“It’s almost never too late to begin running,” said Horan. “While age, fitness level, and existing health conditions can influence how someone starts, people can experience meaningful health benefits from running at virtually any stage of life. Rather than focusing exclusively on age, it may be more helpful to focus on readiness to run and proper progression to successfully begin running later in life.”

“The body remains remarkably responsive to exercise, even in older adulthood, making it possible for new runners to experience significant improvements in overall health,” Horan continued.

Read the full article at run.outsideonline.com. 

Nothing kiboshes an awesome road ride like pain. And while a bunch of different factors contribute to pain while cycling—including bike fit, as well as strength and mobility imbalances—a really common one is improper technique. 

Of course, there’s not one perfect form with cycling (or really anything), said Horan, Moreover, pain with cycling is typically multifactorial, she added. “A lot comes at the intersection of biomechanics, load management, tissue tolerance, and equipment interface,” she explained.

Read the full article at bicycling.com. A subscription is required to access. 

Unlike higher-impact activities—such as running, hiking, and walking—the foot is in a mostly fixed position during cycling, said Horan. You may think this static positioning generally protects it from aches, pains, andstrains—but foot pain can definitely still occur with cycling.

Read the full article at bicycling.com. A subscription is required to access. 

Low-impact activities, like walking, are having a moment, and for good reason. It doesn’t just feel good to get your steps in—walking also has legit health benefits and can complement any workout routine.

However, building muscle is also incredibly important when it comes to living and moving healthily for a long time. Ahead, find out whether walking on its own can build muscle, which muscles it works, and how to reap more strength benefits from your walking routine.

While walking can help develop muscular endurance (a.k.a., your muscles’ ability to sustain exercise for long periods of time), it’s not the most effective way to build muscle, said Horan.

“To build muscle, the human body must be continuously challenged by increasing resistance and/or volume of exercise, which is known as progressive overload,” Horan said . Walking alone doesn’t provide enough resistance to induce muscle hypertrophy (an increase in muscle mass), which is better accomplished through resistance training, she explained.

Read the full article at womenshealthmag.com.

According to Grace Horan, MS, ACSM-EP, exercise physiologist at HSS, zone 2 cardio is any form of movement that has you working at a low-to-moderate intensity for a sustained period of time. 

Zone 2 cardio is not about speed, power, or max strength but instead centers on slow, steady efforts performed over the long haul. Basically, it’s endurance training, Horan said.

Traditionally, zone 2 is defined as exercise that keeps your heart rate between 60% to 70% of its maximum level, but this is a generalization; for some people, zone 2 can happen at different percentages of max heart rate, Horan explained. It’s better to think of it in terms of how intense exercise feels and how much it impacts your breathing. As Kennedy puts it: “If you can get on a phone call and have a conversation without having to stop and catch your breath, you're likely in zone 2.”

Read the full article at SELF.com.

“To build muscle, the human body must be continuously challenged by increasing resistance and/or volume of exercise, which is known as progressive overload,” said Horan. 

The reason walking on its own can’t stimulate muscle growth effectively? Walking activates your slow-twitch muscle fibres, which build muscular endurance and resistance to fatigue, as opposed to your fast-twitch muscles fibres, which build muscle mass, explained Horan. 

Read the full article at runnersworld.com. 

The first step on the road to improving your speed is running consistently. “Consistent training is usually considered to be three to five days of running [per week] without large time gaps between workouts, incorporating a mix of easy runs, long runs, and moderate-high intensity sessions,” explained Horan. 

The time it takes to see improvements in your pace once you’ve been training consistently depends on factors like your level of fitness, genetics, sex, age, and medical history, according to Horan.

That said, Horan offered a guideline: “Training pace can begin to improve in as little as six to 12 weeks with a mix of training incorporating easier long runs to build endurance and speedwork—high-intensity intervals, tempo runs, etc.—to improve pace,” she said.

Read the full article at run.outsideonline.com.

For many people, “staying healthy and in shape” translates to burning calories and keeping weight in check, and running is a top activity for revving your heart rate and blasting calories. But just how many calories do you burn running one mile?

Intensity and weight aren’t the only variables that can alter how many calories you burn running a mile, though. “Running mechanics play a big role in caloric expenditure—different aspects such as ground contact time, vertical motion, and muscular strength have a significant effect on the amount of calories that are burned or energy that is expended in terms of oxygen consumption,” Grace Horan, MS, ACSM-EP, exercise physiologist at HSS explained. 

Read the full article at runnersworld.com. A subscription is required to access. 

The beloved piece of gym equipment has been around since the early 90s, but along with a stationary bike, treadmill, and stair stepper, the cardio mainstay has stuck around for good reason: elliptical benefits pack a punch.

This device combines aspects of a treadmill and bicycle, providing a lower impact alternative to that of running or walking, while giving similar cardiovascular benefits, said Horan. It’s also considered a full-body exercise since an elliptical works the quads, glutes, biceps, triceps, pecs, traps, and core, she explained.

If you’re looking to torch calories, elliptical exercise can be a useful cardio tool for weight loss, since it’s known to burn a similar number of calories compared to running or cycling at similar intensities, said Horan. “When paired with a healthy diet, burning calories through cardiovascular exercise will aid in maintaining a caloric deficit, which will lead to weight loss over an extended period of time,” she continued. 

Read the full article at womenshealthmag.com.

The machine is often known for its low-impact benefits, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy. “The feet and hands maintain contact with the machine at all times, moving in a circular motion, and as you continuously push against the force of the cross trainer, the cardiovascular system must work to supply oxygen and nutrients to the working muscles,” said Horan. In turn, this can lead to positive cardiovascular outcomes when done at a sufficient intensity, frequency, and duration, she explained.

Read the full article at womenshealthmag.com. 

Cold plunging doesn’t have a ton of research backing up its numerous health claims. Unhelpfully, many of the studies that are out there contradict each other. For instance, many people claim cold plunging can boost immunity, but the research shows mixed results. Others use it to manage chronic inflammation, though Horan, says the data isn’t definitive. There is decent evidence to suggest that hopping in a tub of cold water could improve insulin sensitivity, which helps manage your blood sugar, if it gets you shivering.

Read the full article at GQ.com.