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Simple Fruit Infused Detox Water Recipes

Having just returned from a couple of cruises where spas were the norm, another norm was fruit infused detox water. When you return from vacation, you also find yourself wanting to detox, and not all of us have free-flowing detox water awaiting us.

Fruit-infused water has many health benefits. It does wonders for improving your metabolism. Drinking infused water will help in keeping the stomach full. Did you know that most of the time when you feel hungry, you are really thirsty? Toxins will be flushed out of the body. Your skin quality will improve, and these infusions will helps with digestion.

We have put together some easy fruit-infused detox water hacks that have worked for us over the past week or so, and thought we would share some of our favorite combinations.

Lemon & Blueberry Infused Water

Blueberries may be the healthiest fruit on the planet! They are high in potassium and vitamin C, making them the top choice of doctors and nutritionists. Not only can they lower your risk of heart disease and cancer, but they are also anti-inflammatory. Pair them with lemon which is a natural detoxifier and aids with bloating and fluid retention, and you have yourself a pretty great spa drink.

Cucumber & Strawberry Infused Water

Cucumbers are synonymous with spas and relaxation. Not only do cucumber slices help to reduce the puffiness around the eyes, but put some of those slices in your water, and you can reduce bloating, and flush toxins out of your system. Throw some strawberries in and you will have some yummy flavoring, and also boost your immune system. Strawberries are high in antioxidants and packed with vitamins. It has been said that this combination also helps to improve your mood. Bonus!

Grapefruit & Orange Infused Water

This citrus delight will be jam-packed with vitamin C and is a great immune booster and detox drink for your spa day. Oranges help to alkalize the body, while grapefruit is one of the best fruits to help your liver and kidneys clear your blood of impurities.

Infusion Process

You may be asking yourself, “what is the best way to infuse the fruit and the water and make sure I don’t lose the benefits, but also make sure that they are delish?!”

Here are some tips:

If you are just making servings for yourself or one other person, consider a jar or smaller container, rather than a pitcher. We love a mason jar. This one is a great size. We also use this size for other things in our home like plant propagation, tea lights on the porch in the summer, gardening, and tons of other things. If you prefer an Infusion Water Bottle, this is a great one.
Use fresh fruit, organic if possible. Wash and cut servings and place into containers and add water only. No ice.
Place in the refrigerator for a minimum of 1 hour, preferably 3-4 so the flavors have enough time to steep into the water. You can always give the fruits a bit of a hug if time is an issue, but don’t force it. It’s infusion, not squeezed.
How much fruit for each serving? It’s a judgment call, but here are some rules of thumb:
- We usually think of a whole piece of fruit like a lemon, orange, or grapefruit serving 4. So, if you are serving yourself, cut the fruit into slices and place ¼ of the amount into your jar/container.
- For strawberries- we consider 1 cup sliced serves 2, so use ½ cup sliced if it is just for yourself.
- For blueberries- similar to strawberries- ½ cup for one serving.
- For cucumbers- similar to strawberries- ½ cup for one serving, or more if you enjoy the taste of cucumbers in your water.
Once your infusion time has passed, you can remove the infused water from the refrigerator and add ice. Enjoy. Feel free to continue to add ice throughout the day if you’d like.
Garnish with fresh basil or mint for a nice additive, as well as the aesthetically pleasing appeal. We love that!

*All of this can be adjusted to how much you enjoy the taste of your fruit. There are no wrong ways of doing this. This is just a guide.

Fancying them up a bit?

If you are entertaining, and maybe want to spruce these up, you can always add some sparkling water, or even a bit of natural/local honey to sweeten. Just remember, the more additives you put in, the less beneficial the water is for your health.

Additional Hydration Resource

Of course, if you are looking for an additional hydration helper, you can try out Liquid I.V. It is a hydration multiplier- an additive for your water that allows you to get the benefits of drinking 2-3x the amount of water you would drink in a single serving with additional electrolytes. Visit this link and use code: ARNERADVENTURES to save 25% off of your order and receive free shipping.

Disclosure: We only recommend products we would use ourselves and all opinions expressed here are our own. This post may contain affiliate links that are no additional cost to you. We may earn a small commission from them. All efforts are made to ensure that affiliate links are disclosed in accordance with the FTC.

In mental health self-care wellness ·

Reduce Stress With a Slower Life

April is Stress Awareness Month so we thought a great way to introduce the month would be to share ways to reduce stress by slowing down life just a bit. Slow living is a broad term, but there are ways that we have found to reduce stress is by slowing down the fast pace that life presents. All month long on our social media platforms, and our podcast, we will be sharing ways that we have found to help combat stress.

Sports fans, you will understand this analogy. I (Shannon) am a BIG Duke Basketball fan. They have a certain pace of play. When a team is trying to outplay them, they tend to speed up the game. It usually throws Duke off a bit. I am usually screaming at the screen, “slow it down, guys! Slow down the game! Go at the pace you know!” They have a pace that is comfortable for them. When the game speeds up, it is a pace that is too fast, too much. I can completely relate to this in life. When things get too fast, to jumbled, I get more stressed and things tend to fall between the cracks.

Our brains, speaking of myself and Gerry now, just work at a better pace when things are a bit slower. Since we moved to the coast, the ‘island time’ way of life is just a better way for us. Don’t get me wrong, when someone doesn’t respond in a manner that I need, it does drive me crazy! Especially when you need a plumber, stat! Nevertheless, slowing things down, simplifying things, isn’t just something that we as minimalists do. It is something that you can implement into your life to reduce your stress level. Slow living is proven to reduce stress.

Here are some ways slow living reduces stress and things you can implement:

Join our Declutter Challenge. Decluttering your space and a negative mindset will help make space for what is important. A cluttered space makes for a rushed life. You constantly feel like things are in disorder, or that you are looking for things. Our declutter challenge is free, easy, and is set-up in bite-size easy steps that you can start any time. Just be consistent and continue it for 30-days.
Do one thing at a time. There is no such thing as multitasking. Really, or at least, not successfully. There are many studies that show this is no longer a skill employers find appealing, especially in the safety arena. Our brains simply cannot multitask as we think they can. Thich Nhat Hanh says, “If while washing dishes, we think only of the cup of tea that awaits us, thus hurrying to get the dishes out of the way as if they were a nuisance, then we are not ‘washing the dishes to wash the dishes.’ Meaning, we should be more mindful of the here and now. Be here now. Rituals that we have in place help with this. We have a daily practice of rituals and routines, but we make attempts to make sure that we are mindful of those practices. They help to reduce stress when we are mindful of the activities that we are taking part in. They slow the racing mind, hence, reduce stress.
Meditate. When you allow time in your day for meditation, you allow time for your body and mind to slow down, recover, and have the space to just be. Your mind and body are always working. If you are like us, your mind may always be racing. The stressful mind needs a rest. Meditation helps with this. We have a simple and easy meditation to help you if you’d like to access this free resource.
If you use a google calendar, or other type of scheduling app or calendar, schedule “nothing time” in between appointments. This helps to slow down your day, allowing recovery and rest in between tasks. You will be surprised how much this lowers your stress rate. It slows down your day and makes for a less manic-type of feel in an already busy way of life for most of us.

Learn to adapt to the way of nature. Adapting your wake and sleep schedule to that of nature allows you to coincide your body and mind with that of the Earth. Your eating schedule also adapts. According to the Ayurvedic practice, “Waking up before/with the sun provides you with energy, positivity & all things beneficial for your mental & physical health as it brings balance in one’s constitution. It also regularizes a person’s biological clock, aids digestion, absorption and assimilation, and generates self-esteem, discipline, peace, happiness, and longevity.” This practice helps to reduce stress as it slows down the pace of life.
When you are relaxing, truly relax. Learn to shut off technology when you are relaxing or when it is time for bed. We have the ritual at night of putting our phone to bed– meaning, our phone lives in another room, on silent. There are no temptations to grab it, nor any sounds, nor light coming from it to disrupt the energy we need at bedtime. We have begun turning off television two hours before bed to also reduce the stimulation to our brain so that we may begin the relaxation process. It is similar to the wake-up process of slowly integrating technology into our day. Technology makes us feel rushed and speeds up all of the thoughts that are in our brain. If we can slow things down physically, we can help to reduce the amount of processing our brain has to do, hence, reduce the stress we have.
Lastly, but surely not least important, control your own schedule, day, and life. Do not allow someone else to control it for you. This is rooted in boundaries and is something that we are working on daily. Slowing things down greatly depends on you being able to administer the way of life that you need for yourself. Having others put demands on you, or allowing their needs and wants to integrate into your schedule will put stress on you, and create a rush, manic feel. There is nothing good in this. It creates resentment, along with the stress that you feel.

We hope that these tips help you create a slower life for yourself. No matter where you live, or what type of life you desire, everyone deserves to have a greater sense of calm. May you find a slower, simple life with less stress.

Disclaimer- this blog post only represents our opinions. The content here should not be taken as medical advice. The content is for informational purposes only, and because each person is so unique, please consult your healthcare professional for any medical questions or advice. See Terms and Conditions for more information.

In Minimalist Lifestyle self-care work from home ·

The Top 5 Reasons You Should Freelance

Have you heard the news? 2022 is the year of the freelancer! Due to The Great Resignation, people are paving their own way, creating their own work life, making their own hours and their own rules. We’ve talked about the many reasons that The Great Resignation happened (and is still happening by the way) which is now leading to people wanting to freelance. We are going to give you the top 5 reasons you should freelance, especially if you are a part of, or looking to be a part of The Great Resignation.

Freelancing allows for flexibility.

Think about it. As a business owner, you have some flexibility, but you also have none. Many business owners, and we speak from experience, work 24/7. As a freelancer, you can make your own hours, take on as many or as few clients or jobs as you want. As an employee, you are lucky to have flexibility, and for it, you often have to negotiate. Flexibility allows for a better quality of life, which is why it is #1 in our list of the top 5 reasons you should freelance.

Freelancers can work from anywhere.

Freelance jobs offer independence so that you can take jobs anywhere you want, or in many cases, if you are a digital worker, you can work remotely, from literally anywhere. You have the flexibility of working alone, or partnering with contract workers when you need to. You also have the ability to work whatever schedule you want, so if you want to work in a different time zone, and take on clients in various countries, working on their schedule, you can. Again, this type of benefit allows you to cultivate the life you desire, adding to a better quality of life. We have this at the top of our list at #2 of the top 5 reasons you should freelance, for that reason.

Freelancing allows you to gain experience.

Working freelance allows you to gain experience in areas you may have wanted to broaden your horizons in. You can also dabble more in some areas that may have peaked your interest to determine if you wanted to go full throttle, building your resume, beef up your portfolio, opting whether or not you want to gain clientele in said wheelhouse. This isn’t possible when working in a career, or taking on a new position.

Freelancing lends to creativity.

As a freelancer, you can be more creative and take on risks that you wouldn’t have been able to do when working for someone else. You can try new things, new ideas without the confines of a job scope, HR requirements, or corporate red tape. If you are someone who has creative ideas and has had to run them through not one, two, three, but four or more people or meetings for approval, you definitely appreciate this being on our list of the top 5 reasons you should freelance.

Freelancing can be the income you want it to be.

Freelancing can be a great added income, a side hustle, and/or can even lead to an LLC, or a business. You can make freelancing whatever you want it to be. The world is your oyster when it comes to freelancing. It makes you feel more in control of your own destiny. With that being said, freelancing does mean that you must hustle to gain work. Freelancing isn’t free. You must solicit your work, but fear not. We have some tips for how you can get started here.

Whether you are on your way to your own Great Resignation, or simply want to get started in freelancing, we have a FREE Freelance Resource Guide you can download it HERE to get you started on your freelance journey.

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