INPUT ARTICLE: Article: The unfortunate truth is that simply walking on level ground is not going to to fully engage your gluteal muscles. If you're walking on a track, in the mall, or somewhere that is completely flat, you will still reap the many benefits of walking, but you won't be working the muscles in your butt enough to really firm it up.  Scope out your neighborhood for hilly areas where you might walk. Look at nearby parks and hiking trails, which might be more likely to have a varied landscape. If you live somewhere completely flat, consider walking up and down the stairs in your office building or home several times a week. If that's too boring, look for bridges with staircases where you can walk up and down, stadiums, or buildings or monuments with tons of stairs out front (think of the "Rocky Steps" that Sylvester Stallone runs up in the Rocky movies). Walking up stairs, even at a slow pace, can burn calories two- to three-times faster than walking on a level surface.  Even if you're not fully engaging your glutes, one of the benefits of walking regularly can be weight loss. Your backside might start to look better simply from walking and losing weight. Results won't be instant, and when you're doing moderate exercise (instead of high-intensity exercise, like running), you'll need to exercise for longer periods of time and more frequently.  Try going for a walk during your lunch break at work. You can break up your 30 minutes throughout the day. You can walk for three 10-minute intervals if that makes it easier for you to make walking part of your routine. Ask a friend or coworker to join you on your walks. You should be able to carry on a conversation when engaging in moderate-intensity exercise, so you can chat with your workout buddy and keep from getting bored while you exercise.  Having a partner to hold you accountable can make it easier for you to stick to your walking regimen.  If you're new to the area or can't find anyone else interested in walking, search for a walking club in your area that you can join. Staying safe while walking means having shoes that are comfortable and provide adequate support, talking to your doctor about reasonable goals (especially if you haven't exercised in a long time or have health issues), stretching before and after your walk, and staying alert to traffic and other hazards.  Don't jump into an intense walking schedule if you haven't exercised in a while. Maybe start out on a level terrain and work your way up to an incline or stairs. Increase your stamina and avoid injury from overuse.  Try not to go for walks alone when it's dark out, either late at night or very early in the morning, when you might not be as aware of your surroundings or visible to traffic.

SUMMARY: Choose a route that includes an incline, uneven terrain, or stairs. Commit to walking at least 30 minutes a day, five times a week. Find a friend to walk with you. Start slow and stay safe.


INPUT ARTICLE: Article: You should never claim a serious or debilitating illness you do not actually have, as these claims are easily debunked. This is especially true if the function in question is a work function, as your supervisor could request that a doctor’s note be delivered. Real but safe illnesses include the flu, a cold, bronchitis, or (for women) even a case of severe menstrual cramps. On the date of the event you’re hoping to avoid, do not--under any circumstances--leave the house. Sick people do not go out shopping, run errands, or drive around, unless a visit to the pharmacy is in order. Stay home to avoid suspicion. If you cannot stay home, prepare yourself for the possibility of running into someone. Have an excuse for being out and about at the ready. During the time of the event, give yourself some at-home pampering. This way, if someone asks how your evening went, you can honestly say something such as, “I took it easy, took a bath, and stayed in bed for most of the night,” or something similar. If you claimed to have a cold or the flu, you can give yourself a facial to reveal fresh, pink skin to create the illusion of being tired or out of sorts. Don’t go into specifics about your illness. You can simply say you were under the weather. Most people do not want to hear the details of others’ sickness, anyway, so do not feel you have to volunteer detailed information. If someone does ask exactly what was wrong with you, you can grimace and say, “You don’t want to know,” or something in a similar vein. If necessary, contact the host and once again express your regret at having fallen ill, and ask how the event went. Doing so lends more credibility to your illness, as it creates the illusion that you are genuinely disappointed at having missed the party.

SUMMARY: Claim a safe but real illness. Stay home. Schedule some self-care. Use vague language after the event has passed. Follow up with the host.


INPUT ARTICLE: Article: Children don’t need super elaborate setups to have fun. Even very simple and minimalistic decorations can act as catalysts for their imagination. Refer to the research you did in the beginning stages of planning this party in order to remember all the brainstorming you did when you get to cutting and pasting. It can be easy to get carried away and break the budget when shopping for this part of the party. Find fun pictures online that have to do with the theme and print out color versions. Then cut them out and glue the streamer material onto its edges to form a kind of frame. You can either put these directly on your walls using mounting putty or attach string to them and hang them from the ceiling. This way you can reinforce the theme while giving the kids fun things to look at and do it all at little cost. The best kind of décor is the kind your child can run around in. Dressing them up will make their day feel even more special and their imagination will be able to go wild. Though a costume will be more strain on the budget, it can also be used at Halloween and at other parties. Even if buying one means foregoing other items, you’ll get a lot more use out of it than any other decoration you may buy for the party.  Making a costume is a great option as well. It’s easy to run them off walls, over lights, and across doorframes. You can also hang them vertically to hide pictures or other items in the house to reinforce the theme. Streamers are a great option for dressing up the house for cheap.

SUMMARY: Stay on the simple side. Print out images. Get a costume. Use streamers.


INPUT ARTICLE: Article: Lay 1 bunch of celery sideways on a cutting board. Use a sharp kitchen knife to carefully cut off the top leafy parts and the white base that connects the stalks at the bottom.  A bunch of celery typically contains about 8-9 individual celery stalks. Advocates of celery juice suggest drinking a glass of it in the morning on an empty stomach, although there is no research that shows this is any better than consuming it at any other time of the day. Hold a stalk of celery under a running tap and gently rub your fingers along it to remove dirt and any other substances. Repeat this for each stalk to clean them all. You can also put the stalks in a colander, if you have one that is big enough, and rinse them all at once.

SUMMARY:
Cut off the top leaves and the base from 1 bunch of celery. Rinse each stalk of celery separately to thoroughly clean them.