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Stylish in the Summer – You Should Know These Trends

Whether shopping, walking through the park, or picking up the kids from sports. If you want to feel comfortable, you should choose the right clothes. As the saying from the well-known Brothers Grimm fairy tale says: “Clothes make the man”.

Many women define themselves through their clothes and thrive on summer trends. Are you looking for an elegant piece of clothing for the evening or a chic eye-catcher with a coziness factor? We have collected the trends for the summer and don’t want to withhold them from you

Summery trends at reasonable prices

You don’t have to spend large sums of money to bring the summer trends into your own wardrobe. You know how to save money when shopping for skirts, dresses, shirts, and shoes. For example, a Hennes and Mauritz voucher is available, which you can get at Vouchersammler.de. With this, you save money if you want to shop for summer fashion in the well-known clothing store “H&M”.

Here you will find clothing in summery colors, modern cuts, and extravagant combinations.

Street style: Comfortable and a real eye-catcher

Street fashion or called “street style” is gaining more and more popularity and relevance, getting closer to the fashionable women around the world every day.

Lightness, simplicity, and comfortable cuts are the main advantages of street style. The street style allows every woman to feel comfortable on the street every day.

This is especially true for modern women who are active all day and do important things.
Street style for the summer allows you to interpret different variations of clothes in every possible way, combining a lot of interesting and unusual clothes. However, you should note that some rules prevail. The “freedom” in creating urban style looks sometimes leads to not very successful end results – when the elements of the look complement each other or are not quite coordinated.

No matter how experimental the street style is laid out for the summer, consider the fashion basics.
The trends of the summer season are all about metallic shine, both in clothing and accessories. Prints and bright colors are welcome in summer.

Checks in all their variety, stripes, and flowers are in fashion. Stylish monochrome sets in an urban style are also very relevant. You will also benefit from oversized styles and loose silhouettes, as well as platforms that look very daring. This cozy look gives you freedom of movement but still accompanies you stylishly to the office or to the shops.

Discover summery colors in clothing

For a modern, stunning look, choose a trendy color. This summer, the mustard-yellow dress with elastic tulle is a real eye-catcher for almost every occasion. It is characterized by the special sleeves, which are provided with airy bands. Thanks to the straight cut, it suits every silhouette. The semi-transparent tulle sleeves are the three-quarters length and can be tied with thin, elegant ribbons.

It is important to combine the right accessories with such an IT piece. Be sure to color match these to the intense hue of the dress. In this way, you will be able to create a harmonious picture.

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Food

Jackfruit: a Delicious Meat Substitute – But What About The Ecological Balance?

A new hype for vegetarians and vegans comes from the tropics: jackfruit conquers the palate as a meat substitute. We show how useful the fruit is as an alternative to meat and where you can already buy jackfruit.

Jackfruit grows in the tropics around the world and is usually eaten ripe and sweet in its countries of origin. Depending on the variety, a single fruit can weigh up to 35 kilos. The jackfruit tree can grow up to 20 meters tall, but bears its fruit on the trunk, making it easier to harvest. If you cut open the ripe fruit, a milky juice comes out that is reminiscent of glue. No wonder, because it belongs to the mulberry family – like the rubber tree (Ficus), which has the same sticky property.

In its countries of origin, the ripe jackfruit is served as a sweet dessert or eaten as a snack; similar to bananas, it is often dried into crispy chips. The kernels are also used: either dried and ground into flour or roasted as an addition to savory dishes.

Jackfruit has recently been rediscovered as a meat substitute. However, this is less so in their countries of origin than on the plates of vegetarians and vegans in western countries.

Jackfruit as a meat substitute

In order to use the tropical fruit as a substitute for meat in hearty vegetarian or vegan dishes, it must be harvested unripe. When ripe, their taste is reminiscent of fruit gum and would be out of place in goulash. Raw, however, the unripe fruits are inedible and hard, only their further processing makes them the fine-grained substitute for beef, pork or chicken.

In order to give the jackfruit tree enough strength to let a few jackfruit grow big, sweet and juicy, some smaller fruits are knocked off the tree unripe in the course of fruit growth. Every hobby gardener knows the method of “cutting out” the native tomato plants, every winegrower does the same thing in his vineyard on the vine.

Instead of disposing of these sorted unripe fruits, they are placed in brine for the local market or, more recently, processed into meat substitutes for export to western industrialized countries. The unripe, fibrous flesh is almost tasteless and can therefore be marinated to taste.

If the fruit pieces are cooked in a marinade and then seared, they are very reminiscent of meat. The crust also creates an almost perfect optical illusion. After all, it is the spices that determine the taste of meat.

Where can you buy jackfruit?

If you want to get started right away to conjure up a vegetarian goulash, a tender vegan “pulled pork” or a juicy burger, you won’t find what you’re looking for in every supermarket right away. Most of the canned or frozen pulp sold in Asian stores was harvested ripe. It tastes delicious, but it is only good as a fruity dessert, not as a hearty ingredient in meatless dishes.

If you are lucky enough to have the list of ingredients translated by the sales staff or do some research, you can also find unripe jackfruit pickled in brine in Asian, mostly Indian grocery stores. You can also find canned unripe jackfruit online. But before they can be used as an alternative to meat, they have to be cooked until soft by heating.

Jackfruit as a meat substitute: nutritional values ​​similar to potatoes

Jackfruit actually mimics the fibers of meat in texture, and with spices it’s possible to create not only a similar mouthfeel, but an almost identical taste. However, the jackfruit has less to do with the nutritional values ​​of meat. No wonder, given its high carbohydrate content, it is often served straight from the home garden as a substitute for rice in its countries of origin.

Nevertheless, jackfruit suppliers like to advertise their natural product with claims such as “nutrient-rich”, “rich in minerals”, “high in fiber”, “high in potassium”, “high in calcium and magnesium” and other advantages.

Basically, these statements are not made out of thin air, but a comparison with local food is worthwhile to decide for yourself whether it is really worth importing a jackfruit over thousands of kilometers (each per 100g):

Potassium: jackfruit 407mg; Potatoes 384mg, pumpernickel 192mg
Magnesium: Jackfruit 37mg; potatoes 22mg; Pumpernickel 54mg
Calcium: Jackfruit 27mg; potatoes 7mg; Pumpernickel 24mg
Protein: jackfruit 1.1g; potatoes 2g; Pumpernickel 4.84g
Fiber: jackfruit 4.15g; potatoes 1.56g; Pumpernickel 8.83g
While jackfruit’s reputation as a super-healthy meat substitute isn’t false, it’s also a bit blatant. As with avocados, the following therefore applies: only those who really use it to replace meat are actually better off ecologically. If you only put it on your plate for trend reasons or for alleged superfood nutritional values, you will find more ecological alternatives. (With this and other nutritional information, it should be remembered that the degree of ripeness, preparation methods, etc. also have an influence on the nutrients contained.)

Jackfruit instead of soy?

So far, the most popular meat substitute products have been protein-rich specialties made from tofu or seitan. The consistency of seitan is also somewhat similar to that of meat, but it is not suitable for people who suffer from gluten intolerance (celiac disease) or who want to avoid gluten.

Soy itself is a higher quality source of protein than meat, but not everyone likes it, has a different texture than meat and, depending on its origin, has been criticized for contributing to the deforestation of tropical forests or for being made from genetically modified soybeans.

The jackfruit’s path to success seems almost pre-programmed: it is gluten-free, has nothing to do with genetic engineering, offers an extremely meat-like mouthfeel and contains little fat. Green light for the jackfruit BBQ? Unfortunately, it’s not that simple…

Allergy to jackfruit

It’s not well-documented yet, but there is a risk of immediate allergic reactions with jackfruit. So if you are allergic anyway, you should definitely start small. Cross allergies are possible, for example, in allergies to nuts and birch pollen.

Transport routes worsen the ecological balance of the jackfruit

Those who do without meat or animal products often do so for ecological reasons. Not only the love of animals is decisive, but also the knowledge of the catastrophic ecological balance of animal-based foods is leading more and more consumers to eat vegetarian or vegan.

And that’s exactly the catch with the new meat substitute: Because the jackfruit only thrives in the tropics (especially India and Bangladesh), it already has a significant carbon footprint when it comes to our stores. Irrespective of whether it is shrink-wrapped, preserved in cans or transported and sold deep-frozen: the fruity meat alternative has already used up a lot of fossil fuels before it is eaten.

We do not yet have any publicly available data on the precise CO2 emissions from jackfruit. Nevertheless, one should at least question the jackfruit from an ecological point of view. The life cycle assessment of regional, seasonal vegetables is probably better when consumed daily.

Because jackfruit is just about to become the new star among vegans and vegetarians, there are only a few farms that cultivate the fruit according to the guidelines of organic cultivation (see above: Buy jackfruit: preferably organic). On the positive side, jackfruit is typically grown in mixed cultures.

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Black Pepper – Effect and Application of The Medicinal Spice

Apart from salt, no other spice is used as frequently in German cuisine as black pepper. What many people don’t know, however, is that black pepper has long been considered a remedy and has numerous health benefits.

How is black pepper different from other types of pepper?

Whether white, green, red or black pepper – all come from the same plant species, the pepper bush (Piper nigrum). Depending on the time of harvest and further processing, the peppercorns then get their specific color.

For the black pepper, the unripe, green peppercorns are harvested and stored in heaps for a few days. The grains are then dried in the sun.

The types of pepper differ not only in appearance, but also in the degree of sharpness, the taste and the composition of their components. White and black pepper are the hottest and have the highest levels of piperine — see why this ingredient is so important below.

use in the kitchen

From sweet to savory – pepper goes well with almost every dish. So it is not surprising that it is the second most used spice in German cuisine after salt. At least one type of pepper is therefore included in numerous spice mixtures.

The black pepper has a particularly hot aroma and a light citrus note. White pepper, on the other hand, is less aromatic and fruity, while green pepper is mild and has a light herbal note. The fully ripe red pepper is rarely eaten in this country due to its perishability.

Tip: Pepper that has already been ground has already lost large parts of its ingredients and aroma. Therefore, always use whole grains that you grind freshly just before use.

Black pepper – the most important active ingredients

Pepper contains over 200 different components. From a medical point of view, the most interesting is the alkaloid piperine. Numerous health-promoting effects are attributed to this ingredient. The traditional areas of application range from colds and flu to digestive problems and diabetes to rheumatic diseases and muscle pain.

Recent human studies have demonstrated its digestive, antidiabetic, anticarcinogenic and antiasthmatic effects, among other things. Also, it is scientifically proven that piperine promotes the absorption of nutrients as well

antifungal
antioxidant
expectorant
anti-inflammatory
antimicrobial
works (see review from 2017). The Federal Center for Nutrition emphasizes above all the digestive effect – since piperine stimulates the saliva and gastric juice secretion. The list of potential applications is impressively long.

Other important ingredients are various essential oils, flavonoids and various piperine derivatives.
An English-language Open Access Scientific Report from India provides a comprehensive overview of the numerous active ingredients and areas of application of black pepper.

Piperine as a bioenhancer

Piperine also deserves special attention because it increases the bioavailability of various other components. Such substances are called bioenhancers. Piperine was the first bioenhancer identified in 1979 – and is still considered the most effective substance of this kind.

The most prominent partner substance whose bioavailability is increased by piperine: curcumin, the most important active ingredient in turmeric. When combined with piperine, the effectiveness of curcumin is increased by up to 20 times. That is why it is often recommended to add some black pepper to turmeric for medicinal purposes – as is done with the healing golden milk. Black pepper is also said to increase the bioavailability of selenium, vitamin A and vitamin C.

Use black pepper effectively and safely

If you want to benefit from the health effects of black pepper, you can of course add the spice to your food as usual. You should not cook the pepper at the same time, but only add it to the finished dish at the end.

However, if you want to use the black pepper specifically for colds and illnesses, you can use a higher dose. The already mentioned golden milk with a high pepper content is ideal for this. You can also add freshly ground pepper to your tea – for example in combination with fresh turmeric. Pepper is also popular with colds when combined with hot milk and honey.

possible side effects

In general, black pepper is considered very safe. However, you should never consume the ground spice individually, as the particles could get into the lungs and irritate them severely. If you suffer from acute stomach or intestinal problems, you should discuss the application with your doctor beforehand. You should also avoid large amounts of black pepper during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

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Broccoli is Healthy – Thanks to These Nutritional Values

Broccoli is very healthy thanks to its nutritional values. Here you can find out which nutrients cabbage contains and what they mean for your health.

Broccoli is very healthy – the vegetable is considered a local superfood. In addition to a particularly large amount of vitamin C and calcium, it also contains beta-carotene, minerals and mustard oil glycosides. Broccoli only contains about 30 kilocalories per 100 grams. It can therefore be easily integrated into a healthy diet.

Vitamin bomb: Broccoli is so healthy

Vitamins support almost all functions of your body. They are essential: that is, the body cannot produce them itself. That’s why you need to get enough from your diet.

Broccoli contains the following healthy vitamins:
94 mg/100g vitamin C: Vitamin C supports the metabolism, has an antioxidant effect and even helps with digestion. According to the DGE (German Society for Nutrition e.V.), the vitamin C requirement of adults is between 95 and 110 milligrams per day. 100 grams of (raw) broccoli are almost enough to cover your entire daily vitamin C requirement.
179 µg/100g Vitamin K : Vitamin K supports bone growth and blood clotting. If you cook a dish with broccoli, you can easily get 60-80 micrograms of vitamin K to meet your needs.
0.8 mg/100g beta-carotene: As a precursor of vitamin A, beta-carotene is important for many areas of the body: For example, it supports the function of the eyes and helps to build up the skin. According to the DGE, the daily requirement for beta-carotene is 0.8-1.0 milligrams per day.
1.29 mg/100g vitamin B5: Vitamin B5 or pantothenic acid contributes significantly to the functioning of the energy metabolism in the body. The DGE recommends an intake of six milligrams per day.

Broccoli contains many healthy minerals, plant compounds and amino acids

Like vitamins, minerals are important for your body. You also have to get these nutrients through food – for example through broccoli.

Among other things, 100 grams of broccoli contain:
58 mg calcium: Calcium is probably the most important mineral for humans. Your body needs it to build bones, for example. In addition, the substance stabilizes the cell walls and is involved in digestion and the transmission of stimuli. The recommended daily amount is 1000 milligrams.
256 mg Potassium: Potassium keeps muscles working properly. A deficiency can cause muscle cramps. Adults should consume about 4000 milligrams of potassium per day to meet their needs.
18 mg magnesium: This nutrient also supports muscle function and strengthens bones. Magnesium is also important for human hearing. The DGE recommends an intake of 300 to 350 milligrams per day.
63 mg Phosphorus: Like calcium, phosphorus is important for your bones. The daily requirement for adults is 700 milligrams per day. Since phosphates are often found as additives in food, Germans usually consume more than enough phosphorus.
The daily requirement of minerals cannot be covered by broccoli alone. Other good sources of minerals are nuts or other green vegetables such as spinach or kale.

The healthy vegetables also contain the secondary plant substances glucosinolates (mustard oil glycosides). These have an antioxidant and immune-boosting effect. The substances are also attributed antibacterial and anti-carcinogenic properties.

Large amounts of different amino acids such as arginine or cysteine ​​also make broccoli so healthy. The essential amino acid tryptophan forms the precursors of vitamin B3 – it is therefore important for carbohydrate and fat metabolism. Amino acids take on many other functions in metabolic processes and serve as building blocks for proteins.

How to properly prepare broccoli

In order to preserve as many of the valuable ingredients as possible when cooking, you should follow the following tips:
Heat broccoli very briefly.
Blanch it, for example: You can do this by putting the broccoli in boiling salted water for a minute or two and then briefly shocking it in ice water.
You can also eat broccoli raw.
Note: In order to get all the ingredients, you should prepare the broccoli as freshly as possible. You can also store it in the vegetable drawer of the fridge for a day or two. You should process the vegetables at the latest when the broccoli florets begin to turn yellowish.

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Cooking Tips

Cut Melon – With These Simple Tricks

Melon is as much a part of summer as sunscreen or bathing. But slicing melon can sometimes be a challenge.

Both muskmelons and watermelons hide their tasty flesh under a thick and hard rind. Watermelons in particular are also very large, which makes them even more difficult to cut.

With these tips you will succeed:
Use a sharp knife with a blade longer than the melon.
Place the melon on a slightly rough surface, such as a wooden board, so it doesn’t slip.
Caution: Always cut away from your hands.
Depending on whether you want to eat the melon right away or process it further, you can cut it differently. You can find out how to do this below.

Cut melon into sticks: Ideal as a child-friendly snack

This method is especially great for kids who can’t get enough of melon in the summer and prefer to nibble on it themselves. Unlike melon boats, these pens do not leave a mustache on your face and children’s small hands can easily hold the melon pens.

It’s that easy:
1. Halve the melon on the long side.
2. Cut the melon along the grain into strips about two thumbs wide.
3. Then repeat this process against the grain to create a checkerboard pattern. You may need to hold the melon to keep it from falling apart.
4. And your melon sticks are ready. You can eat them simply by holding them by the shell.

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Lifestyle

Yoga – The Optimal Sport for at Home

Yoga exercises ensure improved well-being for the body and soul. Yoga has long been a popular sport worldwide. And in times of Corona and lockdown more important than ever. Because with the right exercises and accessories, you can effectively do something for your health from home.

The philosophical teaching comes from India and combines mental with physical exercises. The yoga exercises and mediation techniques can have a positive effect on your well-being. Negative thoughts can be driven away and you keep your body fit. Now in lockdown is the best time to start yoga.

The positive effects of yoga

Regular practice of yoga has positive effects on our mind and body. The various exercises are intended to reduce anxiety and have a positive effect on depressive moods. Additionally, many people report numerous benefits this type of sport brings.

Accordingly, the exercises lead to improved sleep, more serenity, and more zest for life. The immune system should also be strengthened and the ability to concentrate improves. Overall, you can improve your own body and self-esteem through this sport. And another positive effect is better to stress management. Especially in today’s world, you should reduce stress effectively. So it’s high time to start doing it from the comfort of your own home.

The right yoga accessories

Yoga exercises are good to do at home. And even for beginners, it is not difficult to get started. You can often start with simple exercises and later increase the level of difficulty. You should also get basic equipment so that you can carry out your exercises successfully. Therefore, you should definitely have comfortable yoga clothes and get a non-slip mat. Other accessories can also be very useful. If you want to do yoga in the sun when the weather is nice, a yoga bag is a must. It is best to use the home yoga accessories checklist as a guide.

How to learn yoga at home

If you start as a beginner, you can use different media to learn yoga. You can find numerous videos on Youtube or on individual websites. But various apps for learning Indian philosophical teachings also show you how it works properly. You have to decide for yourself which medium is best for you. You can also find online courses on the Internet. The disadvantage here is that such courses can be quite expensive. In contrast, most Youtube videos or apps are free and just as effective. Also, note our article on sport and fitness in summer.

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Spirulina Algae: So Rich in Nutrients – But so Unsustainable…

It’s tiny, blue-green and comes from the sea – we’re talking about the microalgae Spirulina. It is heralded as the new miracle weapon in the fight against aging, lifestyle diseases and unhealthy lifestyles.

Rich in nutrients, the spirulina algae from the tropical and subtropical regions of the world are said to compensate for deficits and help with weight loss and muscle building.

Algae are actually only new as food in our latitudes, in the regions of origin the green organisms from the sea have been an integral part of the menu for centuries. Because spirulina algae are also very undemanding to thrive in salt and brackish water, they are also considered an opportunity in the fight against hunger. And the microalgae are also said to be good for the climate: during their growth, they convert carbon dioxide into oxygen through photosynthesis. An all-round positive balance, then? We did some research for you.

Up to 35 Spirulina Algae

Spirulina, or actually Arthrospira, belongs to the genus of cyanobacteria. Cyanobacteria, or blue-green algae in German, are tiny spiral-shaped bacteria. A single blue-green algae is only about 0.5 millimeters long and, in addition to the green chlorophyll, also contains blue color pigments, which gave the genus its name. There are up to 35 different types of spirulina algae, the best known and most common being Spirulina platensis and Spirulina maxima. However, it is disputed whether these are actually different species or simply local adaptations of a single algal species to local conditions.

Like all green plants, microalgae use chlorophyll a for photosynthesis to generate energy. One kilogram of algae can break down around 1.5 kilograms of carbon dioxide (CO2) and convert it into one kilogram of oxygen. This effect may have led to the formation of today’s earth’s atmosphere billions of years ago.

Spirulina: Occurrence and Cultivation

Spirulina algae love heat and direct sunlight. Because of this, they occur naturally in all tropical and subtropical regions. They are native to saline, alkaline shallow waters such as salt lakes, brackish water or shallow lagoons. There, millions of microalgae form an intense blue-green colored algae carpet. The tiny algae displace other microorganisms and are therefore relatively easy to harvest “sorted”.

Industrial production also takes advantage of this. Cultivation takes place in warm, shallow saltwater pools (water temperature up to 35° Celsius), also in otherwise infertile areas such as deserts or steppes. The direct sunlight and the CO2 introduced into the water ensure faster growth of the algae. The algae are produced in Asia (especially India), South America, Africa, Hawaii, California and now also in Europe, for example in Normandy (here, however, mostly for biogas production, not for consumption).

The ingredients: Is there really that much protein in spirulina algae?

The cyanobacteria, which have existed for billions of years, are true nutritional wonders. They contain around 60 percent protein and are therefore in the top class. The protein from the blue-green algae also contains all the essential amino acids. But the small algae is also very large when it comes to minerals and vitamins (the range of fluctuation results from the difference in the water of the cultivated algae): per 100 grams it contains 400-700 mg calcium, 400-480 mg magnesium, 50-100 mg iron, 100-300 mg selenium and 180 mg beta-carotene. In addition, the content of B vitamins (especially the important vitamin B12) and vitamin E is relatively high. In contrast to other seaweed, spirulina contains little iodine, which makes daily consumption safe.

Spirulina powder or Spirulina tablets?

Whether you choose powder or tablets is literally a matter of taste. The powder has gone through one less processing step and is therefore less likely to lose nutrients. However, it doesn’t taste particularly good, making it difficult to incorporate into your daily diet. It is best drunk as part of a green smoothie with fruit or vegetables, where the taste is masked. Spirulina tablets are compressed and are simply swallowed with some liquid. The taste is hardly disturbing, but valuable ingredients can be lost through the pressing.

Similar, but different: Spirulina and Chlorella

At first glance, spirulina and chlorella look pretty similar. Both are green microalgae. But while spirulina is a multicellular, spiral-shaped bacterium, chlorella is a unicellular organism with an indigestible cell membrane. Harvesting and processing chlorella is therefore much more complex, which is also reflected in the higher price.

Both microalgae are very nutritious, but the blue-green spirulina comes out on top in comparison. However, chlorella has a decisive advantage: Because the single-celled organism is more difficult to cultivate, contamination with other algae is rather unlikely. In the case of spirulina, on the other hand, cases of products contaminated by toxic blue-green algae are known.

Spirulina algae and sustainability?

This is different again in the famine areas of this world. The nutrient-rich algae, which can also be cultivated in otherwise rather infertile areas, helps to compensate for malnutrition. With the high proportion of proteins, beta-carotene and iron, it combats precisely those deficits which, according to the WHO, are particularly problematic in famine areas. And without consuming precious, clean fresh water, it thrives best in salt water. This gives the spirulina algae a lot of plus points from a sustainability point of view.

The strong conversion of carbon dioxide into oxygen, which the microalgae cause during their growth, provides further plus points. However, if you include the transport from the countries of origin to Europe, the ecological balance is no longer so impressive. So, the sustainability of spirulina is strongly related to where it is consumed.

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Online Fitness – Train at Home and Get Fit

In stressful everyday life, there is often not enough time for healthy exercise. If greasy and sweet snacks are also on the menu, it will soon be over with a good body feeling. But with online fitness platforms, you can train effectively at home and do something for your health. Now the best providers at a glance.

Physical fitness is good for well-being

Physical fitness is important for physical and mental health. If you actively keep fit in everyday life and do sports, you will feel better. Symptoms such as poor sleep and persistent fatigue can be combated if you exercise regularly. You can also increase your concentration and become more efficient. In addition, it leads to a body with an ideal weight with simultaneous healthy nutrition.

But some people find it difficult to bring themselves to go jogging alone or to go to the full gym. There is a great solution: online fitness. Because with it you can bring more fitness into your life, despite a busy schedule and other important commitments in everyday life. If you want to train at home in the future, you should think about your needs and wishes before choosing the program.

The benefits of online fitness

In their stressful everyday life, women rarely enjoy sufficiently large time windows for extended visits to the gym. Because between work, school, kindergarten, household, and kitchen, there are often only minutes left to breathe deeply and relax.

Even getting to the gym costs valuable time that you often don’t have. But even special evening courses prove to be problematic after a few days. At the latest when your children are sick or you are invited to the parents’ evening, the sport has to wait again. It is different from online fitness, which brings you the following advantages:

  • No access routes, so it is also possible with little time.
  • Videos with perfect instructions for the training.
  • Can also be done without childcare.
  • Flexible and customizable.

How does online fitness work?

The platforms and providers of online fitness offer live courses on the Internet, as well as videos with detailed instructions for the respective sports exercises. So you can train from home. You can take part in sports courses or watch different workouts on your own on the PC and follow the instructions of the trainer from the living room. There is no question that this alone is already positive for your body. In addition, many of these online fitness studios offer support for a healthy lifestyle. Accordingly, they give effective nutrition tips and great recipes. Overall, physical activity and good nutrition ensure improved well-being.

The best online fitness providers

A lot has happened in the field of online fitness in recent years. Influencers and coaches show their workouts to imitate on YouTube and other platforms. But online fitness studios have also become a good alternative to the gym for many. That’s why we’ve selected some of the best online fitness providers for you. With these, you can try a lot from strenuous cardio training to yoga training at home.

The motivation thing

The fact is: With online fitness, you get the opportunity to do sports even in stressful everyday life and to find out about proper nutrition. However, since you have to do without “real” partners and groups with this type of fitness, there is often a lack of motivation. The lack of motivation is one of the main risks when it comes to fitness at home.

After all, nobody will notice if you simply skip the planned workout and prefer to lie down on the sofa with a good book. It is therefore worth creating conscious goals and a solid plan. As a result, create your own sports diary (you can find a free template to download here) in which you enter the training times and also note successes. After you achieve certain goals, you should reward yourself. Then you will certainly be able to overcome your weaker self and stay fit in everyday life.

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Planning a Baby Shower – When is the Right Time?

As is so often the case, the idea came from the USA, but it is also very popular in this country: More and more pregnant women want to celebrate a baby shower! The upcoming arrival of the baby is celebrated with the female friends of the pregnant woman. We have collected the best baby shower ideas and baby shower planning tips.

When is the baby shower?

Such a party usually takes place before birth. Since many people struggle with morning sickness in the first few months of pregnancy, a later date is usually chosen. You should also not set the date too soon before the birth. Because if the baby comes earlier than expected or the pregnant woman has to go to the hospital earlier because of complications, the party will, unfortunately, be canceled. So the mother-to-be should be surprised in the last trimester of her pregnancy. As a rule, a baby shower 6 – 8 weeks before the birth makes sense.

How to plan a baby shower correctly?

A baby shower is all about celebrating the upcoming arrival of the baby. Then there is delicious food, such as cakes, finger food or salads. And together, games that often have to do with the baby can be celebrated. In addition, the pregnant woman enjoys gifts for the baby and everything is nicely decorated. So a nice evening among friends. To ensure that the organization of the baby shower is successful, we have collected creative ideas for you.

Where is the celebration?

Since the friends want to be among themselves, most celebrate at home. Either with the pregnant woman or with one of the guests. If you don’t have enough space, you can also rent a room or, if possible, celebrate in the garden.

Planning food for the baby shower

First, you should invite the guests and set a suitable date with them. Then it’s time to plan the baby shower. Providing food is important as it is a big part of the party. There is usually a great cake, maybe even with the name of the child. Donuts, muffins, or other sweets can also be provided. You can also provide various salads, such as pasta salad, potato salad, and dips with finger food. It is best if everyone brings something with them, it makes the work easier. However, also note a healthy diet for pregnant women. But back to the cake. You can order great cakes online, but they’re not always cheap. Therefore, many make a cake themselves.

Baby shower party games

So that there is no boredom in between, there are great games for the baby shower. Of course, you can use existing games and play Tabu or UNO, which were used at other planned parties. But here are also wonderful games related to the baby. You can also find great sets and templates on the internet here. Then you can buy them or print them out. For example, here is a city, country, baby. It works almost like a city, country, or river, but here are the categories: baby clothes, baby food, baby toys, etc. There are also playing cards where the players guess the baby’s name or assign the baby’s characteristics to the respective parent. In addition, you can play the following games for the planned baby shower:

  • Guess waist size
  • Assign baby photos
  • advise baby porridge
  • paint onesie
  • Fill out the friend book
  • predict due date

Ideas for a beautiful decoration

Furthermore, decoration is a must for many. Here you can let your creativity run free and decorate the apartment as you wish. But now there are already ready-made sets for baby shower decoration on the Internet. This usually includes garlands, balloons, and streamers. You can also order matching plates and mugs. This makes planning a baby shower super easy. And the good thing is that this decoration is available in many different colors and designs.

What gifts for a baby shower?

As a rule, the guests of the pregnant women bring gifts that they can use for the newborn baby after the birth. They can be very different gifts. Some give diapers, burp cloths, baby clothes, or pacifiers as gifts. Others give baby toys, blankets, or vouchers. The best thing to do is to find out inconspicuously beforehand what the parents-to-be still need for their baby’s initial equipment.

What speaks for a baby shower after the birth?

Of course, there are also some reasons that speak for a baby shower after the birth. Parents often opt for this variant in order to offer guests the opportunity to get to know their newcomers right away. In addition, it is often easier for guests to choose a gift for the baby if their size, gender, and name are known. Also, note useful tips on pregnancy and how you can give the gift of joy with beautiful birth cards.

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Lifestyle

Beekeepers – Honey Production in the Self-sufficiency Garden

If you walk around with open eyes, you will increasingly see beehives in private gardens. In recent years, beekeeping has become a hip hobby almost overnight, partly because it has been found that the food supply for honey bees is sometimes far greater in cities than in the country. Because there are often monocultures due to intensive agriculture, which after the harvest are like an empty plate for bees. Politicians are now taking countermeasures with the promotion of flower strips, but the large number of balcony plantings, allotment gardens, city gardens and city-tended flower beds as well as urban gardening projects and tree sponsorships usually still offer a greater variety and a food supply from spring to late summer/autumn.

Beekeeping – A hobby for everyone?

From 0 to 100

Basically, beekeeping is a hobby for everyone. Children are introduced to this form of animal husbandry in beekeeping associations and school projects, and as long as personal fitness plays along, there are no upper age limits.

For those who can no longer or do not want to lift that heavy, a box full of honeycombs can weigh up to 25 kg, there are appropriate solutions: boxes that are only half high and therefore only half as heavy or hive systems light styrofoam to reduce the base weight and of course the help of other beekeeping friends.

Beekeepers as allergy sufferers

Even those who are allergic to bees are not necessarily denied the hobby. There are protective suits and gloves that protect against stings and peoples bred to be gentle who are generally not in a bad mood when handled correctly. If you know that you are allergic to bee venom and that doesn’t deter you, then you should always have an emergency pen with you and inform fellow beekeepers.

Beekeepers without their own garden?

Even without your own garden and thus parking space for your bee colonies should not deter you. If you have a balcony, you can ask your property manager whether you are allowed to keep bees, as there are already systems designed for balconies.

Alternatively, you can ask around in your neighborhood via social media or the classic way with notices in the supermarket whether you can set up your bee colonies in someone’s private garden. There are now many who are open to it and to whom one or the other glass of honey is enough thanks.

Prerequisite for hobby beekeeping

Youtube is good, real discourse is better

In order to keep honey bees and produce honey as a hobby beekeeper, especially for your own use, no training is necessary, but you should be aware that you are dealing with living beings. While in most cases the bees themselves know best what is good for them, there are a few things you should know before getting any bees.

For example, ask your nearest beekeeping association whether they offer courses for newbies. Or ask long-established beekeepers if you can give them a hand and look over their shoulders. It’s important to be able to lend a hand and look inside the beehive, that’s the best way to learn and you have the professional on site to answer your questions.

Member of the beekeeping association and insurance

Similar to liability or household effects, you should also have insurance for your bee colony. If you are a member of the beekeepers’ association and only own a few hives, this is not a big investment and is usually billed together with the association fee.

Report to the Animal Disease Fund

As beekeepers are no longer located miles apart, diseases are more likely to spread more quickly. In order to identify locations in the area, to warn and, if necessary, to withdraw them from circulation, it is therefore absolutely necessary to register your colonies with the disease fund. However, the process is quite easy to complete using a form, which can usually be downloaded from the animal disease fund.

Basic equipment for beekeepers

If you want to start beekeeping, you need some basic equipment. There would be

The hives and frames

These are the dwellings for your bees. You can get these new in specialist shops and in different versions. When buying used, you should be careful, especially as a new beekeeper. The hives can contain remnants of pathogens or mites that are not good for your colony.

The protective clothing

Even if many bee colonies are bred to be gentle, a bee sting, especially on the face, is very unpleasant and a hat with a veil is affordable for protection. Special, thicker and, above all, long gloves are also recommended, as they prevent bees from crawling into your shirt sleeves and then stinging your arm or upper body out of claustrophobia. If you prefer to play it safe, you can wear tops with veils or even full-body suits. The latter are like a sauna suit in hot summers, but you have to think about what exactly you want to do with the beehive beforehand.

The tool

The most important utensils are a smoker and a stick chisel. With a smoker you produce smoke and pretend a forest fire to the bees. They retreat and gorge themselves on Hong to have enough energy in case they escape. Use the stick chisel to lift the frames out of the hive.

That brings you the hobby of beekeeping in a self-sufficient garden

Honey – the sweet, liquid gold

Of course, honey bees produce honey and very few hobby beekeepers keep bees without also having their own, self-produced honey in mind. If you want to be as self-sufficient as possible, honey is of course a sweet source of energy, which can also be used for your health in Oxymels, for example.

A strong colony can bring 20, 40 in good years also 60 kilograms of honey.

Attention: Anyone who wants to sell honey or just give it away as a gift must comply with the hygiene regulations when extracting and filling and labeling the honey jars with all the necessary information is required.

Propolis

There are people who swear by propolis as a panacea, whether as an admixture to honey or as a tincture for wounds.

Beeswax for DIY projects

Anyone who uses their own beeswax to make candles or beeswax wraps knows what’s inside. However, cleaning the wax is a bit time-consuming, which is why many hobby beekeepers do without it. The spun combs can also be reused. This saves the bees the time they need to build their own honeycomb and they can put their energy directly into caring for the brood and procuring food, and thus honey production. The longer the honeycomb is used, the darker it becomes because it is more contaminated. If you don’t want to melt them down yourself, they belong in the residual waste due to possible pest or disease contamination.

Pollinator performance

Of course, it’s not just the honey bees that pollinate our fruit and veg, but having them in your kitchen garden definitely can’t hurt. The work done by the flying helpers is priceless.

Deceleration and feelings of happiness

Keeping bees is usually more of a hobby and relaxation than work. The bees do most of the work without our intervention. We only check from time to time whether everything looks good, the queen is laying eggs and the brood is being cared for, whether we need to expand the brood chamber or honey chamber, whether pests such as the Varroa mite have settled in, harvest the honey and feed it Winter possibly too. The rest of the time we can watch the bees at work, relax with the steady buzzing and nibble the first honey straight from the honeycomb.

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