The 6 key components of writing a viral story — When I first began writing on Medium during the last week of August, I’d never expected that I would nearly double the income of my day job. At least, not nearly as quickly. And certainly not in my first month. After setting up my account, signing up for the Medium…

The science behind the most popular fad diet of the decade — The human body is fueled by glucose, most of which we get from our diet. However, if glucose was the only thing we could survive on, we would pass out and die when blood glucose levels drop too low. Enter ketogenesis (ketosis), the process where our livers break down fat…

‘Tis the season for a healthy appetite — The seasons are shifting here in Okinawa, Japan and so are the fruits and vegetables readily available at the supermarkets and farmers’ markets. An unfamiliar fruit or vegetable can be slightly off-putting. How do I cook this? Which part do I eat? How should I cut this open? I teach…

With a potential 20% margin of error, nutrition labels aren’t as reliable as we think — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requires that a nutrition facts label be present on all packaged foods and beverages. The nutrition facts label provides the Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) for the fat, cholesterol, sodium, carbohydrates, fiber, sugars, carbohydrates, and protein content in a particular food or beverage item…

An unpopular opinion about tattoos — “You wouldn’t put a bumper sticker on a Ferrari.” I’m sure we’ve all heard that phrase at one point or another. It’s probably the oldest saying in the book about the topic of tattoos. Typically, a person that believes tattoos are trashy or a bad decision may make the argument…

The benefits of exercise go far beyond how much you can bench press — A recent study shows that 73% of people who set fitness goals as their New Year’s resolution give them up before meeting their goal. Nearly half of those who gave up before reaching their fitness resolution goal did so within six weeks or less. Another study found that 43% of…

Does a high-intensity workout burn more fat than a low-intensity workout? — You see High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) workouts described as being a “fat-burning” workout. But you also see running and weight lifting described as being “fat-burning” workouts. So which is it? Does a high-intensity workout burn more fat than a low-intensity workout? Sorry to break it to you, but it doesn’t…

Did It Work? Here’s What Happened — Like many women, I jumped on the bandwagon for achieving long, luscious, flirty, and effortless lashes. I wanted to be able to wake up, quickly fill in my brows a little bit, and be ready to go for any casual day that I didn’t want to wear a full face…

It does more harm than good — Melatonin is not a sleep aid. It is not a supplement. It does not induce sleep. It is a hormone used to regulate your sleep/wake cycle. If you’re taking it every night or nearly every night, stop taking it. Just like most other hormones like testosterone, estrogen, and progesterone, it…