Your gut microbiome contains roughly 100 trillion microbes from 5,000 species and weighs around four-and-a-half pounds. And these teeming masses can protect or damage your health.

When they're doing their job, they extract energy from food and help your body make neurotransmitters, enzymes, and even vitamin K — all of which are important for a healthy immune system and regulating metabolic functions such as management of glucose and mood.

But when your biome is out of balance, you can develop Inflammatory bowel disease and become vulnerable to infections, depression, diabetes, and dementia.

That's why you want to keep these microbes happy by supplying them with a diet of prebiotics (fiber and phytonutrients in veggies and fruit) and probiotics (in fermented foods such as yogurt and kimchi).

But did you know that vigorous exercise also makes your guts happier so they can protect your health and longevity?

A study in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition looked at the impact of low- and high-intensity training and the duration of a workout on 23 athletes. Three days of higher-intensity/longer duration exercise positively altered the content of their gut's microbiome and its concentration of inflammation-fighting short-chain fatty acids (like those found in legumes).

Even if you're not a well-trained athlete, doing high-intensity interval training routines at the gym and when walking will empower your guts to ease inflammation, strengthen your immune system, control your blood sugar, and improve your mood.