In the spring of 2009, Garret Doherty, of Dublin, Ireland, went for a jog. The time had recently changed, and the sun was finally re-emerging after a long, cold winter. In fact, Doherty enjoyed the sun’s rays so much that when he came to a part of the path where the sun was no longer in his face, he began to run backwards. That was 7 years ago, and ever since then, he’s been hooked on running the “wrong way.” Doherty can cover a mile in just over seven minutes, and was named World Champion of the sport three years in a row. While it may seem like a bizarre endeavor, there are actually quite a few health benefits to what he and other backwards runners are doing. According to Doherty, running backwards burns three times the amount of calories as running forwards, as the body is forced to use more muscles. It’s also good practice for anyone suffering from knee issues, or wanting to prevent impact-related injuries. And, if you’re looking to strengthen your core, it’s a fun and effective way to tighten abdominal muscles. So, what are you waiting for? Lace up and start running backwards! Read more: http://www.wimp.com/world-champion-backwards-runner-garret-doherty/
This past week, the world mourned the loss of one of its finest British actors, Alan Rickman. Best known for his work as Severus Snape in the Harry Potter series and Hans Gruber in Die Hard, Rickman has never failed to provide audiences with antagonists who we love to hate. But an actor’s work on the screen and stage is only a small portion of who they are as a person. It doesn’t matter if you’re the greatest actor in Hollywood, if you’re a pain to work with, no one will hire you. Actually … that might not be true, but those who are as wonderful offscreen as they are onscreen are the ones who we’ll miss the most. If you talk to anyone who was lucky enough to work with Rickman, they’ll tell you how fantastic of a person he was. In a touching tribute to his late co-star, Daniel Radcliffe described him as “one of the loyalest and most supportive people I’ve ever met in the film industry.” If you’re wondering what their offscreen relationship looked like, check out this behind-the-scenes footage from the third Harry Potter film. Before filming a particularly quiet and tense scene, Alan Rickman planted a fart machine near Daniel Radcliffe. What follows sets the entire cast and crew ablaze with laughter and smiles. Alan Rickman’s rich characters and loveable personality will be missed. Or, as Radcliffe says it, “Film sets and theatre stages are all far poorer for the loss of this great actor and man.” Read more: http://www.wimp.com/alan-rickman-prank-harry-potter/
There’s something pretty philosophical about this video. The first thing you might think of is, “wow, talk about simple pleasures.” Then, you might begin to wonder what our ancestors did to keep themselves entertained on long nights with no Internet, no television, no radio, no phones, no musical instruments, no sports. At some point in human history, none of these things existed. Did we too simply enjoy what nature had to offer? Well, clearly at some point we didn’t. Maybe a long time ago a caterpillar wriggling amusingly was enough. Maybe watching grass grow worked out for Ogg and Togg. Then, we decided we could do a little better. We made music. We made art. We carried these with us for thousands of years and along the way, there have been some real masterpieces like the Mona Lisa or the works of Bach. There have also been some duds, but even those were at least briefly entertaining, even if they didn’t stand the test of time. But then the Internet came along. Instant access to almost any content your heart desires. We can order pizza online and watch movies from a catalog of thousands at the click of a mouse. We can catch live or pre-taped sporting events or opera. But what are we all doing right now? Watching a gorilla look on in fascination at a bug. Definitely gives you something to think about! Maybe we all need to step back, stop, and smell the roses. Or watch the caterpillars. H/T: The Calgary Zoo Read more: http://www.wimp.com/gorilla-family-reacts-caterpillar/
Empowerment is all about one thing, and that’s taking something people use to criticize you and turning it into a strength. Donnalou Stevens has set her sights on quite a few of the things that people often complain about in regards to “women of a certain age,” and turning all of them on their heads. It’s a laugh riot, but one with an important message: nobody else can tell you how to feel about your own beauty. Even that phrase, “women of a certain age,” is almost hilarious when it comes down to it. As recently as the ‘70s it referred to women in their 30s and 40s. Now, the assumed age is well past 50. The fact is, there shouldn’t be any kind of “cut off” point where women are suddenly seen in a different light, but as many actresses in Hollywood can attest, there certainly still seems to be one. Well, not for Donnalou. And not for anyone with any sense! Men and women both should know that there’s more to a person than just looks and even looks are completely subjective. Any adult from 18 to 108 has got plenty to offer the world around them, and if we’re going to dismiss anyone because of some shallow instinct, well, we’re going to miss out on a lot of great things in life. H/T: Donnalou Stevens Read more: http://www.wimp.com/donnalou-stevens-sings-older-ladies/
Moose tend to be solitary animals for most of the year. According to the National Park Service, Moose spend most of their time alone during the summer, winter, and spring, but when autumn comes things change. When autumn hits, the moose suddenly becomes more social thanks to the beginning of its mating season, known as the rutting. Of course social doesn’t necessarily mean kind, as this Alaskan homeowner learned when two moose started fighting on his lawn. We can’t imagine how shocking this must have been to discover. You come home from a long day at work, and suddenly you can’t pull into your driveway because two 500lb animals are dueling on your lawn. Thankfully the rutting only lasts a few months. These moose probably won’t even remember what they were fighting about come winter. Read more: http://www.wimp.com/moose-fight/
When it comes to safety, we always want to make sure we put our children first. There are plenty of simple things you can do to make sure your kids avoid dangerous and sometimes deadly circumstances. Many parents think that a car seat is the safest way for a child to travel. While that is mostly true, there are certain steps you can take to make sure that your child’s booster seat is as secure as it can be. According to experts, parents should not use secondhand car seats. The parenting site Baby Center says, “Not only are used seats unlikely to come with the manufacturer’s instructions (vital for correct installation), but they could be missing important parts, have been involved in an accident (even unseen damage can affect the seat’s functioning), fall short of current safety standards, or have been recalled due to faulty design.” One of the most important pieces of advice is featured in this video. In the winter, many parents buckle their kids up without thinking of the heavy, cumbersome coats their kids may be wearing. These big coats can cause the straps on their car seat to loosen and put your kids in a very dangerous situation in the event of a crash. Next time you buckle up your kids, make sure you take off that heavy jacket and double check the straps, it just might save a life. Read more: http://www.wimp.com/car-seat-coats/
Before Mark Robert Michael Wahlberg was known as actor Mark Wahlberg, he went by another, stronger, name. His name was Marky Mark, and he was part of a group. A Funky Bunch, if you will. As the years have gone by Marky Mark’s music has fallen by the wayside as Wahlberg’s acting took off. But there are still fans out there. Fans like this adorable little puppy with perfect rhythm. Nothing makes this dog happier than dancing, and when it’s time to dance no one gets this pup happier than Marky Mark. Remember your fans, Mark Wahlberg. This dog needs you to get the Funky Bunch back together. Read more: http://www.wimp.com/dancing-dog-has-rhythm/
The Scottish poet Robert Burns once wrote “O wad some Pow’r the giftie gie us, To see oursels as ithers see us!” Loosely translated from the original Scots in which it was written, Burns is wishing that some divine power might grant us the gift to see ourselves in the way that others see us. It’s especially applicable to this touching video. People were asked to rate their success and then their loved ones did the same for them. As you can see, just about everyone sees themselves more negatively than the people who love them do. It’s easy to relate to this video. We’re all generally guilty of being very self-critical because we’re comparing ourselves to other people with more success/money/fame/whatever, but it’s so easy to see someone you love positively because you see them as just them and all the great things that they are. Read more: http://www.wimp.com/people-rate-success-then-see-loved-ones-ratings/
Losing a spouse is one of the worst tragedies a person can go through. Grief can consume your life and it may never go away. Sometimes, the best way to deal with grief is to take all of your emotional energy and turn it into something positive. That’s exactly what Larry Payne did when his wife, Pat, passed away after 50 years of marriage. Breast cancer had taken the love of his life, and Larry was devastated. They spent their lives together in the small town of Bushnell, Illinois, so Larry wanted to give back to the community in a way that represented everything Pat had given to him. His idea was to renovate a local bridge and turn it into a memorial for his late wife. At the cemetery where his wife was buried, there was a small creek. Larry and some friends built a bridge over this creek and placed a pink roof over the top of it. The pink roof represented his wife’s battle with breast cancer and was meant to honor her legacy as well as the legacy of the many other women who have fought with the same disease. Their daughter Christine said, “It warms my heart, I feel the love. He put his heart and soul into it as well as everyone else that has worked on it. It’s an awesome tribute to my mom and everyone else that’s lost their fight to cancer.” Through Larry’s hard work and love, he found a way to help the community and memorialize his wife at the same time. Read more: http://www.wimp.com/bridge-painted-pink-to-honor-wife/
Mothers and their children have a unique bond that words can’t completely capture. We’ve technically known our mothers for the greatest amount of time, and spend the majority of our childhood in their care. They embrace us with open arms after our first day of school. They tuck us in and assure us that no monsters will bother us while we sleep. They teach us to be caring, tough and ambitious, often without using any words at all. Pandora Jewelry recently conducted an experiment in which they asked young children to put on a blindfold and identify their mother out of a group of women. It didn’t take much time for each child to figure out where their mom was hiding, highlighting the special love that can be felt even when they can’t see each other. Read more: http://www.wimp.com/blindfolded-children-find-mothers-unique-connection/
