Premium Starter Kit 101

I've been asked a lot lately three questions when talking to friends, family, and clients about essential oils:  1) What are essential oils? 2) How do you use essential oils? and 3) What's the best way to get started? This post is to help answer many of your questions and give you more information on the Premium Starter Kit and essential oils 101!

Let's get something straight first. I've always dabbled in essential oils and aromatherapy.  What I've never found is a product that promises 100% "seed to seal" guarantee like Young Living. As a yoga teacher who aids in stress reduction and relaxation it makes sense to use aromatherapy in classes and personal sessions.  Think about the last time you went into a nice hotel or went to a spa.  When you walk in you automatically feel at ease and more relaxed. Imagine if you could create a similar environment in your own home or office just by diffusing essential oils. Plus, there are health benefits for using them to stay healthier without using over the counter medicine. 

With more friends and family going paleo to get rid of processed foods, drink more water, and returning to a natural way of fitness through functional movement it only makes sense to look at introducing natural products into our daily lives.  Read more below on what some common uses for essential oils are and how they might help you!  

What are essential oils? 
Essential Oils are the aromatic, volatile liquids found in shrubs, flowers, trees, roots, bushes, and seeds and are extracted through steam distillation, hydrodistillation, or coldpressed extraction. They are highly concentrated and far more potent than dried herbs. They’ve been around for thousands of years, used for healing during Biblical times, and have regained popularity in the past few decades.  

One of my clients during a yoga class recently remarked, "it makes total sense to use oils for cleaning and aid in health it's talked about in the Bible."  Yes, just like we "forgot" what it was like to eat a clean diet such as the paleo lifestyle (fruits, seeds, nuts, meat, and veggies) because modern society processes food it's the same with many of the products we have in our homes today.  We forget that sometimes the new way is not the better way and forget to return to the basics of healthy living.  There are many natural ways to use oils that will not introduce toxins into your home to provide a safer and cleaner living.

Here’s the short version of what is an essential oil:
The chemistry of an essential oil is very complex! They consist of hundreds of different chemical compounds, including terpenes, esters,oxides, alcohols, phenols, ketones, and aldehydes…….each uniquely responsible for
various roles.

Terpenes – inhibit toxin accumulation and discharge them from liver and kidneys
Esters – anti-fungal, calming, anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, anti-viral 
Oxides – expectorant, antiseptic, anesthetic
Alcohols – antiseptic, anti-viral, anti-bacterial, stimulate immune system
Phenols – fragrance, antiseptic, anti-bacterial,
Ketones – stimulate cell regeneration, loosen mucous
Aldehydes – anti-infectious, sedative, topical irritants, calming when inhaled

For example: Lavender essential oil has 40% linalyl acetate which is an ester. Studies
have shown linalyl acetate to be anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, anti-viral and a
sedative. So it makes sense to take advantage of these properties by using lavender
essential oil for sleep and first aid!

How do you use essential oils? The biggest question I get all of the time is how do you have time to figure out how to use oils? If you know me, you know there's always a lot on plate and if I can do it and LOVE it. So can you.  It's not that hard. TRUST ME!! You can use them topically, aromatically, and by ingesting. 

Here are some common uses for essential oils that come in the Premium Starter Kit:
• Frankincense: anxiety, swelling, scrapes, stretch marks, scars, wrinkles, sun spots,
breathing issues, warts, stress• Joy: stress, sadness, sleep issues, stinky laundry, emotional imbalance, heightened
emotion, grief, emotional pain, hyperactivity
• Lavender: stress, scrapes, pains, sleep issues, cuts sunburn, burns, headaches, dry skin, bacteria, cramps, fevers
• Lemon: bloating, lethargy, energy loss, anxiety, brittle hair and nails, household dirt and grime, infections, mouth sores, cough, insect bites, removing stickers/stickiness from non-plastic surfaces
• PanAway: sore muscles, swelling, sciatic pain, stiffness, damaged tissue, bruising, joint pain, headache, pressure
• Peppermint: colds, fever, headache, lethargy, sunburn, constipation, congestion, indigestion, stress, soreness, odors, gas, hot flashes
• Purification: bloating, insect bites, cuts, sore throat, household odors, smelly laundry, infections, scrapes, acne, 
dirty air
• Thieves: viruses, household dirt & grime, colds, cold sores, sore throat, cuts, bacteria, poison ivy, flu, tooth aches, infection
• Melaleuca: ear infections, lice, rashes, bug bites, sunburn, burns, inflammation, ringworm, acne, asthma, warts, skin tags, moles.
• Citrus fresh: purify air, uplift mood, used in detox/weight loss trio

What's the best way to get started? If you’ve never used Young Living’s essential oils before, this kit really is the perfect introduction.  Not only is it the most cost-effective way (priced at about 50% off retail) to try a wide variety of multipurpose oils, but there are so many uses for this kit! The kit includes 11 of the most
popular and versatile oils, a Home Diffuser, 2 NingXia sample packets, and 10 Sample Packets (2 each of 5 of the Everyday Oils) for you to share with friends, or use yourself!  Interested? Drop me a note at kat@321omfitness.com or Sign up here! I know you'll love these oils as much as I do.

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