Sports and Fitness

Joan L. Cannon writes: I learned to swim at six. I learned to ride horses by the time I was seven, even won a couple of blue ribbons for equitation, passed my lifesaving tests and had some medals for swimming. Handling a canoe, executing a jack-knife from a springboard, target shooting with a longbow or a .22 rifle came fairly easily to me, but I never learned to turn a cartwheel and I never learned to ride a bike.  more »

Consider the legacies of eight presidents who made a difference in American conservation. For one, Theodore Roosevelt created five national parks, 18 national monuments, 51 bird sanctuaries, began the National Wildlife Refuge system and set aside 100 million acres for national forests. Another Roosevelt, FDR, put millions of people to work under the CCC building infrastructure in national parks and forests, planting billions of trees, building roads and trails, and combating soil erosion. Obama has established 22 national monuments and expanded others to set aside more than 265 million acres of land and water — that’s more than any other president. more »

Exercise by itself isn't always enough to take off the weight. Now, evidence reported in the Cell Press journal Current Biology helps to explain why that is: our bodies adapt to higher activity levels, so that people don't necessarily burn extra calories even if they exercise more. more »

Need a break from the snow and cold weather hitting much of the US? Take the chill off of winter and escape to six of America’s beautiful and warm public lands. For instance, visit St. John, Virgin Islands National Park which offers snow-white sand dotted by palm trees, coral reefs, prehistoric sites and Bay Rum Tree forests. Its Trunk Bay is considered one of the most beautiful beaches in the world and features a 225-yard long underwater snorkeling trail. more »