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Pull-ups are one of those exercises that will instantly have you feeling like a badass whether you can do one amazing rep or 10. But we’d be lying if we said they were easy to nail. If you’re up for a challenge and ready to learn how to do pull-ups, we’ve got the game plan straight from certified trainers. How to start training to do pull-ups One reason pull-ups are so challenging: They work all the major muscles in your upper body—your lats, traps, rhomboids, posterior deltoid (the back of your shoulder), and biceps—so you’ve got to make sure they’re all strong in order to bust them out. “The best place to start when it comes to doing a pull-up is looking to increase your overall upper-body strength,” says Kayla Itsines , NASM-certified trainer, co-founder of Sweat , co-creator of High Impact with Kayla. Itsines recommends adding upper-body pulling movements—like bent-over rows, seated rows, inverted rows, lat pulldowns, and reverse flys—into your training routine twice a week to ...

Pull-ups are one of those exercises that will instantly have you feeling like a badass whether you can do one amazing rep or 10. But we’d be lying if we said they were easy to nail. If you’re up for a challenge and ready to learn how to do pull-ups, we’ve got the game plan straight from certified trainers. How to start training to do pull-ups One reason pull-ups are so challenging: They work all the major muscles in your upper body—your lats, traps, rhomboids, posterior deltoid (the back of your shoulder), and biceps—so you’ve got to make sure they’re all strong in order to bust them out. “The best place to start when it comes to doing a pull-up is looking to increase your overall upper-body strength,” says Kayla Itsines , NASM-certified trainer, co-founder of Sweat , co-creator of High Impact with Kayla. Itsines recommends adding upper-body pulling movements—like bent-over rows, seated rows, inverted rows, lat pulldowns, and reverse flys—into your training routine twice a week to ...

I used to wear heels almost every day, until things like bills and meal prep and burnout became my real life. And while I’ve always known that heels are among the worst shoes for your feet (something to save for very special occasions), apparently there are a few less obvious choices that podiatrists don’t recommend either. For the sake of your feet, Miguel Cunha, DPM, founder of Gotham Footcare , would like you to stay away from five specific shoe styles. What better way to usher in Sad Girl Fall (is that what we’re calling it?) than with a list of things you can’t have? It’s a mood. The worst shoes for your feet, according to a foot doctor 1. Slides Dr. Cunha says to avoid slide shoes that are completely flat, because they don’t give your feet any support and can lead to “pronation and collapse of the arch”—which can lead to other bad things like shin splints, knee pain, and back pain. If you do wear a slide, he recommends choosing one with a wedge that’s 3/4-inch tall becaus...

Furnishing a home comes with endless choices, which can lead to some serious decision fatigue . In zeroing in more specifically on decorating the bedroom, even after you’ve picked out your mattress and bed frame, you have to decide what goes on the bed. How many pillows ? Cooling sheets or super-sustainable ones ? And then, you have to pick the topper. Within this single bedding choice, a number of questions arise, specifically surrounding the issue of down versus down alternative duvet. During a recent bedroom styling consultation with bedding and homewares brand Parachute , remote stylist manager Mindy King asked me where I stand regarding down versus down alternative for duvet fills, and I froze. The session—a complimentary service the brand offers to help customers design (or redesign) their spaces—was intended for us to pick out bedding (colors and fabrics) for my new space. And while we did discuss that, once we got to the topic of duvet, I couldn’t help but pick her brain....

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve found myself feeling upset , and when my boyfriend or BFF asks “what’s wrong?” all that follows is extreme confusion. In fact, I often even feel this way when I personally try to introspect to decipher what the heck feels wrong. While I clearly sometimes have trouble understanding my emotions , a quick poll of my co-workers revealed to me that this is a way more common scenario than I initially realized. And that’s largely why I was so happy to discover the triangle of change. The triangle of change is a revolutionary (but actually classic) model for addressing the oh-so-common exchange of “what’s wrong?” “oh, nothing….” And it’s so necessary, because not much feels worse than being in a funk, yet not being able to find your way out because you can’t pinpoint the root cause of the bad feelings. When I first came upon this idea, dubbed “The Change Triangle” by psychotherapist Hilary Jacobs Hendel , LCSW, in a Psychology Today article, I finally fel...

After a week when I’ve skipped a yoga class (or two, or three), the simple act of raising my arms over my head feels near impossible. The shoulder tension sparked by #desklife is all too real, and something Casey Chiro, DC, says is best solved by everyone’s favorite strength training move. The one, the only push-up . Or, more accurately—a scapular push-up. “The serratus anterior plays a major role in helping you raise your arms above shoulder height,” writes Dr. Chiro in an Instagram post, describing the muscle at the vertebral border of scapula. “It also helps stabilize the shoulder, protects against neck pain , and helps you hold good posture .” Scapular push ups summons the strength of the Serratus anterior, and helps the shoulder work with both strength and a complete range of motion. In other words, it’s a win-win. Ready to learn the best move out there for improving shoulder mobility? The scapula push up has you covered. Try the scapula push-up   View this po...

After a week when I’ve skipped a yoga class (or two, or three), the simple act of raising my arms over my head feels near impossible. The shoulder tension sparked by #desklife is all too real, and something Casey Chiro, DC, says is best solved by everyone’s favorite strength training move. The one, the only push-up . Or, more accurately—a scapular push-up. “The serratus anterior plays a major role in helping you raise your arms above shoulder height,” writes Dr. Chiro in an Instagram post, describing the muscle at the vertebral border of scapula. “It also helps stabilize the shoulder, protects against neck pain , and helps you hold good posture .” Scapular push ups summons the strength of the Serratus anterior, and helps the shoulder work with both strength and a complete range of motion. In other words, it’s a win-win. Ready to learn the best move out there for improving shoulder mobility? The scapula push up has you covered. Try the scapula push-up   View this po...

Despite a federal lawsuit from health-care providers and pro-choice agencies, a Texas law banning abortions as early as six weeks is slated to go into effect on Wednesday. Late last week, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals canceled a hearing scheduled for Monday, effectively ending any debate, reports the Texas Tribune . The law makes obtaining an abortion in Texas all but impossible. With the Texas abortion law looming, reproductive rights advocates vowed to continue to fight for the rights of people to make their own decisions about their health and their bodies. “We are asking the United States Supreme Court to step in and block Texas’s radical abortion ban, S.B. 8, from going into effect on Wednesday,” reads a statement from Planned Parenthood released Monday. BREAKING: We are asking the United States Supreme Court to step in and block Texas’s radical abortion ban, S.B. 8, from going into effect on Wednesday. Unless the Supreme Court acts, abortion after six weeks will be cut...

Food is about so much more than nutrition—it’s one of the most personal expressions of our cultures, values, and traditions. Our series, Behind the Recipe , profiles a different healthy cook every month to explore the personal, untold stories of their favorite dishes. This month, Top Chef and Taste The Nation host and author Padma Lakshmi shares the tomato chutney recipe she grew up making with her mom, excerpted from her new children’s book, Tomatoes for Neela ($15). As an uber-popular chef and TV host, Lakshmi’s schedule is jam-packed. But even amidst all the busyness, she always makes time for family, and of course food—both of which, her Behind The Recipe story is about. Smell and taste are powerful memory prompts. Enjoying a dish you grew up eating can lead to warm and gooey feelings that go far beyond the temperature of the food. Padma Lakshmi says for many immigrant children in the U.S., the power of cooking is something that can connect them to their culture and, often,...

Food is about so much more than nutrition—it’s one of the most personal expressions of our cultures, values, and traditions. Our series, Behind the Recipe , profiles a different healthy cook every month to explore the personal, untold stories of their favorite dishes. This month, Top Chef and Taste The Nation host and author Padma Lakshmi shares the tomato chutney recipe she grew up making with her mom, excerpted from her new children’s book, Tomatoes for Neela ($15). As an uber-popular chef and TV host, Lakshmi’s schedule is jam-packed. But even amidst all the busyness, she always makes time for family, and of course food—both of which, her Behind The Recipe story is about. Smell and taste are powerful memory prompts. Enjoying a dish you grew up eating can lead to warm and gooey feelings that go far beyond the temperature of the food. Padma Lakshmi says for many immigrant children in the U.S., the power of cooking is something that can connect them to their culture and, often,...

Peanut butter whiskey stung the back of my throat as it had on the way down, this time on the way up. I scanned the suburban sidewalk: Whose lawn would be better to puke in? It was a Sunday morning, August 1, and I was running. I hated myself for it. I hated the celebratory drink I took at a friend’s housewarming barbeque the night before, hated myself for the cheeseburger I ate with chips and guacamole, hated myself for running at 10:45 a.m. rather than earlier, the Texas sun already blazing. Mostly, I hated my own weakness. Half a mile in and already looking for somewhere to puke. I stopped running. I stared at my own feet, immobile. It felt like failure. It was failure. Around me, brick homes painted the picture of American domesticity, a Kia Sorento in the garage, crepe myrtles along the driveway. Men in Crocs fired up lawnmowers. Women swung garden hoses. They looked neither happy nor unhappy. Their faces mirrored my own: Sweaty, resigned, hiding the guilt about their own exha...

The early stages of a romantic relationship holds tons of excitement and potential energy; you’re learning new things about your new partner, settling into new routines, and figuring out your feelings. At a certain point, though, you’ll probably be ready to say those three magic words, but you’re nervous about uttering them first for fear that you won’t hear them in return, or—worse—that your partner won’t share your sentiment. Because picking up on signs someone is in love with you isn’t a science or easy to do with any semblance of confidence, the act of saying it can feel like a game of chicken—but that doesn’t have to be the case. Relationship coach and founder of Spark Matchmaking Michelle Fraley says learning to read your partner’s body language can be key for deciphering whether they’ve fallen for you. “Nonverbals are a big part of healthy and loving communication,” she says. Below are six body-language signs someone is in love with you, even if they have yet to say it. Look ...