By LEANNE ITALIE, AP Lifestyles Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — Wellness advice seems to be everywhere these days, but change can be hard. How do you start a journey toward better health that you can stick with, and not be overwhelmed?

Related Articles

$40,000 vacations inspire finance pros to become travel agents

One Tech Tip: How to move your music library to another streaming platform

The Kahlo family opens the doors of their house, inviting visitors to Frida’s beloved basement

Colorado’s best mountain towns for live music fans

‘Dead of Winter’ review: Harsh environment helps elevate kidnapping drama

Among the experts’ advice: Start with a little and it can turn into something big. Be consistent. Try to find people who can help you stay the course.

Define ‘wellness’ and start small

Kristina Schuldt is a family medicine physician and wellness director for about 14,000 employees of the Mayo Clinic Health System.

“Wellness means different things to people. There’s fitness and physical wellness, but there’s also mental wellness, financial wellness, spiritual wellness,” she said. “A person should define what their wellness goal is.”

Don’t take on the entire wellness universe at once, she warned. Start with small steps.

Increase water intake, for example, using a bottle or jug big enough to hold a day’s worth, with markings on the side to let you see how much you drink. If quitting smoking is the goal, cut down by one cigarette until it feels comfortable, then do the same thing again and again.

That goes for getting your steps in, too. If you’re not used to long walks, start with a few blocks and increase by two every week.

In the kitchen, experiment with healthy foods to find out which ones you like. Will it be pumpkin but not kale? Flaxseed but not cranberries? Don’t force yourself to eat foods you don’t like. At the table, eat slowly. Savor each bite and try to recognize when you’re nearly full.

“Go with what we call the low-hanging fruit at first,” Schuldt said of first steps overall.

Find people to support you

At her heaviest, Jenny Watson weighed 420 pounds. In January 2023, she said, “I was at a point where I was like, I can’t do this anymore. I’m tired. My body hurts. I had hit rock bottom.”

Watson, a 36-year-old mom of two and a hairstylist in suburban Dallas, tried a lot of fitness programs before finding one that stuck. While she’s still not at her ideal weight, the pounds she lost have stayed off. She works out, including weightlifting, and has started eating more whole foods, cutting processed foods from her diet.

Her biggest supporter, she said, is her husband, who has made changes in solidarity. She used to be a night owl, but both of them now head to bed at 10 p.m.

Dominique Debroux prepares a meal at home in Cliffside Park, N.J., on Sept. 11, 2025. (Dominique Debroux via AP)

Put a pin in the ‘eat, pray, love’ fantasy

Andrea Leigh Rogers, a fitness trainer who has worked with celebrities like Gisele Bündchen and Nicole Scherzinger and has written a new book, “Small Moves, Big Life,” urges people trying to achieve a healthier lifestyle: Don’t fall for whatever wellness trend is making the rounds.

“There’s the game of comparison. I don’t look like her. I can’t do that if I don’t look like her. Other barriers also feel heavy, like I have to pay $50 to do one class,” she said.

You don’t. What you do need is to be consistent. That might mean mindful breathing, followed by a few minutes of stretching and a 10-minute workout in the morning. Or it could be a new approach to breakfast, or a rethink on the crush of daily responsibilities.

“We all have 10 minutes,” Rogers said. A good plan, she added, follows the acronym FEEL: “It’s fast, it’s enjoyable, it’s effective and there’s longevity.”

James Keppel poses for a selfie along the Cache la Poudre River in Fort Collins, Colo., on Sept. 14, 2025. (James Keppel via AP)

Sometimes, a reboot is needed

James Keppel, in Fort Collins, Colorado, nearly lost his liver to cirrhosis. That was in 2019. His first order of business was to get sober, which he did through rehab. Then, he worked on becoming healthier overall by making a series of nutritional and other life changes.

But a series of devastating developments, including a split with his wife and the premature loss of a close family member, left him floored. He sold his design company and turned to his sister for help, moving in with her and her family in Pennsylvania for nearly a year. He had to turn off the go-go rhythm of his old life.

“I slept a whole lot. I watched a lot of TV. I read a lot of books. I stayed off my computer. I didn’t take many phone calls,” he said. “I just slowly kind of ramped back up. You have to give yourself the space to get better.”

By Erika Bolstad, Stateline.org

States are scrambling for the money to fill potholes, plow roads, maintain bridges and pay bus drivers as they confront inflation- and tariff-driven cost increases and declining gas tax revenues.

States also face uncertain federal funding as the Trump administration reduces the size of government and zeroes out some Biden-era transportation programs. As the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act expires next year and Congress considers its next transportation funding bill, cities are clamoring for the federal government to bypass states and give cities a larger share of federal infrastructure money distributed by formula.

Drivers will have to pay higher vehicle registration fees and gas taxes to make up for the shortfalls. Long-planned construction projects and safety improvements will be delayed. And bus riders may see fewer routes and longer wait times.

The chaos in a pair of state legislatures on either side of the country illustrates the dire state of highways and transit systems – and might foretell a bumpy road ahead.

In Oregon, nearly 500 transportation employees, about 10% of the department’s workforce, might lose their jobs as state lawmakers consider a transportation funding bill in a special legislative session. The political balance is so delicate that lawmakers have delayed a vote on a $4.3 billion transportation package for more than two weeks while a Democratic state senator recovers from surgery; his vote is necessary to pass the funding measure, a tax increase that requires a supermajority. The Senate is now expected to vote on Sept. 29.

And in Pennsylvania, a budget impasse over transit funding between the state’s Republican-dominated Senate and Democrat-led House continues. Philadelphia’s transit system, SEPTA, has said it will reverse deep cuts that threatened a near-shutdown of the buses and trains in one of the country’s largest transit systems.

The move, approved by Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro, allows the transit agency to shift $394 million from capital funding to operational expenses for the next two years.

Shapiro said he acted after he learned there was a 63% increase in late arrivals to Philadelphia schools when the service cuts began, according to the Pennsylvania Capital-Star.

“It was just clear to me that is not something we can allow to continue,” Shapiro said at a news conference.

Pandemic-era funding ends

Pennsylvania and other states are confronting the end of pandemic-era federal funding that kept transit systems afloat. The so-called fiscal cliff threatens to bring about fare hikes and service cuts to bus and rail systems in both big cities and rural America in the coming years. To address the shortfalls, many states are, like SEPTA, shifting money that was earmarked for capital investment toward operating expenses.

“It’s financial gymnastics,” said Joe Kane, a fellow at the left-leaning Brookings Institution who studies transportation issues. “We fundamentally as a country have a challenge in reliably and durably having a revenue source to pay for these improvements across the country. It’s put even more pressure on states and localities to cobble together the resources — however and wherever they can — to make up for some of those gaps.”

The funding crisis has been particularly drastic for the country’s transit systems, said Corrigan Salerno, a policy manager at Transportation for America, an advocacy organization for safe transit. Ridership hasn’t fully recovered from pandemic-era declines, he said, meaning that transit agencies aren’t collecting as many fares as they did before 2020. The cost of labor, parts, software and fuel to maintain and operate transit systems has exceeded inflation, too.

Without high-quality or frequent-enough service, buses and trains are unable to attract riders, he said. Service cuts and fare hikes can make the system less attractive to riders, as well as bring in less money from riders.

“And that’s really the nature of the fiscal cliff and the death spiral that transit agencies are really trying so desperately to avoid,” Salerno said. “Because once they have to make these service cuts to square their budgets, people are going to stop riding some of these systems.”

Chicago; San Francisco; Seattle; Tucson, Arizona, and the state of Rhode Island have all faced transit funding gaps in recent months, Salerno said. In North Carolina, voters will consider a ballot measure in November to increase a local sales tax to support transit and road improvements in Charlotte, the state’s biggest city. In California, local transit agencies are seeking temporary operating loans from the state.

Eliminating bus routes

In Oregon, lawmakers have been at work on a transportation bill for several years, but the funding crisis came to a head after the legislature failed to pass a new spending plan before the end of the regular legislative session in June.

The state’s Department of Transportation faced an immediate $300 million shortfall in the two-year budget cycle that began July 1. The transit agency for the Portland area, Tri-Met, announced it would eliminate up to eight bus lines as well as reduce the frequency of service on other lines as soon as November.

Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek, a Democrat, announced this summer that the state would lay off 483 transportation workers and close a dozen maintenance facilities. Among those who may lose their jobs are programmers who maintain software for Driver & Motor Vehicle Services, and maintenance workers who stripe roads, clear brush, and clean up graffiti and debris.

Kotek pushed back the layoffs after House lawmakers passed a new funding plan during a special session that began in September. But if the Senate fails to approve the measure, the layoffs are scheduled for Oct. 15.

The transportation package would raise the state gas tax by six cents a gallon, increase vehicle title and registration fees, and temporarily double a statewide payroll tax for transit from 0.1% to 0.2%, according to the Oregon Capital Chronicle.

The legislation would allow the payroll tax to sunset in 2028, a move that critics warn will force the state, once again, to confront how to avoid cuts to bus service. It also requires electric vehicle drivers to pay a mileage fee to support road maintenance, a move that could dampen EV sales, but that captures some of the gas tax revenue lost to the transition to electric cars.

Without new funding in Oregon, local road departments will continue to face impossible choices that lead to reduced services and delayed implementation of safety projects, said Lamar Wise, the political director for Oregon AFSCME, the union representing 850 road workers, engineers and surveyors in the state. Failure to increase taxes and fees means asking fewer workers “to do more with less,” putting their safety and the driving public at risk, Wise told a legislative committee in August, as it considered the transportation package.

“It is about keeping our roads safe and ensuring that the public can count on reliable transportation in every corner of the state,” Wise said.

In Portland, the state’s largest city, it’s impossible to absorb more cuts to service, Mayor Keith Wilson told the same panel. If lawmakers don’t pass a spending plan, the city will likely lose 50 transportation staffers who repair streetlights, upgrade traffic signals and manage construction projects. The city bureau has faced cuts each of the past seven years, Wilson said.

“If you drive down the streets of Portland, or ride on a bus or a bike, the roads under your tires are crumbling,” he said.

But Jake Seavert, a county commissioner in Union County, a rural county of 26,000 in Eastern Oregon, told lawmakers that his constituents object to the spending plan, particularly the increase in fuel taxes and registration fees. The hike in annual registration fees places an undue burden on businesses and rural families who require multiple vehicles, he testified.

Oregon’s Department of Transportation must look for efficiencies, Seavert said, a nod to the Trump administration’s lacerating cuts to federal jobs and spending.

“Do more with less,” Seavert said.

©2025 States Newsroom. Visit at stateline.org. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

By ADRIANA MORGA

NEW YORK (AP) — Did you buy a new pink dress to watch the Barbie movie, only to never wear it again? An Oura ring because your favorite TikTok influencer had it? A new pair of baggy jeans because ’90s fashion is making a comeback?

Related Articles

Your Money: Should you tell your children how much you have?

Working Strategies: Making the case for bachelor degrees

$40,000 vacations inspire finance pros to become travel agents

Trump’s trade battle with China puts US soybean farmers in peril

FAA restores Boeing’s ability to certify Max jets for flight more than 6 years after fatal crashes

Niche trends fueled by social media can influence your shopping decisions. Participating often brings some happiness and a sense of community, but the problem comes when you do it so often that you’re not using your money to achieve your financial goals, or worse, you get into debt, said Erika Rasure, chief financial wellness advisor for Beyond Finance, a financial services company.

Whether it’s coastal grandma or clean girl aesthetic, microtrends can take a significant toll on already-strained budgets as prices rise and Gen Z struggles to pay off debt.

If you find yourself overspending to participate in microtrends, here are some expert recommendations:

Pause before purchasing

Before you click “buy” on TikTok Shop, it’s best if you take some time to reflect, said Jennifer Seitz, head of education for Greenlight, a financial literacy app for families. Pausing before a purchase can help you discern if the item is something you really want or a fleeting craving.

“Think if you want to put it in a schedule pause, whether it’s 24 hours or even a couple of days if it’s a larger expense,″ Seitz said.

Participating in personal challenges can be a good way to get in the habit of making purchases more deliberate. Back in 2022, Alyssa Barber participated in the no-buy year challenge, where she pledged to stop buying non-essential items for a year.

Barber shares sustainable practices with over 370,000 followers on TikTok, where one of her recurrent themes is how to stop impulse buying. Barber said the challenge gave her perspective on how much she was spending on things she didn’t need. Since then, she has changed her spending habits, focusing mainly on experiences.

Know your spending values

Taking a value-based spending approach can help you decide if you should participate in a trend you see online, Rasure said.

If, for example, you want to build an emergency fund, having this goal in mind while shopping can help avoid unnecessary spending.

Quynh Van, a 27-year-old UX designer from Minneapolis, was surprised by the number of ads on TikTok when she created an account after a four-year break from social media. And while being influenced by the ads is inevitable, she believes overspending comes in part from users not having defined goals.

“When you don’t know who you are or what you like, you’re so driven by over-consumerism and lifestyle creep because you don’t have your values in order,″ Van said.

Rasure recommends using your financial values as a guiding principle for your spending decisions. If you’re not sure of your values, allocate some time to map them out according to your life goals.

Create barriers to spending

If a purchase is one click away, it can make it easier to spend large amounts of money. If you consciously make it a little harder to pay for an item, you can spend more mindfully, Seitz said.

“Just that action of needing to input your payment information rather than just that simple click can help you give to really stop and think about purchases before moving ahead with them,” she added.

To add barriers, you can remove your credit card details from your computer browser or social media and disable Apple Pay on your phone.

Think of it as an act of self-care

Finances are closely tied to emotions, and often, they evoke negative feelings such as shame or guilt. However, reframing them as an act of self-care can help you spend mindfully, Rasure said.

“It can help you create boundaries around what you value spending money on, helps you choose intentionally and it feels more like freedom instead of restriction,″ she said.

Your spending habits in the present can help your future financial situation. This mindset can inspire you when you’re tempted to overspend on the newest trending electronic or fashion item.

Engage with trends with moderation

It can be OK to engage with trends if they bring you positive feelings, Rasure said.

Van decided to participate in the matcha trend, but with moderation. For Barber, physical media, such as old records, DVDs, and cassettes, is on her list of non-negotiable expenses, as she loves collecting these items.

“Trends and engaging them, engaging in them really should spark that happiness or contentment, not the debt that can go with them,” Rasure said.

The Associated Press receives support from Charles Schwab Foundation for educational and explanatory reporting to improve financial literacy. The independent foundation is separate from Charles Schwab and Co. Inc. The AP is solely responsible for its journalism.

Novelist Sinclair Lewis, perched on a balcony of his room overlooking Unter Den Linden, in Berlin, on Jan. 3, 1931. Lewis lived in Berlin while a foreign correspondent there. The 35th Sinclair Lewis writers conference will be held Oct. 4, 2025, in Sauk Centre, Minn. (Associated Press)

The 35th annual Sinclair Lewis writers conference Saturday in Sauk Centre, home of the first American author to win the Nobel Prize, will be bittersweet. Jim Umhoefer, who’s organized and facilitated the event since 1990, is stepping down after moving to Iowa.

The happy news is that this year’s event honoring the author of “Babbitt,” “Main Street,” “Arrowsmith” and more than 50 other books will feature poet/bread baker Danny Klecko as keynote speaker. He will be joined by Leif Enger discussing the joys and need for writing revision, Brenda Hudson explaining how writers can tell their own story, and Lillie Gardner with tips on writing dialogue. Klecko, author of 16 books of poetry, will talk about “Arrowsmith” vs. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s “The Great Gatsby,” tracing the trajectory of the two novels celebrating their centennial year.

Umhoefer, a travel writer and photographer who has written more than 350 travel pieces published in a wide variety of publications, is proud of the work he’s done as founder of this long-running writers conference and as former president of the Sinclair Lewis Foundation.

“I have gained as much out of the event over the years as anyone,” said Umhoefer, who notes that the conference has hosted some of Minnesota’s best authors. Its aim is to mentor writers, as Lewis did.

“Sinclair Lewis was a mentor and inspiration to many novelists, such as Frederick Manfred and Jack London. His realistic satirical writing style influenced a generation of writers, including Kurt Vonnegut, John Updike and Tom Wolfe,” Umhoefer wrote to the Pioneer Press. He quotes Lewis, who did not view writing as a mysterious or elite process, but rather as hard work: “It is impossible to discourage the real writers — they don’t give a damn what you say, they’re going to write.”

The conference at Sauk Centre high school costs $85, including lunch and breaks. Seniors and college students get in for $80 and high school students attend free. For details, go to sinclairlewisfoundation.org.

Related Articles

Readers and writers: Mary Lucia’s memoir leads list of thought-provoking nonfiction

Literary calendar for week of Sept. 28

Don’t be scared to say the wrong thing (or nothing) at a funeral

Hard pass. Cold brew. Dad bod. Merriam-Webster adds over 5,000 words to ‘Collegiate’ dictionary

Five things to know about the Julia Child exhibit at the MN History Center