When you imagine a boat, you might picture a canoe or kayak floating about lazily on the water. But when you get into boat pose (Paripurna Navasana in Sanskrit) in yoga class, there’s absolutely nothing lazy about it. This intense posture is a killer way to fire up multiple muscles in your core. “At the heart of it, boat pose is a seated balance,” says Wendy Cope, a yoga instructor with Crunch Fitness. “And it’s designed to strengthen the core. But just because it looks simple doesn’t mean it is.” If you’re looking for a new way to engage your midsection—and give yourself a fun balance challen ..read more

As someone who runs lately, on average, two miles a couple times per week, I feel a bit sheepish describing myself as a runner to someone who runs 5, 10, or 20 miles at a time. But the imposter syndrome is unnecessary. As a runner of “short” distances, I have plenty of company among fellow runners—and the many benefits of running for my body and mind still apply. “Ongoing work in the field continues to demonstrate that regular exercise of all levels is beneficial in many ways,” Calum MacRae, MD, a cardiologist, professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, and princ ..read more

If you really want to upset the running community, try using social media to brag about running a faster-than-average pace without any training—in a race you never registered for or paid to participate in. Alexa Curtis, a “personal brand entrepreneur,” learned that the hard way this Monday, when she posted a lengthy screed about her “fearless” experience at the NYCRUNS Brooklyn Half Marathon, a sold-out event that drew more than 21,700 official runners. In a since-deleted post on X, she said she “didn’t sign up for this race. I just asked the security where it started and where it ended and ju ..read more

There are certain yoga poses that almost everyone in class either looks forward to or dreads. One of those is locust pose (aka Salabhasana in Sanskrit). This full-body backbend engages muscles all the way from your neck to your feet, and puts your body in a position we never normally get into during daily life. Depending on how much back mobility you have, that can feel really refreshing—or really awkward. “Locust pose is a bit of a backbend and a bit of a back strengthener,” says Rachel Hirsch, RYT, founder of Empowered Yoga in Los Angeles. “You’re opening the front line of the body, you’re w ..read more

When Jennifer Aniston hops onto a Zoom with me, her charisma and energy is just as apparent in conversation as it is on the screen. How the actress and, TBH, literal icon, manages to exude that signature verve might come down, at least in part, to her exercise habits. Aniston says working out everyday first thing in the morning is a “day changer” for her, because it gets her body and brain fired up for a successful day. That means that having a practice that gives her an intense workout session, without putting her out of commission with an injury, is huge. Over the last two years, she’s found ..read more

Some exercises like the dead bug, thruster, bear complex, and clean have cryptic names, but the overhead press is exactly as it sounds: A movement that involves pressing weight over your head. An upper-body movement that makes a regular appearance in the strength circuits of CrossFitters and body-builders, the overhead press is a sound addition to the exercise routine of almost anyone who has their eyes (er, body) set on building strength, losing weight, or otherwise optimizing their overall health and well-being, according to certified strength and conditioning coach Jake Harcoff, CSCS, head ..read more

Hands down, deadlifts are the best bang-for-your-buck exercise when it comes to building functional strength and stability. They target all the biggest muscle groups in your bottom half (glutes, hammies, and quads), and they challenge your core, shoulders, and forearms. Basically, they’re a total-body workout in one movement—and feeling like you’re losing your balance and falling backward during deadlifts is one way to get turned off of them, fast. The exercise’s hinging pattern, which involves pushing your hips back, can be a tad tricky to master, as can the stabilizing at the top. Shifting a ..read more

Forget the latest fitness fads: The most time-tested exercise proven to improve your well-being is also one that gets back to the basic—walking. The benefits of walking, often overlooked in the buzz of high-intensity workouts and trendy fitness classes, span from heart health to mental clarity, and more are being discovered every year. Walking can not only add years to your life, but life to your years, enhancing everyday energy and boosting mood with every step you take. So, lace up your walking shoes and let’s dive into how this simple exercise can lead you down a path to a longer, healthier ..read more

When I go for a walk wearing my son Rowan in a carrier, I joke that I’m going out to do some “rucking,” or the trend of wearing a weighted vest while doing cardio or strength training. And it’s a great workout, but what if you want to get your baby even even more explicitly involved in your fitness routine? Enter The Sculpt Society’s baby-wearing workouts, a new postpartum program with 10 cardio and bodyweight classes designed to be done while wearing your baby in a wrap on your chest. Megan Roup of The Sculpt Society released her TSS postpartum 2.0 program Monday, for which she re-filmed ..read more

Last summer, I hiked the equivalent vertical gain of Mt. Everest. I had done lots of training for what was my first endurance event, and was mildly confident in my physical fitness, but I had zero idea how my body would respond to this challenge—it turns out, it responded by locking up my hips. And the only way to fix it was by learning how to release my psoas muscle. 29029 Everesting is an endurance event where you climb 29,029 feet—the equivalent height of Mt. Everest—in three days. It takes place in six different cities from June to September. My husband and I picked Snowbasin, Utah. To rea ..read more