6 Tips on How To Keep Cool and Survive Hot Weather

Attention! The world is currently in a state of heat and people are struggling to keep their body temperatures cool. England, Germany, Hong Kong, Las Vegas and Honolulu are all experiencing temperatures at 30°C and above so, wherever you are, here is how to survive. 

1. Open windows early then shut them when the outside temperature is higher than your house. It will help if you have a thermometer that tells you inside and outside temperatures. If the room is facing away from the sun then keep those windows open.

2. Between 11 and 3, stay under a tree. When the sun is at it's highest in the sky it does the most damage to your skin and makes you very uncomfortably hot. During these times find shade or stay inside and make your sunbathing times in the morning and the afternoon.

3. Instantly cool down by putting and ice cube, cold water or anything cold on your wrists, neck, inner elbow or inner knee. These areas are pulse points and pressure points so they are the hottest parts of your body. 

4. Sleep downstairs at night if the heat is just too unbearable (if you live in a two-story house). Heat rises and there's nothing you can do about that so if the heat is keeping you awake at night then simply move to the cooler places in your house.

5. Change your bedding to a thinner one, or if you don't want to spend money on new bedding then you can always use a sleeping bag because the material is thinner. However, sleeping bags are insulators so try opening it up and use it as a normal duvet.

6. Drink plenty of water to keep you hydrated and keep bottles of water in the fridge. This allows you to have instant access to cold refreshing water straight away.  

Let me know how you are coping in the heat. What's the hottest temperature it's been this summer where you live?

Why You Should Drink More Green Tea

To many, including me, green tea seems like a miracle drink. The health benefits are exactly what you can wish for in a drink and I'm about to tell you why...

• It has almost no calories (technically it has 1 calorie that you will burn off by making your green tea) plus it increases your metabolism which makes you burn off calories faster.
• It contains antioxidants that will flush away all of the bad toxins in your body.
• Because of the antioxidants, it's very good for your skin and will help prevent imperfections from spots to wrinkles.
• The small amount of caffeine it contains is the right amount to keep you feelings energised all day. It actually contains half the amount a cup of coffee has so you can have it if you're sensitive to caffeine.
• This amount of caffeine also produces a more focused "buzz" than coffee meaning you'll be more productive sipping on your green tea than your coffee.
• Studies have shows that drinking green tea often can reduce your chance of getting type 2 diabetes, cancer and Parkinson's disease. 

Too good to be true? Well maybe there are a few cons but the pros easily outweigh them. I'll go through them to pre-warn you before you start a green tea binge.

• A lot of the pros can only be completely felt by drinking about 5 cups a day over an extended period of time. That being said, I know people who can drink that many cups of coffee and fizzy drinks in a day so if you're the same then simply replace them with the greener alternative.
• When you first start having green tea the taste can be really hard to stand. To make it taste better, you can add honey or lemon (both of which also have health benefits). You can also buy green tea that is already mixed with other nice tasting things such as salted caramel although I'm not sure I would be that keen on it....

Try doing a green tea challenge and replace two of your drinks a day with this healthier alternative and let me know how you get on!

7 Quick and Easy Essential Beauty Tips

Good things don't come to people who don't try and the same goes with beauty. Unless you have been blessed with a natural beauty that doesn't change with age, emotions, or bad habits then the way to achieve then keep good hair and skin is by applying these 7 essential tips to your daily life.

If you're missing one or more of these tips in your routine then start doing it today. You'll soon realise that your beauty would not have been able to survive without it! 

Do you have any other essential tips that you would add to this list?

7 Quick and Easy Father's Day Gift Ideas

Father's Day is this Sunday and, if you're like me and don't have a present for your Father yet, here are a few quick and easy ideas that your Dad is sure to appreciate.

Paperchase Fountain Pen - £16.50

Paperchase Travel Mug - £7.50 

The Body Shop Modern Gent's Shaving Kit £25.00

Letterfest Typographic Story of my Dad Print - £30

Good Day Organics Beard Oil Travel Set - £18

Sparks Clothing Personalised Polar Bear Socks - £15

Tom Friedman The Senior Moments Memory Workout - £6.95

Now get out there and get shopping for your Father!

5 Tips on How to Have a Healthier Lifestyle

Sometimes we get so carried away with life that we don't notice that our mental and physical health should be a lot better. Uninspiring daily tasks can lead us to feel unmotivated and unhappy when we do get time to rest. It's also hard to try and change your lifestyle especially as a student or if you have a demanding job. I have got 5 simple tips that will be easy to incorporate into your daily routine.

Take a moment to feel still.

Whether it's whilst you're on the bus, in the shower, about to go to bed or whenever you remember, appreciate it the feeling of not having to think about something. Take a long deep breath in and fill your lungs with that feeling, slowly breathe out and let your body relax. Do this a few times as often as you can. Though it might not seem much, it will help to calm and relax your mind even for just a moment.

Make small changes to your diet.

This has always been a hard thing for me to do and I think it's the same for most people on this planet. Even so, take a food diary (not everyday but a few times a week) by recording everything you eat and drink. Have a look and see if you could reduce the amount of snacks you eat or swap them for healthier ones such as fruit, nuts, or chopped vegetables (e.g carrots). By becoming a bit more aware of what you eat each day can help you get a bit more self control too.

Drink more water.

If you do anything on this list then this is the most important and the easiest. Take an ergonomic water bottle with you everywhere you go (Disclaimer: I am not sponsoring First, my Dad worked for them a while back). An ergonomic water bottle is best for the environment and you can save money on buying drinks from cafe's and vending machines. I like to keep my water bottle in the fridge so whenever I'm thirsty it's easy to access. If you'd prefer a warm drink then herbal and fruit teas are great. I also like to put honey in hot water for a nice sweet warm drink.

Do more things that make you happy.

Making your way through the week without being able to look forward to something at the weekend does not make you motivated. It's very easy nowadays to quickly search for free things to do in surrounding cities so go ahead and look for something you'd love to do. You could also try and set some time aside on an evening to do a hobby, therefore you'll be thinking positively all day whilst looking forward to doing it.

Exercise can help you sleep better.

Exercise in itself is great so if you have no problem sleeping then you should still try and fit in some active time. Release stress by doing something active or even a simple bit of yoga. I have an app called 'Seven' which you spend 7 minutes a day doing a work out with different exercises. It's great if you don't want to go to the gym or if you don't have a lot of time. To be honest - I sometimes do the workout in my pyjamas.... Your body will rest well if you tire it out with exercise.

Let me know your results!

What to Wear With High Waisted Shorts

Is this the first time I'm posting a picture of myself? I think it is. Anyway. I recently bought these super amazing high waisted shorts from New Look in the sale, known as 'hotpants'. They will probably not be available any more but here is some inspiration for what to where with high waisted shorts (because it can be a bit of a challenge sometimes).

In the case that someone wants to know what I am wearing with the shorts then the details are on the picture below however both the socks and shoes are unlikely to be available but both shops still sell similar items.

In an attempt to try and distract you from my bright white legs, I'm wearing an even brighter white plain tee. Actually, that's not the reason I'm wearing it. I'm wearing it because it makes the outfit have a minimalist look and compliments the shade of blue of the shorts perfectly. It also allows you to add accessories and style the outfit with whatever you want. For example, this leather jacket.

Next is a top that I'm using as an example (wink wink), any top of any colour as long as it comes down to almost the bottom of the shorts will work. I think this style is really cute, looks relaxed and is a perfect summer look.
















To switch this outfit up a bit, tuck the front in! I have mentioned this before, tucking the front in adds a cool and chilled vibe to an outfit. ( Why do the words 'cool' and 'chilled' make me feel like I'm trying to connect myself with the youth when I am the youth? Anyway....)

Another top that requires 0.1% effort is a crop top and can act as the centre piece of an outfit with high waisted shorts. Another plus is that you can buy that cute crop top you love and wear it confidently without having to worry about your tummy being seen if you don't want it to be.

So that's it! A few simple ways to wear tops with high waisted shorts and to get the most out of them before summer comes to an end which I am certainly not looking forward to. Also, I have been absolutely loving these shorts and matching outfits with them so I knew I just had to do a post including them.

- Zin x

Things to do this Summer

The summer holidays are here! I love having this time off to not think about anything and do whatever I want but after the first or second week I always find myself being bored and doing the same thing everyday.

If you're like me and also hate not doing anything that's enjoyable or making good memories then I have come up with a list of things to do this summer. Some are to do on days when you're bored at home and others are when you want to leave the home and get out there!

1. Read. Books are always inspiring and can open your eyes to new views of the world that you may had never thought about before and with no school work to do or think about you can actually enjoy focusing and getting lost in someone else's adventure.

In my June Favourites I mentioned that I was reading 'An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth' (which I have now finished and I may do a review for) and now I am reading 'A Song for Issy Bradley'. I recommend both of these books if you're struggling on what book to buy.

2. Learn something new, whether it's a new language, an instrument, an activity (e.g skateboarding or dancing) or maybe even a subject you've been interested in such as space or music theory. In England we have 6 weeks holiday which is plenty of time to learn something new and pick up a new hobby.

3. Find a job. Of course this can be an actual job (I have just got a job at a cafe) or you could even find volunteering to do. If these are too hard to do then offer to do jobs for family or neighbours. In the end it will come off as experience that you can use to impress future employers!

4. Be a tourist in your own town. I'm lucky that I live in a town that is known for it's old history and tourist attractions so there is always a lot to learn and new things to discover. If you don't live somewhere where there is much you could still fill whole days visiting places even if it is just a shopping trip or a trip to the cinema.

5. Visit all the cafes and restaurants where you live. This is something I have started doing recently and I love seeing how different cafes and restaurants present themselves and how it reflects their food and the overall experience they want the customer to have. However, there are some places that I know I will probably never try and will stay as far away as possible from....

6. Start to exercise. Summer gives you no excuses to put off getting fit; the mornings are bright and refreshing as are the evenings and it's definitely not cold outside plus you now have a lot of free time. Go out and do a quick run as soon as you wake up, mid-morning, in the afternoon or in the evening and if you don't want to run then there are plenty of other exercises to choose from as well.

7. Get organised to start school again. Yes, I know, we try to pretend school doesn't exist in the holidays but if you get everything ready at the beginning then you don't have to think about it as much when the holidays come to a close.

Buy all the stationary you need, a new school bag or maybe some new clothes and then actually prepare your stuff as if you were going to school if you can. It will also put your mind at ease a bit because you know you won't have to rush and do last minute shopping.

I hope these quick pointers will help your summer to be a bit more enjoyable and memorable.
- Zin x

Quick Exam Tips

I have previously done exam tips but I am about to go through another extremely important set of exams in the next few months and I want to share some new and improved exams tips.

1) If you're like me and still have a few months until you should fully focus all your time on revision, find some time every so often to go through different topics that you did at the beginning of the year or topics you didn't quite understand. This means that when it comes to really focusing on revising, you might not need to fully go through a topic.

2) Make time. This seems impossible to do but if you organise your daily routine, you could find that you actually have half an hour here or there to do some revision or work. This is really quite good because once you get some out the way your mind can feel a bit more relaxed and you can spend other time on something you actually want to do.

3) I kind of said this in the first tip, but start early. The best thing to do is to be going over things in free time from the beginning of the school year. You could make this an aim for your next school year if it's too late, but if it's not then go ahead and start today!

4) Give yourself regular breaks. Of course, if you have motivation and are in the right mind then do as much work as you can, but do take a breather every 20 minutes at least even if it is just to take a few breathes and then going back into it.

If you don't have motivation, say to yourself you'll do 5 minutes then take a break, then 10 minutes and take a break.

5) Eating well will give your brain energy to focus and to remember. Working when you're hungry or not focused isn't going to be worth it. Breakfast is very important and here is a post that is about sustainable breakfast that will keep you going through the whole morning at least.

As well as breakfast, you don't want to skip lunch or an evening meal, and it is better to eat these than to snack. Meals are better brain food than small snacks.

I hope these help
-Zin x

Back to School: Changing Your Current Schedule #1

School is starting again soon if the school year starts in September in your country and I thought I would do a few blog posts to give tips of how to change your current holiday schedule so it won't be so hard when you start school again.

1. Most importantly, if your sleeping pattern is all over the place or you sleep when you would normally be in school then now is the best time to try to start to change it to a sleep pattern that will fit your school schedule.

A good tip for whenever you want to try and change your sleep pattern is to slowly change it and not go to bed hours earlier than you would normally do. If the difference in times are not that big then change it by 5-10 minutes, if the times are further apart then change it by 20-30 minutes. You may not be used to it straight away but after a while you could find yourself becoming tired or wanting to go to bed earlier than you thought.

2. As well as getting to sleep earlier, waking up earlier will also help your body get ready to waking up early for school. Again it can only be by 5-10 minutes or more if you think you could do that. However, I have found that I tend to lay in bed for hours after I wake up and if you do this as well then we can use the same technique of getting up earlier or going through our getting ready routine some days to help prepare us for the change

3. As I just said, doing our getting ready routine will help us to being up and doing stuff earlier in the morning but also actually going out to do things can help us to wake up our bodies more and prepare ourselves even more, even if it is just a simple walk.

4. Although this may seem like a waste of time for the end of the holidays, doing more 'brain teasers' to help your brain get used to having to challenge itself and doing work. Obviously you don't have to spend much time doing this as it could be a maths question or even simply a word search, anything at all.

5. Another tip which won't apply to everyone is to regulate your meals to when you would eat when you're at school. I've been used to having a meal whenever I want and eating whenever I want but we can't do that at school so if you also do this then, like before, slowly start changing it.

I hope these tips come in handy and keep an eye out for my next posts on going back to school
- Zin x

Tips For Getting Through Exams

Exam season is coming soon for many people and after the stress of revising there's the actual exam. Exams are usually uncomfortable for many people, let alone the actual exam paper. Here I am giving some tips to help get through exams so you can focus more on your exam paper and hopefully do well.

1) If you have a fear or get anxiety, panicky or whatever you feel during an exam which makes it hard for you to get through it a good thing to do before the exam is to ask yourself 'what is the worst that can happen?' and then 'what would I do in that situation?'. This technique is good for any situation and can make you feel better about it. When you actually think about this in your head many people find that the thing they're worrying about is really not a problem and it makes them feel much more relieved.

2) Perhaps you just don't like the atmosphere as it makes you uncomfortable or something similar. If you imagine yourself to be in your own space or your own bubble and perhaps imagine you're actually in your bedroom or somewhere that you feel comfortable then it can help you to forget about the atmosphere you're in. If you find it hard to do this you could always talk to someone about moving to a place in the exam hall where you would be more comfortable or see if they can offer a different room so that you can actually focus on your exam.

3) To help you focus on exam, underline main points of the question, it can help you to focus on what it is you are reading and understand it more.

4) There should always be a clock in the exam room, use it to your advantage. There a 2 ways you can make the time go faster, if you want it to.(You can use both)

• Every time you look at the clock, count the time left. Obviously the number will get smaller and smaller and make the time seem as though it's going faster.
• When you look at the clock, count the time that has gone. Again, this can make time go faster. Personally this doesn't work for me, but it works for my friends so it's all about what is best for you

5) Make sure you have eaten before the exam. Food will give you energy and effort to do the exam and will help keep your mind on the exam

6) If you get nervous before you go in, take your mind off it. You could do this by going through some key points for the exam, or if that makes you nervous, try to distract yourself in some other way, there are some tips in this post that can help relieve stress and calm yourself for any situation, including exams.

I hope you found this helpful and good luck if you are taking exams

- Zin x