Health

In two months, I will compete in my first triathlon. Flashback eight months: I am a thirty-five-year-old mother of four children, ages nine through two, and after a decade of pregnancies, night feedings, and strolling around town at a toddler's pace, I have only recently started exercising regularly: at a hot yoga studio, two to three times a week.

A recent article in the New York Times asked the question: “What is the single best exercise?” It’s an interesting read, and there are a lot of suggestions. Fortunately, it doesn’t go out and suggest that something like swimming the butterfly or running up stairs or doing repeated burpees are THE best, because the article does qualify that “best” doesn’t always mean best.

My friend Dr. Yoni Freedhoff, on his excellent blog Weighty Matters, says, “Yes,” obesity should be an election issue — and he’s right.

Tim Ferriss is a man on a mission — several missions, actually. Readers were first introduced to him through his last book, The 4-Hour Workweek, which focused on his effort to avoid the corporate world and its typical restrictions. His newest effort, The 4-Hour Body, covers Ferriss' attempts to hack the human body.

Quinoa, chickpeas and spinach are all good vegetarian sources of iron. Adding a bit of vitamin C to your meal helps with iron absorption, so this one is finished off with a squeeze of fresh orange juice.