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Building habits
50 articlesStart small, find useful cues and return to habits after a break.
Benefits of walking a mile a day
A mile a day is about 2,000 steps and 15 to 20 minutes. Here's what that small dose does for your heart, mood and blood sugar, how many calories it burns, and how to make it stick.
What walking 30 minutes a day does, and how to fit it in
Half an hour of walking a day is close to the daily version of the 150 weekly minutes most guidelines suggest. Here is what it does for your heart, blood sugar, mood, joints and sleep, what it won't do alone, and how to make it stick.
Benefits of Pilates: an honest, evidence-led guide
What Pilates does for your body and mind, and how strongly the research backs it: core strength, posture, flexibility, balance, back pain, mood and sleep, plus the honest caveats on weight loss and bone density, who it suits, and how to start.
The benefits of cycling for women, from your heart to your bones
What cycling does for women's hearts, joints and mood, why it needs a weight-bearing partner for your bones, how to ride through your cycle, pregnancy and menopause, and how to make the saddle comfortable.
Ankle mobility exercises: a 7-move routine for freer ankles
A ten-minute ankle mobility routine of seven moves, from ankle circles and knee-to-wall rocks to calf stretches, heel raises and banded work, with signs of stiff ankles, a self-test, how often to do it and when to expect results.
The benefits of cycling, and what regular riding does for your body and mind
What cycling does for your heart, legs, joints, brain and mood, grounded in large cohort studies and health-body evidence, plus its honest limits, e-bikes, road safety, common questions and a four-week plan to start.
How to build an active lifestyle without the gym
An active lifestyle is movement woven through your ordinary day, not hours at the gym. What it looks like, how many steps a day the latest evidence points to, the honest case for moving more, practical swaps for a desk job, busy parents and limited mobility, and how to make it stick.
Is 5,000 steps a day good? An honest look
Is 5,000 steps a day good? It's a little under two and a half miles, clears the sedentary line and brings real health benefits, but sits at the low end of active. What the research says, steps by age, and how to build up if you want more.