• Give your abs a makeover in just two weeks — Fitness Magazine
• 7 ways to avoid harmful chemicals in your home — Yoga Journal
• Got 20 minutes? Video how-to of grilled zucchini with caprese salsa — Cooking Light
• 10 things every smoothie-lover needs — Healthy Happy Life
• Tried-and-true workouts that build muscle and burn calories — Self
• Most stressed-out states — is yours on the list? — HuffPost Healthy Living
• Get the low-down on the basics of dehydrating foods — Fitnessista
• Try this 6 x 6 strength-training circuit workout — Peanut Butter Fingers

In order to burn calories and lose overall body fat, it's necessary to skip the walks, pick up the pace, and run instead. When you're first starting out, running feels so hard. Your muscles ache, your lungs burn, it's hard to breathe, and all you can think about is stopping. Here are five techniques to incorporate every week to help running feel like a breeze instead of a chore.
 

Pencil it in :In order for your body to become more accustomed to the demands running places on it, you have to run regularly. Instead of fitting in random runs whenever you can or when the weather is nice, it's imperative to stick with a weekly running schedule that includes running at least three or four times a week. Running often will strengthen the muscles in your lower body and core that are needed to make running feel easier, and it will also build your endurance. Ease into running regularly with shorter runs, and as it begins to feel easier, gradually increase the kilometres per workout.

Slow down: There's no need to start off running seven-minute miles. Slow down your speed enough so you're breathing faster than you would if just walking, but not huffing and puffing so much that your lungs hurt or you're gasping for each breath. Skip the interval training because even though it's great for targeting belly fat, running at a comfortable, consistent pace is easier than sprinting. Slowing down will allow you to focus on correct running form, which can alleviate common running aches, and you'll also be able to take in the scenery or have the energy to chat with your workout buddy, all of which can actually make you love going out for a run. As your body becomes stronger, your pace will increase naturally, and you can begin to challenge it with sprinting intervals. Keep reading for three more ways to make running feel easier.

A bed isn't just for catching zzzs; think of this elevated, soft structure as another piece of fitness equipment you can use before or after hitting the hay in your own home, at your in-laws' house when out for a weekend visit, or at the hotel while on your on holidays. These moves may be basic, but they are super effective at toning your body.

Triceps Dips— Targets arms

• Stand a few feet away from the edge of the bed, facing away. Place your hands on the mattress, fingertips pointing toward the feet.
• Begin with your torso in one straight line. From here, bend your elbows behind you, lowering your hips toward the ground. Then straighten the arms to lift the hips, squeezing the glutes at the top.
• Complete three sets of 15 to 20 reps.

Elevated Lunge— Targets legs and tush

• Stand about three feet away from the foot of the bed, facing away. Lift your left leg up and rest the ball of your foot on the mattress.
• From here, bend your front knee, lowering your left knee toward the ground so it's at a 90-degree angle, and then rise up.
• Complete three sets of 15 to 20 reps on each leg.

Keep reading to learn three more toning moves using your bed.

A bed isn't just for catching zzzs; think of this elevated, soft structure as another piece of fitness equipment you can use before or after hitting the hay in your own home, at your in-laws' house when out for a weekend visit, or at the hotel while on your Summer vacation. These moves may be basic, but they are super effective at toning your body.

Triceps Dips

— Targets arms

• Stand a few feet away from the edge of the bed, facing away. Place your hands on the mattress, fingertips pointing toward the feet.
• Begin with your torso in one straight line. From here, bend your elbows behind you, lowering your hips toward the ground. Then straighten the arms to lift the hips, squeezing the glutes at the top.
• Complete three sets of 15 to 20 reps.

Elevated Lunge

— Targets legs and tush

• Stand about three feet away from the foot of the bed, facing away. Lift your left leg up and rest the ball of your foot on the mattress (as shown in the above photo).
• From here, bend your front knee, lowering your left knee toward the ground so it's at a 90-degree angle, and then rise up.
• Complete three sets of 15 to 20 reps on each leg.

Keep reading to learn three more toning moves using your bed.

There's nothing like biting into a homemade cookie right out of the oven, but all the butter, eggs, and cream add fat, cholesterol, and calories to your diet. If you can omit those ingredients and make your recipes vegan, you'll be doing your heart and your waistline a favor. Don't want to compromise on flavor? Of course, you don't. Here are five easy ways to veganize basic desserts so your butter-loving self will hardly notice the difference.

1. For eggs: You probably remember making volcanoes when you were a kid using baking soda and vinegar. That amazing foaming reaction can offer the same binding qualities as an egg. For every egg, use one tablespoon of vinegar along with one teaspoon of baking soda. This egg replacer works best in cakes, cookies, muffins, and quick breads. If you want more fiber in your baked good, make flax eggs by mixing two and a half teaspoons flax meal and three tablespoons of water.
2. For butter: Instead of fat-and-cholesterol-filled butter or shortening, choose either avocado, banana, or prune puree. Whatever the amount of butter the recipe calls for, use half fruit puree and half Earth Balance margarine. Try it in cookie, cake, and quick bread recipes.
3. For milk or yogurt: This substitution is a cinch since soy, almond, and coconut milk taste like dairy milk. Choose vanilla-flavored for an even sweeter treat. The same goes for recipes that call for yogurt or sour cream. Just replace those ingredients with either soy or coconut milk yogurt. And tofutti cream cheese is made with soy but tastes so much like regular cream cheese that it makes a perfect vegan substitute.
4. For buttermilk: Mix one cup of soy or almond milk with one tablespoon lemon juice or apple cider vinegar and let stand for five to 10 minutes.
5. For chocolate: Semisweet chocolate chips aren't vegan, but what's a chocolate chip cookie without them? Go for dark chocolate chips instead, like the ones used in these Vegan Samoas. Just be sure to read the label since some brands contain milk. Add a little espresso powder for a richer chocolaty flavor.

You're famished after a tough, heart-pumping, muscle-burning workout and you're ready to grab a snack. It's important to choose a healthy pick-me-up to refuel your body as well as repair and build your muscles — so no, a doughnut isn't the best choice. Aim for a snack that contains more carbs than protein and a little bit of fat. A rough ratio could be 25 percent protein, 60 percent carbs, and 15 percent fats. Be sure to eat your around 150-calorie snack within 30 minutes of completing your workout. Here are a few you can try.

Vanilla Banana Protein Smoothie

Photo: Leta Shy

Calories: 169
Carbs: 25 grams
Fat: 1 gram
Protein: 16 grams

Honey Cinnamon Chickpeas

Calories: 146
Carbs: 23 grams
Protein: 6.2 grams
Fat: 2.6

Creamy Peanut Buttery Apples With Grapes

Calories: 151
Carbs: 21.5 grams
Protein: 8.4 grams
Fat: 4.2

Keep reading for two more post-workout snack ideas.

If you suffer from tight hips, it doesn't just affect your hips and hip flexors. The tightness radiates up into your spine and into the thighs, which can cause soreness and pain when exercising or even when sitting or standing. Runners, cyclists, and desk-bound folks commonly complain of tight hips that cause lower back pain, and stretching this area is one way to alleviate tightness.

Butterfly Pose is one of the most effective stretches you can do, and if you've done this pose a million times, try these variations to get an even deeper stretch. Begin with five breaths in regular Butterfly, and then move on to these:

Running is a simple way to tone the lower body, but if you want to turn your run into a strengthening session for other muscles not traditionally targeted, try these variations to sculpt muscles. Doing so will help prevent over-use injuries and beat boredom. 

• Abs: Slow down your pace slightly and run with high knees up to the chest while keeping the abs engaged.
• Abs and quads: Run with straight legs, scissor kicking your feet straight in front of you.
• Abs and calves: Do a running skip, kicking one knee high into the chest with each hop.
• Calves: Land softly only on the balls of the feet, as if tip-toe running.
• Calves and hamstrings: As you run, kick your heels into your glutes.
• Hamstrings: Run backwards; alternate looking over your right and left shoulder to avoid bumping into anything.
• Inner and outer thighs: Run sideways crossing your back foot over your front with each step; alternate leading with the right and left legs.
• Outer thighs and glutes (aka saddlebags): Run with legs slightly wider than hips-width distance apart.

In the beginning of a weight-loss journey, kilos melt away like ice on a hot Summer's day. But as you get closer to your goal, it's not unusual to hit a plateau. Here's how to keep those kilos dropping and keep the weight off for good. 

• Beef up your workouts: If you've been steadily working out and following the same routine, your body has probably grown accustomed to the routine. Rattle your body's chain a little and kick up the intensity of your workouts to further challenge your muscles. Work out longer or harder, increase the size weights you're lifting, do more reps of strength-training moves and vary the order, or try doing two workouts in one day. Keep reading for more tips!

If you suffer from tight hips, it doesn't just affect your hips and hip flexors. The tightness radiates up into your spine and into the thighs, which can cause soreness and pain when exercising or even when sitting or standing. Runners, cyclists, and desk-bound folks commonly complain of tight hips that cause lower back pain, and stretching this area is one way to alleviate tightness.

Butterfly Pose is one of the most effective stretches you can do, and if you've done this pose a million times, try these variations to get an even deeper stretch. Begin with five breaths in regular Butterfly, and then move on to these:

Hands on knees: Instead of resting your hands on your feet, place your palms on your inner knees. Gently use your arm strength to push your knees down toward the ground to stretch the inner thighs.

Clasp hands on the neck: Elongating the spine can intensify the stretch and change where you feel the opening in your hips. Clasp your hands with bent elbows and place your palms on the back of your neck. Keeping the elbows pressing behind you to prevent the spine from rounding, gently pull your head away from your hips as you fold over your legs.

Interlace hands behind you: Before folding forward, interlace your hands behind your lower back, pressing the heels together in a double fist. As you fold forward, raise the arms overhead to not only add a little downward pressure but to also offer a nice shoulder and chest opener.

In the beginning of a weight-loss journey, pounds melt away like ice on a hot Summer's day. But as you get closer to your goal, it's not unusual to hit a plateau. Here's how to keep those pounds dropping and keep the weight off for good.

• Beef up your workouts: If you've been steadily working out and following the same routine, your body has probably grown accustomed to the routine. Rattle your body's chain a little and kick up the intensity of your workouts to further challenge your muscles. Work out longer or harder, increase the size weights you're lifting, do more reps of strength-training moves and vary the order, or try doing two workouts in one day.
• Go for fiber: Since your metabolism is already working pretty efficiently, eat fibrous foods that take longer to digest, so your body has to expend more energy to break them down. Fruits, veggies, whole grains, nuts, and legumes are where it's at, but focus on these foods with the highest amounts of fiber.
• Include these foods: Imbalances in your digestive tract have been linked to weight gain, so to restore the balance of bacteria in your gut, eat nonfat yogurt for the probiotics. Lack of calcium as well as vitamin D can also make it harder to lose weight, so be sure to eat dairy products and these calcium-rich fruits and veggies, as well as these foods high in vitamin D. Omega-3s are also vital for a healthy metabolism, so include fish, eggs, walnuts, chia seeds, and flaxseeds in your diet too.
• Get your z's: Not getting adequate sleep (at least six hours) can also decrease leptin, the hormone that makes you feel satiated, while it increases ghrelin, the hunger hormone. Research shows that feeling sluggish the following day causes you to eat an average of 549 extra calories without even realizing it. Lack of sleep also slows down your metabolism, making you burn 20 percent fewer calories a day.
• Cut out the cocktails: Boozy beverages not only offer your body empty calories, but since your body is working so hard to get rid of toxins, they also inhibit the production of glucose, which is needed for maintaining normal blood sugar levels and in turn slows down your metabolism. Not to mention, getting a little tipsy also clouds your judgment so you're more likely to say yes to another cosmo and a slice of cheesecake to go with it. Go for water or metabolism-boosting green tea instead.

If you want to torch calories and tone your tush, running is one of the most effective forms of exercise. The problem is, it leaves your upper body and core high and dry, and if you forget to stretch, you're left with tight, tense muscles that could suffer an injury that keeps you from lacing up your sneaks. Here's a 60-minute running workout that includes one-minute strength-training intervals as well as a short stretching session at the end.

0:00 - 5:00 — Warmup — brisk walking
5:01 - 15:00 — Run (fast pace)
15:01 - 16:00 — Push-Up Walks
16:01 - 21:00 — Run (fast pace)
22:01 - 23:00 — Plank With Arm and Leg Reach
23:01 - 28:00 — Run (fast pace)
28:01 - 29:00 — Mountain Climbers
29:01 - 34:00 — Run (fast pace)
34:01 - 35:00 — Burpees
35:01 - 40:00 — Run (fast pace)
40:01 - 41:00 — Three-Point Touches
41:01 - 46:00 — Run (fast pace)
46:01 - 51:00 — Cooldown — walking
51:01 - 60:00 — Stretch session

Keep reading to see the six essential postrunning stretches.

Whether you run on a treadmill and glance at the display, or keep track of your run outside with a GPS, you understand that it's nice to know how many calories you're burning, especially if weight loss is one of your goals.

Here's a nifty chart to let you know what your pace and workout time translates to in calories burned. It can also help you figure out how intensely and how long you need to exercise in order to negate the cupcake you savored at lunch.

*Calculations based on a 130-pound woman

Inversions already work your core, since the ab and back muscles are what help to hold the lower body steady and balanced. To work your core even more, here's a strength-training yoga move that will tone your entire torso as well as your upper body — you just might give up traditional crunches forever!

You'll need to have a strong Headstand, so if you haven't quite mastered this inversion, then work on this Headstand Sequence before attempting these Headstand Crunches.

• Begin on your hands and knees. Lower your elbows to the floor and interlace your fingers, bringing your lowest pinkie in front of the other pinkie, forming a semicircle with your hands.
• Place the back of your head against your palms, and the top of your head on the mat, so your skull is vertical with the floor. Once your head and forearms feel stable, straighten both legs and walk you feet toward your face as far as you can.
• Shift your hips over your shoulders, and keep your elbows planted firmly on the mat. Lift both legs into the air, coming into Bound Headstand.

• Stay in Headstand for five breaths, relaxing the jaw as well as the shoulders away from the ears. Take a breath in, and as you exhale, slowly lower both feet toward the mat so they are parallel with the floor. Hold here for another five breaths.
• Inhale and then exhale to raise the legs back up into Headstand. Repeat four more times.

Up for a bigger challenge? See an advanced variation after the break!