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A woman is climbing up outdoor stairs. Image Credit: lzf/iStock/Getty Images Step climbing, whether climbing stairs or training on a stair climbing machine, is a high-intensity exercise that has a low-impact effect on lower body joints. Workouts increase muscular endurance while improving lower body muscle tone. As a cardio workout, there is an increased demand on heart and lung capacity along with an increase in calories burned. When combined with proper diet, step climbing reduces excess body fat and body weight, resulting in thinner thighs....

Image Credit: Westend61 Whether they're popping a supplement or sipping on kombucha, everyone is buzzing about probiotics. But did you know that their less-hyped cousin, prebiotics, are actually just as important for good gut health and supporting the probiotics naturally occurring in your gut? Advertisement It's true. Amy Shapiro, RD and founder of Real Nutrition, broke it down for us like this: "Both are important," she explains. "Probiotics are the healthy bacteria [in your gut] that help you fight off disease [and maintain gut health], and prebiotics are the food they need to stay alive....

A woman and young girl are picking things from an organic farm. Image Credit: Karin Dreyer/Blend Images/Getty Images Organic foods are grown without chemical pesticides on farmland that is free of chemicals. The United States Department of Agriculture oversees the National Organic Program, which regulates organic farming standards in accordance with the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990. Organic meats come from organically managed livestock that are not fed slaughter by-products, steroids or antibiotics and feed off pastures, hay and grain concentrates....

Yoga is a great way to exercise and stretch the lower back. Image Credit: nortonrsx/iStock/GettyImages According to the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, back pain is one of the most common medical issues in the U.S. The good news is, most cases of lower back pain do not require surgery. Advertisement However, lower back — or lumbar — conditions that compress your nerves might require surgery. These conditions often occur from bulging or breakdown of disks that provide cushioning between the bones in your spine, or bone spurs along your spine, according to the Mayo Clinic....

Exercises for Quadriceps Tendinitis Image Credit: emiliozv/iStock/GettyImages If you’re an active person, there’s a good chance you’ve experienced knee pain at one point or another. Quadriceps tendinitis – which is the inflammation of the tendon at the top of your kneecap – affects athletes who run and jump a lot. In fact, this condition is sometimes called “jumper’s knee.” Advertisement Stretching and strengthening exercises can relieve pain, stiffness and weakness that can occur with quadriceps tendinitis....

Any exercise will burn 1,000 calories if you work out hard enough and long enough. Image Credit: jacoblund/iStock/GettyImages When it comes to increasing calorie burn, you’ve got two factors to manipulate: time and intensity. The longer you work and the harder you work, the more calories you’ll burn. So in theory, any exercise can become a 1,000-calorie workout with enough intensity and duration. Advertisement However, the type of exercise you can sustain and the time you have available will determine which 1,000-calorie workout is best for you....

Focus on lifting heavy weights to help get stronger. Image Credit: Hero Images/Hero Images/GettyImages Muscular strength refers to the overall energy a muscle can exert in a single effort. With regular hard work, muscular strength exercises will improve your muscles’ ability to handle heavy weight. Exercising with free weights, machines, barbells, dumbbells and body weight is a good starting point. Advertisement Read more: Which Is Better, Heavy Weight Lifting or Light Weight Lifting?...

Vibration plates help increase bone density. Image Credit: CentralITAlliance/iStock/GettyImages Vibration plate exercises utilize a machine offering whole-body vibration, a training methodology that helps increase bone density and build strength. The plate vibrates according to specific frequencies and amplitudes, set by the user. Advertisement Why Vibration Plate Exercises? Standing on the moving plate causes you to tense and relax your muscles to maintain your balance. In fact, a research review published in 2017 by BMJ Open reports that whole-body vibration exercises are effective for preventing falls....

Honey has been used as a home remedy for gastritis since ancient times. An occasional upset stomach or case of indigestion may not be anything for you to worry about, according to Mayo Clinic, but if you have recurring, chronic gastritis, you may have an ulcer and increased risk of stomach cancer. Honey has been used as a home remedy for gastritis since ancient times. Laboratory studies suggest that manuka honey, produced from the New Zealand manuka bush, has bactericidal activity against ulcer-causing bacteria, but clinical studies do not support these findings, according to Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center....

Probiotics represent a form of supplemental "good" bacteria that inhabit your colon. Image Credit: Godt, Nicole/Foodcollection/GettyImages Probiotics represent a form of supplemental “good” bacteria that inhabit your colon. If you are healthy, follow a healthy diet full of probiotic foods and are void of serious digestive disease, the use of probiotic supplements is unnecessary. Advertisement Those with certain issues or imbalances may benefit from supplemental forms of probiotics in your diet....

Grilled chicken on plate. Image Credit: Elena_Danileiko/iStock/Getty Images Protein foods provide approximately 16 percent of the calories in a typical American diet. For people who have diabetes, the source of those protein calories are important. Protein does not contribute to blood sugar levels per se, but many foods commonly thought of as protein also contain carbohydrate and fat. Protein needs are commonly calculated based on body weight. The Institute of Medicine’s Dietary Reference Intakes recommend adult women take in 46 grams protein per day, males 56 g per day....

Keeping up with your chest size benefits more than your wardrobe. Image Credit: gpagomenos/iStock/Getty Images You don’t have to be a competitive bodybuilder to care about your chest measurements. And, though you might have apps, charts or notebooks to keep track of your workout results, there’s a simple, lo-fi solution, too: A good old-fashioned measuring tape. Advertisement More than just giving you bragging rights, keeping track of you chest measurements is a quick, straightforward and efficient way to monitor the tangible results of your workout program....

There are many different ways to cook a turkey. Image Credit: Elena_Danileiko/iStock/GettyImages When it comes to cooking a 19-pound turkey, you have many options. You can smoke, grill, air fry, deep fry or slow cook your bird. You also have the choice of deconstructing it and roasting the parts. But the classic way to cook a large turkey is to roast the whole bird in the oven. Advertisement Prepping Your Turkey If you purchased a frozen unstuffed turkey, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends thawing it in one of three different ways before cooking: in the refrigerator, in cold water or in the microwave....

A plate of nachos. Image Credit: pilipphoto/iStock/Getty Images It’s easy and quick making nachos in your oven. The dry heat of your oven melts the cheese while keeping the chips crisp. Using extra-thick tortilla chips in this recipe keeps the chips from breaking when you make the nachos as well as while eating this game time or anytime snack. What will emerge from the oven is a crisp, hearty snack you can serve to your family, guests or just enjoy on your own....

Many vegetables can be cooked on a griddle. Image Credit: rigsby8131/iStock/Getty Images Griddles are available in either flat electric or slotted stovetop varieties and both are considered a fast and generally healthy option for cooking. A study published in the “Journal of Food Science” in 2009 found that compared to boiling, pressure-cooking, baking, microwaving and frying, griddling vegetables preserved the highest levels of antioxidants. Griddling gives vegetables a caramelized flavor similar to grilling but missing the smokiness....

Freezing chopped vegetables cuts down on your daily meal prep time. Image Credit: Annie Otzen/DigitalVision/GettyImages Your freezer lets you store cooked peppers and onions, whether you’ve grown a bumper crop, found a sale at the grocery store or gone overboard in the kitchen. The frozen surplus cuts down on food prep, since you don’t need to cut up fresh peppers and onions every time a recipe calls for them. Advertisement Instead, you can cut up the vegetables at one time, cook them in a large batch and store them, which means you only have to clean up once....

A large bowl of Manhattan clam chowder. Image Credit: Fudio/iStock/Getty Images Hearty and filling, milk-based soups can often serve as meals by themselves. Milk-based soups, such as chowders and purees, are thicker and creamier than broth-based soups, meaning that they make for a more filling meal. If you find that your soup pot hardly has a dent in it after dinner is over, the rest can be saved for future enjoyment....

Massage is a great way to get rid of excess lactic acid in the muscles after working out. Image Credit: Sam Edwards/OJO Images/GettyImages Lactic acid was once thought to cause the “burn” of a working muscle and the soreness afterward. But in the ever-evolving field of exercise science it’s now understood that when all your body’s systems work as expected, lactic acid in muscles is a natural, even helpful, by-product of exercise....

Recording your food intake in a notebook might work best, or you may prefer to use a calorie-tracking app Image Credit: Getty Images/Westend61 Whether you’re looking to lose weight or just start eating healthier, keeping a food diary can help you stay on track with your goals. Why? Because food diaries bring awareness to what and how much you’re actually eating, so you can detect patterns and make appropriate changes to trigger the results you want....

Three people are running on a treadmill. Image Credit: nd3000/iStock/Getty Images You can burn 500 calories on a treadmill in as little as 30 minutes or during the course of several hours, depending on how fast you run or walk. Your conditioning will determine how long it will take you to burn these calories, requiring you to walk at a slower pace to prevent fatigue, or letting you use several speeds and inclines to exercise....