Use the App to Make Your Voicemail Interesting
When we put together our staff’s weekly updates last Friday , our editors were gearing up for various vacations, taking on impressive DIY projects, and rethinking our organizational strategies.
This week we’ll be focusing on diet and fitness, long-distance friendships, streamlining our daily commute, and more.
What updates have you made this week? Let us know in the comments.
Track your consumption of snacks in the office
A few weeks ago, I found that I could not button up my favorite jeans. And then there were other jeans that I had, larger sizes that didn’t look very good – they also got too tight. Oh, and also all my pants. I say none of my pants fit. While trying to figure out the problem, I downloaded My Fitness Pal , a handy little app that tracks food intake and exercise. A week later, I am shocked (and a little embarrassed) when I admit how much this app has affected my daily habits. I realized that my weight increased not because of some hidden thyroid problem, but rather because I enthusiastically consume free snacks in the office on a regular basis. I have found that it is much easier to cut down on unnecessary food when I need to inject it into the application. And lo and behold, my jeans … but oh well, they don’t suit me yet. It’s only been a week!
Alice Bradley, Associate Editor
Stay connected without constant messages
One of my best friends is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in the UK and the time difference makes it very difficult to talk on the phone. Instead of constantly texting, we started sending each other voice memos through an app called Voxer. It was a surprisingly great way to keep each other informed and connected. And in 2017, there’s something damn romantic about voice messages with your best friend.
Caitlin schneider, social editor
Straighten your teeth slowly
I do this update every week to upgrade to the next set of dental aligners. Since spring of this year I have been doing Invisalign (for medical reasons). Every time I upgrade to a new set of aligners, my teeth hurt, but I see this proof that I am one step closer to well-aligned teeth that will not move over time until they fall out. And each new aligner means one week closer to the end of the procedure, and I no longer need to brush my teeth every time I have a snack or drink a beer.
Nick Douglas, staff writer
Improve your downward dog
I started doing yoga again. I bought an unlimited travel pass for a month and travel twice a week. As a person who mostly sits and stands, my back is much happier.
Claire Lowe, Food and Beverage Editor
Calm your keychain
In addition to the three required keys, my key chain contains my work ID, my gym membership tag, and a compact beer bottle opener (always ready). I keep them light because I also run around with them in my pocket, and for a long time they were a metaphorical (and somewhat physical) thorn in my side. The rhythmic clatter of metal in my pocket gets boring after a while. Fortunately, fate took me to the local hardware store and introduced me to both rubber key caps and stainless steel wire keychains – an improvement over the traditional keyring that chipped my nails. My keys are now color coded, rubber coated and quieter than ever.
Patrick Austin, staff writer
Track your habits to keep them alive
Right now I am working on improving two different daily habits: meditating for at least a few minutes in the morning and eight hours of sleep. In the interest of tracking my progress (and in order to motivate myself to do what I promised myself to do), I downloaded Productive , one of what appears to be the many habit tracking apps on the market. Now I use the free version, which allows you to track up to five habits at the same time and displays them as “bars” on the calendar. There are definitely days when I force myself to do whatever I have to do, mostly for the sake of keeping the streak going, so I guess that means it works.
Virginia K. Smith, Editor-in-Chief
Spring for preliminary check TSA
I finally got the TSA pre-check. I always thought it was foolish to pay just to save a few minutes a few times a year (that’s $ 85 over five years), but in the end I decided to indulge myself. And when I showed up at the airport yesterday morning, the lines were so long – I have never seen anything like it at this airport before. But I slipped away, so I guess it already pays off!
Beth Skwarecki, health editor