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Get fit for Fall: every little bit of movement counts
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Would it kill you to get up and move? Illustration by Leif Parsons
Today marks the beginning of the Autumn Equinox, in other words, the first day of Fall. And, in about 9 1/2 weeks, Thanksgiving arrives and yet another joyous holiday season begins. But don't despair, you still have enough time to shed about 10 pounds by Thanksgiving. Over the next several articles titled, "Get fit for Fall", I'll be sharing some great tips to enhance your current weight loss or simply get you started. Are you up for the challenge?
Every little bit counts
Did you know that regular activity is a major success factor for long term weight management? That doesn't mean you have to start running marathons or training for fitness competitions today. It does mean that every bit of movement counts. When it comes to being active during weight loss, a little is good and more is even better. Why?
-Activity burns calories while you're doing it
-Activity also helps maintain muscle mass, which revs up your metabolism to help burn more calories when you are not active
-Activity is the #1 success factor for weight maintenance
Increasing your activity and reducing your calories with a well-balanced diet are generally accepted as the optimal ways of burning calories (calories in/calories out), but what you may not know is that your body has secret ways of burning calories as well. One of these ways is through non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT).
If you are in the contemplation stage of your activity plan, then you may feel that you don't have time to exercise or you may not be ready to join the gym. That's okay, for now. But you still need to move-just move more. NEAT may sound like some trendy fad of the moment, but it meaning is actually quite simple: spontaneous activity. Every time you stand up and move, you're involved in spontaneous activity and burning calories. Much attention had not been paid to NEAT until recently because none of us realized how much non-activity or being sedentary contributed to our weight problems. Now researchers know that simple movement is one of the keys to losing weight.
People are so focused on structured exercise and target heart zones they forget that general activity can be a huge contributor to weight loss. So all the advice about taking the stairs and parking further away from the grocery store really does make a difference and can contribute to your weight loss as much as structured exercise - at a slower rate, of course.
Maximize it
To maximize the calories you burn with NEAT, you simply need to move more:
-Stand up as much as possible
-Walk everywhere. Pace when you're on the phone, walk over to your co-workers instead of emailing them or use a pedometer and see how many steps you can get in each day (2000 steps=one mile)
-When at the mall, make three laps around the mall before you buy anything.
-When carrying groceries, bring the bags in one bag at a time.
-If you have to sit for long periods of time, change position, shift in your seat or even do some isometric exercises-squeeze your hands together, contract your abs or squeeze your glutes.
-Sit on an exercise ball and roll around while you watch TV or work at the computer.
Easy ways to move and lose
Modern conveniences, designed to save time, cost us many chances to burn calories. Here are some of those missed opportunities, along with a rough estimate of calories that you could have burned:
Opportunity - Getting up to change TV station: 3 calories
Modern Convenience - Using the remote, reclining: 0.6 calories
Opportunity - Getting up to answer the phone, standing during three 10-min conversations: 20 calories
Modern Convenience - Answering with a nearby cordless, talking for 30 min, reclining: 4 calories
Opportunity - Vacuuming for 30 min once a week: 115 calories
Modern Convenience - Hiring Merry Maids: 0 calories
Opportunity - Ironing for 30 minutes once a week: 37 cals
Modern Convenience - Having the dry cleaners iron shirts: 0 cals
Opportunity - Gardening for 30 min once a week: 150 cals
Modern Convenience - Hiring a gardener: 0 cals
Opportunity - Pushing the lawnmower for 30 min once a week: 210 cals
Modern Convenience - Hiring Ayala's Lawn Service: 0 cals
Opportunity - Walking the dog for 30 min every day: 125 cals
Modern Convenience - Letting the dog out the back door: 2 cals
Opportunity - Walking to converse for 3 min with a co-worker, while standing, twice a day: 6 cals
Modern Convenience - Emailing a co-worker for 4 min: 2 cals
"Diets are depriving, while lifestyle changes last a lifetime"
Source: "Secret Weapons of Weight Loss", by Paige Waehner, About.com
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