Image credited to Wallpaper List
We humans are almost impossible to please. Whether we’re stuck near the equator, repelled to the poles of this Earth or stranded somewhere in between the poles and the equator, we can almost always moan about how it’s too hot, too cold, too dry or too humid. Thankfully though, because technology has advanced in the area of wearable tech, the quantified self and lifelogging, we can now find ways to turn the situation around and beat the winter blues and summer heat. Here’s how!
1. Virtual reality take you to sunny beaches or winter wonderland
Image credited to Moggles
Well the grass is always greener on the other side, isn’t it? To solve that dissonance between what is and what could have been, perhaps one good way is to get your hands on one of those virtual reality headsets so that you can immerse yourself within a particular experience. Just imagine being instantly transported to a pristine beach in Maldives even though you’re still in the midst of a bitterly cold winter! Besides those developed by Oculus VR and Samsung Gear VR that we’re all familiar with, one other noteworthy VR headset is Moggles, which is short for mobile goggles. This VR console is equipped with a hand controller and head tracking technology app for web browsers, and is made to fit into your pocket easily. It also allows users to walk freely due to its positional tracking technology. Sounds awesome already? Support Moggles in their Indiegogo campaign today!
2. Get fit without leaving your house
Image credited to Yoogaia
Hibernating during the cold dark winters and refusing to head out into the sweltering heat of the summers can significantly reduce the amount of exercise you’re doing. Yet, the good news is this! With the myriad of fitness trackers invading the wearable tech market, you can count on various companies to establish ways to not only track fitness, but to encourage you to keep fit from the comforts of your home. Yoogaia and Fitstar, for instance, present to you live interactive yoga classes and various other personalised workouts respectively. Keep those exercises going to be sure you fight off Seasonal Affective Disorders and usher in the most mentally and physically healthy you!
3. Track your happiness level
Image credited to Lifetracker
Tracking your personal well-being is perhaps the first step to take in order to ascertain if you have any winter or summer blues to fight off at all. And since working towards your resolutions has been commonly cited to be a remedy for those blues, tracking and analysing your personal data to see if you’re closer or further away from those resolutions compared to a week before could be a doubly-good way to keeps those depressive spirits away! For this purpose, consider using Lifetracker, a personally-tailored quantified journal that can help you answer questions regarding the correlation between the things you do and its eventual effects. For instance, does getting more sleep actually improve your productivity? Does having more caffeine help you work better? Basically, this quantified journal will help you find the correlations between A and B, as specified by you. And if finding out correlations just isn’t good enough for you, check out these 50 other apps to track everything in your life!
4. Eat smarter
Image credited to Skinnyms
According to research, one should be consuming more salmon, blueberries and oranges during the winters, while fruits with yoghurt, melons and watercress should be on your grocery list during the summers. In order to optimise your diet, which has been said to significantly affect your mental and physical health, consider using apps like Fooducate or My Fitness Pal to log your dietary intake and see if you’re taking in enough vitamins and minerals for good health. And if you need some ideas for dinner so you don’t end up eating baked salmon every single night, here are some of the best recipe apps that you can look to for help!
Read more: 7 foods to beat the winter blues and Cool foods to eat this summer and Five best food and nutrition tracking tools
5. Light therapy tailored for you
Image credited to Misfit Bolt
Similar to exercising, sunlight exposure releases neurotransmitters in the brain that affect your mood. Bright morning light has been said to reduce depressive symptoms in Seasonal Affective Disorder. Thus, it could be a good idea to engage in light therapy. For this purpose, you could consider getting the Misfit Bolt, which is a wirelessly connected smart bulb that can be tuned to your sleep cycles if you are an existing user of Misfit Shine, Flash or Beddit. Pre-order one now!
But of course, with all that said, do put on that extra thick coat and head out of your house! Being socially isolated can cause you to be more vulnerable to mental health problems. Have a beautiful winter and remember – spring is near! And for those of you embracing the blazing heat right now, remember not to stay in all day within the air-conditioned rooms!
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