That’s what you might find yourself saying when you step on the scale January 1, especially if media reports are true that the holidays will bloat you up like a certain morbidly obese, gift-giving elf.

According to a 2014 article that reviewed research on weight gain over the holidays, the average gain between Thanksgiving and New Year is only a little over a pound. However, the author went on to say that the range in individual weight changes is large, and that “When the average gain across the year was also measured, the holiday weight was the major contributor to annual excess weight gain.”

Your Holiday Survival Guide: Tips To Stay Lean This Season

Big, decadent meals and missed workouts due to travel and family time can knock you off your game, expand your waistline, and set a bad precedent for the month (and year) to come. But approach the holiday season strategically, and you can keep up with your training, prevent overeating, curb the risk of winter illness, and still have a jolly good time. Stuff these tips into your stocking and you may even be able to give yourself the gift you’ve always wanted: abs.

This is an excerpt from our FREE e-book, Your Holiday Survival Guide, which offers even more tips for fighting off fat and staying healthy.

#1 Avoid the aisle seat.

If you’re flying to see relatives, forgo the extra legroom and try to sit by the window. A study in Clinical Infectious Diseases found that plane passengers who sat on the aisle were more likely to get sick, even on a short-duration flight. Scientists think it’s because they were exposed to more people in the cabin as the passengers boarded and walked around.

#2 Eat more cheese.

Seriously. According to Dom D’Agostino, Ph.D., an associate professor at the University of South Florida and one of the world’s top experts on low-carb and ketogenic diets (ketonutrition.org), cheese platters are often the best hors d’oeuvre option at a holiday party. “They sometimes offer a variety of nuts and meats as well,” says D’Agostino. “Eating low carb helps control your appetite because fats and proteins tend to be more satiating and typically don’t lend themselves to overeating.”

Fibrous vegetables are another good choice, so load up on veggie platters that offer broccoli, cauliflower, cucumber, and celery. “The combination of fat, protein, and fiber will prolong gastric emptying,” says D’Agostino (i.e., the rate at which your stomach processes food). “It keeps you satiated and prevents a spike in blood glucose,” which leads to energy crashes and fat storage.

You don’t have to crunch down your veggies dry, either. “Most veggie dip has a mayo and/or sour cream base,” says D’Agostino, “so it’s usually a very keto option.”

#3 Avoid bread, crackers, cake, cookies, and rolls.

Processed foods made with refined grains and sugars spike blood glucose, creating an insulin response in the body that promotes fat gain. If you’re not sure which foods are “bad carbs,” D’Agostino recommends sticking with whole foods to keep it simple. Before you eat, ask yourself if your food ever walked, crawled, swam, flew, or grew in the ground when it was alive. If it’s close to how it looked in its glory days, it’s probably OK to eat. Bread, crackers, and other grain-based products don’t exist in nature.

“You can’t go wrong with meats and vegetables,” says D’Agostino. “Just watch out for condiments that might contain sugars or flour,” such as ketchup, and barbecue and Hoisin sauce.

#4 Swap out carbs for veggies.

When cooking for yourself, you can easily replace starchy carbs with vegetables in a number of instances. Make spaghetti squash in place of pasta (shredding it with a fork makes noodles). Cauliflower is highly diverse, and can be boiled down to make faux mashed potatoes, or pulverized in a food processor to form rice or low-carb flour for pizza crusts. It contains only five grams carbs per cup.

#5 Take the smallest serving size.

Research shows that the size of the portions you serve yourself greatly influences how much food you ultimately take in, and that overeating at one meal doesn’t cause you to eat less at your next one to compensate (as some people assume).

A study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition had subjects eat macaroni and cheese for lunch one day a week for a month. They were given one of four different portion sizes to consume every time, but told that they could have as many servings as they liked. Ultimately, the people consumed 30% more calories when served the largest portion than they did with the smallest one, showing that the more food they were presented with, the more they ate.

The take home: if you serve yourself less, you’ll eat less overall. So, whenever possible, eat the smallest serving size available to you, be it one slice of pizza, a single brownie square, a paper cup of holiday punch, etc. You can go back for more if you’re still hungry or thirsty, but odds are you’ll eat less overall than if you filled your plate every time.

#6 Eat more slowly.

A landmark study from the University of Rhode Island had women eat lunch on two different occasions. In one instance, they instructed them to eat as quickly as possible. In the other, they were told to chew their food slowly and put down their utensils between bites. When eating slowly, the subjects ate less and consumed fewer calories. Nevertheless, they actually reported feeling less hungry an hour later.

The stomach needs time to signal your brain that you’re getting full. Plus, the women in the study also chose to drink more water during their slow-eating meal, which further promoted satiety.

#7 Don’t eat mindlessly.

The times we tend to overeat the most are when we’re distracted—by conversation, television shows, games of pool with Uncle Ted, etc. Research shows that simply paying more attention to your food when you eat can help you avoid taking in too much, so try to keep snacks out of reach when your mind is elsewhere.

#8 Pre-game with protein.

Protein promotes satiety, so chugging a shake before a big meal will help prevent you from gorging. But here’s the thing: the drink needs to look creamy, like a real milkshake.

A study in the British Journal of Nutrition found that the thickness and creaminess of a protein drink heightens your perception of its protein content, which helps promote the sensation of fullness even further. In other words, those fruit-flavored, clear protein drinks won’t work as well.

#9 Add greens to your smoothie.

If you already regularly make protein smoothies with fruit and healthy fats (such as the popular banana and nut butter combo), add a cup of fresh or frozen spinach to the blender. You won’t taste the greens at all, but they’ll bulk up the drink with fiber, helping you control your appetite further (not to mention add health-boosting nutrition).

#10 Drink wine or hard liquor.

If you must drink at all, that is. Dry white or red wines are low in sugar. “White Girl Rosé,” not so much. “Dry Farm Wines offers fantastic low-sugar wine options,” says D’Agostino, “which can even be enjoyed if you’re on a ketogenic diet.” Liquors such as whiskey and vodka by themselves don’t have many calories, but watch out for mixers. If you want a soda or energy drink to stir into it, make sure it’s sugar-free.

Most beers are high in carbs, but lighter beers can have less. “Check the labels first,” says D’Agostino. “A lot of lighter beers provide the nutrition facts.” To avoid doing too much damage, D’Agostino recommends stopping your drinking at the first sign of a buzz. That’s a good way to get the best of both worlds—the relaxed feeling you want from alcohol without putting excessive stress on your system.

Get all 25 tips in our Holiday Survival Guide!

The post Your Holiday Survival Guide: Tips To Stay Lean This Season appeared first on Onnit Academy.

Makes: 8 popsicles of each flavor
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Freeze time: 5-6 hours
Difficulty: Easy

Summer is here! That means sunshine, pool parties, and lots of sweating. While the first two are exciting, sweat isn’t exactly the most enjoyable thing our bodies produce. We can’t do a whole lot to control your pit stains and mustache bubbles, but we can help you rehydrate afterward. What follows are two recipes—one for kids, and one for their parents only—that help hydration while also providing a tasty, health-conscious dessert or snack.

Coconut Water Is The Key

All-natural coconut water in combination with sodium is one of the best methods of hydration. In 2002, researchers compared plain water, coconut water, and a standard sports drink to determine the best post-exercise rehydration fluid. While all three showed comparable markers of hydration, the athletes were able to drink more coconut water, while the sports drink and water caused upset stomach or a feeling of fullness.

Coconut water is specifically high in potassium, among other trace minerals. The addition of Himalayan salt makes up for the lower content of sodium in coconut water, and provides 84 trace minerals for electrolyte and fluid balance on those hot summer days.

Kid-Friendly Homemade Popsicles

Ingredients

● 28-34 oz. all-natural or fresh young coconut water*
● Fresh berries**
● Himalayan salt

*Look at the ingredient label to make sure it only reads “coconut water” or “pure, virgin coconut water.” You want to avoid anything that says “from concentrate” or any additional sugars or preservatives added. We love Harvest Bay’s All-Natural Coconut Water.

**Feel free to use any fresh, in-season berries of choice. We used fresh, organic raspberries, blueberries, strawberries, and blackberries.

Directions

1. If using strawberries, slice into small pieces to fit in the popsicle molds. Add the berries to fill each mold to the top. This is a fun activity for the kids to do! If the blackberries are too big, just slice those up too. I like to alternate berries to display a stacked variety of colors once it freezes up.

2. Then add the coconut water to fill to the top. Add a tiny pinch of Himalayan salt. Insert a popsicle stick, and freeze for 5-6 hours.

3. When ready to eat, run under warm water for about a minute until it easily pops out.

Adult-Friendly Strawberry Rosé Homemade Popsicles

These pops will make you feel like a kid again, but they contain wine, so they’re for adults only.

Adult-Friendly Homemade Popsicles

Ingredients

● Rosé wine
● Fresh, organic strawberries, stems removed
● Seltzer water*

*We used LaCroix naturally-flavored seltzer water, but any unsweetened seltzer will work here.

Directions

1. In a blender, add 2 cups of rosé wine and 6 fresh strawberries. Blend until combined. There will likely be small strawberry particles remaining, but that’s ok. It looks great frozen.

2. Slice up a few strawberries into a size that will fit your popsicle molds. Add strawberry slices to the tops of each mold (you can add blueberries and raspberries too for more color).

3. Fill ¾ of the mold with the rosé-strawberry mixture. Top the rest off with the seltzer water. Leave a little room for these pops to expand slightly when frozen.

3. Cover with tops, and freeze for 5-6 hours.

The post Homemade Popsicles Perfect for July 4th appeared first on Onnit Academy.

Summary

– Adaptogenic supplements are derived from plants and help the body handle stress.

– Adaptogens put your body in recovery mode, so it can restore itself before another bout of the fight or flight response.

– Adaptogenic supplements include turmeric, ashwagandha, rhodiola, cordyceps, and ginseng.

The Total Guide To Adaptogenic Supplements and Herbs

Whether it comes as the result of a busy week at the office or a grueling workout in the gym, stress is the body’s response to a demanding or threatening situation. When your brain senses you’re in any kind of danger, the body’s defense mechanisms activate the fight or flight response.

This is your body’s survival instinct kicking in to protect you, honed from years of evolution. It’s designed to clear your mind, boost your energy, and enhance your focus, so that you can figure out how to overcome the problem you’re faced with, or escape from it intact. In essence, stress is actually a good thing, since it can save your life.

These days, we don’t encounter saber-toothed tigers or hostile cavemen to fight or flee from, as our ancestors did. And while the stresses of work, family commitments, traffic, etc., may be minor compared to what humans dealt with a few thousand years ago, they’re much more constant, and regular or even chronic stress is a bad thing. It keeps the body in fight or flight longer than it was ever intended to be, and forcing it to work at this revved-up pace long term can seriously damage our health, mood, and quality of life over time.

Nature has an answer, however. Just as it can bring us stress, it also provides nutrition in the form of adaptogenic compounds. Drawn from plants, these compounds can help ease us out of that fight or flight state so that our bodies—and minds—can recover and restore themselves.

What Are Adaptogens?

Adaptogens are compounds extracted from non-toxic plants that help regulate the body’s stress response. They can come from herbs, mushrooms, and roots, and many have been used for centuries in Ayurvedic and Chinese medicine.

Scientists think adaptogens work by acting on the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis—the interaction between the brain and adrenal glands—and the sympathoadrenal system—the part of the nervous system that helps control the body’s stress response. According to an article in the journal Pharmaceuticals, adaptogens may help boost attention and endurance in situations where fatigue and/or sensation of weakness might decrease performance. They may also help the body resist stress-induced impairments of the neuroendocrine and immune systems.

Some research suggests that adaptogens may benefit those with age-related disorders and cardiovascular problems. The authors of the aforementioned article wrote, “Thus, elderly people may be able to maintain their health status on a normal level, improve their quality of life and may increase longevity.” Doctors also believe that adaptogens could help support standard therapies used to aid patients fighting a range of health issues.

What Are Adaptogens Used For?

The short answer: help the body deal with stress. The most accurate answer, however, is that adaptogens are used to help the body maintain the resistance phase of general adaptation syndrome for longer, helping to fend off the exhaustion phase.

So what does that mean, exactly?

When we’re faced with a stressor (any source of mental or physical stress), our bodies handle it through a process called general adaptation syndrome (GAS). This process consists of three phases: alarm, resistance, and exhaustion.

The alarm stage is the fight-or-flight reaction described above. Something worrisome appears, so your heart rate goes up, adrenaline pumps, and the hormone cortisol is released. These changes make you feel alert and energized so you can protect yourself from whatever is threatening you.

The resistance stage is what happens right after you fight off the tiger, take your exam, or finish your workout. Your body begins to recover from the trauma of the event, returning your blood pressure to normal and trickling off the cortisol release. If the source of your stress is completely gone, then your body will return itself to its pre-stress state. However, if stress lingers long term and you remain on alert, your body will try to adapt to this condition, recognizing it as the new normal. In other words, you learn to live with stress. This is acceptable, to a degree, but if your body continues on this border between alarm and resistance for a while, without time for proper recovery, stress will overtake the body and you’ll enter Stage 3 of GAS—exhaustion.

The exhaustion phase is exactly what it sounds like. You can feel tired and anxious, suffer from a poor mood, and be more susceptible to illness due to a compromised immune system. At any rate, if you find yourself in exhaustion, you need rest, or you’ll see a serious decline in health and performance.

Adaptogens help keep you in the resistance phase of GAS longer, so your body has time to recharge itself before any major damage is done. In this respect, adaptogens are thought to have a stimulatory effect, revving up the recovery process that supports healthy stress hormone levels.

Nevertheless, people tend to respond to different adaptogens very individually. One compound may not have the same effect on you as it did for a friend who told you about it. For this reason, if you choose to experiment with adaptogens, do so one at a time to determine the exact effect each has on you.

Why Take Adaptogenic Supplements?

Studies suggest adaptogens may possess neuro-, mood-, and energy-boosting benefits. They may help to regulate cortisol and support athletic performance.

Supplements containing adaptogens can come in the form of capsules, tablets, tinctures, and powders to be mixed with water or sprinkled on food. While most adaptogens are considered safe, it is recommended to talk to a healthcare professional before adding adaptogens to your diet. Some common herbal supplements may interact with certain medications while others may cause mild allergic reactions or some digestive discomfort—so take precautions.

“Adaptogens are great for helping to regulate the stress response,” says Shannon Ehrhardt, RD, CSSD, an EXOS Performance Dietitian. “However, they may not be for everyone. Just like anything else out there. Those who should be especially cautious are people with autoimmune disorders or anyone taking any sort of immunosuppressant. Adaptogens could cause the immune system to become more active. That’s a good thing for generally healthy people, but may create complications for those whose immune systems already aren’t working properly.”

What Natural Herbs Are Adaptogens?

While adaptogens on the whole may help us handle stress better, each has its own list of benefits. There are five adaptogens you should know. 

#1 Turmeric

Turmeric is a plant in the ginger family, most famous for its use in Indian curries. It gets its stress-managing support from its curcumin content. A review in the journal Foods determined that curcumin aids in regulating inflammatory responses, which may help with exercise recovery, including muscle soreness. Curcumin may then assist with recovery and performance in active people. Furthermore, the researchers stated, “a relatively low dose of the complex can provide health benefits for people that do not have diagnosed health conditions.” In other words, turmeric may make for an ideal supplement for just about anyone.

It’s important to note however, that curcumin alone may not be very helpful, due to its poor bioavailability. To increase its absorption and effectiveness, look for a product that includes black pepper extract—piperine. This can increase bioavailability, the researchers explain, by 2000%, as it inhibits enzymes that break down curcumin in the body. “Curcumin is also fat soluble,” says Ehrhardt, “so combining it with lipids will help absorption even more.” Curcumin is available in products that also contain various oils and fats.

#2 Ashwagandha

An herb popular in India, ashwagandha appears to be one of the most powerful and diverse adaptogens, offering both health and performance benefits.

A study in the Indian Journal of Psychological Medicine found that ashwagandha supplementation helped boost subjects’ resistance to stress, thereby improving self-assessed quality of life. In another study on chronically stressed adults, ashwagandha users experienced significant reductions in cortisol—the stress hormone that spikes the fight-or-flight response. Those who took the highest doses of ashwaghanda had the greatest reductions in cortisol—30% on average.

On the performance side, ashwaghanda was shown to benefit aerobic endurance, and also strength performance, as well as muscle mass. Finally, a 2014 trial showed that ashwagandha aided reaction time and performance on cognitive and psychomotor tasks.

#3 Rhodiola

A flowering plant grown in arctic regions, rhodiola has been studied with respect to its effects on stress, fatigue, athletic performance, and energy. A trial in Phytotherapy Research found that just four weeks of rhodiola intake helped with life-stress symptoms (although the subjects were not blinded—that is, they knew they were taking rhodiola). Another study showed it helped boost participants’ time to exhaustion by 24 seconds on endurance exercise.

#4 Cordyceps

Traditional Chinese medicine used this hybrid fungus for a variety of functions, but it’s mainly seen today as a performance-boosting supplement. Cordyceps is rich in adenosine, a component of ATP, which is the energy source the body uses for all its movements. For this reason, cordyceps is thought to aid ATP production, thereby promoting endurance performance.

A study in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine showed that cordyceps supplementation helped boost metabolic thresholds (a marker of aerobic performance) in older people. Meanwhile, a 2017 study found that cordyceps militaris—a synthetic form of cordyceps—as part of a mushroom blend aided performance with respect to time to exhaustion during exercise, and VO2 max.

Read more about cordyceps in our complete guide HERE. 

Cordyceps pairs well with other adaptogens such as ashwagandha, rhodiola, and astragalus, helping to promote daily energy and exercise performance. This combination appears in the pre-workout supplement Shroom Tech® SPORT, and the daily support formula Total Human. (Read this author’s review of Total Human® on his website, HERE.)

“Shroom Tech® SPORT is one of my favorite products to use with athletes’ nutrition programs,” says Ehrhardt. “It gives them support from the beginning of the workout through to the recovery phase. They don’t seem to get as exhausted and they can recover a little more quickly—not only during the workout but also for the next session.” 

#5 Ginseng

This root is hugely famous in Chinese medicine for its ability to fight inflammatory responses and to help boost immune and cognitive function, due mostly to the compounds ginensosides and gintonin.

A Korean study had subjects take ginseng or a placebo a week prior to exercise and four days afterward. Seventy-two hours after the workout, the ginseng users had significantly lower markers of muscle damage. Meanwhile, a 2014 study demonstrated a boost in cellular health when women took ginseng for 12 weeks.

A trial in Human Psychopharmacology concluded that ginseng helped subjects with feelings of calm, and assisted in their ability to think through math problems—within only eight days of usage. (You might want to keep this in mind if you’ve got an algebra test coming up…)

The post The Total Guide to Adaptogenic Supplements and Herbs appeared first on Onnit Academy.

What’s the best thing to do when you’re feeling overwhelmed, angry, or depressed? While booze, drugs, or finding the source of your frustration and breaking its nose might be the first thoughts that spring to mind, you’re more likely to get relief by taking a walk outside accompanied by a few deep breaths.

Forest Bathing: Bust Stress and Boost Your Health by Reconnecting With Nature

Communing with nature is the oldest form of stress management known to humankind, and yet only recently has science begun to really study it. Forest bathing, a Japanese term for bonding with the outdoors for health-boosting purposes, is now being seen as a legitimate form of therapy for tightly-wound people cracking under the pressures of living in the modern world. Even if the nearest jungle to you is a concrete one, there are ways to reap the benefits of being in nature that can add years to your life—or maybe even save it outright.

What Is Forest Bathing?

The expression “forest bathing” comes from a Japanese term coined as recently as the 1980s. “Shinrin-yoku” translates to “forest therapy,” or, “the medicine of being in the forest.”

Of course, appreciating the tranquility of woodsy surroundings dates back much farther than Pac-Man and Flock of Seagulls hairstyles. For as long as people have been living in the cramped conditions of cities, they’ve been looking for reasons to escape them. Nineteenth-century philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche often strolled in nature for more than four hours a day, and he credited the habit with allowing him to conceive his world-changing theories. Nature-loving has been a common trait among other big thinkers too, including psychoanalyst Carl Jung, Albert Einstein, and Aristotle, who taught his students while walking through the wooded hills of ancient Greece.

But it wasn’t until the 80s that famed biologist/naturalist E.O. Wilson started writing about “biophilia”—the concept that humans evolved from nature and so have a deep longing to maintain connection to it. The clamor of urban life, Wilson hypothesized, was getting in the way of us satisfying this primal instinct, and many city dwellers rarely, if ever, spend any substantial length of time in natural settings.

Half a world away from Wilson’s office in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Japanese researchers were coming to similar conclusions, leading to the government making shinrin-yoku part of its national healthcare plan. While two-thirds of the country is covered in trees, the explosive growth of major cities like Tokyo and Kyoto, and widespread rural-to-urban migration, meant that many Japanese people were losing their connection to the agrarian settings their families had thrived in for centuries.

In his aptly titled book, Forest Bathing, Qing Li, a medical doctor at Tokyo’s Nippon Medical School and chairman of the Japanese Society for Forest Medicine, reveals that the Japanese capital is now the world’s most crowded city, with 13.5 million people and 6,158 people per square kilometer (for some perspective, London has 1,500 people per square km, New York 1,800, and Paris 2,844). Not surprisingly, such population density makes it hard for residents to find peace and quiet. The subways are so jam-packed during rush hour that white-gloved oshiya (professional “pushers”) have to shove commuters into over-crowded carriages. And yet, Li writes that he is able to seek solace in the midst of the mayhem by retreating to tree-lined parks to take a daily walk. “This is not exercise, or hiking, or jogging,” he explains. “It is simply being in nature—connecting with it through our sense of sight, hearing, taste, smell, and touch.”

Benefits of Forest Bathing

Philosophically, all people can agree that being active in nature is good for us, but this isn’t merely an assumption anymore. There’s an emerging and growing body of evidence to support the notion, and Dr. Li and his fellow researchers at Nippon Medical School are leading the charge on forest bathing research.

Helps Fight Cancer

NK cells are like the Navy SEALs of the immune system. (NK stands for natural killer.) They play an important role in defending the body against bacteria, viruses, and tumors. NK cells are called into action any time the body senses out of control cell division or virus mutation.

Li published a review on the subject of forest bathing and its immune-boosting properties in 2010. In the experiments, adult Japanese men and women took trips into a forest for three days and two nights. Afterward, activity in the NK cells was found to be up by 50%, and the number of NK cells also grew by 53.2%. The stress reduction that comes from being outside may be one reason why, but trees themselves may be another. Phytoncides are antimicrobial compounds emitted by plants that help them fight off insects and germs. “Phytoncides released from trees, such as α-pinene, and limonene, have a big effect,” says Li. The NK-cell impact of the three-day excursions was shown to last for 30 days afterward.

Calms Your Nerves

To say that “everyone” is stressed out these days is no understatement. According to a 2018 report from the American Psychological Association, 91% of Americans between the ages of 18 and 21 say they’ve experienced some health problem due to stress in the past month—compared to 74% of adults overall. (Consider that most of these young adults, nicknamed Generation Z, don’t even have full-time jobs or families of their own yet—it’s only going to get harder!)

Needless to say, chronic stress is harmful. Prolonged exposure to stressors keeps us stuck in fight-or-flight—that alert but anxious state of mind that indicates the sympathetic nervous system is in control. “Forest bathing can increase the activity of the parasympathetic nervous system,” says Li, the rest-and-digest counterpart to fight-or-flight, “and reduce the activity of sympathetic response. It can restore autonomic nervous system balance and deliver relaxation effects by reducing levels of stress hormones such as adrenaline, noradrenaline, and cortisol.”

Li isn’t the only one to come to this conclusion. Another team of Japanese scientists published a study in Public Health that found forest bathing significantly reduced feelings of depression and hostility. The more down or angry people were, the greater the benefits of going into the woods. Then there’s a gigantic 2018 meta-analysis published in Environmental Research. It evaluated 143 studies tracking an incredible 290 million people from 20 different countries. The results not only corroborated what Dr. Li says about forest bathing and stress, but also demonstrated that it reduces blood pressure, lowers the risk of heart disease, and is correlated with more than 100 positive health outcomes.

What If I Don’t Have A Forest?

Most of the research on forest bathing had subjects camp out in the wilderness for a few days, but, unless you happen to live at the foot of a nature trail, this may not be a likely option for you. Fortunately, studies have also shown that shorter exposures to the great outdoors can yield significant benefits. A 2015 study from the University of Melbourne found that subjects who only looked out a window at a natural scene for a mere 40 seconds increased their focus and alertness.

And thanks to modern science, there are ways to take the woods with you wherever you go. One of Li’s studies looked at how tree-derived essential oils impact NK cells. Although it was an in-vitro experiment (done in a petri dish rather than a live human), the NK cells still increased in number and activity level when incubated with the oils. And just as with longer forest bathing exposures, the oils elevated the amount of disease-fighting proteins perforin, granzyme A, and granulysin in the cells. How? Most likely the powerful phytoncides contained in tree bark and its extracts that the oils were made from.

While nobody is suggesting you inject oils into your veins, you might do well to put a few drops of cedar, cypress, pine, or any other tree-based essential oil in water, or a carrier oil, and fire up a diffuser for a few minutes in the evening, or just take a few deep sniffs from an essential oil bottle. This might be particularly beneficial when your immune system is taxed by travel, or you feel like you’re coming down with a cold. As most oil bottles are only one ounce in volume, they’ll fit nicely in your suitcase. In his book, Dr. Li suggests inhaling tree-derived oils through a salt pipe inhaler, or putting three drops in a bowl of boiling water, covering your head with a towel, and breathing deeply through your nose. “Steam inhalation of essential oils is a very direct method of aromatherapy,” Li writes, “and gets the phytoncides deep into your body.”

Chances are, even if you live in a big city, you have more options for enjoying the outdoors than you realize, as well as people to enjoy it with. You can make new connections through a group like Walk2Connect, an online community of avid walkers that coordinates people all over Colorado (your town probably has something similar; Google it). If you’re in the Big Apple, look into the New York Ramblers, while San Francisco has the Forest Bathing Club.

How To Become A Forest Bather

Most aspects of improving health, such as eating better and adopting an exercise program, are never quite as simple as they seem. You have to figure out what the best foods are for your body, learn exercise technique, schedule meals and workouts, and so on. Forest bathing, however, really is as simple as it seems: all you need to do is go outside to somewhere peaceful and pay attention to your surroundings.

That last point, however, is crucial. According to Dr. Li, if you let technology interrupt your experience, you won’t get the most out of it. Leave your cell phone at home, or at least switch the bloody thing off for once and stash it in a pocket or deep in a backpack. “Looking at your phone will diminish the benefits of forest bathing,” Li says. “Whereas if you don’t bring your technology, you will soon forget about screens.” Afraid that you’ll get lost in the woods, and that no phone will mean you can’t call for help? Plot your route in advance and tell friends where you’re planning to go. If on the off chance you do wind up in the middle of nowhere and can’t find your way back, the rest of the world will know where to come looking for you.

Apart from your phone, eliminate anything else that you’d find distracting or that would prevent you from fully engaging in your surroundings. This includes any fitness trackers you might use. Forest bathing isn’t about accruing more steps, staying in a certain heart rate zone, or trying to make a workout of the experience in any way, shape, or form. It’s about simply being, and it should feel relaxing.

If you have trouble tuning into nature, start thinking about what you’re seeing, hearing, and feeling around you—the rustling leaves in the trees above, the crunch of snow beneath your feet, the burbling of a nearby stream.

11 Rules For Better Forest Bathing

To make the most of your forest bathing experience, follow these 10 guidelines from Dr. Li.

1. Make a plan of where you’ll walk and how far based on your own physical abilities. Avoid taking on anything that will tire you out. Remember, this is not a workout.

2. If you have an entire day to do it, stay in the forest for about four hours and walk about five kilometers (or a little more than three miles). If you have just a half-day, stay in the forest for around two hours and walk approximately 2.5 kilometers (1.5 miles). Whatever length walk you do, take it slowly. (By “forest,” we mean that any rustic area will do, whether it’s a park in the center of a crowded city, or your carefully manicured backyard, if that’s all you have access to.)

3. Take a rest whenever you’re tired.

4. Drink water or tea whenever you feel thirsty.

5. If you find a comfortable spot, sit there for a bit and enjoy the scenery. You can even read if you like (paper books don’t count as a distraction; e-readers do).

6. If possible, bathe in a hot spring after the forest trip. These monkeys seemed to enjoy it. Seriously!

7. If you’re going to take a long trip to a remote area, let people know where you’re going in advance, and when they can expect you back.

8. If you’re going to camp overnight, go with friends and bring the necessary camping and wilderness survival equipment. Don’t take on potentially dangerous adventures on a whim.

9. If you want to boost your immunity (natural killer cell activity), a three-day/two-night trip is recommended.

10. If you just want to relax and relieve stress, a day trip to a forested park near your home is enough.

11. Forest bathing is a preventive measure, so don’t expect it to cure you of any conditions you already have. If you have allergies to plants you might find in a woodsy area, take every precaution, and speak with your doctor before making any prolonged trips.

5 Ways To Appreciate Nature

Li says that if you’re not used to spending focused time in nature without technology on hand, it can be difficult initially to truly embrace it. He offers this checklist of ways to tune all five of your senses into what you’re experiencing.

1. Sense of sight. Actively look for the greens, yellows, oranges, and reds in plant and tree leaves.

2. Sense of smell. When you come upon a fragrant flower, take a moment to smell it and think about how it makes you feel.

3. Sense of hearing. Listen to the forest sounds and bird songs. Most birds chirp between 2,500 and 3,500 hertz, which is smack dab in the middle range of human hearing. This is why it can seem like music to us.

4. Sense of touch. Touch the trees and walk barefoot for some stretches (when safe, obviously). Research from 2015 indicates that “grounding”—direct skin contact with the surface of the earth—can help balance the body’s inflammatory responses and reduce pain.

5. Sense of taste. If you come across fruits, nuts, or seeds that are safe, indulge in them (but it’s best to rinse them first).

For more tips on stress management and improving mindfulness, see Onnit founder Aubrey Marcus’ book, Own The Day, Own Your Life.  

The post Forest Bathing: Bust Stress and Boost Your Health by Reconnecting With Nature appeared first on Onnit Academy.

It seems like gaining weight during the holiday season is a national pastime. Year after year, most of us pack on at least a pound (some gain more) during the holidays – and keep the extra weight permanently.

Check out these tips for a fit and healthy holiday – without sacrificing flavor or fun. Enjoy the holiday feast without the guilt – or the weight gain. After all, being stuffed is a good idea only if you are a chicken inside a duck inside a turkey!

Workout Before and After the Feast

Create a calorie deficit by exercising to burn off extra calories before you dive into your favorite foods. Take a walk or do a quick kettlebell workout early in the day and then again after dinner. It’s a wonderful way for your family to get physical activity and enjoy the holiday together.

You could also plan some outdoor fun before dinner, like the traditional game of football with the kids. Instead of feeling bloated and lethargic and lonely, try doing a workout the next morning.

Eat Breakfast Before the Big One

While fasting until the big meal might make sense to save up calories, experts say eating a small meal in the morning can give you more control over your appetite. Start your day with a small breakfast – such as an egg with a half of a sweet potato.

Ditch the Empty Calories

Whether you are hosting Thanksgiving dinner or bringing a few dishes to share, make your recipes healthier with less sugar and calories.

There are plenty of ways to make Thanksgiving far healthier. For mashed potatoes,  try mixing in chicken broth, coconut oil, herbs or roasted garlic to perk up the flavor instead of adding in butter or heavy cream.

For green bean casserole, swap out fried onions with toasted almonds for a less-oily alternative, and instead of having cranberry sauce, make a cranberry salad instead.

For dips, use Greek yogurt instead of sour cream. The consistency is similar, but yogurt has more protein.

Be an Adult and Practice Self-Restraint

Thanksgiving tables are beautiful displays of traditional family favorites which are always abundant. Before you fill your plate and start gorging, survey the buffet table and decide what you’re going to choose.

Try to select reasonable-sized portions of foods you cannot live without.

Don’t waste your calories on foods that you can have all year long. Fill your plate with small portions of holiday favorites that only come around once a year so you can enjoy desirable, traditional foods.

If you fill up on those lower caloric density and higher nutrition foods, you’re going to feel full, but not bloated and tired.  It’s a holiday, so indulge a bit if your diet allows it.

But if you’re going to eat dessert, make sure you allot for the calories elsewhere. Don’t go back for that second helping of marshmallow sweet potatoes, and instead spoon some cranberry salad on your plate.

Slow Down and Skip the Seconds

Try to resist the temptation to go back for second helpings. Leftovers are much better the next day, and if you limit yourself to one plate, you are less likely to overeat and have more room for a delectable dessert.

Try going for white turkey meat, vegetables, roasted sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, and pumpkin pie. Those tend tend to be the best bets because they are lower in calories. But if you keep your portions small, you can enjoy whatever you like.

Instead of seeing how much you can eat, serve yourself a small, golf-ball-size serving of everything you want – no restrictions – but have only enough to satisfy your stomach without overdoing it.

Savor Every Bite of Turkey Goodness

Eating slowly, putting your fork down between bites, and tasting each mouthful is one of the easiest ways to enjoy your holiday meal without going overboard on calories.

Go Easy on the Booze, You Lush

Don’t forget those alcohol calories that can add up quickly. Have a glass of wine or a wine spritzer and between alcoholic drinks, (or) enjoy sparkling water. This way you stay hydrated, limit alcohol calories, and stay sober.

Be Realistic

The holiday season is a time for celebration. With busy schedules and so many extra temptations, this is a good time to strive for weight maintenance instead of weight loss.

Shift from a mindset of weight loss to weight maintenance. You will be ahead of the game if you can avoid gaining any weight over the holidays.

Focus on the People Not the Food

Thanksgiving is not just about gorging on delicious bounty of food. It’s a time to celebrate relationships with family and friends.

Rather than obsess over the food at Thanksgiving, focus your attention on the entire celebration, including the once-a-year sights, sounds, and people at the event.

Instead of sampling each and every appetizer before dinner, walk around and catch up with family and friends.

The post 9 Tips To Avoid Thanksgiving Weight Gain appeared first on Onnit Academy.

We investigated the Reiki phenomenon to determine what’s fact, and what’s wack.

What is Reiki Meditation?

Pronounced “ray key,” the term Reiki is a combination of the Japanese words rei, meaning spirit, divine, or mysterious, and ki, the word for one’s vital energy, consciousness, or, as the Japanese say, “breath of life.” Similar to Chinese acupuncture, the premise behind Reiki is that if your ki levels are low or blocked, you’re more susceptible to stress and illness. A Reiki practitioner will lay his or her hands on areas of your body that need a ki adjustment, and that supposedly reduces stress and promotes relaxation and healing. That’s right: they touch you and you feel better. Reiki treatments are called meditations.

Reiki practitioners don’t recommend Reiki as a replacement for Western medicine practices—especially for those diagnosed with serious conditions—but claim it serves as a useful adjunct to more conventional therapies. Anyone can learn Reiki, as it’s not really a skill that’s taught, but rather an ability that’s passed on via a transfer called an “attunement,” in which a Reiki master allows his/her student to access ki.

Still with us? It gets weirder…

What are the 5 Principles of Reiki?

While Reiki is a spiritual practice, it doesn’t come with a particular religion or well-defined dogma. Practitioners say you don’t even need to believe in it for it to work. However, like other Eastern philosophies, Reiki does encourage being a good person and living in harmony with your surroundings.

To ensure that Reiki meditations have a lasting effect, practitioners insist that clients live by five principles. Boiled down and translated, they are:

1. Don’t get angry

2. Don’t worry

3. Be grateful

4. Work hard

5. Be kind to others

Where Does Reiki Come From?

On the surface, it seems like Reiki might be ancient, as other mystical practices tend to be. In actuality, it’s anything but.

Reiki is relatively new on the wellness scene, coming to fruition only about 100 years ago. In 1914, Matiji Kawakami, a Japanese therapist, created a healing practice that he called Reiki Ryoho, and, five years later, published a book explaining it called Reiki Healing and Its Effects. Kawakami professed the idea that one could transfer energy through different hand placements on the body.

Another Reiki practitioner, Mikao Usui, gained fame in the 1920s. Usui developed the practice of Reiki that endures in Japan today and made it to the West—via a Hawaiian woman of Japanese descent named Hawayo Takata. In 1935, while visiting family in Japan, Takata fell ill and was diagnosed with various problems. (Just what she suffered from is not clear, but rumors include ailments ranging from asthma to a tumor). She sought treatment at a Reiki clinic, was cured (allegedly), and was so inspired by Reiki practice that she studied to become a Reiki master herself. Upon her return to Hawaii, Takata opened several Reiki clinics—the first of their kind outside of Japan.

What differentiated Reiki at this time from other spiritual practices, and what probably did more to encourage skepticism about it than any other factor, was the price Takata charged aspiring Reiki students—$10,000 (in the 1930s!). According to William Lee Rand, founder of the International Center for Reiki Training, the enormous fee was used to “instill respect” for Reiki practitioners at the Master level, but, of course, limited Reiki’s appeal and growth. Over time, wise Reiki teachers lowered their prices, and the art spread. Nowadays, Reiki is seen as an alternative therapy that’s especially popular among celebrities (Ellen DeGeneres and Gwyneth Paltrow have endorsed it) and athletes (including the New York Giants). Some medical doctors even allow Reiki practitioners to work with their patients before, during, and after surgery to speed recovery.

What are the Benefits of Reiki Meditation?

Reiki sessions are purported to help with stress and pain, and some claim they can even help treat serious illness. Despite controversy over whether it really works, Reiki has found its way into mainstream medical practices. A 2014 Washington Post article revealed that 60 US hospitals offer Reiki as an adjunct therapy (the Center for Reiki Research lists them HERE, if you’re interested), and Reiki education is available in 800 hospitals nationwide. More than one million American adults have tried Reiki therapy at some point. However, Reiki’s growth has largely been driven by patient demand—not research affirming all the claims associated with it.

Nevertheless, the research is promising. According to the University of Minnesota’s Earl E. Bakken Center for Spirituality & Healing, “Overlapping data from some of the stronger studies [on Reiki] support the ability of Reiki to reduce anxiety and pain, and suggest its usefulness to induce relaxation, improve fatigue and depressive symptoms, and strengthen overall wellbeing.”

A 2004 study published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine noted that participants who received Reiki treatment had significantly lower blood pressure and heart and respiration rates afterward than those in the placebo group. Therefore, the authors wrote, it’s reasonable to believe that “Reiki has some effect on the autonomic nervous system.”

A meta-analysis in May 2018 evaluated four studies that looked at Reiki’s impact on subjects’ perception of pain, and concluded that Reiki was effective for relieving pain. This result was further supported by a Brazilian review, whose authors wrote that “Reiki and prayer meditation might be associated with pain reduction”—though they noted a high risk of bias in the studies they assessed.

“The biggest thing my clients tell me they get from Reiki is stress relief,” says Olivia Kenyon, Reiki Master Teacher at The Healing Chakra in Denver, Colorado. “Some people tend to be reactive and worry about the little things, but once they start a Reiki practice, they tend to handle their stress better and be more conscious of what’s depleting their energy. It’s also a great way to start a meditation practice, once people can see how beneficial it is to quiet the mind.”

How Do I Do Reiki Meditation?

The best way to begin a Reiki practice is to seek out a practitioner near you. However, just as with any other form of coaching or therapy, choose wisely. “There are several levels of Reiki training, so ask which one somebody is at before you book a session,” Kenyon advises. “If they’re still at level one, they shouldn’t be practicing yet. Once they’ve reached level two, they should be a capable practitioner. And once they’re at level three, they’re considered a master. Also ask how they got certified and how much training they’ve had. You don’t want to go online and end up with someone who got their certification in a single weekend, or paid $20 for it.” Reiki sessions can cost between $40 and $300 each, but in some cases the cost is covered, in part, by medical insurance.

Reiki givers may ask you to fill out an evaluation form or sign a consent waiver before beginning the meditation. Reiki can be done anywhere, with soft music playing (if you prefer), or in silence. Treatments can be done to affect the whole body or one specific area. In any Reiki session, the practitioner typically places his/her hands on the front and back of your torso, but Reiki should never feel invasive or inappropriate. The hands only touch, or hover above an area; no pressure is applied to the body, and no joints are manipulated. Some people feel a warming sensation in the areas that are touched, while others report feeling cooler. Sessions can last anywhere from 15 minutes (more common in hospitals, nursing homes, or hospice care) to 90 minutes (private practice), although patients generally report feeling some positive benefits within the first few minutes. A practitioner may suggest multiple Reiki sessions to work on a particular problem, or you can book Reiki appointments as needed, just as you would massages.

You won’t be asked to ingest anything along with Reiki, so treatments won’t affect any medications you may already be taking. There have been no reported side effects of Reiki meditation. The amount of ki the Reiki practitioner gives you isn’t controllable—it’s automatically customized to your needs, Reiki masters say—so you can’t get too much or too little. Just to be safe, wait 45 minutes after getting Reiki before you go swimming, and have a designated driver take you home. (Just kidding; we couldn’t resist.)

If you want to supplement your Reiki meditations by practicing Reiki on yourself, you can do so. “You can take charge of your own self-care,” says Kenyon, by taking a level one Reiki course, where they’ll “attune” your body into a lean, mean, ki-blasting machine. You’ll also want to research where “the seven chakra points” are on the body [areas where energy channels converge], and what each one is associated with, Kenyon says. She also recommends combining Reiki with other self-care practices like daily meditation and taking walks in nature (see our piece on forest bathing).

Is Reiki Real?

As of now, there just isn’t enough scientific evidence to say for sure that Reiki treatments do what they’re supposed to or have any great effect on the body—aside from, perhaps, a placebo effect. With that said, there’s no reason to think that they’re harmful or a total waste of money, either. Think about it: if you’re feeling sick, stressed, or anxious, it might feel good to have someone lovingly rest his/her hand on your shoulder. That may not be medicine, or divine intervention, but it doesn’t suck.

Interestingly, Reiki has been shown to help with cancer—at least as far as facing the disease with a healthy attitude. As a Reiki research review in Advances in Mind-Body Medicine concluded: “The best reason for a patient to receive a Reiki treatment is simply because people report that Reiki helps them feel better, frequently within minutes, relieving symptoms such as anxiety, pain, fatigue, nausea, and insomnia, and imparting a sense of centeredness. Additionally, research supports anecdotal reports that Reiki can help patients recontextualize their illness in a way that empowers them to heal. Reiki treatment can enhance the patient’s ability to address the challenges and uncertainty of a cancer diagnosis with a clearer mind and a stronger sense of self.”

The post Is Reiki Real? A Guide To Reiki Meditation and What the Science Says About It appeared first on Onnit Academy.

3 Ab-Friendly Fourth of July Recipes

Red, White & Blue Fruit Kabob Recipe

Yields: 24 kabobs
Prep time: 20 minutes
Difficulty: easy

Ingredients

● 1 container fresh strawberries, organic
● 1 large container fresh blueberries, organic
● 3 bananas
● Bamboo skewers

Directions

1. Wash all fruit. De-stem and slice strawberries in half. Peel bananas and slice in 2″ thick rounds.

2. Now, just have fun with it. Slide the bamboo skewers into the fruit. You can alternate red (strawberries), blue (blueberries), and white (banana slices). Another option, create an American flag with all the skewers. I recommend laying them out as you go so you can visualize the flag. Use one banana for the white stripes, one strawberry for the red, and blueberries for the top left corner.

Healthy Coleslaw Recipe

Yields: 12 servings
Prep time: 25 minutes
Difficulty: easy

Ingredients

● 1 green cabbage, shredded
● ½ purple cabbage, shredded
● ½ cup shredded carrots
● 1 crisp apple, julienned
● ½ cup avocado oil mayo
● ½ cup full-fat Greek or Skyr yogurt
● 2 tbsp. raw, unfiltered honey
● 2 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
● ½ tsp. Dijon mustard
● Juice from ½ lemon
● Salt & pepper to taste
● Fresh parsley, optional
● Pumpkin or seeds of choice for extra crunch, optional

Directions

1. Combine shredded cabbage and carrots in a large bowl.

2. In a small bowl, toss the apples with lemon juice and set aside.

3. Make the dressing: add the mayo, yogurt, honey, lemon juice, mustard, vinegar, salt and pepper in a bowl. Whisk to combine. Pour dressing over shredded cabbage & carrots.

4. Drain apples, and toss in. Here you can add any seeds or nuts of choice. I love pumpkin seeds, but sunflower seeds and sliced almonds work great here too! Garnish with fresh parsley.

5. Serve immediately, or refrigerate for up to 2 days.

Slow-Cooker Jalapeno 4-Meat & Sweet Potato Chili

With four types of meat (beef, chicken, turkey, and bison), two types of beans (kidney and black), and all types of flavor, this grain-free, sweet potato chili is filling, healthy, and has just enough jalapeno to spice up your life (in all the best ways).

Yields: 6-8 servings

Ingredients

● 2 tbsp. coconut oil
● 1 lb. lean (90/10) ground beef, grass-fed if possible
● 2 chicken breasts, chopped into 2” cubes
● 3 turkey or beef jerky bars
● 1 large yellow onion, chopped
● 3 small sweet potatoes, cleaned & diced
● 2 jalapenos, sliced thin
● 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes
● 15 oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained
● 15 oz. can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
● 3 cups low-sodium chicken stock, pastured-raised if possible

Seasoning

● 3 tsp. salt
● 1 tsp. garlic powder
● 1 tsp. cayenne pepper
● 2 tsp. cumin
● 1 tsp. black pepper
● 2 tbsp. chili powder
● 2 tsp. smoked paprika

Serving Suggestions

● Green onions, thinly sliced
● Avocado (squeeze lemon or lime on top to prevent oxidizing, or browning, when serving)
● Shredded white cheddar cheese, raw cheese if possible
● Plain full-fat Greek yogurt

Directions

1. Heat 1 tbsp. coconut oil in a large pan or cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chopped onion, ground beef, 1 tsp. salt, garlic powder, and black pepper. Cook and break up the beef as you stir, until the beef is no longer pink. Add 1 tbsp. chili powder, smoked paprika, and cumin. Transfer beef to the bottom of the slow cooker.

2. Using the same pan, add 1 tbsp. coconut oil and the chicken breast cubes. Sear the chicken until cooked through, about 6 minutes. Add chicken on top of beef in slow cooker.

3. Slice the jerky bars in half lengthwise, then into small ½-inch pieces transversely. Add to the slow cooker.

4. Finally, add the diced sweet potato, black beans, kidney beans, crushed tomatoes, chicken broth, cayenne pepper, and remaining salt and chili powder.

5. Cover and cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 5-6 hours, until the potatoes are tender. Serve warm with desired toppings.

The post 3 Ab-Friendly Fourth of July Recipes appeared first on Onnit Academy.

Huge thanks to our super fan and audio savant Steve Fry for the playlist.

P.S. If you are going to be taking part in some adult beverages for the holiday, you should check out our Ultimate Hangover Cure.

Have the Spotify App? Listen here

The post Spotify Playlist • Red, White and Jams appeared first on Onnit Academy.

No matter if you get your Dad a high five or a Russian Tank this year, definitely be sure to reach out and thank Papa Bear for all he has done. So, Dad, thanks for everything. You are my hero. I love you!

Happy Father’s Day to all the Papas out there and thank you for all that you do. Let me know if there are any awesome Father’s Day gifts I missed in the comments.

Under 100$

• Homemade Card < $5

There is a phenomenal site called canva.com and they also have a dope iPad app. Canva will allow even the most uncreative person to design a personalized card for their dad and then print it at Walgreens or something similar. Low cost, effective, and meaningful.

• Mosaic Photobook $25

All you need is an iPhone or Android phone and 25 beans. Once you download the app and choose 20 photos, an uber high quality photobook arrives at your or presumably your father’s door in 4 days. I have personally bought two of these and I can attest that they are legit.

• Chromecast $35

This is such an awesome gadget. Chromecast works very similar to the Apple TV and in my recent use, has been way more reliable than my Apple TV. I love this thing and giving Dad the power to watch Netflix, Amazon, YouTube and many other Chromecast enabled apps on his massive TV is a surefire way to become the favorite child.

• Apple TV $69
  
  

Although I just bashed it in the previous gift suggestion, I still think it is a wonderful piece of tech and when it works, it’s amazing. It should be noted that the Apple TV has apps that allow it to function independently, whereas the Chromecast does not and needs something streaming to it.

• Primal Kettlebell $85

Your Dad isn’t a run of the mill dad. So why give him a run of the mill kettlebell? Get him a Primal Bell from Onnit and let him know that you love him enough to buy him a kettlebell with an ape on it. No monkey business here.

• Plantronics Backbeat Headphones $99

If you ever wanted your Father to look you in the eyes and say, “Thank You,” buy him these headphones. The Backbeat headphones are hands down the best active headphones on the market. These things will not fall out of your ears and they even have a built-in microphone so Dad won’t have to miss any phone calls. These headphones are the truth.

Under $500

• 1 Year Spotify Membership $120

Everyone needs to jam out every now and then. So why not earn some Dad points by buying him a year’s worth of access to one of the biggest streaming catalogs out there. Plus they just added their new Tempo feature, which adapts the music to the pace you are running. Dad gets unlimited access to Air Supply, and gets in shape. It is a win win.

• 1 Year Audible Membership $150

Audible is game-changing. So why not share that epicness with Pops? He can access his books from anywhere and even return ones he doesn’t like. He will thank you for getting him back into reading. Plus every Audible subscription comes with access to the NYT and Wall Street Journal audio editions.

P.S. I highly recommend The Martian by Andy Weir

• Fitbit Surge Fitness Superwatch $250

GPS tracking, heart rate monitoring, sleep tracking and a gorgeous app. If your dad is serious about fitness, you can’t go wrong with the best fitness tracker on the market.

• August Lock $250
  
  

Gone are the days of the key under the mat or in the fake rock. August locks allow you to easily retrofit most deadbolts and after installation you can control your lock from your smartphone. Furthermore, you can give “keys” to friends, family and service workers that might need access to your house. Once they are done, gone or kicked out, you can just delete their key. What a time to be alive.

• Apple Watch Sport $399

The Apple Watch is the future. So why not have Dad experience it? This piece of gadgetry is unparalleled in design, functionality and style. Apple spared no expense on this product and being able to control your lights or hail an Uber from your wrist is glorious. If you can, pony up some dough and treat your Dad to a glimpse of the future.

• Sony RX-100 $448

The amount of firepower packed into this camera is mind bending. For under $500, you can transform your Dad’s photography game. No more blurry selfies or mistimed shots. This camera is nothing short of amazing…just like your Dad.

• iPad Air 2 $499

The lightest, thinnest, most powerful iPad yet. iOS 9 is dropping soon and you can get it in gold. No further explanation needed 🙂

Over $500

• Modern Cuisine: The Art and Science of Cooking $540

This epic all-encompassing culinary almanac will be the last cookbook(s) you will ever need to buy Dad. This is the perfect companion for his Green Egg and Kiss the Chef apron.

• Sled Driver $1999

The SR-71 Blackbird was one of the raddest planes of all time. It still holds the record for highest ceiling and fastest plane, plus it actually becomes more efficient the faster it goes…how gangster. This book is about the Blackbird and written by an SR-71 pilot, and also contains gorgeous photography of the freakish machine. There were only a limited number of these books ever made and they sold out in matter of days. A must have for any Dad who feels the need for speed.

• Before They Pass Away $8750

One of the coolest photo projects of all time. Jimmy Nelson goes to the remote regions of the world and photographs vanishing cultures. My boss has this book and it is one of the most profound and exquisite photography books out there. If you have the means, Dad will definitely love this novel soulful piece of art.

• T-72 Russian Tank $50k

Buying your Father a collector car is so 90’s. Step your game up and get pops a T-72 battle tank. This thing is 45 tons of holy shit with a five-inch gun. Just think about the July 4th implications. You’ll never have to buy fireworks again. Just fire off a couple shells.

• Tesla P85 $130,950

Not only will Dad be able to go 0-60 in 3.1 seconds, he will be saving the planet. Charging up at home and insane mode (if you don’t know what I am talking about Google it…it is awesome) are just a few of the reasons that make the P85 the ultimate Father’s Day Gift.

• 19 Holes at Legend Golf and Resort in South Africa

This golf course is home to one of the most legendary holes in golf. The Extreme 19th. Instead of me trying to explain, just check out the video below.

The post The Ultimate Father’s Day Gift Guide For Every Price Range appeared first on Onnit Academy.