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The Link Between Sleep and a Strong Immune System There are numerous strategies related to improving the function of your immune system, from eating healthy foods to drinking enough water to getting consistent exercise. One more big one for the list? Making sleep a priority. STRONGER IMMUNITY WITH SLEEP The connection between sleep and immune function is well-documented, and biodirectionally linked — which means if your immune system is down, then you’ll likely have poor sleep, but that applies in the other direction, too. For example, one study looked at blood samples from identical twins and found those with shorter sleep duration had a depressed immune system compared to the sibling who slept better. That can make you more likely to get sick if you’ve been exposed to a virus, says Dr. W. Christopher Winter, president of Charlottesville Neurology and Sleep Medicine, and author of “The Sleep Solution.” Also, if you end up getting ill, poor quality sleep and its immune-suppressing effe

Ways to Improve Your Hiking Stamina We know getting out in nature is worth the effort and part of what makes hiking so compelling. The best way to get better at hiking is to get on the trail as much as possible but sometimes it just isn’t feasible. And that’s where these six tips to improve your hiking stamina come in handy. WAYS TO IMPROVE YOUR HIKING STAMINA RUN/WALK When you’re not on the trail, consider other similar activities that can build your endurance. Running and walking are two great workouts that are easy to do almost anywhere and can build your endurance. If you aren’t an experienced runner, start with a run/walk program to ease into things. Aim for two runs per week to start, and when you have more time on the weekends, try including a few long walks. Increase your distance and time each week by about 10% until you build a good base and can walk for about the length of time it’s going to take you to complete your goal hike. START WEIGHT TRAINING Don’t underestimate how m

5-Minute Habit That Changes Your Career I read something about networking that hit me hard… Here’s the thing, I’m 26 and still learning about how to navigate my career. Lately, I’ve been making more of an effort to connect with people in my industry — both chatting with peers at events and introducing myself to leaders I look up to. I’ve always known the importance of sending a thank-you letter after interviews, but I typically didn’t do anything else until I read this: “I’m just stunned at how few people know how to follow up on a connection,” Tina Brown, former editor of Vanity Fair and The New Yorker, recently told The Cut. “Make sure that you stay in touch with the people you’re interested in, make sure they’re aware of you, that you stay on their radar… It’s remarkable how much these people appreciate hearing from you when you don’t want something from them.” It’s so true, right? Sending emails just for the sake of staying in touch changes everything. It makes me think back to how

  Life’s a Party, Not a Race Some months back, a friend sent me a debut novel she’d read and loved. It had a splashy cover with a jaunty typeface, like the literary equivalent of a Fanta commercial. My reaction was a mix of interest — of course I wanted to check out the buzzy book — and envy. Another twenty-something wunderkind author. How do they do it? I wondered. How do they find the focus? What wisdom do they draw upon when they’ve only been alive for, like, five minutes? I pictured the “about the author” page, a cherubic face smiling atop a list of prodigious accomplishments. Because I am apparently a masochist, I looked them up. The author was in their 50s. There is nothing surprising about this story except my blatant, ridiculous ageism. People write all kinds of books at every age. As one who aspires to debut well into my 30s, and hopes to write forever, I certainly don’t believe that lively covers nor buzzy books are the exclusive domain of the very young. So, why did I make t

Things a Financial Advisor Says to Do with Your Money Before 30 Even if your retirement is decades away, you’ll want to start financing it now if you expect to enjoy it. It’s easy to put off things like funding a 401(k) account when you’ve got bills, student loans, and other daily expenses to fund first. No matter your situation, there are steps you can start taking to set yourself up for a financially sound future. Here are seven things financial advisors recommend doing with your money before you turn 30. Set clear goals for your money. Goal setting is important in all areas of life where you’re looking to succeed or improve, and it’s especially helpful where money is concerned. Sherri Anderson, a director and region executive director at Bank of America, says your 20s should be a time of reflecting on both short- and long-term financial goals. Do you want to own a home by your 30s, for example? Now’s the time to “build out an actionable plan to begin achieving these goals, including

This Is How Many Credit Cards You Should Have, According to Finance Experts You’re reading through yet another story on credit card point hacking, wondering how you can book your first-class tickets to Japan. Or you’re listening to a TikToker explain how they’ve leveraged one credit card for groceries, one for restaurants, and they’re raking in the cash-back points and bonuses. Before you know it, you’ve got one tab open with a credit card application and another with a search for whether it’s good to have multiple credit cards.  “Multiple credit cards can offer the flexibility of various spending options, rewards, and the opportunity to build a credit history,” says Shonnita Leslie, personal finance content creator and side hustler at Noir in Color. But multiple credit cards also come with a crash course in money management while you’re keeping track of statement balances, minimum payments, and due dates. Wondering if it’s worth it? Here’s what the finance experts have to say. Is it g

Big Reasons Renters Aren’t Buying Homes Despite steadily rising home prices and brutal seller’s markets in some areas, America’s homeownership rate has been inching back up from its 2015 lows, reaching 64.2% in January. That leaves more than a third of American households renting their homes — thought not all of them want to be. Many renters are quite content living lease to lease — especially after the foreclosure crisis laid bare the fact that owning a home isn’t for everyone and can sometimes cause more financial problems than it solves. But according to NerdWallet’s 2018 Home Buyer Report, they’re in the minority: Only 17% of Americans surveyed prefer renting to homeownership. And their top reasons for renting suggest that the choice is sometimes rooted more in financial reality than lifestyle preferences. Reason No. 1: Don’t Have the Money to Buy More than half (56%) of those who said they prefer renting to buying said they lack the funds to buy a home. Whether this means they hav

The Most Clever Tips Real Estate Agents Have Shared With Us When I was buying my first home, my mom nudged me to put in a significantly lower bid on a townhome I really wanted. “Do that, and you’ll lose out on this home,” rebuffed my tenacious real estate agent, who was intimately familiar with the comparable properties in my neighborhood. Mom, as it turned out, didn’t know best in this instance. But my real estate agent did, and my offer was accepted.  Great real estate agents are like the captains of your home-buying team. If I had lowballed the offer, I would have probably lost the house — and done so in an attempt to save about $10 to $20 a month over the life of a 30-year loan.  At Apartment Therapy, we interview a lot of real estate agents on topics that range from TV placement to tips for first-time buyers. Here’s some of the best advice they’ve shared with us over the years. On Home Finance and Budgeting Your home loan could fall through if you open additional credit accounts w

Why we love Forever Aloe Vera Gel? We are delighted that our flagship product, Forever Aloe Vera Gel, has won Silver for Best Aloe Vera Product in the 2023 Global Green Beauty Awards.  We are dedicated to seeking out nature's best sources for health and beauty and sharing them with you, so Forever Aloe Vera Gel has been a much-loved product of ours for many years. Top benefits Contains 99.7% inner leaf aloe vera gel Supports gastrointestinal health and digestion Contains vitamin C, which contributes to the normal function of the immune system Great for the skin Contributes to the normal energy-yielding metabolism About the Global Green Beauty Awards The 2023 Global Green Beauty Awards celebrates the best of green and clean beauty brands. With over 650 entries for 2023, it has become their biggest beauty awards of the year.  The awards also focus on sustainable ingredients and reducing the impact on the environment: both things that Forever is proud of when it comes to our Forever A

30-Minute Beach Workout Time on the beach is as synonymous with summer as watermelon and barbecues. If you’re lucky enough to vacation (or even live) near a beach, the sand is a perfect spot for a fun, functional and, if you are up for it, intense beach workout. The benefits of beach workouts are plentiful, but the real magic lies in the sand. The constant shifting of grains creates an unstable environment, so your nervous system recruits more muscles in your legs, ankles, hips and core to keep you stable. The sand also provides a soft landing surface, which reduces wear and tear on your joints during higher-impact activities. Lastly, the forgiving grainy surface absorbs more energy, so sand workouts can burn up to 50% more calories than their hard-surface counterparts. The best part? Once the workout is finished, you can run right into the water to splash around and cool off. The beach workout below takes just 30 minutes, requires zero equipment, and works your entire body. 30-MINUTE

  Does the 5:2 Diet Work For Quick Fat Loss? If you follow any health or wellness gurus on social media, there’s a good chance you’ve heard of intermittent fasting. Commonly referred to as “IF” in the fit-fluencer world, it’s a diet in which you restrict your calories—aka, fast—during a window of time ranging anywhere from 12 to 40 hours. It’s become such a hot topic that it replaced the keto diet as the most popular diet in the United States in 2022. There are a lot of different methods of intermittent fasting, whether you skip breakfast to do 16:8 or just eat one massive dinner for OMAD (one meal a day). Or, if you’ve watched any of the thousands of #fastingtiktok videos, you might follow the current intermittent fasting craze: the 5:2 diet. What is the 5:2 diet? The 5:2 diet approach consists of eating your regular calorie intake for five days and then a restrictive calorie intake for two days (which are considered your “fasting” days). While the exact calorie requirements vary pers