Boost your emotions by lifting weights

Humans have set some wacky weightlifting records: Most weight lifted using teeth? 620 pounds. Most weight lifted with the little finger? 242 pounds.

We hope you’re not trying these risky forms of weightlifting. But if you’re not experimenting with strength training, you give it a try.

Not only has resistance/ strength training been linked to better heart health and stronger muscles and bones, but now there’s good evidence lifting weights and doing resistance exercise can lift your mood.

Researchers from Iowa State University, Sweden and Ireland reviewed more than 30 studies on resistance training and found this type of exercise was associated with a reduction in depressive symptoms.

You don’t have to be a world-class lifter. You can use your own body weight as resistance doing squats, push-ups and planks, or try stretchy tubes or bands that work arms, legs, glutes and more. If you do 20 to 30 minutes three days a week, you’ll begin to feel the mood-lifting benefits pretty quickly.

Way to heathy heart through stomach

Hippocrates, who lived 2,500 years ago, is considered the father of medicine because he used observation and deduction to understand and treat illness. His take? “All diseases begin in the gut.”

Ever more evidence is showing how closely your gut health is linked to your well-being, in terms of weight, glucose levels, immune system, brain function and inflammation control.

Now, research published in the European Heart Journal has explored your gut-heart connection. For the first time, there’s confirmation that the greater the diversity in your gut bacteria, the less stiff your arteries will be, and that lowers your risk for heart attack and stroke.

How do you make sure you’ve got a diverse gut microbiome? By eating fiber-rich, polyphenol-loaded veggies, fermented foods like kimchi, healthy oils like omega-3 DHA in salmon, and probiotic supplements.

Another smart choice? Twelve walnut halves daily. They’ll help decrease weight gain and are associated with a lower risk of heart attacks and strokes. They also boost your gut’s microbiome by substantially increasing four types of colon-protecting bacteria.

So remember that old saying, “The way to the heart is through the stomach,” and start nurturing more diversity in your gut biome.

Email questions for Mehmet Oz and Mike Roizen to youdocsdaily@sharecare. com.