Hey hey,
This is Dr. Angela Tran
Don’t you ever sometimes feel you are the odd one out because you don’t belong to the gym? Then you start making up “stories” that you don’t have time to exercise. And I’m here to tell you that you actually do have time AND you don’t have to have a gym membership. In case you missed part one, read it here:
So there are some easy ways to stay active and “exercise” without the requirement of equipment. Let’s begin!
- Gardening/mowing your lawn – This is one of my absolute favorites! Did you know that you could potentially burn over 300 calories in an hour of gardening? It keeps you busy, gets you outside, and time goes by fast when you’re not looking.
- Walk with a friend in the park – I had a friend who I met every Saturday in the summertime and walked around Wash Park which is a well-known park here in Denver. It is so beautiful there and there’s lots of people and action, and we used it to catch up with each other. Walking for 30 minutes can easily burn 100 calories per 30 minutes…boom.
- Walk your dog. Yes even your chihuahua or maltese (which is what I have) needs to walk too! As tempting as it is to just let them out in the backyard, take a walk even if it is just around the block. I also have a favorite podcast that I listen to while walking my dog, Lucky, and all of a sudden 30 minutes passes by in a flash. If you have a bigger dog, you could burn over 200 calories.
- Hiking. Living in Colorado, we are certainly lucky to have access to many trails. And you don’t have to be a “professional” to find a trail. Hiking gets you connected to nature, helps take your mind off your stressors, and it is very scenic. This activity will easily get you over 400 calories burned even just hiking on a simpler trail. If you like more of an incline, you will be burning more like 500-600 calories.
- Biking. This is one of my favorites because you can do this with your family. It lets me stay active while still spending time with my daughter and husband which is priceless. My daughter isn’t old enough to ride on her own, but as soon as she is, she will be out there with us riding in the neighborhood just like when we were kids. Again, you could easily burn 200-300 calories while riding your bike in the neighborhood or park.
- Participate in fun 5k events. Sign up your kids in the fun run. There are so many 5ks nowadays that doesn’t require “running”. These events are so much fun from the Color Run, to glow in the dark run, and they even have some obstacles in these events too. Get your family out there and have a good time, and burn close to 300 calories merely walking the race.
- Get 10,000 steps everyday with a fitness tracker. At the Med-Fit clinic, we have weekly challenges and a dashboard so we can follow everyone’s steps for the week. Our trainer, Julia, gets over 100,000 steps a week! The average calories burned in 10,000 steps are 300-350 calories.
If you want to know more, let’s have a chat and discuss all that together.
Dr. Angela Tran
