Print versions of The 15 Minute Fix: SENSES - Exercises To Elevate Your Sensory Perception and The 15 Minute Fix: SCALP - Exercises To Promote Scalp and Hair Health are now available on Amazon!
 |  |
 Almost half of the scalp exercises in The 15 Minute Fix: SCALP involve some element of massaging the scalp. The results of a 1998 study by researchers out of the Department of Dermatology at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary (Scotland) indicate that massaging essential oils into the scalp is more likely to prevent or reverse hair loss than massaging with an oil or lotion that does not contain essential oils. Essential oils are the aromatic compounds that give plants their characteristic odors, protect them from predators and disease, and support pollination. They are obtained from various parts of plants (flowers, leaves, bark, etc.) by steam distillation, expression, or extraction. Essential oils are used in aromatherapy, massage therapy, and in other alternative therapies. You can find them in health food stores and online (typically sold in small vials). I would suggest diluting them with a "carrier oil" before applying to your scalp (start with a ratio of 6-12 drops of essential oil for each ounce of carrier oil).  The study participants massaged thyme, rosemary, lavender, and cedarwood essential oils in a mixture of jojoba and grapeseed oil into their scalp daily. Another essential oil to consider is Ylang-Ylang, which has long been used to promote hair and scalp health. Other popular essential oils include lemon and sandalwood. Other carrier oils you might consider are coconut oil and castor oil. With all essential oils and carrier oils, make sure you are buying products that are 100% pure.
Use your essential oil mixture with any and all massage exercises in SCALP. In addition to fighting hair loss, massaging essential oils into your scalp will lower your stress, sharpen cognitive function, increase energy levels, and generally improve your overall health and quality of life. Age well my friends!  A number of recent studies have shown multiple benefits of chewing gum. Although gum chewing is not defined as a full exercise in any of The 15 Minute Fix books (though some do suggest chewing gum as a bonus activity), the mechanics and benefits are similar to those found in many of the exercises in SENSES (those targeting sense of taste) and FACE (those helping to support and firm chin and mouth areas).
A study out of the Department of Psychology at St. Lawrence University (New York, USA) showed that chewing gum results in a 15-20 minute boost in cognitive performance. The study found that this brain boost resulted from the act of chewing, not from the ingredients in the gum. This is consistent with the idea that performing a facial, sensory, or other 15 Minute Fix exercise can provide a quick mental recharge. A study out of the School of Psychology at Cardiff University (UK) associated chewing gum with greater alertness, quicker reaction time, improved selective and sustained attention, and better mood. Gum flavor did not seem to affect outcomes, again supporting the idea that it is the chewing motion that provides these benefits. A study by researchers from the Brain Sciences Institute at Swinburne University (Melbourne, Australia) found that chewing gum appeared to lower stress levels and improve alertness. Although they were not able to definitively identify the underlying mechanism of these effects, they stipulated that they may involve improved cerebral blood flow - a benefit of a majority of 15 Minute Fix exercises. Because these and many other studies found that it was the act of chewing, rather than the gum that led to these benefits, the results support the idea that exercising different muscles in and attached to the head, can help improve cognitive function, reaction time, and alertness, along with lowering stress and improving mood. These are in addition to the benefit of helping your face look more youthful, improving your sense of taste (or smell or hearing), sharpening your eyesight, or reinvigorating your scalp. So don't be shy about chewing gum (sugar free!) or starting one of The 15 Minute Fix programs. Besides helping your eyes, face, senses, or scalp, you will be taking definitive, manageable steps to improve your productivity, happiness, and general well being. Age well my friends! For the most part, hair grows slowly. If you want to take steps to stop or slow your hair loss, you are going to need patience, discipline, and commitment. Whether you're applying Rogaine or practicing hair and scalp exercises from The 15 Minute Fix: SCALP, you need to do it every day for a long period of time before you will see results. Understanding the hair growth cycle will help you appreciate the long term nature of any non-surgical approach to managing hair loss. WebMD has a good description of the hair growth cycle:
Given the random nature of the hair growth cycle, it is vital to keep your scalp healthy year round. Whether you are trying to stop hair loss with medicine, thinking about or living with hair restoration surgery, or simply want to maintain a healthy scalp, making a long term commitment to practicing the exercises in The 15 Minute Fix: SCALP every day will give you the best chance of maximizing your hair growth during the different phases of the hair growth cycle.
Age well my friends! Launch date is just around the corner, and I couldn't be more excited! The first 4 books will focus on eye, facial, sensory, and hair & scalp exercises.
While it is easy to figure out the point of the individual books in The 15 Minute Fix series, it may not be as clear what the point of the series is. The 15 Minute Fix is about helping you age well. What do I mean by aging well? Whether you are moving from your 20's into your 30's or from your 60's into your 70's, your body and your mind are constantly changing. We call this aging. You don't want to stop this process (the side effects are pretty bad...), but you can take steps to adapt to these changes and mitigate the environmental factors that are constantly working against us. I want you to be comfortable with the fact that you are getting older and to take steps to keep your body and brain healthy and vibrant. I want to help you stay youthful! Because we are all busy, I have designed the various 15 Minute Fix programs to be short and easily integrated into your daily schedule (hence the 15 minutes...). Use the books in The 15 Minute Fix series to transform your daily routine into a lifelong program of keeping your mind and body functioning at their highest possible levels. If you do this, you will find that you look and act more youthful and that you have improved your overall health. In addition to the main focus area of each book, the exercises in each book in The 15 Minute Fix series are designed to help you age well by:
As you dig into each of The 15 Minute Fix books, you will see that they consist of more than just a group of exercises. Each book will contribute toward a comprehensive lifelong plan to age well. So, join me as we embark on a lifelong journey of aging well! |
YOUR HOSTJohn wants to get the most out of life and wants to help you do that too!
Categories
All
Archives
January 2015
|
