It’s been a strange winter, and cold temperatures have been hard to come by in some places. But when the chill returns you may be able to burn more calories just by keeping warm. Because your body has to work to stay warm it’s putting in more effort and burning more calories. As long as you refrain from those hearty carb laden comfort foods you can use it to your advantage. You can take it one step further it seems with cold drinks as well. I found a statistical analysis of the calories it takes to melt an ounce of ice. It seems that it’s the same amount as forty push-ups. For a cup of ice that’s 347 push-ups! Of course you could do the push-ups and then cool off with the ice.
TODAY: DO SOME PUSH-UPS. WELL… AT LEAST TRY TO!
I once visited a brand new huge health club that had two floors. The biggest surprise was that up on the second floor they had their stepper machines right at the top of the escalator that people rode to get there! That’s when I noticed that most of the spaces in the parking lot that were close to the building were the fullest.
Look for ways to add activity to your day. Park as far from the store as you can rather than looking for the closest space. Carry your grocery bags instead of using a cart. Use the stairs, not the escalator. You get the idea. It’s the easy way to burn more calories and get exercise.
TODAY: PARK WAY OUT IN THE PARKING LOT.
You may have started an exercise program before and gone at it gangbusters on the first day. Then you were so sore that you waited to recover a day or so later and never went back to exercising. It happens all the time. I think it’s part of how the health clubs stay in business. (They need more members than people who actually use the facilities.)
There is a reason that a few years ago (sarcasm) you started with “baby steps”. An how you should start back at exercising now. With time strength, endurance, and fitness will return. Challenge your body by exercising just outside your comfort zone. When it’s no longer a challenge, do a little more or do it a little harder, faster or longer. That saying, “no pain, no gain” is not a benefit if it keeps you form staying with the exercise program.
But to borrow a famous bit of advertising… Just Do It!
TODAY: TAKE BABY STEPS, OR MORE STEPS.
It’s Sunday. Relax and clear your head while burning calories and strengthening your body by taking a good long walk. A study I just read today also says that we should be doing different new things regularly to stimulate our brains. So take the weekend and go someplace completely new or where you haven’t visited in a long while and walk there. The exploration will benefit you in many ways.
TODAY: WALK SOMEPLACE NEW.
Researchers have found out that walking slow can actually burn slightly more calories than mid-speed walking. Evidently when they looked at the motion of your body they found that you are basically stopping and starting with each step and momentum isn’t helping you along. At the other end of the spectrum, at very high walking speeds you use more muscle groups with arm motion and with a long stride. That burns extra calories. Running has lots of up and down motion that may burn more calories lifting your weight up off the ground and moving forward. Of course the aerobic exercise of a quicker pace has many benefits as well.
The big thing is that all walking will benefit your diet. Just do it! (Hey that’s catchy.)
TODAY: TAKE A WALK
I’ve told you about setting small goals. It starts you on your way to success and feeds your self esteem without feeding your belly. With the weekend here, take an hour today and go to the park. Any park will do, but maybe try one you haven’t been to in a long time… or ever. It will be good exercise and good for your brain as well. Explore, exercise and enjoy. It’s good for you in more ways than one.
TODAY: GO TO A PARK AND WALK.
It’s Spring. You’re finally going to be able to go outside and get moving again. You should be walking regularly already, but you also can get exercise when you work outside instead of just working out. So first, turn off the TV and go outside. Start a garden. Turning the soil, raking and hoeing are great exercise for many muscle groups. Mow the lawn, you’ll get lots of walking in that way. Just get active and do some outdoor chores. You’ll know you’ve exercised the next day! Of course you can minimize that by doing some stretching and warm-ups before you work. Don’t overdo it. There will always be more outdoor chores to do.
It’s been a strange winter, and cold temperatures have been hard to come by in some places. But when the chill returns you may be able to burn more calories just by keeping warm. Because your body has to work to stay warm it’s putting in more effort and burning more calories. As long as you refrain from those hearty carb laden comfort foods you can use it to your advantage. You can take it one step further it seems with cold drinks as well. I found a statistical analysis of the calories it takes to melt an ounce of ice. It seems that it’s the same amount as forty push-ups. For a cup of ice that’s 347 push-ups! Of course you could do the push-ups and then cool off with the ice.
Daily Nag, Exercise | Diet Nag | 
January 7, 2016 6:00 am | 
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