A HEALTHY LIFE: Tips for adding some exercise to your day

A HEALTHY LIFE: Here are some tips for adding some more exercise into your day. They are quite simplistic but hopefully one or more may be useful…

Track your progress with a pedometer, and then aim to add more steps each day.
Park the car a block away from your workplace, and try to make it 2 blocks next time. Just make sure it’s safe to do so!
If you’re already a regular walker, try adding another 5 minutes onto each walk, slowly increasing it each week/each week.
Keep a pair of walking shoes and bottle of water in the car.
Give yourself a list of jobs to do at lunchtime which requires you to walk there and back for one item, one day at a time.
Find a friend to share the time with – not much different than meeting them for a coffee, surely?
Listen to a talking book, music, podcast or the radio, or simply use the time as “thinking time” to get things sorted in your head before you take action.
Embrace all the free exercise and pro-health videos on YouTube.
Increase incidental exercise at home but tackling more domestic projects eg. clean out a cupboard, wipe down the inside and outside of the fridge, do a spring clean, organise the garage, tidy up a rose bush, trim a tree, pull out some weeds for 10 minutes.
Wear comfortable clothes and shoes so there is no excuse not to drive a couple of blocks out of your way on the way to walk for even just 20 minutes.
Take the stairs at work.
If you play golf, ditch the cart and walk instead.
Combine exercise with romance and take a loved one on a “row boat picnic”.
Find one extra hour in your week and take up a new activity eg. dancing, yoga, pilates or tennis – you’ll make new friends too and feel stronger and fitter.
Take your dog (or a neighbour’s dog) for a regular walk – both of you will feel better.
Invest in WiiFit and play games such as tennis by yourself or with a friend in the comfort of your own living room.
Stand up and walk around when making telephone calls.
Buy a new bike or clean up your old one, and add a basket so you can more easily pop out to get some groceries. But remember to get a helmet and be safe on the roads.
Pretend that an appointment is earlier than scheduled to force you to get there and go for a walk beforehand.
Stop at a park and throw a ball or frisbee around with your kids on the way home from school (or find some kids if you don’t have any of your own).
Track down secondhand gym equipment eg. rowing machine or stationary bicycle and put it in a place where you’ll definitely use it (eg. in front of the TV).
Park at the opposite end of the shopping centre from where you normally shop.
If you’re collecting something, park the car and go in rather than using a drive-thru window.
When watching television, get up during every ad break and do some sort of movement, eg. star jumps, sit ups, jump rope, squats, running on the spot.
Also when watching TV, consider using hand weights for some movement during the program itself.
Catch up with your partner or best friend after work by going for a walk together as soon as you both get home.
Buy a totem tennis set and plant it in your garden – even just 10 mins using it can work up a sweat, and you’ll feel like a little kid again.
Have 2-3 exercise outfits so that one is always clean and ready to go (no excuses about not having anything to wear).
Organise a bunch of friends to have a communal game, such as soccer or cricket, which ends with a BBQ at the end.
Invest in a treadmill desk, or create one yourself by putting a plank of wood over the handlebars of an existing treadmill, then walk at a slow pace whilst working.
Visit a museum or gallery – you can improve your art knowledge at the same time as taking extra steps.
Head to the beach to do some walking or running – you’ll find it harder to manage on the sand which will provide a good challenge.
Find a good cause which is holding a charity event and get into training. Better still, ask a few friends or co-workers to join you.
If you can afford it, have individual or small-group lessons so there is a regularly, paid commitment.