Tackling Inflammation to Fight Age-Related Ailments

Let’s start with what to eat and the foods to avoid eating. What follows will likely sound familiar to aficionados of a Mediterranean-style diet: a plant-based diet focused on fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and cold-water fish and plants like soybeans and flax seeds that contain omega-3 fatty acids. A Mediterranean-style diet is rich in … Read more

Fitting in Family Fitness at the Holidays

And invite full-family participation. “Almost everyone can do something, even if it is just a push-up against the wall, if someone shows them how and keeps saying, ‘Wow, good job, Grandma,’” she said. Importantly, you will not miss out on most health or fitness benefits by lowering your exercise targets to a few minutes per … Read more

The Right Kind of Exercise May Boost Memory and Lower Dementia Risk

His group’s study did not examine, though, how those men and women who raised their fitness managed that feat. Which makes the other new study about exercise and memory a valuable complement. In that experiment, which was published recently in Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism, researchers at McMaster University in Ontario, Canada, tested what types … Read more

Something in the Way We Move

Each of us appears to have a unique way of moving, a physical “signature” that is ours alone, like our face or fingerprints, according to a remarkable new study of people and their muscles. The study, which used machine learning to find one-of-a-kind patterns in people’s muscular contractions, could have implications for our understanding of … Read more

How an Ice Bath May Undermine Your Weight Workout

Bathtubs filled with frigid water and occasionally dotted with ice cubes are a common sight in professional athletes’ training rooms and at some gyms. Many recreational athletes also slip into cold baths at home after intense workouts. But soaking in icy water after lifting weights can change how muscles respond to the workout and result … Read more

Taking Up Running After 50? It’s Never Too Late to Shine

Men and women who start running competitively when they are in their 50s can be as swift, lean and well-muscled within a decade as competitive older runners who have trained lifelong, according to a buoying new study of the physiques and performances of a large group of older athletes. The findings suggest that middle age … Read more

Why Standing Often Feels Even Harder Than Running

2. Consider shoe choice We often stand around in flip-flops during the summer, Dr. Koshimune said, which, alone, is not necessarily problematic. But walking too much in them can cause problems, because your toes and tendons have to engage to keep flip-flops on your feet. “It’s like telling your feet, ‘I’m going to give you … Read more

How Weight Training Changes the Brain

After five weeks, all of the animals, including an untouched control group, were loosed individually into a brightly lit maze with a single, darkened chamber. Rodents gravitate toward dark places and during repeated visits to the maze, the animals would be expected to learn the location and aim for that chamber. But their success differed. … Read more

Could a Gut Bacteria Supplement Make Us Run Faster?

This change interested the scientists because Veillonella is one of the few microbes known to metabolize lactate as its preferred fuel. Lactate, a form of lactic acid, is created by working muscles and can cross into the blood and from there, into the gut. When microbes metabolize lactate, they break it down into several substances, … Read more