Your favorite wellness habits can work even harder for you with small tweaks, like taking a magnesium supplement an hour before bed, or doing a full-body exercise like squats to strengthen your core. Here’s how you can improve your wellness routine this week.
Magnesium relaxes your body, potentially helping you fall and stay asleep. Outcomes can vary from person to person, but it typically takes a few weeks after you start taking a magnesium supplement to notice any sleep benefits.
If you’re using magnesium consistently, try taking it an hour before bed. That’s how long it takes for your body to absorb magnesium and start to feel relaxed, making it the best time to improve sleep.
Your body gets most of its vitamin D from sunshine, so many people become deficient in the nutrient during the winter. If you’re using a vitamin D supplement to fill the gap, be sure to take it with a meal, especially one that contains fat.
Vitamin D is fat-soluble, which means it needs fat to dissolve and be stored in your body. Foods with healthy fats, like nuts, avocados, and fish, could all be good choices.
The best bread for your blood sugar is made with 100% whole grains, which contain more protein and fiber than options with refined grains, like white bread. These nutrients take longer to digest, leading to a smaller rise in blood sugar.
Just make sure you double-check the ingredient list. The first ingredient should include the word “whole,” such as whole wheat, whole grain, or whole rye. If “refined flour” is the first ingredient, that bread is not truly whole grain.
You don’t have to stick to traditional ab exercises to build a strong core. You can also develop your abs with full-body exercises, like squats. In this move, you have to engage your core to stabilize your body, building functional ab strength that supports everyday movement.
For the perfect form, follow these directions:
- Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart.
- Bend your knees and hips to lower into a squat position, as if you were sitting in a chair. Keep your chest up.
- Stand back up, keeping your core tight and pressing through your heels.
- Perform 2–3 sets of 8–12 repetitions.
Ginger tea contains the compound gingerol, which helps food move through the stomach and digestive tract. When food is digested smoothly, it leads to less bloating and gas. Ginger also eases constipation and reduces gut fermentation, the process of bacteria breaking down carbs, which can cause digestive symptoms in excess.
Just try not to have more than 4 grams of ginger daily. Too much can actually upset your stomach, causing symptoms like heartburn and diarrhea.
