Cannabis workouts are becoming the new weekend ritual, blending wellness, movement, mindfulness, and social connection for active lifestyles.
Saturday mornings used to mean sleeping in or scrolling through phones in bed. Now, for a growing number of wellness-minded consumers, weekends begin with a stretch, a scenic trail, and a carefully measured dose of cannabis. From yoga mats in the park to group hikes and pickleball courts, cannabis workouts are emerging as a social, feel-good ritual that blends movement, mindfulness, and a touch of euphoria.
The shift reflects a broader evolution in cannabis culture. Gone are the days when cannabis was synonymous with couch lock. Today’s consumers, especially millennials and Gen Z, are embracing low-dose THC and CBD products to enhance body awareness, motivation, and enjoyment during physical activity. The goal isn’t to get high and zone out; it’s to tune in to the rhythm of movement and the pleasure of being present.
Weekends provide the perfect testing ground. Without the pressure of a workday schedule, people feel freer to experiment with microdosing before a yoga class, a long walk, or a bike ride. Many enthusiasts report that a small amount of THC helps them ease into exercise, quiet mental chatter, and stay engaged longer. CBD-dominant options, meanwhile, are popular for reducing post-workout inflammation and supporting recovery.
Social connection is a major driver of the trend. Instead of meeting friends for brunch mimosas or late-night drinks, groups are gathering for “puff and pilates,” trail walks, or backyard mobility sessions. The vibe is less about competition and more about shared experience. Laughter comes easily, conversations flow, and the focus shifts from performance to enjoyment.
Fitness professionals are beginning to take notice. Some trainers say clients who use low doses of cannabis report improved mind-muscle connection and a greater sense of flow during repetitive activities like running or swimming. Others emphasize the importance of moderation and safety: staying hydrated, avoiding unfamiliar or high-risk exercises, and understanding personal tolerance levels.
Outdoor activities are particularly popular. A gentle buzz can heighten sensory awareness, making colors seem more vivid, music more immersive, and fresh air more invigorating. For many, this transforms routine exercise into something closer to play. A neighborhood walk becomes an exploration. A stretch session turns into a meditative reset.
As cannabis legalization expands and stigma continues to fade, the intersection of fitness and responsible consumption is likely to grow. Brands are responding with low-dose edibles, fast-acting beverages, and CBD recovery products designed with active lifestyles in mind. Meanwhile, communities are forming around shared values of wellness, balance, and mindful enjoyment.
For those curious about trying a cannabis workout, the key is to start low and choose familiar activities. A gentle yoga flow, an easy hike, or a relaxed bike ride can offer a safe introduction. The point isn’t to push limits, but to rediscover movement as something joyful.
In a culture often treating exercise as punishment and weekends as recovery from stress, cannabis workouts offer a different narrative. They invite people to slow down, connect with their bodies, and turn movement into a ritual worth savoring.
Let’s discuss the safety and efficacy of various weight-loss methods, ranging from Botox and corsets to siphons and tapeworms.
A moderately obese person doing moderately intense physical activity, like biking or brisk walking, would burn off approximately 350 calories an hour, but most drinks, snacks, and other processed junk are consumed at a rate of about 70 calories (293 kJ) per minute. Therefore, it only takes five minutes to wipe out a whole hour of exercise.
It’s a percutaneous gastrostomy device, meaning surgeons cut a hole in a person’s stomach and tunnel a fistula out through the abdominal wall. So, after each meal, the person can attach a suction gadget to the hole and directly drain out their stomach contents, as you can see below and at 0:47 in my video Extreme Weight-Loss Devices.
This means you could gorge on donuts, spew them out through the hole in your stomach, then gorge on more donuts. Have your cake, and eat it, too…and two, three, and four times!
It seems to be the quintessential American invention, straight from the land that brought us Jell-O salads, spray cheese, and deep-fried Snickers bars. Patients do lose weight, perhaps in part because the fistula may interfere with the relaxation of the stomach wall during a meal. The process also requires drinking lots of water and thoroughly chewing food, both of which may help with weight loss by increasing hydration and slowing the eating rate. Patients also started making healthier choices to avoid the unpleasant sight of gastric aspirate from unhealthy foods. (The tubing is clear, and, evidently, fried foods look particularly gross as they are pumped out.)
All patients need to take supplemental potassium, since it’s sucked out in stomach juices. Otherwise, they risk becoming potassium-deficient (a common complication in bulimia), but most side effects are just minor wound complications. Serious adverse effects, like abdominal abscesses, are rare. The big selling point is that the siphon device doesn’t change the gastrointestinal tract’s anatomy. That seems like a low bar, but in today’s Wild West world of weight-loss procedures, you can’t take anything for granted. Take the duodenal-jejunal bypass liner, for example.
Gastric bypass surgery works in part by cutting out a portion of the small intestine so it’s no longer in the flow of food, thereby helping to prevent the absorption of calories. Instead of major surgery, how about just dropping down a couple of feet of plastic tubing to line the intestinal walls? The problem with the EndoBarrier is that it has to be anchored in the digestive tract. This is accomplished with 10 barbed hooks that cause lacerations, accounting for the majority of the 891 adverse effects reported in 1,056 patients—nearly 9 out of 10 people. Severe penetrating trauma, resulting in esophageal perforation or liver abscesses, is rarer (occurring in only about 1 in 27 patients).
Concern has been raised about the “palatability” of the AspireAssist stomach pump, but the most cringeworthy endoscopic procedure I discovered in my research was intestinal “resurfacing.” Why cover the inside of your intestines with plastic to prevent absorption when you can just “thermally ablate the superficial duodenal mucosa”? In other words, have your intestinal lining burned off—or rather, “resurfaced.”
Surgeons have tried injecting Botox into the stomach walls of obese individuals, hoping it would partially paralyze their gastric muscles, slow stomach emptying, make people feel fuller longer, and lose weight. It didn’t work.
Researchers in Sweden tried randomizing people to wear corsets for 12 to 16 hours a day, seven days a week, for nine months. And it didn’t work. The study participants just didn’t wear the corsets—they were “perceived as uncomfortable.” Duh.
“Sanitized tapeworms” have evidently been widely advertised as a weight-loss remedy since back in the early 1900s. The fact that living tapeworms have been discovered during bariatric surgery operations suggests that infesting yourself with parasites may not be particularly effective either.
Speaking of disgusting strategies, how about disgust itself? A study entitled “Harnessing the Power of Disgust: A Randomized Trial to Reduce High-Calorie Food Appeal Through Implicit Priming” tried using subliminal messages to ruin people’s appetite. Just before showing images of healthy foods, researchers briefly flashed happy images—such as a group of kittens—for 20 milliseconds. That’s too quick to consciously register, but the hope was to plant a positive imprint on the brain. Before showing images of high-calorie foods like ice cream, they flashed negative scenes, like a cockroach on a pizza slice, vomit in a dirty bathroom, and a burn wound. Apparently, it worked! Subjects subsequently reported a reduced desire to eat high-calorie foods, though this wasn’t tested directly. The researchers concluded that subliminal revulsion might be “a successful tactic to combat the onslaught of food cues that promote unhealthy eating….”
The rest of the world looks on, bemused by American machinations, penning commentaries like “Don’t Let Them Eat Cake! A View from Across the Pond.” A paper in the journal Obesity Surgeryentitled “What Are the Yanks Doing?” reviewed “The U.S. Experience with Implantable Gastric Stimulation,” inserting electrodes into the muscular layer of the stomach wall. When that didn’t work, colon electrical stimulation was tried.
Even more shocking were studies like “Repetitive electric brain stimulation reduces food intake in humans.” Though placing deep-brain electrodes is considered a complication-prone operation, scientists have long pondered whether “placing an electrode somewhere in the brain could make people eat less.” Holes were drilled through the skulls of five obese individuals, and wires were pushed into their brains for “electrostimulatory exploration.” Once the researchers poked around and found spots where they were able to elicit convincing hunger responses, they sent in enough juice to fry out electro-coagulatory lesions. It seemed to work in cats and monkeys, but the researchers found that burning holes in people’s brains did not result in weight loss in obese humans. Thankfully, as I explained in my book How Not to Diet, healthy, sustainable weight loss isn’t brain surgery.
So, what’s the best way to lose weight? I wrote a whole book about it! How Not to Diet is focused exclusively on sustainable weight loss. Borrow it from your local library or pick up a copy from your favorite bookseller. (All proceeds from my books are donated to charity.) To whet your appetite, take a peek: Trailer for How Not to Diet: Dr. Greger’s Guide to Weight Loss.
For more on this topic, check out related posts below.
Common drugs, foods, and beverages can disrupt the integrity of our intestinal barrier, causing a leaky gut.
Intestinal permeability, the leakiness of our gut, may be a new target for both disease prevention and therapy. With all its tiny folds, our intestinal barrier covers a surface of more than 4,000 square feet—that’s bigger than a tennis court—and requires about 40% of our body’s total energy expenditure to maintain.
There is growing evidence implicating “the disruption of intestinal barrier integrity” in the development of a number of conditions, including celiac disease and inflammatory bowel disease. Researchers measured intestinal permeability using blue food coloring. It remained in the gut of healthy participants but was detected in the blood of extremely sick patients with sepsis with a damaged gut barrier. You don’t have to end up in the ICU to develop a leaky gut, though. Simply taking some aspirin or ibuprofen can do the trick.
Indeed, taking two regular aspirin (325 mg tablets) or two extra-strength aspirin (500 mg tablets) just once can increase the leakiness of our gut. These results suggest that even healthy people should be cautious when using aspirin, as it may cause gastrointestinal barrier dysfunction.
What about buffered aspirin, an aspirin-antacid combination which theoretically “buffers” gastrointestinal irritation? It apparently doesn’t make any difference: Regular aspirin and Bufferin both produced multiple erosions in the inner lining of the stomach and intestine. Researchers put a scope down people’s throats and saw extensive erosions and redness inside 90% of those who took aspirin or Bufferin at their recommended doses. How many hours does it take for the damage to occur? None. It can happen within just five minutes. Acetaminophen, sold as Tylenol in the United States, may not lead to gastrointestinal damage and could be a better choice, unless you have problems with your liver. And rather than making things better, vitamin C supplements appeared to make the aspirin-induced increase in gut leakiness even worse.
Interestingly, this may be why NSAID drugs like aspirin, ibuprofen, and naproxen “are involved in up to 25% of food-induced anaphylaxis.” In other words, they are associated with over 10-fold higher odds of life-threatening food allergy attacks, presumably because these drugs increase the leakiness of the intestinal barrier, causing tiny food particles to slip into the bloodstream. But can exercise increase risk, too?
Strenuous exercise—for instance, an hour at 70% maximum capacity—may divert so much blood to the muscles and away from our internal organs that it may cause transient injury to our intestines, causing mild gut leakiness. But this can be aggravated if athletes take ibuprofen or any other NSAID drugs, which is unfortunately all too common.
Alcohol can also be a risk factor for food allergy attacks for the same reason—increasing gut leakiness. But cut out the alcohol, and our gut might heal up.
What other dietary components can make a difference? Elevated consumption of saturated fat, which is found in meat, dairy, and junk food, can cause the growth of bad bacteria that make the rotten-egg gas hydrogen sulfide, which can degrade the protective mucus layer. You can see the process below and at 3:21 in my video Avoid These Foods to Prevent a Leaky Gut.
It is said to be clear that high-fat diets in general have a negative impact on intestinal health by “disrupting the intestinal barrier system through a variety of mechanisms,” but most of the vast array of studies that cited the negative effects were done on lab animals or in a petri dish. Are people affected the same way? You don’t know for sure until you put it to the test.
Rates of obesity and other cardiometabolic disorders have increased rapidly alongside a transition from traditional lower-fat diets to higher-fat diets. We know a disturbance in our good gut flora has been shown to be associated with a high risk of many of these same diseases, and studies using rodents suggest that a high-fat diet “unbalances” the microbiome while impairing the gut barrier, resulting in disease. To connect all the dots, though, we need a human interventional trial—and we got one: a six-month randomized controlled-feeding trial on the effects of dietary fat on gut microbiota. It found that, indeed, higher fat consumption was associated with unfavorable changes in the gut microbiome and proinflammatory factors in the blood. Note that this wasn’t even primarily saturated fat, such as from meat and dairy. The researchers just replaced refined carbohydrates with refined fats—swapping out white rice and wheat flour for soybean oil. These findings suggest that countries westernizing their diets should advise against increasing dietary fat intake, while countries that have already adopted such diets should consider cutting down.
If television commercials and sales volume are any indication that people are worried about their brain health, then the answer is an unequivocal yes. It seems like you can’t watch TV for more than a few minutes without seeing an advertisement touting a vitamin or dietary supplement as a way to improve your memory and brain function.
The brain health supplements market in the United States was valued at $3.5 billion in 2024 and is expected to nearly double by 2030, Grand View Research reports. Studies on cognitive decline support this fear and the enormous reliance of an aging population on these supplements, but new research suggests there may be an alternative. It’s a more natural way to boost your brain health, fight off the cognitive effects of aging and reap other benefits.
Well-grounded concerns
Concerns over cognitive decline among the aging population are well grounded in science. The journal Frontiers in Aging Neurosciencereports that aging is among the contributing factors of physiological cognitive decline, noting that “the effect of aging on cognitive functions is the largest and most consistent influence documented by extensive research.”
Echoing these findings, the Journal of Clinical Investigation reports that cognitive decline and neurodegenerative changes are appreciable with advancing age. They say that as early as our 30s, core cognitive abilities, including processing speed, reasoning, episodic memory and spatial visualization begin to decline. The diminishment is small, yet consistent across our lifespans. With Mother Nature working against us, it’s not surprising that baby boomers, Generation X, and maybe even millennials are looking to maximize their cognitive functioning as long as possible.
Brain Health Support
In 2021, the AARP surveyed adults 50 and older and found that nearly 80% take a vitamin or dietary supplement and that 21% take a vitamin or dietary supplement for their brain health. It also showed that 71% wanted to maintain or improve their memory, 60% wanted to maintain or improve mental sharpness, and 12% take a supplement to delay dementia.
In September, I cited an earlier AARP survey that found three-quarters of adults age 40 and older are concerned about their brain health declining in the future. The National Institute on Aging is among various institutions that have reflected on the concerns about aging and brain health. It notes older adults worry about their memory and other thinking abilities. Coupled with the sales data on vitamins and supplements, these findings paint a picture of generations looking to do whatever they can to maintain their cognitive abilities.
The problem with supplements is found in a report from the University of Michigan that questions their effectiveness. According to the University’s Institute for Healthcare Policy & Innovation, “no major research studies support the effectiveness of supplements to enhance memory.” The experts at Michigan further indicated that studies on dementia show that few poll respondents discuss their concerns with their doctors, a potentially more effective way to apply evidence-based approaches to prevent or delay cognitive decline. Consistent with this message, new research indicates there is indeed an evidence-based alternative to keeping your brain young and doing it in a more natural way.
More muscle leads to less fat and a younger brain
A study of 1,164 healthy adults with an average age of 55 — roughly half men and women — based on comprehensive brain scans found that “those with high muscle mass and lower visceral fat showed significantly younger brain ages than their chronological years would predict.”
Visceral fat is the deep abdominal fat surrounding internal organs. It differs from the subcutaneous fat just under our skin, which is often the focus of our cosmetic attention. The findings were presented at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America by Dr. Cyrus Raji, associate professor of radiology and neurology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.
Raji noted that “better brain health, in turn, lowers the risk for future brain diseases, such as Alzheimer’s.” In short, the researchers characterized their results as showing that more muscle and less belly fat slows brain aging, demonstrating that resistance training can be an effective neuroprotective strategy.
The findings are consistent with prior research showing that resistance training can support cognitive health, and further, provide an empowering, evidence-based alternative to supplements, and one which conveys other benefits.
Putting the findings to work
Commenting on the study’s implications for adults over 50, fitness trainer Dash Hartwell said resistance training (weight lifting 2-3 times per week) is the primary driver of muscle mass and that visceral fat “often responds relatively quickly to lifestyle intervention.” He cited dietary changes that reduce refined carbohydrates and processed foods, adequate sleep and stress management.
As to how best to approach resistance training, Hartwell said “the key is progressive overload: gradually increasing demands over time to continually stimulate adaption.” The goal, Harding said, is “body composition optimization.”
The American Cancer Society agrees. The organization says strength training can benefit men and women of all ages and suggests that two or three, 20- to 30-minute training session each week can produce significant benefits including the ability to reverse the loss of muscle mass associated with age. Other benefits include stronger bones, joint flexibility, weight control and better balance.
Mental health and well being has been a big part of my advocacy for men over 50. The logic is simple. If we want to maximize our quality of life and enjoy every bit of what life has to offer, we need to be both physically and mentally sharp. I won’t tell you it’s easy, but I will tell you that the fulfillment it can bring you is incredible.
And, let me remind you, when you get into rhythm and healthy living becomes ingrained in your life, what was once a tedious chore becomes another source of enjoyment. Our brains are at the center of our functional fitness; we need to attend to their wellbeing.
The best part is that this new research reinforces the point that what’s good for our mind is good for our body, and that’s a great return for the best investment you’ll ever make.
People who like to change up their exercise routines are in good shape.
It’s the variety of workouts, not just the amount and duration of exercise, that really counts when it comes to extending one’s lifespan, a study published Tuesday suggests.
“If the total amount of physical activity is kept constant, you will get additional benefits from doing a mix of physical activities,” Han Han, a Harvard postdoctoral research fellow, told NewScientist.
For the study, Harvard researchers analyzed data collected from 111,000 adults over a 30-year period. People reported how much time they spent each week engaging in various physical activities including walking, running, swimming, bicycling, weight lifting, resistance training, yoga and stretching. Researchers also accounted for the amount of stairs people climbed and the amount of moderate or heavy outdoor work they did.
As expected, people who exercised more often had a lower risk of premature death. It ranged between 4% and 17%, depending on the average amount of exercise over the course of the study. But surprisingly, people who participated in the widest range of exercise types had a nearly 20% lower risk of premature death than people who were equally active but did a narrower variety of workouts.
Swimming was an exception. It did not correlate with an extended lifespan – but that does not mean it isn’t a worthwhile activity, just that more research is needed into its relationship with all-cause mortality, the study said.
The bottom line? Mix it up.
“When deciding how to exercise, keep in mind that there may be extra health benefits to engaging in multiple types of physical activity, rather than relying on a single type alone,” Yang Hu, a study’s authors a research scientist at Harvard, said in a statement.
Despite its large cohort and extended duration, the study had limitations. The data was based on people reporting their exercise choices and levels, which can lead to errors. Also, the participants mostly were white health care professionals – a lack of diversity that could skew the results, researchers said.
By losing 15% of their body weight, nearly 90% of those who have had type 2 diabetes for less than four years may achieve remission.
Currently, more than half a billion adults have diabetes, and about a 50% increase is expected in another generation. I’ve got tons of videos on the best diets for diabetes, but what about no diet at all?
More than a century ago, fasting was said to cure diabetes, quickly halting its progression and eliminating all signs of the disease within days or weeks. Even so, starvation is guaranteed to lead to the complete disappearance of you if kept up long enough. What’s the point of fasting away the pounds if they’re just going to return as soon as you restart the diet that created them in the first place? Might it be useful to kickstart a healthier diet? Let’s see what the science says.
Type 2 diabetes has long been recognized as a disease of excess, once thought to afflict only “the idle rich…anyone whose environment and self-support does not require of him some sustained vigorous bodily exertion every day, and whose earnings or income permit him, and whose inclination tempts him, to eat regularly more than he needs.” Diabetes is preventable, so might it also be treatable? If we’re dying from overeating, maybe we can be saved by undereating. Remarkably, this idea was proposed about 2,000 years ago in an Ayurvedic text:
“Poor diabetic people’s medicine He should live like a saint (Munni); He should walk for 800–900 miles. Or he shall dig a pond; Or he shall live only on cow dung and cow urine.”
That reminds me of the Rollo diet for diabetes proposed in 1797, which was composed of rancid meat. That was on top of the ipecac-like drugs he used to induce severe sickness and vomiting. Anything that makes people sick has only “a temporary effect in relieving diabetes” because it reduces the amount of food eaten. His diet plan—which included congealed blood for lunch and spoiled meat for dinner—certainly had that effect.
Similar benefits were seen in people with diabetes during the siege of Paris in the Franco‐Prussian War, leading to the advice to mangez le moins possible, which translates to “eat as little as possible.” This was formalized into the Allen starvation treatment, considered to be “the greatest advance in the treatment of diabetes prior to the discovery of insulin.” Before insulin, there was “The Allen Era.”
Dr. Allen noted that there are clinical reports of even severe diabetes cases clearing up after the onset of a “wasting condition” like tuberculosis or cancer, so he decided to put it to the test. He found that even in the most severe type of diabetes, he could clear sugar from people’s urine within ten days. Of course, that’s the easy part; it’s harder to maintain once they start eating again. To manage patients’ diabetes, he stuck to two principles: Keep them underweight and restrict the fat in their diet. A person with severe diabetes can be symptom-free for days or weeks, but eating butter or olive oil can make the disease come raging back.
As I’ve said before, diabetes is a disease of fat toxicity. Infuse fat into people’s veins through an IV, and, by using a high-tech type of MRI scanner, you can show in real time the buildup of fat in muscle cells within hours, accompanied by an increase in insulin resistance. The same thing happens when you put people on a high-fat diet for three days. It can even happen in just one day. Even a single meal can increase insulin resistance within six hours. Acute dietary fat intake rapidly increases insulin resistance. Why do we care? Insulin resistance in our muscles, in the context of too many calories, can lead to a buildup of liver fat, followed by fat accumulation in the pancreas, and eventually full-blown diabetes. “Type 2 diabetes can now be understood as a state of excess fat in the liver and pancreas, and remains reversible for at least 10 years in most individuals.”
When people are put on a very low-calorie diet—700 calories a day—fat can get pulled out of their muscle cells, accompanied by a corresponding boost in insulin sensitivity, as shown below and at 4:43 in my video Fasting to Reverse Diabetes.
The fat buildup in the liver has then been shown to decrease substantially, and if the diet is continued, the excess fat in the pancreas also reduces. If caught early enough, reversing type 2 diabetes is possible, which would mean sustained healthy blood sugar levels on a healthy diet.
With the loss of 15% of body weight, nearly 90% of individuals who have had type 2 diabetes for less than four years can achieve non-diabetic blood sugar levels, whereas it may only be reversible in 50% of those who’ve lived with the disease for longer than eight years. That’s better than bariatric surgery, where those losing even more weight had lower remission rates of 62% and 26%, respectively. Your forks are better than surgeons’ knives. Indeed, most people who have had their type 2 diabetes diagnosis for an average of three years can reverse their disease after losing about 30 pounds, as you can see below and at 5:37 in my video.
Of course, an extended bout of physician-supervised, water-only fasting could also get you there, but you would have to maintain that weight loss. One of the things that has been said with “certainty” is that if you regain the weight, you regain your diabetes.
To bring it full circle, “the initial euphoria about ‘medicine’s greatest miracle’”—the discovery of insulin in 1921—“soon gave way to the realisation” that, while it was literally life-saving for people with type 1 diabetes, insulin alone wasn’t enough to prevent such complications as blindness, kidney failure, stroke, and amputations in people with type 2 diabetes. That’s why one of the most renowned pioneers in diabetes care, Elliott Joslin, “argued that self-discipline on diet and exercise, as it was in the days prior to the availability of the drug [insulin], should be central to the management of diabetes….”
Adding a used hot tub to my backyard design was the best choice I made this year. There are so many hot tub benefits to consider, the biggest of which is pain management. My hot tub gave me my mobility, energy, and, really, my life back. Here’s how you can get some hydrotherapy at home using a hot tub.
Getting a hot tub wasn’t an easy choice for me. As a firm eco-conscious and regenerative gardener, a big energy-sucking, chemical-heavy hot tub wasn’t exactly fitting into my new home plans.
But as I found my pain getting worse and my flareups becoming more frequent, I was desperate for a way to manage my pain without needing to pop painkillers 24/7.
I researched a lot before settling on a used hot tub that was selling for practically pennies on Facebook Marketplace. With a little bit of work and renovations, I turned what would be junk into a more eco-friendly hot tub.
Buying this hot tub and making room for it in my garden design is one of the best decisions I have ever made for my body. It has become my daily saviour for dealing with my chronic pain. Let me explain!
My hot tub is secondhand but still works beautifully after putting in some work.
My Struggle With Chronic Pain
Since 2006, I’ve been dealing with chronic pain. For years, I’ve dealt with my disability and have found ways to manage it fairly effectively. But as I get older, holy cow, it can take me out, especially in the winter.
Many pain medications do a number on my stomach, and I’m sensitive to most prescribed pain options. Unfortunately, I can’t pop pills every time I feel pain. When I do, I usually have different negative reactions to deal with.
Chronic pain has a substantial impact on my life. While I’m used to it, I do need to break the pain cycle. It won’t go away with rest, like an injury might. It occurs all the time unless I find a way to manage it.
I’m also an active person with chronic pain. I want to get outside, walk with the dog, putter in the garden, ski in the winter, and go camping with kiddo. How can I exercise and do everything I want to do?
Even those who love to chill out, will find how exhausting chronic pain can be on the brain. It affects not only our physical health but our emotional and mental health.
The longer the pain goes on, the harder it is to keep energetic. I don’t have the ability to exercise how I used to, which only increases the chronic pain as I lose muscle tone and carry more weight.
All that being said, I’ve had to begin looking for ways to manage chronic pain that will consistently work for me as I get older. My hot tub benefits have not gone unnoticed, and I find myself wanting to gush about it so others who may struggle with chronic pain can feel some relief, too.
Heat from water can help to relax the body and reduce stiffness.
Using Hydrotherapy at Home
Hydrotherapy is a type of treatment for physical pain and stiffness using water. This can include aquatic exercise, sitz baths, saunas, hot water compresses, and even the bath you have at home after a long day.
Considered an alternative treatment, different cultures have used varying forms of hydrotherapy for thousands of years. What I love about it is how accessible it is and that it’s quite effective for various symptoms.
Years ago, I had an infrared sauna. While I liked it, I never really got into the routine of using it. It didn’t feel as supportive on my body, and I took long hot baths filled with Epsom salts instead.
Everybody will have a different preference and experience with heat for treatment, but I found that a hot bath helped me feel better the next day.
When I moved and was thinking about what to do with my outdoor space, a hot tub seemed like a great option as a daily bath taker. I’ve even had them multiple times a day when I’m experiencing a bad flare-up.
I saw a hot tub as a way to help me stay off painkillers, which have ruined my gut. It would also allow me to save water and get away from bathtubs. While my new house had a beautiful clawfoot tub, I found its shape very hard, and it put a lot of pressure on my body, not to mention that it was hard to get in and out.
All the Hot Tub Benefits!
Pain Management
The reason I sought out a hot tub was pain management, and it has not disappointed me in this regard. I can wake up in the morning with so much pain that I won’t be able to function. Before anything, I will pop in the hot tub and feel my body return to me. I also use it before bed to help break the pain cycle before sleep.
Workout Recovery
As someone who is pretty active, it can also help with my recovery after I go on my daily dog walk or do a little bit of exercise. After a whole day of straining my body and being exhausted, I can use the hot tub to help put me in a state of relaxation.
Mobility
After I have a soak, I notice an immediate release in my body. It greatly improves my mobility because the muscles are less stiff.
Those will also find that aquatic exercise has a very low impact, so doing a little bit of movement within the water can help you get your body moving without putting much stress on your joints.
Relaxation
Reduced pain, relaxed muscles, and less stiffness all mean I can move around much better. For this reason, I get a way better sleep and prevent even more flare-ups from occurring.
Mental Health
The mental health aspect of a hot tub must not go unnoticed as well. Reducing my pain has helped me achieve better mental clarity. I’ve reduced my stress load and found a new component of my self-care ritual.
I developed my hot tub, so it is part of my garden. I can sit in the hot tub looking at the sky, watch the crows fly overhead, and enjoy my garden space.
Reducing Pain Medications
Taking pain medications would allow me pain relief in one area but would cause gut issues and discomfort in other areas. A hot tub could provide me with pain relief without causing another kind of pain elsewhere. This would help my emotional resilience as I know I’m doing something good for myself.
Less Water Waste
I used to use baths as a form of recovery and relaxation, relying on them daily and sometimes twice a day to help me keep my body moving. As you can imagine, that would use up a lot of water.
Now, I can use my hot tub 2-3 times a day and not feel guilty about all that water going down the drain.
I keep my hot tub well-insulted, actually replacing the old insulation with hard foam. The original cover was also recycled and replaced with a new one to maximize insulation and the hot tub’s energy efficiency.
My shower and French drain are next to my hot tub, which filters water into the ground and my garden.
Getting Social
Another aspect that I didn’t initially think about was how fun having a hot tub would be. When I had friends over, we could all sit in the hot tub and visit there instead of going out or having drinks inside. And it’s so, so lovely!
My hot tub is part of my patio area, which is great for entertaining.
Hot and Cold Hot Tub Circuits
The hot and cold circuit is known more professionally as contrast bath therapy, a form of hydrotherapy where you alternate putting your body in hot then cold water. It’s often associated with Scandinavian culture and is a highlight at many spas.
Contrast bath therapy works by rapidly changing your circulatory system and changing your heart rate. First, your blood vessels open up when your body is immersed in hot water. Then, the opposite happens in cold water as your capillaries get smaller. The contrast creates a pumping motion in your blood vessels, which can help with physical symptoms.
Contrast bath therapy is a passive and non-invasive form of therapy, so it’s easy to do for those who are having difficulty doing much besides sitting.
Here’s my personal hot and cold circuit cycle that I use:
When I’m feeling bad, I start with a fifteen-minute soak in the hot tub with the jets on, giving me a “massage.”
After, I have a quick one-minute icy shower with my outdoor shower. Yes, it’s hard to leave the comfort of the warmth, but it stimulates my nerves.
Have a ten-minute rest. I sit outside on my patio, wrapped in a towel or blanket.
If I’m feeling better, I’ll get ready for the day. If I’m still not doing well, I’ll repeat it all again. Sometimes, I do up to three cycles.
Caring for Your Skin After Being in a Hot Tub
The one thing I will say about having a hot tub is that it can be tough on your skin. For the record, I have sensitive skin, and I still think the hot tub is well worth it.
To help, I stay hydrated. I always drink water when I’m in the hot tub. Afterward, I make sure to rinse off and use my natural soaps. The cold showers, as part of my hot/cold circuit, also help by closing up the blood vessels that cause skin dryness and rosacea.
It’s also a good idea to moisturize. I also spritz myself with witch hazel and rose water.
I use very few chemicals to keep my hot tub as natural as possible (read more about that here). I use the minimum amount of what’s needed to try and make the water as sensitive and skin-friendly as possible.
I change my hot tub water about every four months, sometimes sooner if there have been many people in it.
All these things help to prevent my skin from feeling dry and scratchy. While my skin bothers me occasionally, I find the pain management well worth this side effect.
FAQ for My At-Home Hot Tub
What costs can you expect for a hot tub?
Since I got a used hot tub, the initial cost wasn’t that bad. There are so many hot tubs out there that I highly recommend you find someone local who refurbishes them and will deliver it to you.
You’ll also need to prepare the space for the hot tub to sit, which should be considered in the initial cost. Moving hot tubs is also expensive and should be done by special movers.
There are chemicals you’ll need for maintenance. I don’t use any chemicals besides bromine and baking soda, as well as an RV water filter.
The ongoing cost of it isn’t too bad if you’re insulting it well. I also found that I’m likely saving money, considering how often I would fill my bathtub beforehand. Not to mention, my hot tub is electric, while my home’s hot water heater is natural gas so it’s a cleaner energy source.
How do you lift the hot tub with reduced mobility?
I installed a bar lifter in my hot tub. It allows me to fold the hot tub cover in half and then use the lifter to move the cover onto the bench I have behind the hot tub. Even when my mobility is restricted, I find lifting quite simple.
More Helpful Tips to Try
A city girl who learned to garden and it changed everything. Author, artist, Master Gardener. Better living through plants.
Purepower Nutrition has urgently recalled two fitness meals sold at retailers, including Tesco in Northern Ireland
Lauren Haughey Lifestyle and Money Reporter
15:26, 10 Jan 2026
The items are sold at retailers like Tesco(Image: Alan Morris via Getty Images)
Two nutrition-focused food items have been urgently recalled amid ‘possible health risk’ concerns for certain groups of people. Both products, stocked at retailers including Tesco, can now be returned to shops where customers can receive a full refund.
The product alert specifically concerns all batches of Purepower Nutrition’s Chicken & Chorizo Paella (400g) and Chicken Chow Mein (400g) in Northern Ireland. The Chicken & Chorizo Paella has been mispacked with Chicken Chow Mein, so all items are being recalled as a precaution.
A message published on the Food Standards Agency (FSA) website reads: “PUREPOWER Nutrition is recalling Chicken & Chorizo Paella because it has been mispacked with Chicken Chow Mein and contains milk, which is not mentioned on the label, and is a possible health risk for anyone with an allergy or intolerance to milk or milk constituents. The business is also recalling Chicken Chow Mein as a precaution as it has been mispacked with Chicken & Chorizo Paella.”
Purepower Nutrition offers an extensive selection of sports and nutrition products designed with health, fitness, and weight loss in mind. Its Chicken Chow Mein dish is specifically described as ‘perfect for gym nights’, boasting a ‘takeaway taste without the takeaway crash’.
The FSA has confirmed that all 400g packs of Chicken & Chorizo Paella and Chicken Chow Mein with use-by dates up to January 17 and January 15, 2026, respectively, are being recalled across Northern Ireland. Point-of-sale notices have been distributed by Purepower Nutrition, outlining the reasons behind the product recall.
The FSA continues: “These products have been mispacked. The Chicken & Chorizo Paella product has been mispacked with Chicken Chow Mein which contains milk, making it a possible health risk for anyone with an allergy or intolerance to milk or milk constituents.
“PUREPOWER Nutrition is recalling the above products from customers and has been advised to contact the relevant allergy support organisations, which will tell their members about the recall.
“The company has also issued a point-of-sale notice to its customers. These notices explain to customers why the products are being recalled and tell them what to do if they have bought the products. Please see the attached notice.”
Likewise, a notice from Purepower Nutrition adds: “If you have purchased the affected product, please do not eat it. Instead, return it to store of purchase for a full refund. No other PUREPOWER products are affected by this recall.
“If you have a concern, please email quality@purepowernutrition.com.” Tesco has also been approached for further comment.
Allergy alerts
Occasionally, a food product may present an issue that requires the issuing of an allergy alert. This typically indicates the product shouldn’t be available for purchase as it could represent a possible health hazard to specific individuals.
The FSA explains: “Sometimes there will be a problem with a food product that means it should not be sold. Then it might be ‘withdrawn’ (taken off the shelves) or ‘recalled’ (when customers are asked to return the product).
“Sometimes foods have to be withdrawn or recalled if there is a risk to consumers because the allergy labelling is missing or incorrect or if there is any other food allergy risk. When there is a food allergy risk, the FSA will issue an Allergy Alert.”
For the latest money saving tips, shopping and consumer news, go to the new Everything Money website.
Today, you’re going to do perhaps the single best thing for your brain.
When I asked neurologists about their top behaviors for brain health, they all stressed the importance of physical activity.
“Exercise is top, No. 1, when we’re thinking about the biggest bang for your buck,” said Dr. Gregg Day, a neurologist at the Mayo Clinic.
Numerous studies have shown that people who exercise regularly tend to perform better on attention, memory and executive functioning tests. There can be a small cognitive boost immediately after a workout, and the effects are sustained if people exercise consistently. And while staying active can’t guarantee you won’t develop dementia, over the long term, it is associated with a lower risk of it.
Researchers think that moving your muscles benefits your brain in part because of special signaling molecules called exerkines. During and after a workout, your muscles, fat and other organs release these molecules into the bloodstream, some of which make their way up to the brain. There, those exerkines go to work, helping to facilitate the growth of new connections between neurons, the repair of brain cells and, possibly, the birth of new neurons.
Exercise also appears to improve blood flow in the brain. That ramps up the delivery of good things to brain cells, like oxygen, glucose and those amazing exerkines. And it helps remove more bad things, namely toxic proteins, like amyloid, that can build up and damage brain cells, increasing the risk for Alzheimer’s.
All of the changes brought on by exercise are “essentially allowing your brain to age more slowly than if you’re physically inactive,” said Kirk Erickson, the chair of neuroscience at the AdventHealth Research Institute.
The benefits are particularly pronounced in the hippocampus, a region critical for learning and memory. In older adults, the hippocampus shrinks 1 to 2 percent a year, and it is one of the main areas affected by Alzheimer’s. Researchers think physical activity helps to offset some of that loss.
The best exercise you can do for your brain is the one you’ll do consistently, so find something that you enjoy and that fits easily into your life.
Walking is one option; two neurologists I spoke to said they got their exercise in by walking at least part of the way to their offices. Recent research suggests that just a few thousand steps a day can reduce the risk of dementia. It’s important to get your heart rate up, though, so “walk as though you’re trying to get somewhere on time,” said Dr. Linda Selwa, a clinical professor of neurology at the University of Michigan Medical School.
Or you could try swimming, cycling, Pilates, weight lifting, yoga, pickleball, dancing, gardening — any type of physical exertion can be beneficial.
If the thought of working out feels like a drag, try pairing it with something else you enjoy doing, like listening to an audiobook. This is a trick that Katherine Milkman, a professor who studies habits at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, calls “temptation bundling.”
For Day 3, we’re asking you to spend at least 20 minutes exercising for your brain. Go for a walk with your accountability partner if they’re nearby. (If not, call them and do a walk-and-talk.) Or let us find you a new workout to try, using the tool below. As usual, we can all meet in the comments to catch up and check in.
(CNN) — Was that you I spotted at that New Year’s Day group class at my local YMCA? If not, don’t worry. It’s not too late. The start of a new year is a natural time to think about health and make resolutions for science-backed habits that make a difference over months and years.
Rather than extreme diets or complicated regimens, decades of research point to a handful of simple behaviors that are consistently tied to better long-term health.
To start the year right, I wanted you to know the most important things you can focus on this year to improve your current physical and mental well-being and have it pay off for decades to come. And yes, I know how hard it can be to realistically follow through when motivation is low or life gets busy.
I asked CNN wellness expert Dr. Leana Wen to break down five practical, evidence-based actions that can make a real difference in 2026 and beyond. Wen is an emergency physician and adjunct associate professor at George Washington University. She previously served as Baltimore’s health commissioner.
CNN: For your first tip, you said to prioritize regular exercise. Why does exercise matter so much for health?
Dr. Leana Wen:Regular physical activity is one of the most powerful tools we have for preventing chronic disease and improving quality of life. It benefits virtually every organ system in the body. Even short bouts of moderate exercise, such as brisk walking, can lower blood pressure, improve cholesterol levels, boost mood and strengthen the heart.
For adults, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity activity per week plus muscle-strengthening activities on two or more days. Even if you can’t hit those recommendations, some activity is better than none. If you do not currently exercise, start with a 5- or 10-minute brisk walk once a day; if you already walk regularly, try adding a few extra minutes at a time and increasing your pace.
CNN: Your second tip is to get checkups at least annually. Why is that so important?
Wen: Periodic checkups with a clinician are essential because many high-risk conditions develop silently. Hypertension, or high blood pressure, and type 2 diabetes, for example, often have no obvious symptoms until they have already caused significant damage to the heart, kidneys and blood vessels. Detecting and treating these conditions early dramatically lowers the risk of heart attack, stroke, kidney disease and other serious complications.
A checkup gives you a chance to assess risk factors like cholesterol, glucose levels, body mass index and lifestyle habits. You also can establish monitoring or treatment plans with your provider before problems become severe. Timely treatment through lifestyle changes, medication or both can slow or even reverse disease progression.
These visits also pose an important opportunity to review vaccinations. Recommendations and public messaging from federal health agencies may change, but your clinician can help you understand which vaccines are appropriate for you based on your age, health conditions and personal risk. Staying up to date on routine vaccines — such as flu, Covid-19 and others recommended for your situation — remains one of the most effective ways to prevent serious illness and protect both individual and community health.
CNN: Your third tip is to get adequate sleep. Why does sleep matter as much as diet or exercise?
Wen: Sleep is not optional; it’s a biological necessity that affects nearly every aspect of health we care about. Without adequate sleep, your body has trouble repairing tissues, regulating hormones and managing energy balance.
Research suggests that chronic insufficient sleep is linked to greater risk of obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and mood disorders. One reason may involve hormonal regulation: Sleep deprivation increases hunger hormones and decreases satiety hormones, which can promote overeating, especially of high-calorie foods.
Sleep also affects immune function and cognitive performance, so consistent rest helps us to better respond to stress and supports memory, attention and emotional regulation. Most adults benefit from seven to nine hours of sleep per night, and prioritizing regular sleep schedules can improve quality over time.
CNN: Your fourth tip centers on diet quality, in particular cutting out ultraprocessed foods. Why is working toward a healthier diet so important, and what steps can people take to improve nutrition?
Wen: What you eat influences your health in important ways. Ultraprocessed foods have become a dominant part of the American diet, accounting for more than half of total calories in many age groups. These foods, which include sugary drinks, packaged snacks, fast food, ready meals and sweetened cereals, are generally high in added sugars, unhealthy fats and sodium, and low in fiber, vitamins and minerals.
High consumption of ultraprocessed foods is linked to obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and even depression and mental health conditions. Replacing ultraprocessed items with whole or minimally processed foods (vegetables, fruits, whole grains, lean proteins, legumes and nuts) supports both physical and mental health and helps stabilize energy, blood sugar and appetite.
CNN: Your fifth tip may surprise some people: Consider social connection a core part of staying healthy.
Wen: Human beings are social creatures, and our relationships have direct implications for our health. Strong social connections with family, friends, colleagues and community groups are associated with lower rates of anxiety and depression, better immune function, and reduced risk of chronic diseases such as hypertension and diabetes. Conversely, social isolation and loneliness have been linked to increased risk of cardiovascular disease, cognitive decline and early mortality.
Social connection motivates healthier behaviors and provides emotional support during stress, and it encourages engagement in physical activity and other positive habits. Simple acts, such as going for walks with friends, regular catch-up phone calls, shared meals or other group activities, are good for short-term mental health. These interactions also represent a long-term investment in your mental and physical health.
CNN: What advice do you have for people trying to follow these five tips in real life?
Wen: The most important thing is to concentrate on consistency. These habits do not need to be done perfectly to have an impact. Small, repeated actions add up. For instance, walking most days is far better than exercising hard once a month. Going to regular checkups is crucial, rather than waiting until something feels wrong. Improving sleep by even 30 to 60 minutes a night can make a meaningful difference.
It also helps to remember that these five areas are deeply connected. Getting enough sleep makes it easier to exercise and eat well. Regular physical activity improves sleep quality and mood. Social connection supports motivation and resilience, making it more likely that people stick with healthy routines. So instead of treating these as separate goals, think of them as reinforcing one another.
Finally, give yourself permission to start where you are. Health is not built in January alone, and it is not derailed by a bad week or a missed goal. The aim is consistent progress. Choosing habits that feel realistic and sustainable, and returning to them when life gets busy, is what makes these five tips work over the long run.
FROM TOWSON. A NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION IS I HAVE A TWIN SISTER, SO OUR GOAL IS TO ACCOMPLISH ALL OUR FITNESS GOALS, BE DISCIPLINED AND THAT’S WHY KARISMA GREEN IS UP EARLY AT PLANET FITNESS IN TOWSON. FOR TYRA WHEELER. CONSISTENCY HERE HASN’T JUST HELPED HIM CHANGE HIS BODY, IT’S CHANGED HIS LIFE. WITH MY CAREER, MY SCHOOLING, MY FAMILY, IT JUST MAKES ME WANT TO GO HARDER IN EVERY ASPECT OF MY LIFE. REALLY. ABOUT THREE YEARS AGO, ON NEW YEAR’S DAY, IN FACT, TYRELL SET OUT TO GO FROM FROM EXTREME BEING TO, YOU KNOW, A MEAN GREEN. AND BY NOT GIVING UP, HE’S GONE FROM THIS TO THIS. PUTTING ON NEARLY 30 POUNDS OF MUSCLE. AND ONCE YOU START TO SEE A CHANGE IN YOUR BODY, IT’S NO STOPPING THERE. PLANET FITNESS GENERAL MANAGER QUINTIN DAILEY SAYS THE KEY TO MAKING SURE YOU DON’T GIVE UP WITHIN THE FIRST MONTH, LIKE SO MANY PEOPLE DO, IS IT’S FINDING YOUR WHY, FINDING WHY YOU WANT TO DO THIS. IT MIGHT BE FOR HEALTH, IT MIGHT BE FOR YOUR MENTAL HEALTH. IT MIGHT BE FOR TO YOUR FAMILY CAN SEE YOU A LITTLE LONGER SO YOU CAN MOVE A LITTLE BIT BETTER SO YOU CAN GET A LITTLE STRONGER. ONCE YOU FIND YOUR WHY IT BECOMES A LOT EASIER. GETTING FIT IS A NUMBER ONE RESOLUTION ACCORDING TO YOUGOV.COM. ALSO ON THE LIST. BEING HAPPY, EATING HEALTHIER AND SAVING MORE MONEY. ADULTS UNDER 45 ARE ALSO ABOUT TWICE AS LIKELY AS OLDER AMERICANS TO SAY THEY WILL MAKE A NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION. DO YOU HAVE A NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION? NO, I DON’T HAVE A NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION. I BELIEVE IN MAKING PLANS EVERY DAY AND CARRYING THEM OUT EVERY DAY, INSTEAD OF JUST SAVING THEM UP FOR ONE DAY A YEAR. IF YOU KNOW SOMETHING IS THE RIGHT THING TO DO IT, DO TODAY. MY NEW YEAR RESOLUTION IS TO BE AT THE BE AT PEACE WITH THE WORLD. THE FIRST ONE IS FINISH COLLEGE. THAT’S THAT’S LIKE BOTTOM LINE, WORK IN THE FIELD WOULD BE THE SECOND GOAL AND JUST KEEP GROWING. IF YOU HAVE RESOLVED TO GET OUTDOORS MORE, WHY NOT JUST TAKE A HIKE? FIRST DAY HIKES IS A NATIONWIDE INITIATIVE THAT THE MARYLAND DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES IS TAKING PART IN. SO YOU CAN GO AHEAD AND GO ONLINE TO FIND OUT WHERE YOU CAN DO A SELF-GUIDED TOUR OR A RANGER LED TOUR. AND IT RUNS THROUGH JANUARY THE 2ND H
Getting fit, healthy is a common New Year’s resolution. Here’s how to actually find success
People typically consider setting goals at the new year, so how does one find success?When it comes to New Year’s resolutions, many people got up early Thursday morning with a goal of getting fit in 2026.At Planet Fitness in Towson, Maryland, Tyrell Wheeler said consistency helped him change more than his body — it changed his life.”With my career, with my schooling, with my family, it just makes me want to go harder in every aspect of my life,” Wheeler said.On New Year’s Day about three years ago, Wheeler set out to “(go) from a string bean to a mean green.” And, by not giving up, he put on almost 30 pounds of muscle.Quintin Dailey, the gym’s general manager, said the key to making sure you don’t give up within the first month, as he sees most people do, is to find your why.”Once you start to see a change in your body, there’s no stopping there,” Dailey said. “(Find) the why you want to do this: It might be for health, it might be for your mental health, it might be so your family could see you longer, move a little bit better, so you can get stronger. Once you find your why, it becomes a lot easier.” Getting fit is the No. 1 resolution, according to a YouGov survey. Also on the list: Being happy (23%), eating healthier (22%) and saving more money (21%).The survey found adults under 45 are about twice as likely as older Americans to say they will make a New Year’s resolution (43% vs. 21%).”I don’t have a New Year’s resolution. I believe in making plans every day, carrying them out every day, (not) just saving them up for one day a year. If it’s the right thing to do, do it today,” said Bernie Simon, a gym patron.”The first one is finish college, bottom line. Second would be to work in the field. And then, just keep growing,” said Dylan Johnson, a gym patron.
TOWSON, Md. —
People typically consider setting goals at the new year, so how does one find success?
When it comes to New Year’s resolutions, many people got up early Thursday morning with a goal of getting fit in 2026.
At Planet Fitness in Towson, Maryland, Tyrell Wheeler said consistency helped him change more than his body — it changed his life.
“With my career, with my schooling, with my family, it just makes me want to go harder in every aspect of my life,” Wheeler said.
On New Year’s Day about three years ago, Wheeler set out to “(go) from a string bean to a mean green.” And, by not giving up, he put on almost 30 pounds of muscle.
Quintin Dailey, the gym’s general manager, said the key to making sure you don’t give up within the first month, as he sees most people do, is to find your why.
“Once you start to see a change in your body, there’s no stopping there,” Dailey said. “(Find) the why you want to do this: It might be for health, it might be for your mental health, it might be so your family could see you longer, move a little bit better, so you can get stronger. Once you find your why, it becomes a lot easier.”
Getting fit is the No. 1 resolution, according to a YouGov survey. Also on the list: Being happy (23%), eating healthier (22%) and saving more money (21%).
The survey found adults under 45 are about twice as likely as older Americans to say they will make a New Year’s resolution (43% vs. 21%).
“I don’t have a New Year’s resolution. I believe in making plans every day, carrying them out every day, (not) just saving them up for one day a year. If it’s the right thing to do, do it today,” said Bernie Simon, a gym patron.
“The first one is finish college, bottom line. Second would be to work in the field. And then, just keep growing,” said Dylan Johnson, a gym patron.
2025 was the year of remedial education for the Colorado General Assembly.
Since legislators in the majority just can’t seem to understand the First Amendment, they got schooled by the courts on multiple occasions.
Constitution 101: the First Amendment forbids government agencies, federal, state or local, from enacting a law or regulation “respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech.”
The government cannot quash or coerce speech, establish religion or prevent its exercise. If state legislators and regulators learn these principles, taxpayers will not have to foot the bill for yet another needless trip to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Lesson one: Agencies cannot abridge free speech by forcing people to parrot the government’s ideological message. That’s called coerced speech. A week ago, a Biden-appointed federal judge blocked Colorado from enforcing a 2025 law, House Bill 1161, that requires cigarette pack-style health warnings on gas stoves and imposes a fine of up to $20,000 per violation if they don’t.
The judge agreed with the plaintiffs, the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers, that the law likely infringes on their First Amendment freedoms. “The court disagrees that the labeling requirement merely enables customers to access information — the only reason customers can access this information is because the State compels peddlers of gas stoves to speak it,” the court ruled. “Further … whether the information is truthful and accurate is subject to substantial disagreement within the scientific community.”
In addition to familiarizing themselves with the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers v. Weiser decision, legislators will want to read the Supreme Court’s 2023 decision in the Colorado case 303 Creative LLC vs Elenis and the cases it cites as homework.
Lesson two: The government cannot abridge free speech by censoring it. Earlier this year, Kaley Chiles, a licensed professional counselor, defended her First Amendment rights to the Supreme Court. A 2019 law prohibits counselors from helping clients come to terms with their biological sex through talk therapy. The law threatens counselors with thousands of dollars in fines and a potential loss of license unless they stick to government-approved speech. Based on the justices’ questions during oral argument, the Colorado law is likely to be struck down.
In addition to familiarizing themselves with the Chiles v. Salazar case, legislators will want to read Riley v. National Federation of the Blind of N.C., Inc. and the National Institute of Family & Life Advocates. v. Becerra decisions as homework.
Lesson three: The government cannot establish religion, or prohibit its exercise. Laws must be neutral toward religion neither advancing nor hindering its practice, and the government cannot discriminate against people for their beliefs. Earlier this month, the Supreme Court received 19 friend-of-the-court briefs from 22 states, numerous representatives from policy and law think tanks and various faith traditions, and Colorado families urging the Supreme Court to hear St. Mary Catholic Parish v. Roy, a suit brought by the Archdiocese of Denver, two Catholic parishes, and two parents of preschool-age children. Colorado has been excluding Catholic preschool providers from its “universal” state preschool program for upholding church doctrines. Catholic families seeking a preschool education that aligns with their faith must pay out of pocket while other families get 15 hours of preschool education for free. That’s not fair or consistent with the First Amendment.
The state should have learned this lesson earlier this year when it settled a lawsuit brought by Camp IdRaHaJe, a Christian summer camp. The camp can continue to operate its summer programming without compromising its policies regarding biological sex. The state agreed to update its guidelines and website to clarify that “churches, synagogues, mosques, or any other place that is principally used for religious purposes” are exempt from state dictates that force licensed resident camps to permit campers to use dorms and restrooms of the opposite sex.
In addition to familiarizing themselves with Camp IdRaHaJe Association v. Roy, legislators will want to read the Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission decision as homework.
While it’s a heavy reading list, once completed, legislators and regulators can be confident that they will start the new year equipped to establish laws and regulations that are actually consistent with First Amendment rights.
At 56, Jennifer Aniston has the body many of us can only dream of – regardless of age. The Friends star always looked toned and muscular, with washboard abs and svelte arms.
Given she never looks anything short of sculpted, we’ve often found ourselves asking how she maintains her physique – and she has finally revealed her secret, explaining: “Muscle is the ultimate anti-ageing tool. I am building strength that fuels my energy, confidence and longevity.”
Curious as to how muscle can serve as an anti-ageing tool, we spoke to personal trainer Shakira Akabusi, who explained how our muscles can keep us feeling youthful – but also shared the sobering fact that our muscles decline rapidly as we age.
“Many of us know that we lose bone as we age, but fewer of us realise that our muscles also lose strength and mass as we get older, a normal process known as sarcopenia,” Shakira begins. “This age-related loss of muscle is a major cause of frailty, increasing the risk of falling and fractures in older people.”
Shakira Akabusi shares how muscles can keep us feeling youthful
At 56, Jennifer Aniston certainly doesn’t look frail – and this is likely due to her commitment to honing her muscles through exercise. Here, Shakira shares her advice for supporting our muscles in midlife and beyond.
HELLO!’s Second Act is a newsletter for women in midlife and beyond. It’s completely free to sign up and is a one-stop-shop for advice and inspiration on the issues our Second Act community have told us matter most: health, relationships, travel, menopause, divorce, careers, finance and more.
Supporting muscles in midlife
“There are two types of training that are ideal to help combat muscle loss, helping us to build strength and lay down new bone tissue,” she says. “Weight-bearing movements, where we’re up on our feet, place our skeletal frame under gentle pressure, stimulating our bones to lay down more bone tissue.
“In addition, resistance exercises, such as lifting weights or pushing and pulling against something, help to strengthen our muscles. Strength training causes small, microscopic tears to a muscle and as the fibres rebuild, they are reinforced, making our muscles stronger.”
Kate Rowe-Ham explains the moves that can help support muscle growth
On how often we need to train our muscles, fellow personal trainer Kate Rowe-Ham adds: “The longevity benefits of strength training are enormous. Two or three sessions a week improve balance, reduce falls and make daily life easier, whether that’s carrying shopping or playing with grandchildren. Strength training also boosts metabolism, supports heart health, and helps regulate blood sugar levels.”
Keen to try it for yourself? Watch our video below for easy-to-follow moves to support your muscles. Jen Aniston arms, here we come!
These four key healthy cat diet tips will help you understand how to use food to keep your feline friend lean and full of energy!
Obesity is a common health issue in cats. In fact, it’s estimated that over 60% of cats are overweight or obese. Luckily, it’s easy to prevent, and there are plenty of reasons you should take steps to do so. Excess weight can shorten their lifespan, reduce their quality of life, and cause health conditions like diabetes, joint problems, and heart and liver disease. Regular play and exercise are essential components for a healthy lifestyle, but the real key to preventing obesity in cats lies in their food bowl. Here are four healthy cat diet tips that will help you keep your kitty lean, happy, and healthy!
1. Practice Portion Control
Overfeeding is one of the biggest contributors to cat obesity. The easiest way to combat it is by feeding your cat twice daily instead of allowing them to free feed, which can easily lead to constant snacking, overeating, and weight gain. And be sure to measure the proper amount of food for your cat based on the feeding guidelines provided by your vet or the food manufacturer.
2. Adjust Calories Based on Life Stage and Activity Level
Cats have different caloric needs depending on their age and how active they are. Kittens need more calories and nutrients to support growth, while adults and seniors typically require fewer calories. Spayed or neutered cats also have slower metabolisms and may gain weight more easily. Similarly, indoor cats who aren’t as active as outdoor cats may need a weight-maintenance formula. Regular checkups with your veterinarian will help you stay on track with a healthy cat diet.
3. Prioritize Nutrient-Rich Cat Foods
While it is important to pay attention to the number of calories your cat consumes, it’s just as important to make sure they’re getting the right nutrients. Cats are obligate carnivores, and they thrive on meat-rich diets. Look for foods with real animal protein as the first ingredient, minimal carbohydrates, and no artificial additives. High-quality foods ensure your cat gets the vitamins, minerals, and nutrients they need while also helping them feel satisfied with smaller portions.
4. Keep Treats and Human Food to a Minimum
Treats are okay, as long as they’re just that—treats. They shouldn’t make up more than 10% of your cat’s daily calories. And that includes human food. Even though some human foods are safe for cats (like lean meats, salmon, tuna, and even some vegetables), you must be careful not to overfeed. When you do feed treats, prioritize nutrient-dense ones. Here are some things to look for:
Single- or minimal-ingredient treats
Meat as the first ingredient
No added salt or sugar
Real-food ingredients
A Healthy Cat Diet Starts with NutriSource Recipes!
NutriSource has been nourishing cats for over 60 years with nutrient-dense foods, prioritizing high-quality ingredients and meat-rich recipes that supply cats with the calories and nutrients they need to maintain energy and a healthy body condition. They have a variety of options for cats of all ages in their NutriSource, Element, and PureVita lines, including grain-inclusive options, grain-free recipes, and weight management formulations, all of which feature animal protein as the first ingredient.
Visit NutriSource to learn more and find the purrfect healthy cat diet for your feline friend!
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Animal Wellness is North America’s top natural health and lifestyle magazine for dogs and cats, with a readership of over one million every year. AW features articles by some of the most renowned experts in the pet industry, with topics ranging from diet and health related issues, to articles on training, fitness and emotional well being.
93-year-old matriarch pushes family to be more active amid nationwide shift – CBS News
Watch CBS News
Americans of all ages are becoming more active. Leading the way are young people between 14 and 24, and women over 65. Mark Strassmann met a family whose 94-year-old matriarch is leading the charge.
(CNN) — When she used to visit her in-laws during the holidays, Dana Santas and her husband kept to their schedule and went to the gym every day.
“They’re on a dairy farm in Wisconsin, in the middle of nowhere,” said Santas, a CNN fitness contributor and a mind-body coach for professional athletes. “We were leaving for a 35-minute drive to the gym, spending an hour at the gym and then another 35 minutes back.”
It can be hard to maintain the habits that make you feel good and promote health over the holidays –– especially when traveling to see loved ones. How do you leave the board game to get a workout? How do you say no to grandma’s legendary cookies when you already had pie?
Maybe you shouldn’t do either, our experts say.
It’s important to keep up behaviors that make you feel good over the holidays, but it isn’t worth throwing away all your enjoyment of the season, Santas said.
The answer may be to let go of your expectations that you will eat and exercise as normal, and instead do one small thing to stay connected to your good habits. In this case, you can add some healthy micro-habits into your holiday celebrations.
Holiday enjoyment comes first
Guilt over neglecting an exercise routine or failing to maintain a strict schedule can interfere with your enjoyment of the holiday season.
But it’s important to keep some healthy behaviors in place to ensure you feel good, Charlotte, North Carolina, dietitian Natalie Mokari said. Not having fiber and protein in your diet can affect digestion and energy levels, which means you might not enjoy your holiday time as much.
Nevertheless, eating what you enjoy, sharing in family recipes and being flexible while with your loved ones are also important, Mokari said.
Being too strict on what you can and can’t eat might also backfire, because such rigidityoften leads to overeating things you’ve labeled as taboo, she added.
“We place boundaries around food, then we want more of it,” Mokari said.
Guilt you feel around straying from your health routines — which might not be feasible while traveling and celebrating the holidays –– might also lead you to throw out any attempts to feel good at all, Santas said.
Instead of focusing on how little you have moved or how few vegetables you have eaten, celebrate the ways in which you can incorporate healthy habits while still enjoying time during the holidays, she said.
“It doesn’t mean that you let go of being healthy, but it means you let go of (a rigid routine), and you let go of any guilt associated with that. Otherwise, you’re just sabotaging yourself,” Santas said.
Add fruits and veggies but enjoy Christmas cookies, too
If you want to feel good after holiday eating, don’t cut the goodies –– just add some fruits and vegetables, Mokari said.
Traveling to visit family and friends for the holidays can often mean not being fully in control of your dietary options, whether it’s because you are going to restaurants or eating at other people’s houses, she added.
When looking at a restaurant menu, order what looks good to you and enjoy it, Mokari said.
“Also, is there an option to get some side of a vegetable, even if it’s like a side salad to get some greens in?” she said. “On a sandwich, adding lettuce, tomato, avocado or getting a side of beans with tacos (are) different things that you can do to kind of add some extra nutrients and fiber.”
You can pair things together to make sure you are getting the fun holiday foods and drinks as well as ones that are more nutritious. For example, whenever you have a caffeinated or alcoholic beverage, also order a glass of water, Mokari said.
Similarly, if you are on a road trip, it’s OK to have your favorite car snacks. If you want to make sure you stay feeling good, see if you can add in a fruit as well, she said.
To eat more vegetables while at someone’s home, you can always pick something up at the store or offer to make a side dish such as a fall vegetable or a salad, Mokari said.
To ensure you aren’t going overboard, keep in mind what you are most excited to eat and stay aware of your fullness level so you don’t feel uncomfortable, she said.
But don’t spend too much time thinking about the proportion of holiday favorites to more nutrient-dense foods, she added. The most important thing is to enjoy your holiday with your loved ones.
“One meal, a few meals, a few desserts –– it’s not a make-or-break situation for your health,” Mokari said.
Pair movement with family time
Getting in healthy movement over the holidays doesn’t mean you have to work up a sweat or even leave a gathering, Santas said.
“Any movement that you can get during this time is great, and it’s almost like gravy, because … what most of us do is we just say, ‘OK, well, I can’t do my rigid routine that I always do, so I’m not going to do anything,’” she said.
Travel can be hard on the body, so any movement is helpful that can counteract the stiffness, prolonged sitting, and aches and pains.
“Any time that you can, stand up and move in ways that your body intuitively is telling you to. That might be stretching out really long, rotating, squatting down, like just move your body and reconnect with it and just get a sense of what it needs,” she said. “Don’t wait until you can get back to the gym to give it what it needs.”
If you need to, stand up for family games and long catch-up chats to change your posture. Or tell everyone to bundle up and get outside for a walk, she said.
“It can be a 10-minute walk out in the cold, crisp air,” Santas added. “Any opportunity to take little movement breaks.”
Simple mobility exercises can help prevent injury, she said. Can you casually stretch or roll out on the floor while watching a movie with your loved ones?
To take your activity up a notch without overdoing it, Santas recommends bringing simple tools for simple activities. A resistance band, for example, is easy to pack, and if you put it around your ankles or just above your knees, you can get a workout in with wide walks back and forth, she said.
Lastly, Santas suggests playing.
“Exercise doesn’t have to be a chore. It’s fun,” she said. “Think about when we were kids, exercise was fun. That’s what we did when we went out and played.”
Keep an eye on what the kids are doing at the holiday gathering. Can you try out their new dance moves or join in on tag or hide-and-seek?
“Take the opportunity to play with your family,” Santas said.
