School can take a toll on your body, and with a new semester quickly approaching, you need to be prepared. Most college kids don’t realize the big difference studying and sleeping in comfort can make. Often times, school mattresses and desk chairs are hard, uncomfortable, and painful to sleep or study in. This creates a recipe for poor attention spans. You can fight all of these problems though with a few simple comfort products.

The Contour Flip Pillow is an excellent pillow for your twin size bed. It sports a 10-in-1 design that allows you multiple uses all year long. It can be positioned upward for a back rest while you read text books late into the night or it can be flipped for an elevated sleeping wedge. The wedge-shaped design also allows for heart burn relief at night after eating greasy cafeteria food. If you have a futon in your dorm room this year, then use our Flip Pillow for support when lounging against the arm rest. It can also be used to elevate your legs so your feet can rest after a long day of trekking across campus. The Flip Pillow is great option no how you use it, including for back, stomach, and side sleeping.

If you are returning to campus, you will probably remember your old, thin, and unsupportive dorm mattress. There were probably plenty of mornings you debated skipping class due to exhaustion from a bad night’s sleep. This year, change your sleeping arrangements by adding a mattress topper. Mattress toppers are a great way to build support and comfort into your ordinary mattress. Our Contour Cloud Memory Foam Mattress Topper is specially designed with three layers of foam to give you better back support. The first layer is memory foam and feels like a cloud. The second layer gives you added lumbar support and keeps you from tossing and turning all night. The third layer provides a firm base so your mattress topper never bottoms out. It has an ergonomic and orthopedic design, meaning it was designed to improve your sleeping quality, so you can perform better daily and help support your natural spine alignment. The Contour Cloud Memory Foam Mattress Topper will help you sleep better, so you no longer have to fight waking up each morning.

As a student, you can easily spend all night studying in the library or at your desk. Most dorm rooms come with a desk and chair set for students, but often the seat is wood or plastic and definitely uncomfortable; and libraries can be no better. However, you do not have to sacrifice an achy back for better grades anymore. Try out a Freedom Back Support Cushion in your desk chair. It is a full length back support cushion with an ergonomic design to help you study better and longer. It has a unique curve to promote natural and correct spinal alignment. It will attach to any chair using attached Velcro straps and is lightweight so you can carry it to the library or lecture hall. This seat back cushion will change the way you study, so be sure to bring one along on move-in day.

School might be approaching but that doesn’t mean you have to worry about classes yet. However, you should start planning to buy back to school supplies. These three products will change your life and your academic performance. By adding one or all three to your schedule, you can capitalize on your sleep and your study time to be the best student you are able to be.

Give your favorite student a great start to the new year with one of our exclusive comfort bundles.

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4 Reasons to Sleep With a Leg Pillow

Leg pillows are often the unsung heroes of the support world. Despite all they can do and how much comfort they have to provide, they still don't get the respect they deserve. Today we set aside that oversight and look toward leg pillows and what all they can provide.

Perks like:

1. Reducing Back Pain

This is perhaps the best leg pillow pro that there is. Because the pillow isn't used directly for the back, we tend to forget how it can still reduce back pain. However, by propping up the lower legs and removing weight, then readjusting how the body rests at night, aches can be greatly reduced for the following day … and every day this method is used.

2. Promoting Muscle Health

When muscles aren't stressed from aches and pains, you're able to better utilize them to the fullest of their capabilities. That means it's easier to work out (or even just to function throughout the day). Additionally, blood and oxygen flow can be increased, allowing for further health.

3. Convenience/Cost Effective

Adding a leg pillow is a simple way to step-up your sleeping space. If you're traveling and need a little more comfort, leg pillows are an easy way to go. If your back is sore, use of these models to help your cause without expensive treatments. And when used on an ongoing basis, you're likely to gain even more relief out of your comfort method. 

4. Pressure Relief

Though it's not pain directly, pressure is another area of stress within the back and other body muscles. A leg pillow can help reduce this excess stress, even if you aren't aware it's developed. 

To reduce stress, pain, and increase body health, a leg pillow is a great addition to your sleeping routine. Consider adding one today and browse at ContourLiving.com. 

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Briny Fluids Help Combat Muscle Pains

Bodies were meant for movement. They were meant to exercise, to bend, and to expel energy in healthy, yet enjoyable forms of mobility. But even though muscles were meant to move, doesn’t mean they don’t hurt or become sore after doing so. Especially after strenuous workouts, or for those who are more genetically inclined for spasms. But by taking precautions, such as drinking briny fluids, muscle cramps of all kinds can be combatted. 

Recent studies have shown pickle juice, which has been consumed for years to reduce pains, especially for athletes, is not the only vinegar-based cure. Scientists are now saying virtually any briny liquid can also do the trick, including flavored vinegars, salted substances, and more. Leaving you the choice to pick your favorite flavor while still receiving the same results. However, you should also talk with your doctor before choosing a long-term favorite, especially those that are mixed at home. 

The Study

After performing a college-based experiment at Brigham Young University, in which athletes worked out and were then given pickle juice, results showed that the liquid was salty enough to help replenish muscles. (While the initial cramping is caused by salt and hydration levels being secreted into sweat.) The brine “trick,” though, has been used by athletic trainers for decades. 

In the study, athletes were forced into cramping situations through computers and/or minor shocks, then fed the pickle juice to see if, and how quickly, the brine would reduce their symptoms. Athletes who drank pickle juice experienced timely relief, while those who stuck to water still complained of pains. 

With the results in tow, however, there is now actual scientific proof behind the long-running theory. Proving that athletes should ingest pickle juice – or other briny substances, including sports drinks (for those who dislike the taste of pickles) – in order to prevent or eliminate cramping. 

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5 Winter Olympic Sports Sure to Put you in a Back Brace

This past week the world was introduced to Sochi, Russia, the home of the 2014 Winter Olympics. And for days the best athletes have been flipping, skiing, and sliding their way into our daily entertainment. Performing tricks most of us can only consider in cartoon form, these athletes have proven just how much talent and control it requires to become a contending winter athlete.

For the most part, these athletes are young, and there’s a reason for the age discrepancy. After a certain age, we simply can’t perform acrobatics without causing extreme bodily consequences. For the non-Olympic population, here are the top five injury-inducing winter sports. Avoid them to keep your back and your sanity in working order.

5. The Bobsleigh

Cramming four people into a tiny sled looks less than comfortable. Hunching over to obtain maximum wind resistance sounds even worse. Anyone with a back problem should steer ever clear from bobsledding activities.

4. Hockey

Not only does this sport require quick, sudden movements, it’s likely to land you against the wall multiple times per game. Stay off the ice to avoid these competitive smashing movements.

3. Figure Skating

The jumps these figure skaters make send bodies into constant twirls and turns. Not so bad for those who can land them, but each fall looks like it’s a purple bruise and a back adjustment waiting to happen.

2. Skiing/Snowboarding

Again, the jumps and flips look like your spine’s worst nightmare. Even with protective gear and years of training, nothing saves the back from these epic tricks like not attempting them at all.

1. Curling

A sport that combines target practice with brooms, athletes must bend and frantically sweep for long periods of time. Put on repeat and your lower back is likely to be aching something fierce after a single tournament.

This winter, leave these backbreaking events to the pros. Your body – and your future health – will thank you.

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Can Too Much Sugar Affect Everyday Pains?

Whether you’re stocking up on Halloween goodies or just have an everyday sweet tooth, there’s no denying that too much sugar is bad for one’s health. A fact that dentists have been proclaiming for years, others are also beginning realizing the harsh dangers of sugar-based meals.

But what exactly can too much sugar do?

In extreme cases, patients can develop a life-long condition, such as obesity or diabetes. Both come with their own long-term problems. For instance obesity can make movement harder and takes a toll on one’s posture and circulation, while diabetes affects diet, wellness, and requires proper foot care. While both of these are worst case scenarios (from eating too much candy, anyway), they’re some of the biggest issues to look out for. Those with family history should be on extra high alert, as they’re the most susceptible to the disease’s grasp.

Other Side Effects of Sugar

High sugar intakes have also been shown to increase acne, one’s risk of depression, and even cause folks to become “addicted” to the substance. Much like salt, the more sugar that’s consumed, the more a body craves its sweetness. Obviously this is a recipe for disaster, especially considering all the negative side effects it can bring.

As for everyday pains, these uncomfortable bouts can be increased by poor circulation and digestion – both of which can arise from heavy sugar ingestion. When repeated over time – such as someone taking in multiple sodas or pieces of candy each day – their circulation and digestion will see a direct hit. This could lead to stomach pains, cold appendages, or increased aches in the back, legs, and arms, as they aren’t getting regular blood flow. [Fitbie]

While some sugar is deemed ok (especially if it’s real sugar and not a sweetener substitute), it’s best when not eaten excessively. Keep the sweets at a minimum to avoid pains and other health problems that the substance can trigger.

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10 Facts About Fibromyalgia and Myofascial Pain Syndrome

Did you know...?

Fibromyalgia is a biochemical disorder.  It is a systemic neurotransmitter dysregulation with  biochemical causes.  Neurotransmitters carry information between the mind and body - presenting many interesting and often incorrect facts surrounding Fibromyalgia.

While, Myofascial Pain Syndrome (MPS) is a neuromuscular condition. MPS occurs because of mechanical failures.  Patients have trigger points all over their bodies.

Myofascia is a thin, almost translucent film that wraps around muscle tissue and is the tissue that holds all the other parts together. It gives shape and supports all of the body's muscles. It continues past the muscle and blends into the bone.  It's these trigger points that are affected, producing symptoms.

Read more about Fibromyalgia and Myofascial Pain Syndrome.

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