The rise of #selfcare has proven just how important it is to take the time each day to take care of ourselves. Whether this means going for a walk, doing a hydrating face mask, cooking a favorite meal, taking supplements, or calling family and friends, setting aside time for ourselves, without any guilt, does wonders for how we feel and how we show up each day. But, like anything else, self-care is based on a consistent routine; we wouldn’t feel the effects of these practices unless we did them repeatedly, day after day.
The purpose of self-care is not to add more to our never-ending to-do lists. Self-care shouldn’t feel like a checklist, leaving us disappointed if we don’t get to it all. Instead, incorporating self-care practices into routines or using one of our favorite tips – habit stacking – can allow us to get more done while doing more for ourselves…aka: a win-win! When it comes to supplements, it can be difficult to remember to take them without having to rely on a huge post-it note reminder on the bathroom mirror. However, we know that the efficacy of supplements is dependent on consistent use; after all, it takes time for our body to learn how to put the supplement to use! Two of our products, Bloat and Calm, were formulated for daily use; this means that we will see the greatest benefits, for both prevention and treatment, by taking both Bloat and Calm every day.
Keep reading to learn: why consistency is key, how to develop successful routines, and why consistently taking Bloat and Calm each day provides huge benefits for our overall health.
Is Consistency Key? In Short: Yes!
Consistency is defined as being marked by regularity or steady continuity, meaning the process of doing something on a scheduled basis. Consistency is critical in creating beneficial patterns and capitalizing on routines, which, in turn, aids in keeping our mental load low. Consistency ties directly to habits that positively change our behavior. Being consistent means being fully committed to doing small actions repeatedly until our goals are met, or until we see a tangible change. While these changes may seem small on the day to day level, they ultimately add up to allow us to reach our end goals. So, now that we’ve defined consistency, how do we implement it into our lives?
Have a Clear Goal In Mind: Without a clear goal, it’s much more difficult to create and maintain any sort of motivation. Whether we want to start working out more, want to add meditation to our morning routine, want to be more regular with our supplement intake, or want to incorporate more whole foods into our diet, we first need to find our “why”. This “why” will vary from person to person, but it will always be the driving force behind consistency.
Create a Plan: When we have an end goal, it can be challenging to try and work backwards to plan out how exactly that goal will be met. However, this step is crucial for laying out the foundation of our goal and helping us create measurable progress. The key here is to break down our end goal into smaller pieces that can be achieved in shorter periods of time in order to make the goal seem more attainable and to create a schedule that allows us to envision what we need to accomplish at specific points in time. Create a vision board, utilize a planner, or take pen to paper and separate the goal into smaller fragments; whether it’s by week, month, or year, having pieces of time will allow us to see the goal as more manageable, thereby increasing our motivation to accomplish it.
Do It, Over and Over Again: Now here’s the hard part (don’t say we didn’t warn you!)...We actually have to do something over and over again in order for it to become a habit, or to create consistency. Think about this as a New Year’s resolution: it’s easy to make a goal and for the start of a new year to add extra ‘umph’ in the form of motivation. However, as the days go on and it's no longer a “new” year, it becomes easier to abandon our goals (and hey, we’re guilty of it, too!). It’s crucial to remember that long-term goals involve making incremental, small steps while maintaining confidence that consistency will be created at the end. Mindfulness is a great tool to use here – staying in the moment and appreciating our current efforts will add up in the long term.
Why Does Consistency Matter?
Consistency will always trump motivation; it’s much harder to forget an ingrained habit than it is to rely on motivation alone. There are countless scenarios where we can easily let motivation, or our lack thereof, dictate what we accomplish day to day. However, creating solid routines ensures that we are always doing something to benefit ourselves in terms of reaching our goals, meeting a deadline, getting in our workouts, or staying on track with our supplement intake. After all, the more we do something, the easier it becomes, right? But what benefits do we actually get from making consistency key?
Achieve More Goals: It feels so good to accomplish something we set our minds to. When we achieve one goal, we’re more likely to want to achieve another one. This leads to a snowball effect of accomplishing goals, each becoming easier with time. Remember to stick to the “why” of goal setting; this makes the goals meaningful and connected to a reason and purpose.
Boost Productivity: Consistency is directly related to productivity, because creating habits, like time-blocking or habit stacking, leads to less procrastination, and thus less time wasted.
Develop Better Habits: If we do something repeatedly for long enough, it eventually becomes an innate part of who we are. Consistency will help prevent that mental debate of pros and cons, like when we’re deciding if we should workout, when we’re enjoying down time on the couch or if we should have an extra slice of that decadent chocolate cake. Creating habits cuts down on our mental load, making it easier to make choices that we know will serve us well long term.
Cultivate Happiness: Research shows that those who are consistent in their actions are generally happier than those who are not. Living a life that aligns with our core values and honoring the commitments we make to ourselves creates a positive feedback loop that becomes harder and harder to break the longer we practice consistency.
Why Is Consistency Important with Bloat and Calm?
We now know why consistency is important in our day to day lives, but what about when it comes to supplements? Our supplements are created for daily use, meaning we get the maximum benefit from taking them every day. However, it’s worth noting that the intention behind taking them might change depending on a variety of factors. Let’s dive more into that!
Bloat: Our bloat formula is a mixture of five herbs and a fruit-based digestive enzyme that all have an affinity for the digestive system. These ingredients have different, synergistic actions, meaning they work together seamlessly to prevent and eliminate bloat.
Anti-Inflammatory Actions: The herbs in our Bloat formula are all anti-inflammatory; they foster a digestive environment that is less susceptible to gas and bloating. Taking Bloat daily is key to maintaining a stable and harmonious balance of the microorganisms in our digestive system.
Effective for IBS: Our 8 week clinical trial of 35 women over the ages of 18 showed a 86% reduction of bloat and bloat symptoms when taken daily. Additionally, 74% of participants reported less IBS symptoms and gassiness when taking Bloat daily.
Balance the Microbiome: Gut symbiosis, or the correct balance of bacteria in the gut, can be tricky to accomplish. A balanced microbiome helps us to absorb nutrients more effectively, and aids in proper digestion (aka, not having a food baby after every meal). Taking our Bloat formula every day helps to balance the microbiome, providing day to day benefits that help us whether we’re bloated at the moment, or not.
Calm: Our all-natural, clinically-tested product that works in under an hour to promote a relaxed state through slowing down the body’s fight or flight stress response. Made with four potent ingredients (and nothing else), Calm promotes zen without drowsiness. Calm was formulated to be taken daily to promote less anxiety and stress and more total body relaxation.
Take a Chill Pill: Together, these ingredients promote a state of calm by relaxing muscles, releasing tension, increasing calming chemical messengers in the brain and slowing down spiraling thoughts.
Sleep Better: Calm won’t promote a state of sleep, as in: taking it won’t make us fall asleep at our desks. But, it will help us when we do want a restful, uninterrupted sleep at bedtime. Calm contains Magnesium Bisglycinate, the most popular and well-researched combination for treating sleep disorders and helping to reduce anxiety, depression, and stress.
Stress Less: By now, we’re all too familiar with cortisol, often coined the ‘stress hormone’. When we’re under periods of stress, our cortisol levels can skyrocket, creating a vicious cycle of more and more stress. The ingredients in Calm help our body readjust by promoting full-body relaxation, therefore giving us the ability to rationally and confidently tackle stress.
Bloat and Calm aka Rest and Digest: Our Rest & Digest Kit was created specifically to work synergistically, helping to tackle bloat and anxiety in unison. We recommend taking Bloat and Calm supplements at the same time for optimal effects. Digestion is strongest when the body is most relaxed, hence “rest and digest”. When we’re under stress, however, the body enters “fight or flight,” producing stress hormones which increase the ability to deal with a dangerous situation at the cost of repressing systems that are not considered essential for physical exertion, such as the digestive system. Prolonged stress can cause poor digestion, heartburn, bloating, altered bowel function, and changes in the gut microbiome.
Disclaimer: This blog post is purely informational and does not imply any evaluation by the Food and Drug Administration. This blog post is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent diseases, nor should it substitute for advice from a healthcare professional.
