PUMPING IRONY: DOMS and Dumber
True to form, when I finally got to the gym on Friday I completely overdid things — piled on the poundage and lifted to failure, just as I had promised myself. By Monday, my upper body — especially my arms…
How to Find Time and Joy in Cooking
Cooking at home is one of the most reliable ways to shift your life in a healthier direction. But where does a busy person find the time? Here’s how you can make good food, fast.
The Tabata Cardio and Strength Workouts
The Tabata Protocol isn't easy, but it can dramatically increase your aerobic and anaerobic capacity in just minutes a month.
A Vacation in Your Kitchen
In need of a break from the same ho-hum recipes you’ve been cooking for years? Cookbook author James Oseland offers helpful tips that will transport your taste buds to the islands of the Orient.
How to Deal With a Bully at Work
A workplace bully can wreak havoc on not just your job but your personal life, too. The good news? You don’t have to suffer in silence.
The Delegating Doctor Oz
Best-selling author and surgeon Mehmet Oz is a world-renowned health expert, but he believes you can do part of his job better than he can.
No-Vacation Nation
An unhealthy work-life balance affects not only our health and well-being, but our families and our society as a whole. Here’s what we can do about it.
How to Prevent Lower-Back Pain from Spreading Throughout the Body
To deal with stubborn back pain, look to your local lumbar stabilizers for answers.
One Life, Indivisible
In a cultural context characterized by this sort of separation, disassociation and alienation, what is a whole life, anyway?
The Value of Balance
It rarely works to compare our lives, our bodies, our achievements with anyone else’s. One person’s imbalance is another person’s bliss.
PUMPING IRONY: Muscle Bind
I'm learning more about how the muscles in my body work, which is a good thing, since a lot of them are still sore today from my Wednesday workout. The most surprising news? It's the period between workouts when your…
PUMPING IRONY: The Cardio Conundrum
After about a 10-day hiatus, I'm finally feeling back in the swing of things. Winter is (very, very gradually) turning into spring, so I've been able to resume my walking commute, and last night I hit the gym for the first time in what feels this morning like a long, long time (I'm a little sore).
PUMPING IRONY: Backsliding
A nasty cold/flu bug has put me off my game this past week, plus it's been too cold for my normal walking commute, so I'm beginning to feel a little out of sorts, fitness-wise. It's fascinating to see how easily…
PUMPING IRONY: The Fountain of Youth
I’ve never been particularly obsessed about my age, partly because I’ve always looked younger than I really am (which was a huge disadvantage when trying to buy liquor as a teenager).
PUMPING IRONY: 70-lb. Weakling
I mentioned earlier that I'd never set foot in a health club before about a year ago, so it's almost goes without saying that the whole strength training routine remains pretty foreign to me.
PUMPING IRONY: The Trouble With Treadmills
Of course I didn't do any stretching to speak of last night at the gym (see previous post). I mean, I did sort of stretch my calves and hamstrings before I revved up the treadmill, but you're supposed to do…
PUMPING IRONY: Creaky Knees
In the fall of 1998, I blew out my right knee playing basketball. I remember the occasion because it happened around the same time that Minnesota Vikings quarterback Randall Cunningham sustained a similar injury. Cunningham was back in the lineup…
PUMPING IRONY: The Little Engine That Could
That nasty northwest wind I mentioned yesterday was out in force this morning, knifing through my corduroys like a hundred icy daggers. Of course, like a good Minnesotan, I just put my head down and pushed on through. Not a…
PUMPING IRONY: A Walk in the Park
I've been a pretty faithful bicycle commuter for the past 30-some years. But, when the first big snow falls here in the Twin Cities, I typically park my bicycle in the garage and rely on the automobile to get to work. I've taken enough spills on the ice over the years to convince me that it's the most prudent approach. Usually, I'm back on the road by April.
Pumpkin Gratin With Pistachios
Recipe excerpted from Vegetable Harvest: Vegetables at the Center of the Plate by Patricia Wells.