If you are like most Americans, you are still full from Thanksgiving. Now, between the holiday baking, office parties, and general revelry, there are more temptations around every corner. Did you know, that the average American ate 4,500 calories and 229 grams of fat this turkey day? We, including me, loved every single bite! But, extra indulgent calories and the same exercise routine (or not?!) means feeling not quite as comfortable or confident in our clothes. This Christmas season, I challenge you to be a little bit naughty, but nice to your health. These six everyday tips for mundane tasks will help you burn calories while indulging in delicious holiday foods!
- DO BRUSH AND SIT: Squats or wall sits while brushing your teeth are a great way to tone your core and legs with benefits to the entire body. Do squats twice a day for approx. 2.5 minutes of brushing, the equivalent of 150 squats. Squats alone will burn 137 calories over the course of just three days. Calorically, that’s nearly 1/2 cup of mashed potatoes (105) or 2 1-ounce slides of apple pie (134). Wall sits can also be a killer workout for your legs. Simply moving your body more during the day to burn additional calories is a great start being nice to your health.
- DON’T GET FRUSTRATED BY HOLIDAY HOMEMAKING: Tis’ the season for holiday guests, but this season, put your vacuum, and scrubbing to work. Use house guests as an opportunity to squeeze in a workout. Spend 20 minutes vacuuming your house and 20 scrubbing windows and dusting furniture, that’s 600 calories burned, which means treating yourself to a slice of pecan pie (500 calories).
- DO SHOP TILL YOU DROP: Those extra holiday calories that is…Shopping is a holiday pastime that’s fun and another way to expend calories. Don’t get me wrong, I loved Cyber Monday and have an addiction to Amazon Prime and sites like zulily, but don’t hesitate to venture to the mall or a nearby Nordstrom Rack. Remember, like Oprah, walking 10,000 steps daily is a good goal and studies suggest that people who increased their walking to 10,000 steps daily experience health benefits. So, an hour popping in and out of shops, parking in that North Star spot, and of course taking the stairs might just help you burn enough calories to drink a cup glass of eggnog guilt free! After all, your Fitbit knows if you are naughty or nice!
Shopping in Westlake Mall Seattle
- DON’T PAY TO HAVE YOUR GIFTS WRAPPED, MAKE WRAPPING WORK: DIY wrapping is a great way to spend QT, get kids to use their imagination, and burn calories all at the same time. Added bonus, wrap while standing (on one leg even better for stabilizing the core), and once again, you are taking steps towards a purposeful focus on your health.
- DO A SHOUT OUT FOR SNOW: It can be stressful if you’re busy with work and the kids get a snow day, but talk about fun. You likely can’t get into work anyway (especially if you live in Seattle like we do), so don’t even try. Leave the laptop and phone inside, grab yourself a sled and race the kids on your designated neighborhood “snow day” hill. Shoveling snow is another efficient task that burns 288 calories per hour! More Christmas fudge (140 calories) please! Of course, if you have the right car, head to ski slopes for some serious calorie burning.
Snow Day in Seattle at the Smith Tower Seattle. Don’t even try to make it to work. Stay home and burn some fun calories.
- DON’T AVOID DAWDLING AT THE DESK: If you have a job that has you sitting at a desk all day, spend a little extra time during your 3 p.m. coffee break, do your best to stand up and stretch for a quick break and consider an office treadmill desk, desk fitness cycle or under-desk elliptical trainer to break up the day, fit in your fitness, and energize your brain.
We’d love to hear about your favorite everyday exercise tips? And, of course, as we work hard to perfect one of your fitness favorites and bring Excy to market, we’ll have so many more creative tips to share for making fitness fit into your everyday life at work, home and on-the-go. Make sure to sign up for our newsletter at excy.wpengine.com to be an Excy Insider.