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** THANKS FOR SENDING IN YOUR [Month] ACTIVITY LOG! **

A study by Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center found that for some people increased lifestyle activity is just as beneficial for improved fitness as aerobic exercise. I do not want this to discourage you from your exercise routines but to encourage you to incorporate some of these everyday kinds of physical activities into your day as well.

  • Park on the opposite side of the mall from your destination.
  • Walk every aisle of the grocery store- even if you do not need anything in some aisles.
  • At work, deliver things personally instead of using interoffice mail.
  • Go for a five-minute walk around the block when others take their smoking break.
  • Throw away the television remote control.
  • Play catch with the dog and take the dog for more walks.
  • Baby-sit a toddler.
  • Get up from your desk and take a three-minute walk around the halls every hour.
  • Walk to your neighbor's house instead of driving.
  • Play catch or hide-and-seek with your kids.
  • Hang laundry outside.
  • Vacuum the house more often.
  • Plant and tend a vegetable garden.
  • Get up and walk between meal courses.
  • Iron while you watch TV.
  • Go to the bathroom on a different floor than the one you are on.
  • Don't combine errands; do them one at a time.
  • Cut your grass twice a week and use a push mower.
  • Use a cordless phone or a cell and walk while you talk.

 


US Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine.