Are you bored with your exercise routine? That doesn’t mean you should quit exercising. One of the best ways to break out of a workout rut is to try something that you haven’t done before. And changing your fitness routine every now and then makes you fitter and stronger by working different muscle groups. Change your routine by doing your exercises in a different order, try a more advanced yoga or aerobics class, or walk your favorite route in the opposite direction. Are you moving to a new neighborhood with a pool? Find out about adult swim classes or water aerobics.

Even if you love your exercise routine, substitute a different activity now and then. Working the same muscles in the same way every day will keep you in great shape, but you can have too much of a good thing. Most exercise-related injuries are due to overuse, and a little variety goes a long way in terms of injury prevention.

For example, if you’re a regular runner, take a yoga class once a week. You’ll give your running muscles a different kind of workout and you get in even better shape while staying injury-free. Similarly, if you usually ride your bike a few times a week, try taking some long walks, too.

But be sure to check with your doctor before making significant changes to a fitness plan, especially if you are older and have any chronic medical conditions such as diabetes or high blood pressure. That doesn’t mean you can’t train for a marathon or take up tai chi, just be sure to build up your activity level gradually.

Although there are advocates of both butter and margarine, most cardiologists agree that if you have heart disease or are at risk and you are following a diet for high cholesterol, certain types of margarine are better for your heart than butter.

Because margarine is made from vegetable oils, it contains no cholesterol. Butter is made from milk, which is an animal protein source, so it does contain cholesterol. Butter also contains saturated fat.

But all margarines are not created equal. Many types of margarine are made from hydrogenated vegetable oil, which means that they contain trans fats; exactly what you want to avoid on a low cholesterol diet.

Look for tub margarine rather than stick margarine. In general, the more solid the margarine is, the more trans fat it contains. Look for spreadable tub margarine with 3 grams or less of total fat, including both saturated fat and trans fat.

Are you a baker? Opt for butter. Not only is it heart-healthier in stick form than margarine, it gives your baked goods more flavor, which makes it easier to perform other low-fat substitutions in recipes. But that said, feel free to experiment. For example, try making a recipe with less butter than it calls for. You may be able to get away with a quarter cup rather than half a cup. Or substitute applesauce or prune puree for half or a third of the amount of butter when baking. (Caution: you many need to adjust the amount of dry ingredients to avoid over-wet batter).