Grab a granola bar and set out to tap these powerful rewards.

Your legs will never look better.

“Trekking up a mountain is a lot like climbing the stair climber or doing lunges over and over, which strengthens your glutes, quads, hamstrings, and calves,” says Joel Martin, Ph.D., an assistant professor of exercise, fitness, and health promotion at George Mason University.

But traveling downhill is what leaves your legs sore, then sculpted. “To go downhill, your glutes and quads need to do a lot of slow, controlled work to stabilize your knees and hips, so you don’t fall,” Martin says. “These types of contractions damage muscle fibers the most because you’re resisting the force of gravity against weight.” This means that while you probably won’t huff and puff on the descent, your muscles aren’t getting a second to slack off.

Every step firms your core.

Navigating tough terrain also requires your abs, obliques, and lower back to work to keep your body stabilized and upright even more so if you’re carrying a backpack. “A heavier bag – around 8 to 10 pounds makes you more unstable, so your core muscles need to work harder,” Martin says. You’ll burn calories regardless (anywhere from 400 to 800 an hour, depending on the trail, he says).

It’s killer cross-training.

Whether you are prepping for a race or not, scheduling some hikes can up your running and cycling game. “Cyclists tend to have strong quads but underdeveloped hamstrings, and runners tend to have weak hamstrings and glutes,” Martin says. “Hiking helps strengthen these muscles to eliminate those types of imbalances.”

It gets you moving better.

Hiking forces you to move every which way, as you climb over fallen trees and sidestep slippery rocks. “By doing things that require you to move in multiple directions, you strengthen the stabilizing muscles that fire to prevent common injuries,” Martin says. Think about it: Most everyday injuries occur when people quickly shift from one plane of motion to another, such as when they reach over to pick up a heavy object and pull a back muscle.

It’s a happy pill.

Know that feeling you get when you see a beautiful waterfall or gaze out from atop a mountain? Research shows that such experiences benefit your state of mind: People who spent 50 minutes walking through nature reported less anxiety and more happiness compared with those who walked near traffic, according to a study in the journal Landscape and Urban Planning. And because exercise produces endorphins (known as the happiness hormone), actually moving through nature takes the feel-good benefits to a new level.

It sure beats bonding at the bar.

Working toward a unified goal – like making your way through the woods with others – strengthens relationships and builds bonds.

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Foods can cause bad breath; garlic (the “stinking rose”) and onions are classic examples. Reflux of stomach contents can do the same, as can serious diseases of the liver or kidneys. Infections of the tonsils, sinuses, or respiratory tract can also be responsible for bad breath. But the usual culprits are oral bacteria.

Morning breath is caused by breathing through the mouth during sleep; saliva dries out, allowing bacteria to multiply and produce sulphides, amines, and other bad-smelling gases. Any medication or condition that reduces saliva flow can do the same. Although morning breath is unpleasant, it can be quickly relieved by rinsing the mouth with water.

Halitosis is also triggered by the wide range of bacteria that are present in every mouth. Poor oral hygiene, abundant dental plaque, and especially periodontal disease can allow these bacteria to get the upper hand and cause halitosis. And even when teeth and gums are healthy, dentists suspect that bacteria on the tongue contribute.

If you have bad breath, here’s what to do:

1. Keep your saliva flowing. Drink plenty of water, chew gum (sugarless, please), and avoid antihistamines and other medications with anticholinergic actions that dry the mouth.

2. See your dentist regularly and get prompt treatment for any problems.

3. Practice meticulous oral hygiene by flossing regularly and brushing your teeth and — yes, it’s true — your tongue diligently.

4. Avoid foods that seem to contribute to your problems. Don’t smoke or chew tobacco.

5. Use an antibacterial mouthwash.

6. Keep breath mints on hand for a quick, if temporary, cover-up.

7. Relax. Halitosis is a common problem, and it’s usually much less bothersome to other people than to the chap with bad breath. — Harvey

8. Simon, M.D., Editor, Harvard Men’s Health Watch

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Adiposity. Fat tissue, especially abdominal fat, increases the levels of cytokines, insulin, and a variety of hormones that tend to promote cancer by, in part, spurring cell growth and turnover. It’s hard to fight the battle of the bulge with exercise alone, but in combination with a good, calorically prudent diet, exercise can help keep the pounds off.

Insulin levels. Insulin is the key hormone in blood sugar regulation. Insulin also acts a growth factor by turning on signals that stimulate cell growth. Physical activity helps the body use blood sugar more efficiently. Therefore, the pancreas can release less insulin into the blood stream. Lower insulin levels may mean cancer cells get less stimulation to grow out of control.

Estrogen levels. Results from a large study of women called the Women’s Health Initiative showed that compared to women who get a lot of exercise, those who reported being sedentary had considerably higher levels of estrone, estradiol and free estradiol. They also had lower levels of sex-hormone-binding globulin, which by attaching to estradiol, makes it less available to target tissue. Results from other studies have shown that breast cancer risk is higher for postmenopausal women with high levels of various sorts of estrogen.

Inflammation. Studies have shown that high levels of inflammatory factors such as C-reactive protein and interleukin-6 have been linked to cancer. In some studies (but not all), exercise “cools off” the levels of these inflammatory factors as well as increasing the levels of adiponectin, a natural anti-inflammatory factor.

Immune function. Intense exercise can suppress the immune system, so some athletes are susceptible to colds and other upper respiratory functions. But in moderate amounts, exercise results in a stronger, more nimble immune system. How the immune system and cancer are related is complicated, but one hypothesis is that exercise makes the system’s natural killer cells more effective and they seem to play a role in tumour suppression.

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