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There are far more ways to burn calories and get our blood flowing than just traditional exercises like running, walking, swimming, and cycling. Here are a few more techniques some of my patients have used to burn calories and add physical activity to their routines.
Playing active video games like Nintendo's Wii Fit can be a fun way to burn calories, lose weight, and feel great. In a 2013 study, women in the postpartum period were assigned to either Wii Fit Plus for 40 days or to no activity. After the study period, the Wii Fit group had burned an average of 200 extra calories each day and lost 5 pounds! When using video games as an exercise tool, the most important factor is to choose a game that you enjoy. Like most things in life, the more enjoyable the activity, the greater the likelihood that you will keep it up and reap the benefits.
Rebounding is another way to improve mood and support heart health. Bouncing on a mini trampoline can increase heart rate to moderate- and high-intensity levels (55 to 90 percent of maximal heart rate for age) and burn about the same amount of calories (approximately 5 to 10 calories per minute) as jogging on a treadmill at 5 to 6 miles per hour. Rebounding has a low impact on your joints and is a great option for people who have painful feet while wearing shoes during exercise, since it can be done barefoot. I recommend one of the newer mini trampoline models that are bungee cord rather than spring loaded, such as Bellicon or JumpSport, because they provide a gentler, lower-impact bounce that's easier on your joints. The American College of Sports Medicine recommends target exercise expenditure between 150 and 400 kilocalories each day to optimize heart and overall health. This is likely to be met by 30 minutes of brisk walking or 15 minutes of rebounding, both of which are guaranteed to elevate your mood.
Being NEAT is another great way to add more movement and burn more calories. NEAT stands for "nonexercise activity thermogenesis" and is our ability to burn fat in the absence of formalized activity. Virtually anything that you do throughout the day, excluding exercise or being a couch potato, counts as NEAT.
One of the very best-kept secrets as to why thin people stay thin (and a secret that even thin people themselves may not realize) is that they are super NEAT achievers. Many thin people never sit still, even when they are supposedly relaxing. The next time you're able, notice the behavior of your thin colleagues or friends when they're at rest. Do you recall that guy at the office whose foot is tapping all day long, or the woman who's always jiggling her crossed leg? That's super NEAT behavior. Thin people also tend to sit about 2½ hours less each day than obese men and women. Not only does having a high NEAT score keep someone moving and therefore burning calories, but it also improves his or her mood by keeping those supermood chemicals revved.
It has been suggested that adapting to a NEAT lifestyle can burn about 350 additional calories each day. Over the course of a year, conversion to a NEAT lifestyle can lead to a 30- to 40-pound weight reduction! To rev up your NEAT profile, I recommend the following:
1. Try to walk up one or two additional flights of stairs in addition to those in your residence at least once daily. For example, if your job is located on the tenth floor, get off the elevator on the eighth or ninth floor and walk the rest of the way up. As your strength and endurance improve, add more flights.
2. When you're out shopping, park at the far end of the lot. Not only will you improve your NEAT profile, but you'll also be less stressed because your auto will be less likely to be hit by the rushed, type A drivers in some of these densely populated parking lots.
3. Chop, slice, and dice your veggies rather than purchasing them already prepared. Every extra bit of movement counts.
4. Fidget throughout the day. I tell my patients who have desk jobs never to sit still. Fidgeting, also known as incidental or spontaneous physical activity, in itself can burn anywhere from 100 to 800 calories each day! Specifically, I recommend that my patients stay in motion throughout the day by quietly tapping their feet or drumming their fingers. Burning as little as 100 calories daily through fidgeting can translate into a 10-pound weight loss over the course of a year.
5. In addition to moving their extremities, people with desk jobs should make a habit of standing and walking around the room or hallway every 15 to 20 minutes to improve their circulation and burn some calories.
You don't need to be an athlete to generate benefits for your cardiovascular system, as well as your mood. Moderate-intensity activities will yield heart-healthy dividends and provide a quick boost to your mood, as well as a more substantive increase in positive mood over time. To reap the benefits for both your heart and your mind, participate in an aerobic activity for 30 minutes a day or 150 minutes each week, and maximize NEAT by moving every 15 to 20 minutes during the day.
Playing active video games like Nintendo's Wii Fit can be a fun way to burn calories, lose weight, and feel great. In a 2013 study, women in the postpartum period were assigned to either Wii Fit Plus for 40 days or to no activity. After the study period, the Wii Fit group had burned an average of 200 extra calories each day and lost 5 pounds! When using video games as an exercise tool, the most important factor is to choose a game that you enjoy. Like most things in life, the more enjoyable the activity, the greater the likelihood that you will keep it up and reap the benefits.
Rebounding is another way to improve mood and support heart health. Bouncing on a mini trampoline can increase heart rate to moderate- and high-intensity levels (55 to 90 percent of maximal heart rate for age) and burn about the same amount of calories (approximately 5 to 10 calories per minute) as jogging on a treadmill at 5 to 6 miles per hour. Rebounding has a low impact on your joints and is a great option for people who have painful feet while wearing shoes during exercise, since it can be done barefoot. I recommend one of the newer mini trampoline models that are bungee cord rather than spring loaded, such as Bellicon or JumpSport, because they provide a gentler, lower-impact bounce that's easier on your joints. The American College of Sports Medicine recommends target exercise expenditure between 150 and 400 kilocalories each day to optimize heart and overall health. This is likely to be met by 30 minutes of brisk walking or 15 minutes of rebounding, both of which are guaranteed to elevate your mood.
Being NEAT is another great way to add more movement and burn more calories. NEAT stands for "nonexercise activity thermogenesis" and is our ability to burn fat in the absence of formalized activity. Virtually anything that you do throughout the day, excluding exercise or being a couch potato, counts as NEAT.
One of the very best-kept secrets as to why thin people stay thin (and a secret that even thin people themselves may not realize) is that they are super NEAT achievers. Many thin people never sit still, even when they are supposedly relaxing. The next time you're able, notice the behavior of your thin colleagues or friends when they're at rest. Do you recall that guy at the office whose foot is tapping all day long, or the woman who's always jiggling her crossed leg? That's super NEAT behavior. Thin people also tend to sit about 2½ hours less each day than obese men and women. Not only does having a high NEAT score keep someone moving and therefore burning calories, but it also improves his or her mood by keeping those supermood chemicals revved.
It has been suggested that adapting to a NEAT lifestyle can burn about 350 additional calories each day. Over the course of a year, conversion to a NEAT lifestyle can lead to a 30- to 40-pound weight reduction! To rev up your NEAT profile, I recommend the following:
1. Try to walk up one or two additional flights of stairs in addition to those in your residence at least once daily. For example, if your job is located on the tenth floor, get off the elevator on the eighth or ninth floor and walk the rest of the way up. As your strength and endurance improve, add more flights.
2. When you're out shopping, park at the far end of the lot. Not only will you improve your NEAT profile, but you'll also be less stressed because your auto will be less likely to be hit by the rushed, type A drivers in some of these densely populated parking lots.
3. Chop, slice, and dice your veggies rather than purchasing them already prepared. Every extra bit of movement counts.
4. Fidget throughout the day. I tell my patients who have desk jobs never to sit still. Fidgeting, also known as incidental or spontaneous physical activity, in itself can burn anywhere from 100 to 800 calories each day! Specifically, I recommend that my patients stay in motion throughout the day by quietly tapping their feet or drumming their fingers. Burning as little as 100 calories daily through fidgeting can translate into a 10-pound weight loss over the course of a year.
5. In addition to moving their extremities, people with desk jobs should make a habit of standing and walking around the room or hallway every 15 to 20 minutes to improve their circulation and burn some calories.
You don't need to be an athlete to generate benefits for your cardiovascular system, as well as your mood. Moderate-intensity activities will yield heart-healthy dividends and provide a quick boost to your mood, as well as a more substantive increase in positive mood over time. To reap the benefits for both your heart and your mind, participate in an aerobic activity for 30 minutes a day or 150 minutes each week, and maximize NEAT by moving every 15 to 20 minutes during the day.