As we find out in this week’s issue, there are many aspects of better health and fitness.

When it comes to health and fitness, there are any number of inspirational phrases. But I refer to a couple that might seem less daunting than “No pain, no gain.”

One is from Woody Allen. Yeah, yeah—he’s not known for his physique. But his line “Eighty percent of success is just showing up” gives all of us hope. On the other hand, the statement attributed to basketball player Anthony Edwards brings us back to reality. “Greatness,” he said, “is boring.” By that he means that it requires a lot of thought, time and effort.

Dave Faries here, about to make a slew of excuses. I tore a shoulder, so no lifting or swimming. My knees are shot, so anything involving running is out. Because I’m prone to hat hair, a bicycle helmet is a hard no. I do, however, walk the Rec Trail every morning. It’s nice and even—and, more importantly, straight.

The Jan. 22 edition of the Weekly is our annual health and fitness issue. It’s more than simply a guide to what is good for you. Yes, we do dive into nuts and bolts—a story on the benefits of strength training, for example, or a true-life recount of a year on GLP-1s (you know those Ozempic ads that pop up every five minutes on TV), as well as details on this year’s flu—both virus and vaccination. Editor Sara Rubin even gives her thoughts on the upended food pyramid.

But there is some fun stuff here, such as a feature on a young man who sets personal running goals, in part to impress his father. Or you can find out about a local practitioner dedicated to gut health. My contribution to this package is a Face to Face feature with Gillian Young Barkalow, a nutrition and fitness coach—and bodybuilder—plus an Eat + Drink feature on a couple who brew up bone broth, amongst other nutrient-rich foods.

Generally, my interest in nutrition falls victim to points of greater importance. Flavor matters most, and fat is flavor. 

So generally I approach conversations with those embracing a healthy approach with suspicion. Certainly the nutrition and fitness expert would cringe at my workout routine and caution against certain foods. But Young Barkalow tells me that movement in general is good—she tends to walk rather than run. “I’m stubborn with my goals, flexible with my methods,” she explains. And guess what? She adds sugar (mindfully), loves chocolate and makes protein balls that taste like cookie dough.

“We’re so stuck in this culture on demonizing one thing—carbs, sugars—that we lose the big picture,” Young Barkalow says. “I’m not one to skimp on flavor.”

Andrew Renard and Michelle Carter of Kitchen Table Cultures proved equally refreshing. As we spoke, Renard was sipping his morning coffee, stirred with a measure of heavy cream. They are advocates of healthy fats and dismissive of trends. Heavily processed foods like the Beyond Burger draw his ire. “There was a narrative that had a lot of momentum 10 years ago, but the idea of better living through a plant-based diet is beginning to crumble,” he says.

Put all of the individuals from these stories into one conversation and there will likely be some points of dispute. But there is one thread of agreement that runs through many of these stories: The standard American diet of highly processed foods—whether meat or vegetarian—is not what is best for our bodies. Nor are the many quick fixes on the market.

Which leads me to one more bit of wisdom. When Lisa Simpson offers her father a simple path toward weight loss—eat less, exercise more—Homer dismisses the advice with, “Oh Lisa, if it were that simple, everyone would be doing it.”

I hope you find something inspirational, interesting or otherwise useful in our health and fitness issue.