Yup, I’m telling you not to exercise. Wellllllll… sort of. I’m telling you not to exercise for the reasons you are probably exercising. After coming across not one, but two articles on the topic in the last week, I knew I had to bring it up. Long story short, if you want exercise to stick as a habit, you have to do it for the right reasons. First, let’s go over those 3 wrong reasons I mentioned. 1. Because you think you should. “Should” can be a very dangerous word, especially if you are the type of person who hates being told what to do (or as Gretchen Rubin categorizes in Better Than Before, one of my favor books on habit, if you are a “rebel” tendency). “Should” ignores what you think and

For the past 3 years, I’ve taught group fitness classes at Uplift Studios, a premiere women’s only personal training + group fitness studio in Manhattan. It’s been an absolute pleasure to be a part of a growing start-up that focusing on empowering women to be their strongest selves, both inside + out. One of the practices we’ve added along the way is having a monthly Fitness Focus; that is, a theme or goal that all instructors + trainers thread throughout their classes + sessions. I had suggested this idea a while back, because with such dedicated clients, I felt it was important that both the client + instructor had something specific on which to focus efforts. In the past, we’ve highlighte

So far this month I’ve focused mainly on the fitness side of what “healthy” means, when probably a much more controversial (and frankly, stress-inducing) topic is the food you put in your mouth. Truthfully, I don’t like the word “diet”; it connotes deprivation and a temporary vigilance. Not to mention, to my favorite cautionary adage: "The first three letters in the word ‘diet’ spell ‘DIE." Extreme, perhaps, but it certainly relates to the feelings of desperation so often experienced while on said diet. For the purposes of us being on the same page, note that when I say “diet,” I’m referring more to a typical style or strategy of how you eat more of the time, as well as specific foods or cat

This article was originally published on Now Cure Me, an online platform to search + share health tips and tricks for your common concerns + ailments. Whether you should completely cut out carbs or just reduce your intake to focus on whole foods, such as starchy fruits and vegetables, is a contentious issue for nutritionists around the world. Believe it or not, if your goal is weight loss, there is real science behind if you should completely stop eating bread, pasta, rice and potatoes or whether you should keep them in your diet but make better choices about what you’re consuming….and more importantly, when. It comes down to keeping your hormones in check throughout the day. In order to reg

Even if you don’t consider yourself an expert in healthy cooking, you’re surely aware it wouldn’t hurt to boost your veggie intake, or maybe choose the least processed carbs possible to round out your dinner. And although fats used to be considered public enemy number 1, you probably know that research and anecdotal evidence proof that in many cases, fats our our friends. You see, eating sufficient amounts of high quality fats are essential to a number of health functions, including but not limited to: absorption of fat-soluble vitamins (A, E, D, K) maintaining brain health getting essential fatty acids like linoleic (Omega-6) and alpha-linolenic acid (Omega-3), which the body cannot produce

Although meal prepping in advance always makes you feel (and perform) better in the long run, sometimes the idea of spending several hours once or twice a week doing it can be an obstacle itself. This dish is one of my favorite fast + easy meal preps that is delicious + comforting, but nutrient-dense and oh-so-good for you. NON-CRAP “CONVENIENCE” FOODS DO EXIST – AND DON’T NEED TO BREAK THE BANK To up the anty and really pique your interest, I’m using all “convenience” foods: jarred marinara sauce, pre-made meatballs and frozen broccoli. If you were really lazy or pressed for time, some markets serve pre-made spaghetti squash these days. Despite using convenience items (purchased from Whole