Walking is “the closest thing we have to a wonder drug,” according to Dr. Thomas Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It’s probably not news that walking for 30 minutes several times a week can help you maintain a healthy weight, build stronger muscles, and avoid heart attacks and strokes. But […]
Category: Exercise
Boredom Busters
15 Ways to Make Fitness More Fun
What’s the Right Exercise for Your Personality?
If you hate to exercise, it might be because you haven’t found the right activity for you. Grant Leitma, Ph.D., leads you through a series of simple questions to help you identity an exercise plan that matches your personality type. And just like that, you’ll know exactly what to do to make exercise a little more fun and a lot less dreadful.
Take the Quiz: Find the Right Exercise to Match Your Personality
If you hate to exercise, it might be because you haven’t found the right activity for you. Grant Leitma, Ph.D., leads you through a series of simple questions to help you identity an exercise plan that matches your personality type. And just like that, you’ll know exactly what to do to make exercise a little more fun and a lot less dreadful.
Escaping to the Outdoors Is Good For Your Brain
Vibrant Life editor Heather Quintana previews an article about how being out in nature can benefit your brain. The new mental health issue of the magazine gives you ways to stay sane in a very stressful world. Read more about Escaping to the Outdoors Is Good For Your Brain …
No-Meat Athletes
When it comes to world-class athletes, there’s a proven principle: plants can fuel people through the most demanding sports on the planet. Consider ultramarthoner Scott Jurek, a vegan since 1999, who set a U.S. record in 2010 for running 165.7 miles in 24 hours. Primarily plant-powered Tour de France bicyclist, Dave Zabriskie, set the record […]
Shoes to Avoid
If you know you’ll be walking quite a bit during the day, don’t choose these shoes.
If the Shoe Fits
More important than matching your shoe to your outfit is matching your shoe to your activity. Learn how to choose proper footwear for the road ahead.
Volkssporting: A Whole New Kind of Walk
If last names had anything to do with predisposing one to a sport, I guess this would be mine. Although swimming, bicycling, snowshoeing, roller skating, ice skating, and cross-country skiing also fall under the “volkssport” heading, walking is the main event, and the majority of volkssporting events are organized walks (the walking segment is sometimes referred to as volksmarching).
Read more about Volkssporting: A Whole New Kind of Walk …
Five More Reasons for Walking
The skeletons in my workout closet are many-an unused athletic club membership, a dusty NordicTrack, a lonely ab-buster. All purchased with the best of intentions. But, alas, they have all fallen to the same fate: while they may have physically challenged me, mentally I was “bored out of my gourd.” Consequently, I became a fitness failure, a workout wannabe.
Then one day my family upset me. Husband, sons, the cat; I can’t remember which one started it, but in the end I decided to take a walk to blow off steam. After 10 minutes I felt better. And after 20 minutes the argument seemed miles away.

