Someone was remarking about my feet and it occurred to me how important feet are to our wellbeing. Leanne Morgan jokes about how everyone her age has plantar fasciitis.

I have really strong, solid, healthy feet. It allows me to enjoy ice hockey, biking, skiing, jumping rope, hiking, and all my high-energy activities.

I keep my feet healthy using lacrosse balls. It loosens up the fascia and it helps all those tiny joints in the foot to move independently instead of being immobile with adhesions and scar tissue. In the video, I'm using some serious pressure to the point that the rolling is uncomfortable, in a satisfying way.

Ghost Train up in NH.

Hi fitness family,

I’m need some serious guidance as I’ve seen a lot you sharing your body transformation that I find very impressive and would love to share mine at some point😂

About me: I’m 53 yr old 245lbs male who has successfully lost 30 pounds over the past 13 months. I maintain a consistent workout routine, working out at least 5x a week with a well-rounded lower and upper body workout regimen that has noticeable results. However, my abs and core haven’t received the same level of attention, as I haven’t seen any significant progress in those areas at all.

My diet is generally healthy, but I’m looking for some recommendations for effective abs and core workouts that can help me tone up my “dad bod.”

Can you share some tried-and-true abs and core exercises that have been effective for you?

a few people in my last post mentioned changing exercises because of joints or old injuries, like dropping bench press or running, and i was curious what the most common swaps are here

what did you drop, what replaced it, and do you still miss it?

Just a chill Sunday evening with me and the abs. Appreciating the results of hard work during the past week. 😊

I have tried enough recovery supplements to realize I am very good at convincing myself something “probably helps.”

The problem is when I stop and cannot tell any difference either way.

I am much stricter now about whether something has earned a permanent place. Sleep, food and sensible programming are obvious. The rest needs a reason.

I found a company where the evening part only gets included when the person's own readout supports including it, and that philosophy makes more sense to me than a universal night stack.

What did you eventually cut?

seems like a lot of people here train at home with a few dumbbells or just bodyweight, and i was wondering how you guys decide what to do on the day

do you follow a set program, rotate a couple of routines you already know, or just see how you feel? and has that changed as you got older, like needing more rest days between the same muscles or dropping exercises that started to bother you?

Sea kayaking at 4 MPH is about the same effort as a very fast walk, so it's possible to keep going for many hours if one has some base fitness. I've been sea kayaking in the San Juan Islands a lot (and whitewater kayaking a little) since moving to the Seattle area 30 years ago, and I definitely like going for longer days than most of my peers.

This trip was my best day so far, for 62 miles or a metric century. Yes, it's a tiny bit short of that, but my Garmin track doesn't include several hundred yards of walking around while unloading the car, taking rest and meal breaks, and loading the car again, so I'm rounding up and counting it! I also shut it off at all rest breaks and to recharge the battery a couple of times, so the total elapsed time measured by the watch is less than the 17 hours between the put-in and the take-out.

My predicted timeline that I wrote up beforehand for planning purposes is pasted at the bottom. It also mentions the tidal current for the most relevant predicted location for each leg of the route. Started out in the boat a few minutes after 8 AM. I was basically on-time all day, with my final landing back at Washington Park, Anacortes WA at just after 1 AM.

I took minimal camping gear and several extra meals in case I pooped out and had to spend the night at a campsite along the way, but that was not needed.

My average speed is more than 4 MPH because I am smarter than the average bear, and I chose the route and day so that tidal currents were pushing me along most of the time, or at least not hindering me. That probably reduced the total distance I actually paddled through the water by about 15%.

I've been on a keto/low-carb diet for about ten years, and I find that works VERY well for sea kayaking. Food for the day was mostly pork chile verde, eggs, cheese, tea with cream and coconut oil, olives and walnuts, in roughly decreasing caloric contribution. On these long paddles, I feel better after four to six hours than I do after two, so I get the feeling that my liver takes a while before it says “Oh, we’re working today, are we?” and kicks the gluconeogenesis and BHB production into high gear!

Note that this event was in 2020, when I was 55 years old. The day after, I posted on a kayaking Facebook page that "this is not a PR I want to break," but of course a week later, when I was no longer tired, I had started to think about adding San Juan Island to the loop, for a total of about 74 miles (statute, not nautical miles). Yes, it took almost a week until I was no longer tired! Or at least three or four days...

Unfortunately, the next year we bought a tiny second house in this area, which eats up time for maintenance, and the year after that my wife developed a touch of the Stage 4 ovarian cancer, which eats up a lot more time in treatment. She's doing OK, considering, but I'm less-than-diligent about training at the best of times, and these are not the best of times, so I have not yet found a chance to try to level up this achievement. Maybe next year...

BTW, don't do this unless you are VERY experienced at kayaking. You won't find any kayak tour companies willing to take you to most of this route. There are quite a few hazards to this route, even when the weather cooperates. Most notably, the south entrance to San Juan Channel (which everyone calls "Cattle Pass" even though you won't find that term on any official charts) has fast and somewhat rough tidal currents. It's like a huge Class II+ whitewater river for a mile during a good flood current, as I had this day. Not a place for intermediate sea kayakers!

Photos were all taken off the north side of Orcas Island, at sunset or about 45' later at moonrise.

Intro post facts: I have been doing weight training since high school, never very intensely. Did three seasons of USCF bike racing in mid-twenties, at which I wasn't very good! Continued road and mountain biking some for about three years after, then half-time bike commuting for about 15 years after that. Rarely ride bike now but I do HIIT on an indoor bike regularly. Did a little running in 2020 but tore cartilage in my knee doing yoga in December of that year, so I don't run any more. I can run a mile of so if I *need* to, but regular running is a bad idea.

Timeline Sept 2

Leave home 5:15

Arrive Wash Park 7:15

Put in 8:15 1.7 knot ebb

Pt. Colville 9:30 brief stop

Iceberg Point 11:15 lunch break

Put in post-lunch 12:00

Enter Cattle Pass 12:45 2.6 knot flood

Turn Island 13:45 brief stop

Turn Rk ref point 15:00 1.1 knot flood

Jones Island 15:30 dinner break

Put in post-dinner 16:30

Pt. Disney ref point 17:00 0.6 knot flood

Pt. Doughty 18:15 brief-ish stop, big snack

Parker Reef ref point 19:15 1.3 knot flood

North Beach Orcas 19:15 brief stop

Barnes Island ref point 21:00 0.6 knot ebb, snack break in boat?

Pt. Laurence ref point 22:00 1 knot ebb

Pelican Beach Cypress 23:00 brief stop

Bellingham Channel ref 23:00 2.0 knot ebb

Bellingham Channel ref 24:00 1.4 knot ebb

Take out Washington Park 01:00 landing ~ at slack

Potential Campsites:  Jones Island, Sucia Island, Matia Island, Clark Island, Doe Island, Pelican Beach.

Tidal current reference points can be found here:

NOAA Current Predictions - Current Predictions

Welcome to our weekly science roundup! Multivitamins occupy a strange space in the health and fitness world. For years, they have been dismissed by some as "expensive urine" because large trials failed to show they prevent major killers like cardiovascular disease or cancer. However, recent data suggests that a daily multivitamin might actually have a measurable impact on the biology of aging.

Here is a breakdown of what the latest science says about multivitamins:

The Good: Cognitive & Metabolic Benefits

• Cognitive Protection: The most compelling evidence for multivitamins lies in brain health. Across multiple testing formats, daily supplementation produced small but significant benefits in global cognition, episodic memory, and executive function, effectively slowing cognitive aging by an estimated 1.8 years.
• Fills Nutritional Cracks: Many adults consume less than the estimated requirements for several micronutrients. Multivitamins have been shown to biologically increase circulating levels of folate, vitamin B12, vitamin D, and vitamin E.
• Metabolomic Shifts: Recent analyses indicate that multivitamins may modestly increase levels of DHA and total omega-3 fatty acids, blunt the rise of creatinine (a marker of kidney dysfunction), and consistently slow biological aging across several metabolomic clocks.

The Cons: What They Can't Do

• Not a Disease Shield: Multivitamins do not significantly reduce your risk of major cardiovascular events, breast or colorectal cancer, or all cause mortality. They also do not reduce the incidence of bone fractures or hypertension.
• Incomplete Insurance: A pill cannot compensate for a poor lifestyle. It generally lacks meaningful amounts of protein, essential fatty acids, fiber, and the thousands of bioactive compounds found in a varied diet.
• Statistical Noise: While early data on metabolic aging clocks and disease risk profiles are biologically intriguing, many of these findings lose their statistical significance when researchers rigorously correct their data for multiple comparisons.

The Studies: Inside the COSMOS Trial

The shifting perspective on multivitamins is largely driven by the COSMOS Trial. a massive, randomized, double blind, placebo controlled study involving 21,442 older adults in the United States (women 65+ and men 60+).

Participants were given either a daily Centrum Silver multivitamin or a matching placebo.

• In the COSMOS Mind, COSMOS Web, and COSMOS Clinic subgroups (tracking over 5,000 people), researchers found the strongest positive signals for improved memory and immediate recall.
• A newly published subgroup analysis of 399 older adults tracked 168 individual metabolites and found the multivitamin group aged more slowly than the placebo group across seven different biological aging clocks over a two-year period.

Reputable Resources on Aging & Nutrition

When evaluating supplements, it is critical to rely on vetted medical resources rather than marketing hype. Supplements or expensive treatments that claim to delay or reverse the aging process may not deliver on their promises.

• MedlinePlus: A comprehensive guide noting that a healthy lifestyle for older adults must be rooted in healthy eating, regular physical activity, and keeping your mind active.
• Mayo Clinic: Provides evidence-based guidelines on healthy aging beyond 50, emphasizing that there is no quick fix when it comes to longevity.
• FoundMyFitness: Dr. Rhonda Patrick provides excellent, deep-dive analyses of studies like the COSMOS trial, contextualizing clinical data without the sensationalism.

Community Discussion

• Do you take a daily multivitamin, or do you rely entirely on whole foods to hit your micronutrient goals?
• If you do supplement, have you noticed any tangible differences in your energy, focus, or recovery?

A Quick Reminder on Our Rules

To keep our community safe and supportive, please remember:

• Be Respectful: Keep interactions friendly, respectful, and positive.
• Photo Context: If you share a progress photo, you must include context such as your goal, your timeline, and what training or nutrition you have been doing.
• No Medical Advice: While personal experiences are welcome, offering strict clinical or injury advice is prohibited. Consult your physician before starting any new supplement protocol.

Planning on OCB competition in March 2027

lots of people here seem to train at home or alone at the gym without a trainer, and i was wondering how you guys check your form after months of doing the same moves, since it can slowly drift without you really noticing

do you film yourself or use a mirror or just go by feel, or did you get someone to check it once and carry on alone from there? and was there a exercise where you found out you had been doing it wrong for a long time?

I've come to appreciate fitness more as I've gotten older. For me, it's not just about how I look anymore. It's about feeling strong, having more energy, and building healthy habits that I can stick with long term
I've been focusing on strength training and staying consistent with my workouts. My goal is to keep getting stronger, improve my overall fitness, and make exercise a part of my lifestyle
Still learning, still showing up, and still making progress one workout at a time 💪
What are you all focusing on most these days strength, mobility, endurance, or overall health?