The more you weight, the more calories you burn. It's a simple matter of physics: Moving a heavier mass takes more energy than moving a lighter one. In people terms, a 250-pound person burns twice as many calories while walking the same distance as someone who weighs only 125 pounds.
10,000 steps
Rather than time your walks, you can count your steps. The goal is 10,000 steps, which translates closely to the recommendations made by the Surgeon General to engage in at least 30 minutes of exercise most days of the week. A simple $20 to $30 pedometer attached to your belt can do the counting for you.
Wear a pedometer for a few days to get a sense of how many steps your normal routine takes. (Most inactive people take only 2,000 to 4,000 steps a day.) When you know how many steps you normally take, add about 500 extra steps for a few days, then add 500 more, and so on. Moderately active people take 5,000 to 7,000 and active people reach the 10,000-step mark, or about 5 miles. To help with your weight-loss plan, you'll need to move up to a minimum of 12,000 to 15,000 steps a day (or 45 minutes) - and ideally 20,000 steps or about 1 hour.
As you step up your count, you'll find that you'll need to add walking to your day in order to make your target. Check out the following ways to work more walking into your day:
- Take the stairs instead of the elevator
- Park in the farthest spot in the lot
- Walk with the dog
- Walk to the bus stop with the children
- Dance
- Park the golf cart and walk the course
- Cruise around the shopping mall three times before starting to shop
- Pace the long corridors of the airport while waiting for a flight, and stay off the moving sidewalks
- Give up e-mail or phone calls and walk to your coworkers' desks
| Activity During 20 minutes | Body Weight of 134 Pounds | Body Weight of 183 Pounds |
| Aerobic dance | 128 Calories | 170 Calories |
| Ballroom dance | 64 Calories | 84 Calories |
| Basketball | 172 Calories | 220 Calories |
| Canoeing | 54 Calories | 74 Calories |
| Cleaning | 76 Calories | 102 Calories |
| Cross-country skiing | 148 Calories | 198 Calories |
| Cycling | 80 Calories | 106 Calories |
| Football | 164 Calories | 220 Calories |
| Jumping Rope | 204 Calories | 272 Calories |
| Mopping Floors | 76 Calories | 102 Calories |
| Mowing (push mower) | 138 Calories | 186 Calories |
| Racquetball | 220 Calories | 296 Calories |
| Raking | 66 Calories | 90 Calories |
| Running (9minutes/mile) | 240 Calories | 320 Calories |
| Scrubbing floors | 134 Calories | 180 Calories |
| Snowshoeing | 206 Calories | 276 Calories |
| Squash | 262 Calories | 352 Calories |
| Stacking wood | 110 Calories | 146 Calories |
| Swimming | 200 Calories | 268 Calories |
| Tennis | 136 Calories | 180 Calories |
| Volleyball | 62 Calories | 84 Calories |
| walking | 100 Calories | 134 Calories |
Strength or resistance training, such as lifting weights or working out on exercise equipment, builds muscle. This type of exercise isn't just for body builders. Building muscle offers several benefits:
- Your body develops definition and firmness.
- You burn more calories.
- Bones strengthen, which helps protect against osteoporosis.
- Balance improves significantly.
- The pain from arthritis decreases, and your range of motion improves.
- Your spirits are boosted.
Activities that don't burn calories
Unfortunately, some activities just don't burn as many calories as others. If the types of activities listed comprise the extent of your exercise habits, it's time to get into gear and get moving!
- Jumping to conclusions
- Running off at the mouth
- Catching your breath
- Standing on ceremony
- Toeing the line
- Jogging your memory
- Hitting the books
- Raking in the bucks
- Sweeping it under the rug
- Playing the field
- Marching to the beat of a different drummer
- Skipping a beat
- Exercising caution r' Swinging on a star
- Social climbing
- Running scared
- Jumping for joy
If you're new to exercise, you don't have to run to the gym; simply walking may be enough for you to increase your muscle mass. When you can walk easily for 60 minutes at a brisk pace, having followed the plan outlined in Table, you may need and want to push for more of a workout. Adding resistance training is a good way to go.
The following outlines a suggested program for weight training. Get the help of a personal trainer or gym instructor to build a routine for you that you can do at home with hand-held weights or do at the gym on the machines.
Recommended Program for Weight Training
Frequency: 3 days a week
Resistance: Use a weight that you can lift comfortably
Repetitions: 12 to 15 in 30 seconds (The last lift should be difficult.)
Stations: Work 8 to 12 muscle groups
Total time: 20 to 30 minutes