Physical Fitness
Common Athletic Injuries and How to Avoid Them
Don't get sidelined by an injury. Here's how to build strength and prevent injuries in the first place.
Find Your Fit: Sneak a Full-Body Workout in at the Playground With These Tips
If you are one of those people that struggle to fit a workout into your busy schedule, you can be efficient and accomplish two things at once by working out on the playground while looking after your kids.
Easy Ways to Introduce Yoga to Your Kids
Yoga is known for its health benefits, including increased flexibility, increased strength, improved sleep and the ability to help with chronic pain and inflammation. Many of these benefits apply to kids as well. Learn how to introduce yoga to kids with these tips and yoga poses.
Is Running Marathons Healthy for Your Heart?
Regular running and exercise are associated with better overall heart health and other health benefits. Americans who follow the American Heart Association guidelines of 150 minutes of moderate or 75 minutes of vigorous exercise a week have healthier hearts and avoid diseases at higher rates than those who don’t, and those who get 3-5 times that amount of exercise have the best health outcomes.
Add More Fiber to Your Diet with These High-Fiber Snack Ideas
The recommended amount of daily fiber is between 25 and 38 grams, but most Americans eat only 10-15 grams daily. A diet high in fiber can help reduce the risk of chronic diseases and help you to feel fuller for longer and more energized compared to refined carbohydrates.
Workouts That Work for Me as a College Student
I’ve found that college is a great time to create healthy habits through regular practice of physical activity. While every person is different, here are some workouts that work for me as a college student.
Michigan Bucket List: Paddle Antrim Festival
Paddlers are welcome to join an epic adventure in September. The Paddle Antrim Festival celebrates the waterways and local communities of Northern Michigan Sept. 13-14. The festival includes community events and a non-competitive two-day paddling event from Ellsworth to Elk Rapids on the Chain of Lakes Water Trail.
How to Train Like an Olympic Athlete
If you watched the Paris Olympic or Paralympic Games this summer, you might have gotten swept away seeing your favorite athlete compete. While they seem to perform with such ease, you know there are hours of work put into their physical training. Let the inspiring efforts of these athletes motivate you to achieve your workout goals this year.
5 Ways I Rely on my Smartwatch
A smartwatch does much more than tell you the time. Using a smartwatch makes it so that you don’t need to always have your phone on you. You can make calls, send texts, and use a GPS from your watch.
Women’s Health: Workouts to do on your period
It can be easy to ignore your workout goals when on your period, but the physical and mental benefits of exercise can help. Although it feels counterintuitive, avoiding exercise isn’t going to save energy or make you feel better.
How to Pick Out Running and Walking Shoes
It’s easy to ask a friend for a recommendation, but their body, stride and injury-risk are different than yours. Learn how to pick out running and walking shoes that will help you stay healthy and meet your goals.
The Pros and Cons of Running on Different Surfaces
Running is one of the only sports that can be done nearly anywhere, on any surface. The key is finding a route and a terrain that best suits your physical needs. While running is a great form of exercise, there are advantages and disadvantages to running on different surfaces.
10 Health Benefits of Tai Chi
Are you looking for an activity that is good for all aspects of your health like physical, mental, and social? We have just the activity. Originating as a mixed martial art from China, tai chi is an activity that involves a series of gentle and slow movements, a meditative state of mind, and physical postures.
Does Heat Affect Blood Pressure?
As temperatures increase, people might notice that their blood pressure is increasing as well. High heat causes blood pressure to increase. It is important to focus on your blood pressure during the summertime because Midwest summers present high temperatures and high humidity.
Hiking in Mid-Michigan: Where to Go
Do you think you have to go “up north” to get an authentic Michigan hiking experience? You will be surprised by the diversity of sites to explore in mid-Michigan. Whether you are looking for a riverfront experience, big rocks or an urban adventure, there is plenty to discover in the middle of the Mitten state.
Ken Hayward Reflects on Opportunities Baseball Granted Him After Induction Into State of Michigan Baseball Hall of Fame
Before he led BCBSM's social mission and community affairs efforts, Ken Hayward was an incredible college baseball player. He didn't realize it at the time, but his years as a ballplayer shaped his future in a major way.
The Science Behind the Perfect Workout Playlist
If you listen to music when you work out, you've got to read this post to design the perfect playlist to pump you up.
Easy Ways to Incorporate Strength Training in the Summer
When you start a workout plan, it’s easy to do too much too soon. That can leave you sore, tired, and feeling dejected, as well as increase your chance for injury. If you’re not in the habit of a regular strength routine, start small.
Accessible Beaches in Michigan
Access to beaches and waterfront spaces is improving across Michigan as state parks and city beaches become places that people of all abilities can navigate.
Tips to Prevent Shin Splints
Shin splints are a common and painful overuse injury or condition usually caused by running, tennis, pickleball, dancing, or other standing exercises for extended periods of time. With some preparation, there are self-treatment tips for preventing shin splints or minimizing the pain from shin splints.
Mental Health Exercises to Help Alleviate Stress
Avoiding stress can be a tall task with the demands of life and everything going on around you. There are lifestyle changes or habits that can help to alleviate routine stressors or triggers for stress or panic.
What is Wild Swimming?
Wild swimming, or open-water swimming, refers to swimming in natural waters, open water, or generally swimming outside and in natural waters. Wild swimming and open-water swimming has become more popular in recent years, especially with Americans looking for a mental health boost, since it ties together exercise and connection with nature.
The Importance of Exercise Variety for Seniors
Exercise is extremely important for building and maintaining a good level of personal fitness and physical health. Regular physical activity – including a mix of aerobic exercise, strength training and balance training – can help seniors live independently longer and with a better quality of life. It can also help in managing chronic diseases.
What are Awe Walks?
An awe walk is a hike or walk focused on enjoying and taking part in the natural world around you. To take part in awe walking, all that is needed is to focus on the world around you and awe-inspiring aspects of nature while you walk.
Top 5 Reasons You Should Walk at Lunch
National Walk at Lunch Day is the perfect excuse to get outside after lunch and rack up some steps. Do it every day and the health benefits will rack up, too.
How Gen Z Uses Karaoke as Exercise
Karaoke fits the bill when it comes to many of the preferences Gen Z has for exercise. Karaoke can be a great group workout or exercise, it is a social and communal activity, and it can easily be done at home, at work or in social settings.
What Are Exercise Snacks?
Exercise snacks are short periods of intense workouts, usually only two to minutes. The idea behind energy snacking is to have a few of these brief, intense workouts interspersed throughout your day.
Why Walking Isn’t Enough Exercise to Stay Fit While Aging
Adults 65 and older need at least 150 minutes of moderate exercise a week, such as walking, but also at least two sessions of strength training a week. Besides moderate exercise and strength training, balance training and exercises are also recommended routinely for older adults.
5 Ways Alcohol Can Affect Your Health and Fitness Progress
The use and overuse of alcohol limits and inhibits your overall level of health and fitness. Alcohol suppresses many of your body’s main functions to different extents and can affect your ability to recover from illness and injury.
Does Running Destroy Your Knees?
For a long time, there has been sentiment among runners and doctors that long-distance running, especially long-term and regular running, would predispose runners to arthritis or joint issues as they age. However, there's evidencethat challenges this long-held belief.
How to Stay Healthy During Spring Break
Make the most of the wonderful weather by getting your body up and moving. Springtime outdoor workouts can reinvigorate you after a long cold winter. Make sure you are staying healthy and moving this spring.
Improve Your Walking or Running Form in 3 Steps
Simple tweaks to your running or walking form can help you go farther while preserving the condition of your back, joints and other body parts.
Triathlete with Cerebral Palsy Writes about “Impossible Mile”
Johnny Agar, who competes in triathlons with his dad, is the author of the bestseller, "The Impossible Mile: The Power in Living Life One Step at a Time."
What’s the Best Diet for Workout Recovery?
Feeling a little tired or run-down after your last workout? Here’s what you should be eating afterward to speed your recovery.
How My Workout Became a Part of My Social Life
Working out with friends has its benefits. Added motivation is usually one of them. That was the experience for Maria Cassel, who details her health journey in this first-person writing.
The Health Benefits of Golf
Gracefully Greying health correspondent Lila Lazarus explores the health benefits of golf for both the body and the mind.
Why I Started Hiking for Mental Clarity
Contributor and summer intern Olivia Durkee shares how hiking has helped her mental health and become an outlet for her stress.
Mental Health and Fitness: My Experience Becoming a Gym Regular
Summer intern Jenna Natwick shares how becoming a gym regular has helped her with her anxiety.
Biohacks to Boost Your Health
Ready to use biohacking to improve your mental and physical health? Here are some of the best biohacks to improve your health.
Reduce Your Load if The Weight is Too Heavy
Licensed therapist, NASM master trainer and integrative health expert Angela T. Moore shares signs you're carrying too much weight — mentally and physically.
The Fuel, Fitness and Physicals Men Need for Good Health
Getting appropriate and timely preventive care is an important part of a well-rounded, overall health strategy for men.
Life and Basketball: Senior Detroit Women Play to Stay Young
For two hours every Monday afternoon at the Lasky Recreation Center in northeast Detroit, time doesn’t matter – only basketball.
When Do You Need an Electrolyte Drink?
Sipping an electrolyte drink can be a trendy thing to do, but when does your body actually need one?
Five Reasons to Start Playing Pickleball
Gracefully Greying health correspondent Lila Lazarus dives into the pickleball craze — and finds it can be good for your health.
Mountain Bike Trails in Michigan
Load up those knobby tires and try out these cool trails near you.
Michigan Hikes to Get Your 10,000 Steps In
There are big health benefits to getting 10,000 daily steps. Here are some great places to do that with a view.
4 Practical Ways to Start Living in the Present
Do you ever ask yourself, “Is it the weekend yet?” If you do, it might be time for you to start trying to find joy in the present.
Urban Nature Trails in Michigan to Move Your Workout Outside
Grab a pair of sunglasses and your best workout shoes. It’s time to move your next exercise session outdoors.
You Can Do It! The Easiest Way to Prepare for a 5K
This 5K training regimen is for beginners, experienced runners and everyone in between. Training starts two months before race day.
The 7 Most Popular Fitness Questions
Burning calories. Proper weight lifting. Squeezing workouts into busy schedules. These are among the most commonly asked fitness questions.
Packing a Punch: Learning Tactical Self-Defense
Contributor Mia Gallucci writes about her experience trying a tactical self-defense class — and what she learned along the way.
Cardio Doesn’t Have to Hurt: The Best Low-Impact Workouts
Exercise is one of the healthiest things you can do for yourself at any age, but as you get older, regular exercise becomes more important than ever.
4 Easy Ways to Get More Vitamin C
Vitamin C acts as an antioxidant to protect the body against external factors. This valuable vitamin is found in these foods and supplements.
How Much Water Do You Need?
Are you drinking enough water? Find out why staying hydrated goes far in keeping you healthy.
Best Exercises to Fight Off Anxiety and Depression
Are anxiety and depression putting a damper on your mood? Think about retooling your exercise routine to give yourself a feel-good boost.
How to Start an Exercise Routine that Works for You
Focusing on your target heart rate and switching up your workouts can help unlock an exercise routine that works for you. Here are more keys:
Dry January? Tips to be Successful
Ready to put away the beer and wine? Ditch the liquor? Here’s how to make a Dry January work for you.
What is SMART Goal Setting?
Have you heard of “SMART” goal setting? It’s a goal-setting approach that can help you set goals that are attainable and realistic.
Meditation for Mindfulness and Mental Clarity
Meditation, mindfulness and mental clarity may be just what the doctor ordered as we head into this busy holiday season.
Are You Doing These Things to Prevent Skin Infections at the Gym?
Read this list of five skin infections commonly caught at the gym and what you can do to prevent catching them.
How to Care for Your Interstitium, Which May Be Your Newest Organ
A large network connecting tissues and fluid under your skin? Meet the interstitium.
Busy? Yes! Believe It Or Not, You Can Be Healthy Too!
Angela T. Moore, certified therapist and fitness coach, offers tips for finding ways to maintain a healthy lifestyle even when you are busy.
How to Refresh for Spring
It’s time for more than just spring cleaning. Learn how to refresh your life to celebrate spring.
Winter Self-Care Guide: Exercise
Daily exercise doesn’t mean spending an hour lifting weights. Moving your body for 30 minutes a day in moderate ways can improve your mental and physical health
Steps to take for a Safe Return to the Gym
Statewide COVID-19 cases are on the rise, so if you’re returning to the gym, you should take every precaution possible to keep yourself and others safe.
Too Cold to Walk Outside? Try These Winter Workday Activity Tips
Many have relied on outdoor walks to break up the monotony of working from home. Here’s how to replace that activity level during the winter.
Want to Live a Healthier Lifestyle?
The most important thing you can do when striving to live a healthy lifestyle is to create environments that support healthy actions.
Mental Health Tips for Your Inner Athlete
You don’t have to be an Olympic star to see that your mental health can affect your sport. Here are some tips for your inner athlete.
Kick Your Workout into High Gear with Cardio Boxing
In this edition of Fitness Over 40, host Ann Marie Wakula takes you to a cardio boxing workout. It's a high-energy and fun way to boost your heart rate.
Diet and Exercise Take Teacher from Diabetes to Marathons
In this episode of Fitness Over 40, Ira Goldberg shares how proper diet and exercise took from nearly 400 pounds to running marathons.
Find Your ‘Why’ For Living a Healthy Life
Angela T. Moore, certified therapist and fitness coach, explains how to find your 'why' for living a healthy life. The answers will fuel your motivation.
How to Start Moving Your Workouts Outside
More daylight means more chances to move your exercise routine outside. This shift comes with perks you can’t always get with an indoor workout.
Are You Making These Five Post-Run Mistakes?
What you do after a run can be as important for your overall health as the miles you just ran. Here's how to avoid the most common post-workout mistakes.
Ways to Encourage Seniors in Your Life to Maintain Independence
As people get older, it can become difficult for some to keep the lifestyle they want. But there are ways for seniors to preserve much of their independence.
How to Stay Healthy This Winter
Cold weather arrives with its own lineup of health challenges. With a little planning, you can be proactive in staying healthy when the temperatures drop.