don’t forget to take breaks to stretch your hands.)

Once you’re comfortably underway and looking for inspiration, sign up for an account on Ravelry. It’s a knitting social network with 5 million users (including me). There are also phenomenal (and often free) patterns, sortable by difficulty and popularity; a full database of yarn; forums to help new and experienced knitters alike; and galleries of other users’ projects, modifications, triumphs, and failures. Ravelry is also the perfect place to show off your work, as is Instagram and Facebook.

Now get to it, and enjoy your new favorite hobby! The best part of knitting isn’t what you make by yourself, but how it ties you to other people. So please feel free to email me with questions, frustrations, brags, and anything, or find me on Twitter at @alanna and Instagram at alannabean (where you can also take a look at a bunch of my craft projects).

Common but weird knitting terms to know

LYS: Abbreviation of “local yarn store.” Fair warning: some LYSes can keep strange hours, so it’s best to call before stopping by for the first time.

U.F.O.: Unfinished object. Some projects are destined to be UFOs forever, lying around half-knitted until you finally decide to frog them.

Frogging: Giving up on a project and ripping out the stitches. So named because the sound it makes, supposedly, is “rip-it rip-it rip-it.”

DPNs: Double-pointed needles. These are what you’ll use to knit round items with small circumferences, like sleeves and socks, but don’t worry about them right now — they’re often daunting to beginners because you need to work with four or five at a time. You’ll get there eventually.

Casting on: Getting the first row of stitches onto the needle. Sometimes trickier to learn than knitting itself.

Casting off: When you’ve finally, blessedly reached the end, and you have to get the stitches off the needle such that they don’t immediately unravel.

Blocking: The step that comes after finishing a project when you steam, dampen, or gently manipulate the fabric so that it assumes the shape and drape you’d like it to.

Gauge swatching: The step that comes before starting a project during which you knit a small bit of fabric with the needles and yarn you plan to use to calculate exactly how many stitches per inch you’re getting since it can vary so much from person to person.

How to Jump-Start a Car :Easy to do steps

April 23, 2022 / Simeon / 0 Comments

If your car battery has died, you may be able to use jumper cables to jump-start it with the help of some good Samaritan’s vehicle. If you can safely use jumper cables on your vehicle, make sure that the battery on the good Samaritan’s vehicle has at least as much voltage as your own. As long as you hook up the cables properly, it doesn’t matter whether your vehicle has negative ground and the other vehicle has positive ground, or your vehicle has an alternator and the other vehicle has a generator.

If either vehicle has an electronic ignition system or is an alternatively fueled vehicle, the use of jumper cables may damage it.

To safely jump-start, follow these steps:

Take out your jumper cables.
It’s a good idea to buy a set of jumper cables and keep them in the trunk compartment. If you don’t have jumper cables, you have to find a kind stranger who not only is willing to assist you, but who has jumper cables as well.
Place both vehicles in Park or Neutral and shut off the ignition in both cars.
Engage both parking brakes as well.
Attach one of the red clips to the positive terminal of your battery.
It has “POS” or “+” on it, or it’s bigger than the negative terminal.
Attach the other red clip to the positive terminal of the other car.
Attach one of the black clips to the negative terminal on the other battery.
Attach the last black clip to an unpainted metal surface on your car that isn’t near the battery.
Use one of the metal struts that holds the hood open.
The cables should look like this.
Make sure to connect jumper cables in the proper order.
Start the working vehicle and let the engine run for a few minutes.
Try to start your vehicle.
If it won’t start, make sure that the cables are properly connected and have the other person run their engine for five minutes. Then try to start your car again. If it still won’t start, your battery may be beyond help.

If the jump works and your car starts, don’t shut off your engine! Drive around for at least 15 minutes to recharge your battery. If the car won’t start the next time you use it, the battery isn’t holding a charge and needs to be replaced.

A Total Beginner’s Guide to Keeping a Journal

April 23, 2022 / Simeon / 0 Comments

I’ve always been bad at journaling. All my childhood diaries include major gaps: In one entry, I’m 8, visiting my aunt. The very next, I’ve experienced puberty and have a crush on Justin, the kid who sits behind me in biology. Today, my journal and I are something like estranged acquaintances, who check in now and then just to keep in touch, without really understanding why. Yep, we say to each other in passing, everything’s good. Hope all is well with you!

And yet I’d like to be the kind of person who keeps a record of her life. It would be nice to relive those moments at some point in the future. Beyond that, there’s also a wealth of evidence to suggest that writing regularly can improve your mental, and even physical, health. In one recent study, for example, people who wrote about a breakup were better able to cope with the heartache; in another, those who wrote down their worries were rewarded with reduced anxiety. “Believe it or not, when study subjects wrote about their problems, it reduced stress, and that helped their bodies recover more quickly from injury,” Eric Barker, author of the new popular psychology book Barking Up the Wrong Tree, told me, citing a study published in the British Journal of Health Psychology.

The benefits of journaling are well documented, but one might be curious about how to journal in the first place. What do you write about? Is your journal supposed to be a simple recap of your day or an essay about your emotions? These seem like painfully obvious questions, but the answers can vary, and figuring out what works for you will make your journaling more effective.

Step 1: Decide What to Write About

To figure this out, you’ll have to answer why you want to keep a journal in the first place. If you’re keeping a journal for a practical purpose — to remember events about your day or at work (work journals can be useful when it comes time to negotiate a raise) — then the answer is simple: Write down the events of your day. And yet to reap the full benefits of journaling, you’ll have to dig deeper than that. Consider a 2005 study, for example, that found that expressive writing — that is, exploring your thoughts and feelings while telling a story — led to emotional and physical health benefits. In the paper, the study’s authors explain that “the whole point is to bring up issues that are emotionally charged.” Here’s one writing prompt from that study:

For the next 4 days, I would like you to write your very deepest thoughts and feelings about the most traumatic experience of your entire life or an extremely important emotional issue that has affected you and your life. In your writing, I’d like you to let go and explore your deepest emotions and thoughts. You might tie your topic to your relationships with others, including parents, lovers, friends, or relatives; to your past, your present, or your future; or to who you have been, who you would like to be, or who you are now. You may write about the same general issues or experiences on all days of writing or about different topics each day.

The researchers told participants not to worry about spelling, grammar, or sentence structure. The only rule they had to follow was to continue writing until the time was up. Thus, if you want to extract the mental and physical health benefits of writing, you’ll want to write expressively.

“Redemptive narratives” might also help get through emotional distress, as suggested in a 2014 study published in the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships. Researchers found that when subjects wrote in “a form of the narrative focused on positive outcomes in negative situations,” they reported a decrease in emotional distress.

Ultimately, to get the full emotional benefit of journaling, it’s best to tell a narrative, not just recap your day, and write through your emotions. Write about a few things that happened during the day and, more importantly, how those events, epiphanies, or interactions made you feel. If you’re trying to journal your way through distress, it may help to focus your writing on positive outcomes as well.

The blank page can be intimidating, though. To get used to the habit, Barker recommends starting small. “Use a technique that Stanford professor BJ Fogg calls ‘minimum viable effort,’” he said. “The important thing with building a habit is being consistent. So start with the absolute minimum amount of work — a ridiculously low amount — so that you have no excuse to not be consistent.” In practice, this might be as simple as writing one sentence a day, then working your way to more. “Just one sentence. There’s no excuse not to do that,” Barker said. “Once you manage a sentence a day for a week, try two sentences. Still incredibly easy. And slowly keep increasing the amount as you strengthen the habit.”

If the idea of recapping the emotions of your day seems like too much, you could even just start a gratitude journal, which is a simple, daily list of things you’re grateful for: a cup of peppermint tea, sunny mornings, comfortable slippers. In Thanks! How the New Science of Gratitude Can Make You Happier, author Robert Emmons, a researcher from the University of California, Davis, said that study participant felt more optimistic and happier about their lives after writing just a few sentences about gratitude each week.

Step 2: Know Your Purpose

Some people prefer to write in the morning; others at night. There’s conflicting research over which time of day is better for creativity, productivity, or emotional well-being, which ultimately means that the best time of day to write is the time that suits your peak hours and the purpose of your journaling. (Also, there’s no reason you can’t write in the middle of the day — on your lunch break, for instance!)

For creativity, many writers and entrepreneurs are a fan of “morning pages,” a concept popularized by author Julia Cameron. Morning pages are three pages of stream-of-consciousness writing, writing first thing in the morning. The idea is to simply write whatever is on your mind, without much thought or planning, so that you can tap into your mind’s creativity before you “wake up” with the day’s anxieties, which can hinder your creative flow.

If the purpose of your journal is to release your nagging thoughts, you might want to write before bed instead, so you can transfer those thoughts out of your head and onto paper. On the other hand, you might find this keeps you up, in which case, you could choose to write in your journal throughout the day when those thoughts begin to itch. Trial and error work, too. Try writing in the morning for a week. If it’s not working for you, switch to another time of day and see if you fare better.

Whatever time of day you choose, keep your journal in an easy-to-reach spot, which should serve as a visual reminder to keep up with your writing. Plus, it’s one less excuse when it’s time to write.

Step 3: Choose a Medium

The next step is to pick a medium that works for you best, whether it’s your computer, an app on your phone, or an old-fashioned pen and paper. Apps and computers are more convenient (and probably what you’re already used to writing with), but there’s some evidence to suggest writing by hand may be a better option.

In 2012 research from Indiana University, psychologist Karin James studied kids who were learning different shapes and letters. “The experiments run like this: we do a pretraining fMRI scan and measure how the children brains respond to letters, shapes, digits, and noise,” James said. “Then we train them either through the ‘see and say’ method, what usually is used in preschool, typing on a keyboard, or hand-printing the letters of the alphabet.”

From there, James and her colleagues conducted another scan, similar to the first, then compared the results. “There are few differences after ‘see and say’ or typing, but after printing, there are large differences in regions of the brain that are later used for reading,” she said.

In other words, the study discovered that children were better able to process letters and read successfully through handwriting. Similar research found that when children wrote by hand, they also wrote faster and were able to express more ideas. This suggests there are cognitive benefits to writing by hand, namely, it may help us process and understand concepts better. So when you’re writing expressively to process your emotions, doing it by hand might be better for actually understanding those emotions. In another study on the emotional benefits of writing, UCLA researcher Matthew D. Lieberman told the Guardian that the calming effects of journaling were more effective when subjects wrote by hand. As one Yale psychologist told the New York Times, “With handwriting, the very act of putting it down forces you to focus on what’s important. Maybe it helps you think better.”

But what matters here is that you’ll keep up the habit. Typing or even using a journaling app on your phone might feel more convenient or comfortable for you, so if that medium fits your lifestyle best and helps you journal regularly, by all means, do what works for you.

Finally, don’t let perfect become the enemy of good. Your journal doesn’t have to be brimming with profound thoughts and experiences, so try to separate your urge to edit from your desire to write. “Your brain does not work in flow mode and edit mode at the same time, so if you’re trying to make the writing good or to edit it as you put it on the page, you will be pinching off the flow at the same time,” said author Tara-Nicholle Nelson, who also hosts her 30-day writing challenge. “Give yourself permission to write poorly.”

“Write bullet point lists, meander, write nonsense and the like, only then will your nervous system realize it is being allowed to truly down-regulate and relax,” said Nelson. “And then you’ll find yourself having all sorts of insights and fun and flow in your daily writing.”

How to Invest in Stocks-Easy to do steps

April 23, 2022 / Simeon / 0 Comments

Investing in stocks is easier than beginners might think — all you need is an online brokerage account to get started.

Investing in stocks: The basics

Investing in stocks means buying shares of ownership in a public company. Those small shares are known as the company’s stock, and by investing in that stock, you’re hoping the company grows and performs well over time. When that happens, your shares may become more valuable, and other investors may be willing to buy them from you for more than you paid for them. That means you could earn a profit if you decide to sell them.

Investing in the stock market is a long game. A good rule of thumb is to have a diversified investment portfolio and stay invested, even when the market has ups and downs. One of the best ways for beginners to get started investing in the stock market is to put money in an online investment account, which can then be used to invest in shares of stock or stock mutual funds.

With many brokerage accounts, you can start investing for the price of a single share. Some brokers also offer paper trading, which lets you learn how to buy and sell with stock market simulators before you invest any real money.

» Don’t have a brokerage account? Learn what it is and how to open one.

How to invest in stocks in six steps

1. Decide how you want to invest in the stock market

There are several ways to approach stock investing. Choose the option below that best represents how you want to invest, and how hands-on you’d like to be in picking and choosing the stocks you invest in.

A. “I’d like to choose stocks and stock funds on my own.” Keep reading; this article breaks down things hands-on investors need to know, including how to choose the right account for your needs and how to compare stock investments.

B. “I’d like an expert to manage the process for me.” You may be a good candidate for a Robo-advisor, a service that offers low-cost investment management. Virtually all of the major brokerage firms and many independent advisors offer these services, which invest your money for you based on your specific goals.

C. “I’d like to start investing in my employer’s 401(k).” This is one of the most common ways for beginners to start investing. In many ways, it teaches new investors some of the most proven investing methods: making small contributions regularly, focusing on the long-term, and taking a hands-off approach. Most 401(k)s offer a limited selection of stock mutual funds, but not access to individual stocks.

Once you have a preference in mind, you’re ready to shop for an account.

2. Choose an investing account

Generally speaking, to invest in stocks, you need an investment account. For the hands-on types, this usually means a brokerage account. For those who would like a little help, opening an account through a robo-advisor is a sensible option. We break down both processes below.

An important point: Both brokers and robo-advisors allow you to open an account with very little money.

The DIY option: Opening a brokerage account

An online brokerage account likely offers your quickest and least expensive path to buying stocks, funds, and a variety of other investments. With a broker, you can open an individual retirement account, also known as an IRA, or you can open a taxable brokerage account if you’re already saving adequately for retirement in an employer 401(k) or another plan.

We have a guide to opening a brokerage account if you need a deep dive. You’ll want to evaluate brokers based on factors such as costs (trading commissions, account fees), investment selection (look for a good selection of commission-free ETFs if you favor funds), and investor research and tools.

The passive option: Opening a robo-advisor account

A robo-advisor offers the benefits of stock investing but doesn’t require its owner to do the legwork required to pick individual investments. Robo-advisor services provide complete investment management: These companies will ask you about your investing goals during the onboarding process and then build you a portfolio designed to achieve those aims.

This may sound expensive, but the management fees here are generally a fraction of the cost of what a human investment manager would charge: Most robo-advisors charge about 0.25% of your account balance. And yes — you can also get an IRA at a robo-advisor if you wish.

As a bonus, if you open an account at a Robo-advisor, you probably needn’t read further in this article — the rest is just for those DIY types.

3. Learn the difference between investing in stocks and funds

Going the DIY route? Don’t worry. Stock investing doesn’t have to be complicated. For most people, stock market investing means choosing among these two investment types:

Stock mutual funds or exchange-traded funds. Mutual funds let you purchase small pieces of many different stocks in a single transaction. Index funds and ETFs are a kind of mutual fund that tracks an index; for example, a Standard & Poor’s 500 fund replicates that index by buying the stock of the companies in it. When you invest in a fund, you also own small pieces of each of those companies. You can put several funds together to build a diversified portfolio. Note that stock mutual funds are also sometimes called equity mutual funds.

Individual stocks. If you’re after a specific company, you can buy a single share or a few shares as a way to dip your toe into the stock-trading waters. Building a diversified portfolio out of many individual stocks is possible, but it takes a significant investment and research. If you go this route, remember that individual stocks will have ups and downs. If you research a company and choose to invest in it, think about why you picked that company in the first place if jitters start to set in on a down day.

The upside of stock mutual funds is that they are inherently diversified, which lessens your risk. For the vast majority of investors — particularly those who are investing their retirement savings — a portfolio made up of most mutual funds is a clear choice.

But mutual funds are unlikely to rise in a meteoric fashion as some individual stocks might. The upside of individual stocks is that a wise pick can pay off handsomely, but the odds that any individual stock will make you rich are exceedingly slim.

4. Set a budget for your stock market investment

New investors often have two questions in this step of the process:

How much money do I need to start investing in stocks? The amount of money you need to buy an individual stock depends on how expensive the shares are. (Share prices can range from just a few dollars to a few thousand dollars.) If you want mutual funds and have a small budget, an exchange-traded fund (ETF) may be your best bet. Mutual funds often have minimums of $1,000 or more, but ETFs trade like a stock, which means you purchase them for a share price — in some cases, less than $100).

How much money should I invest in stocks? If you’re investing through funds — have we mentioned this is the preference of most financial advisors? — you can allocate a fairly large portion of your portfolio toward stock funds, especially if you have a long time horizon. A 30-year-old investing for retirement might have 80% of their portfolio in stock funds; the rest would be in bond funds. Individual stocks are another story. A general rule of thumb is to keep these to a small portion of your investment portfolio.

5. Focus on investing for the long-term

Stock market investments have proven to be one of the best ways to grow long-term wealth. Over several decades, the average stock market return is about 10% per year. However, remember that’s just an average across the entire market — some years will be up, some down and individual stocks will vary in their returns.

For long-term investors, the stock market is a good investment no matter what’s happening day-to-day or year-to-year; it’s that long-term average they’re looking for.

Stock investing is filled with intricate strategies and approaches, yet some of the most successful investors have done little more than stick with stock market basics. That generally means using funds for the bulk of your portfolio — Warren Buffett has famously said a low-cost S&P 500 index fund is the best investment most Americans can make — and choosing individual stocks only if you believe in the company’s potential for long-term growth.

The best thing to do after you start investing in stocks or mutual funds may be the hardest: Don’t look at them. Unless you’re trying to beat the odds and succeed at day trading, it’s good to avoid the habit of compulsively checking how your stocks are doing several times a day, every day.

6. Manage your stock portfolio

While fretting over daily fluctuations won’t do much for your portfolio’s health — or your own — there will of course be times when you’ll need to check in on your stocks or other investments.

If you follow the steps above to buy mutual funds and individual stocks over time, you’ll want to revisit your portfolio a few times a year to make sure it’s still in line with your investment goals.

A few things to consider: If you’re approaching retirement, you may want to move some of your stock investments over to more conservative fixed-income investments. If your portfolio is too heavily weighted in one sector or industry, consider buying stocks or funds in a different sector to build more diversification. Finally, pay attention to geographic diversification, too. Vanguard recommends international stocks make up as much as 40% of the stocks in your portfolio. You can purchase international stock mutual funds to get this exposure.

How to Install PIP on Windows ?

April 23, 2022 / Simeon / 0 Comments

Prerequisite: Python Language Introduction

Before we start with how to install pip for Python on Windows, let’s first go through the basic introduction to Python. Python is a widely-used general-purpose, high-level programming language. Python is a programming language that lets you work quickly and integrate systems more efficiently.

PIP is a package management system used to install and manage software packages/libraries written in Python. These files are stored in a large “online repository” termed as Python Package Index (PyPI).

pip uses PyPI as the default source for packages and their dependencies. So whenever you type:

pip install package_name

pip will look for that package on PyPI and if found, it will download and install the package on your local system.

Download and Install pip:

pip can be downloaded and installed using the command-line by going through the following steps:

Download the get-pip.py file and store it in the same directory as python is installed.
Change the current path of the directory in the command line to the path of the directory where the above file exists.
Run the command given below:
python get-pip.py
and wait through the installation process.
Voila! pip is now installed on your system.

Verification of the installation process:

One can easily verify if the pip has been installed correctly by performing a version check on the same. Just go to the command line and execute the following command:

pip -V

How to Increase Testosterone-8 Proven Ways to Increase Testosterone Levels Naturally

April 23, 2022 / Simeon / 0 Comments

Testosterone is the main male sex hormone, but females also have small amounts of it.

It is a steroid hormone, produced in men’s testicles and women’s ovaries adrenal glands also produce small amounts.

During puberty in boys, testosterone is one of the main drivers of physical changes like increased muscle, deeper voice and hair growth.

However, having optimal levels is also important throughout adulthood and even during old age.

In adults, healthy levels are important for general health, disease risk, body composition, sexual function, and just about everything else Additionally, increasing your testosterone levels can cause rapid gains in muscle mass and vitality in only a matter of weeks Interestingly, it also plays an important role in female health and sexual well-being

The research is pretty conclusive: both genders should ensure they have healthy levels of testosterone, especially as they age

Here are 8 evidence-based ways to increase testosterone levels naturally.

1. Exercise and Lift Weights

Exercise is one of the most effective ways to prevent many lifestyle-related diseases. Interestingly, it can also boost your testosterone.

A large review study found that people who exercised regularly had higher testosterone levels. In the elderly, exercise increases testosterone levels, fitness, and reaction time New research in obese men suggests that increased physical activity was even more beneficial than a weight loss diet for increasing testosterone levels

Resistance training, such as weight lifting, is the best type of exercise to boost testosterone in both the short- and long-term

High-intensity interval training (HIIT) can also be very effective, although all types of exercise should work to some extent Taking caffeine and creatine monohydrates as supplements may further boost your levels when combined with a training program

SUMMARY

All forms of exercise may increase your testosterone levels. Weight lifting and high-intensity interval training are the most effective.

2. Eat Protein, Fat, and Carbs

What you eat has a major impact on testosterone as well as other hormone levels Therefore, you must pay attention to your long-term calorie intake and diet strategy.

Constant dieting or overeating may disrupt your testosterone levels

Eating enough protein can help maintain healthy levels and aid in fat loss, which is also associated with your testosterone

Carb intake also plays a role, with research showing carbs can help optimize testosterone

levels during resistance training

However, research demonstrates that sufficient healthy fats are also beneficial for testosterone and health

A diet based mainly on whole foods is best, with a healthy balance of fat, protein, and carbs. This can optimize both hormone levels and long-term health.

SUMMARY

Don’t overeat and don’t restrict calories too much for too long. Try to eat balanced amounts of carbs, fat, and protein.

3. Minimize Stress and Cortisol Levels

Research is always highlighting the dangers of long-term stress, which can elevate levels of the hormone cortisol

Unnatural elevations in cortisol can quickly reduce testosterone. These hormones work in a seesaw-like manner: as one goes up, the other comes down

Stress and high cortisol can also increase food intake, weight gain, and the storage of harmful body fat around your organs. In turn, these changes may negatively impact your testosterone

levels For both optimal health and hormone levels, you should try to reduce repetitive stressful situations in your life.

Focus on a diet based on whole foods, regular exercise, good sleep, laughter, and a balanced lifestyle, all of which can reduce stress and improve your health and testosterone levels

SUMMARY

High levels of stress are bad for your long-term health and can reduce your testosterone levels.

4. Get Some Sun or Take a Vitamin D Supplement

Vitamin D is quickly becoming one of the world’s most popular vitamins.

Research has shown that it has various health benefits, and may also work as a natural testosterone booster

Despite its importance, nearly half of the US population is deficient in vitamin D, and an even higher percentage has sub-optimal levels

A 12-month study found that supplementing with around 3,000 IU of vitamin D3 per day increased testosterone levels by around 25%

In the elderly, vitamin D and calcium also optimized testosterone levels, which led to a reduced risk of falling To boost testosterone and reap the other benefits of vitamin D, try to get regular exposure to sunlight or take around 3,000 IU of a vitamin D3 supplement daily.

If you’d like to try supplements, Amazon has a good selection available.

Supplements 101: Vitamin D

SUMMARY

Vitamin D3 supplements may boost testosterone levels, especially in the elderly and people who have low blood levels of vitamin D.

5. Take Vitamin and Mineral Supplements

Although the benefits of multivitamins are hotly debated, specific vitamins and minerals may be beneficial

In one study, zinc and vitamin B supplements increased sperm quality by 74%. Zinc also boosts testosterone in athletes and those who are deficient in zinc

Other studies also suggest vitamins A, C, and E can play a role in your sex hormone and testosterone levels, although more research is needed

Out of all the vitamins and minerals available, the research on testosterone shows vitamin D and zinc supplements may be the best

SUMMARY

Vitamin D and zinc have the strongest evidence as testosterone boosters. Other micronutrients may also have benefits but require further research.

6. Get Plenty of Restful, High-Quality Sleep

Getting good sleep is just as important for your health as diet and exercise

It may also have major effects on your testosterone levels.

The ideal amount of sleep varies from person to person, but one study found that sleeping only 5 hours per night was linked to a 15% reduction in testosterone levels

One long-term study observed that those who slept only four hours per night had borderline deficient levels

Although some people seem to do fine with less sleep, research suggests around 7–10 hours of sleep per night is best for long-term health and your testosterone.

SUMMARY

Make sure you get plenty of high-quality sleep to maintain healthy testosterone levels and optimize your long-term health.

7. Take Some of These Natural Testosterone Boosters

Only a few natural testosterone boosters are supported by scientific studies.

The herb with the most research behind it is called ashwagandha.

One study tested the effects of this herb on infertile men and found a 17% increase in testosterone levels and a 167% increase in sperm count

In healthy men, ashwagandha increased levels by 15%. Another study found it lowered cortisol by around 25%, which may also aid testosterone

Ginger extract may also boost your levels. It is a delicious herb that also provides various other health benefits

Most of the research on ginger has been done on animals. However, one study in infertile humans found that ginger can boost testosterone levels by 17% and increase levels of other key sex hormones

Other popular herbs that are supported by some studies in both animals and humans include horny goat weed, Mucuna pruriens, shilajit, and Tongkat ali.

Yet it’s important to note that most of the positive research has been conducted in mice or infertile humans with low testosterone levels.

If you have healthy testosterone function and normal levels, it is unclear whether you will benefit much from these supplements.

SUMMARY

Several herbal supplements are a natural way to boost testosterone for those with infertility or low levels.

8. Follow a Healthy Lifestyle and Avoid Estrogen-like Compounds

Several other factors may affect your hormone levels.

A healthy sex life plays an important role in regulating your sex hormone and testosterone levels

High exposure to estrogen-like chemicals may also affect your levels, so try to minimize daily exposure to BPA, parabens, and other chemicals found in some types of plastic

It’s probably no surprise that excess alcohol or drug use, whether it’s medical or recreational, can also decrease testosterone levels In contrast, laughter, happiness and success may help boost your health and testosterone levels — so make sure they’re a part of your daily life

SUMMARY

Reducing exposure to estrogen-like chemicals, alcohol, and drugs can positively affect your testosterone levels and health.

Why Do Testosterone Levels Matter?

From the age of 25–30, a man’s testosterone levels naturally start to decline.

This is a problem because strong research shows a link between low testosterone and obesity, increased disease risk, and premature death.

Healthy testosterone levels are also important for women, along with other key hormones such as estrogen and progesterone.

Therefore, everyone should take the necessary lifestyle steps to optimize testosterone levels. You will improve your health and body at the same time.

How to Hold Chopsticks: 5 Steps to Use Chopsticks Properly! -Easy to do steps

April 23, 2022 / Simeon / 0 Comments

If you are unfamiliar with how to hold chopsticks properly, getting the hang of them can be tricky. But if you want to fully enjoy Japanese food, holding chopsticks is a skill you’ll want to get acquainted with!

We’ll introduce the easy and proper way how to hold and use chopsticks.

What are Chopsticks?

In Japan, meals are mainly eaten with chopsticks, which are called ‘hashi’ in Japanese. This is particularly true for Japanese cuisine, almost all of which are eaten with just a pair of chopsticks. Chopsticks are not only used when eating rice and side dishes, but also noodles, like soba and udon.

How to Use Chopsticks in Japan!

First, pick up a single chopstick, sandwiching it between your thumb and your index finger, as you would a pen. This is how to hold the upper chopstick. Try to move one of the chopsticks in this state. It is able to move up and down. As for the second chopstick, rest it at the base between the thumb and the index finger, and so that it is touching the side of the ring finger.

Some points to consider:

・Point 1: You should aim to hold the chopsticks about one-third of the way down.

・Point 2: Chopsticks should be naturally supported by the ring finger and the little finger.

・Point 3: Chopsticks should fit snugly.

How to Hold Chopsticks and Move Them

Once you are able to hold both chopsticks, next you can try moving them. The upper chopstick should be supported by the first joint of the middle finger. When held correctly, the tips should be touching together, while the other parts are not in contact.

In this state, move the upper chopstick up and down between the middle and index fingers of the right hand. This time, try not to move the bottom chopstick. If done correctly, the tips of the chopsticks should open and close.

With all that said, here’s an image of the process!

5 Easy Steps for Using Chopsticks

1. Place first chopstick between pointer finger and thumb; balance it on ring finger.

2. Place second chopstick between pointer finger and thumb; rest it on middle finger.

3. Use thumb, pointer and middle fingers to grasp the second chopstick firmly.

4. Index and middle fingers do the lifting.

5. Use index and middle fingers to close chopsticks over food.

The Trick to Moving Chopsticks

When moving the chopsticks, a point to consider is that it is the top chopstick that should be moving, while the bottom should generally be still. If performed properly, you should be able to grasp small objects such as beans or grains of rice one at a time.

Chopstick Etiquette in Japan

There are also a few taboos regarding chopsticks: Don’t rest your chopsticks on the edge of a bowl; this is known as “watashi-bashi.” You should also not use your chopsticks to pull dishes toward you, called “yose-bashi”.

In Japan it is also considered bad manners to pass food from chopstick to chopstick, or leave them stuck into a bowl of rice, as both of these actions are associated with funeral customs. Generally speaking, you should keep chopsticks in a parallel position, and avoid crossing them.