handy hint ...

just wanted to share a habit with you all -

during the breaks of tv programmes, i run round my coffee table. 3 minutes of running in one break, or sit ups. an hour programme= 12 minutes of extra fat burning.

i am curious to know your little handy hints that you are using to help up your exercise .............

Here's my best trick... have your workout stuff ready.  On laundry day, I pack a week's worth of gym clothes in my bag, and keep it in my car so I'm always ready to go straight to the gym after work without stopping home first (and getting distracted).

Of course, after each workout the sweaty ones go into the laundry.  Enjoy!

Haha Shelly thats awesome!  I tend to microwave things a lot (coffee, leftovers, frozen meatballs, oatmeal) so whenever something is microwaving I'll either run up and down the stairs and around my stairwell (through 3 rooms and 2 hallways).  I don't really count it as any type of activity, but it makes me feel better that I got my heart rate up for 90 seconds :)

This is silly...  but one little "extra" thing I do; when laying in bed at night, i do the "stretch/flex/release" with my bum and leg muscles.  Not only does it help to get my mind off the day and let me fall asleep, but it also actually seems to be firming up my "behind"!

I live just a few blocks away from the grocery store, so I'll walk there.  On the way back I'll do bicep curls with the grocery bags (switching hands every 10 or so since the bags are likely different weights).  I'm kind of an efficiency freak, so while this sort of thing may look wierd, it makes me feel better. 

I think these are pretty obvious but:

- ALWAYS take the stairs

- if there's an escalator, walk on it all the way up

- on the bus/tube - stand, and do surfing (trying not to hold on to anything, and just balancing with your legs - but do hold a hand to a pole lightly, just in case of a sudden stop).

- bike to the grocery store. You get a new understanding of just how MUCH stuff you buy weekly. You also get a new understanding of physics (inertia, Newton's laws) :P

- when you walk - do it with tensed abs and straight back. By the end of the day you'll have muscle fever

- NEVER slouch

- when you go up the stairs, try not to do it with momentum (fast kick of the leg) but in a slow movement while tensing your butt, and trying to rely on it.

- at the gym, always walk around with an mp3 player. It minimises people walking up to talk to you, and it keeps you focused.

- at the gym - if you can talk while exercising, you're not doing it properly

- at the gym - if you haven't even sweated a bit - you're not doing it properly

- at the gym - stretch, warm up, exercise, cool-down, stretch

Suzushii, great tips, but I have always understood that it should go: Warm up-THEN stretch-exercise-cool down-stretch. Stretching cold muscles can do more harm than good and leave you sore the next day.

1) If you want a treat, walk/run/bike for it. E.g. A half hour walk to a nice ice cream shop for a cone on a summer day is fun and better for you than just loading a whole container of ice cream into a car with the weekly shop.

2) My bf plays alot of computer games. He does sit-ups during the 'loading screens' - I have no idea what these are but he informs me it is helping him get fitter!

3) Do things the long way round. I purposely keep things not at arms reach at my desk at work. If I need an envelope etc I must walk round my desk and go to the stationary cupboard

dondons ... i love that your boyfriend does sit ups in the loading screens, that is my kind of sneaky tip!!!

keep em coming folks!

X

Suzushii, I agree with dondons on the warm-up stretching. And frankly, there is hardly any research suggesting stretching has any benefit. Unless you need the extra flexibility for some reason(martial arts, gymnastics, etc). Also, you can talk while exercising. If you can't you are probably way out of shape...  Or have you ever heard of low HR training? Beyond that, good suggestions.

I usually do a 100 push ups a day at work. Whether it be 4 sets or 10 sets, I always shoot for finishing a 100 by the end of the day.

Oh and the escalator, lol, if no one is on it go in the opposite direction. It's a nice challenge, and funny.

D'oh, it's true bout the warm up stretching

As for talking while exercising, I mean during cardio, I've read in many places, when you're at an elevated-enough heartrate, you have trouble speaking (I mean, sure, you can speak, but not easily). If it's lower, then you're not in the "burn zone" so to speak.

Original Post by suzushii:

As for talking while exercising, I mean during cardio, I've read in many places, when you're at an elevated-enough heartrate, you have trouble speaking (I mean, sure, you can speak, but not easily). If it's lower, then you're not in the "burn zone" so to speak.

 Aerobic, you should be able to speak w/o much effort. Anaerobic, you can't talk at all. Aerobic is the "burn zone." And again, have you not heard of low heart rate training? Makes you more efficient, gain more endurance.