We all know we need to exercise more – our lifestyles are way too sedentary compared to that of the previous generations. It's not all our fault. The days of the 9 to 5 job are long over and despite huge advances in technology, our lives seem to be a lot busier compared than that of previous generations.
Even when I have been motivated to get a gym membership and start exercising, it only lasts for a few months. At the first sign of stress and deadlines at work, the gym routine gets kicked off the list. So here are a few tricks to include some activity in daily habits to take it from a sedentary lifestyle to a mildly active one.
? Park far away: Instinctively, almost all of us look for a spot as close to our destination as possible. Instead get into the habit of parking a block away, or parking at the farthest parking spot. If you are grocery shopping, park in the store's lot but choose the back row. Clearly you wouldn't want to be caught pushing a shopping cart down the street trying to get to your car.
? Take the stairs instead of elevators: If it is one or two floors, always take the stairs. If you need to go up/down several floors then take the stairs to two floors above/below and then take the elevator. As you get used to it, increase the number of floors you use the stairs for. If you park in a level parking lot, always park in one of the higher levels and walk down.
? If possible, walk or bike to work: This is not possible for everyone, but if you live in a place where the pollution is less and your workplace is relatively close by, then choose to walk or bike instead of driving.
? Skip the stop: If your city has a subway or bus system, skip your stop and get off at the one after (or before) and then walk from there. You'll get to enjoy the air and neighborhood a little while increasing your heart rate.
? Maximize the benefits from your grocery trip: When you go to the grocery store, make it a habit to walk the entire store. Go through every aisle and every nook and corner. Avoid the aisles that could tempt you to pick up junk food though, since that can completely obliterate any benefits of walking a few extra steps! NOTE: if you have a spending problem don't do this.
? Take a short walk-break at work: Again this one depends on your work location, but ours is located outside the city and is on large private grounds. Every afternoon a couple of us go for a short walk (~1 mile round trip) which takes roughly 15-20 minutes. It is very invigorating and a nice break from the afternoon routine.
? Do your own yard work: This is a good one for summer time when the lawn starts to grow and you need to keep it trimmed. Instead of hiring someone to do it for you, do it yourself. You will not only get some exercise, but save some money too!
? Play with your kids: Kids these days seem to play more video games than outdoor games like we did when we were younger. So take your kids out to the park and throw the ball around, play tag, etc.
? Put on your favorite music and dance: This is not only exercise, but also a great way to unwind at the end of a busy day. And a good trip down the memory lane for those of us who have not done it in a long time!
? While watching TV, pace or stretch: Instead of switching channels during the ad break get up and walk about the house. Do some lunges or some simple stretching exercises. If you have stairs in your house, walk up and down the stairs a few times, during each ad break for at least one show every day.
? Choose to walk down instead of call or email: When you have a question for a colleague, instead of picking up the phone or shooting an email, walk over to their cube. This will not only provide some exercise but a short break for a quick recharge.
? Walk while you talk on the phone: If your job involves talking on the phone a lot, then instead of doing this sitting at your desk, get into the habit of pacing while you talk. Motion creates emotion so you may even become a better speaker by doing this.
? Choose active entertainment over passive entertainment: Instead of going for a movie, choose to go play tennis with some friends (or at least bowling). Instead of playing regular video games, play with a Wii . Instead of meeting friends for a cup of coffee, catch up over a sunset walk.
? Choose active vacations: While planning vacations, pick something that involves some walking and hiking. While taking in a new city, do it by walk, instead of driving around. If golfing, skip the cart. If staying at a resort, make use of their pool and the exercise facility. Try skiing and white water rafting.
While none of these will make an immediate difference in your life style, over a period of time they will get you into the habit of choosing an active alternative to the every day things you do. In the long run, that can set the stage for an even more active life style and could be quite beneficial in avoiding some common health problems.
眾所周知，我們需要加強(qiáng)鍛煉—比起我們的前輩，我們的生活方式更慣于久坐。這不全怪我們。每天早9晚5的工作時(shí)間很長，盡管科技日益發(fā)達(dá)，但比起我們的上一代，我們的生活似乎要忙碌得多。
我曾經(jīng)受到鼓舞報(bào)名參加了體操訓(xùn)練，但那只維持了短短幾個(gè)月時(shí)間。主要是由于工作的壓力和期限限制，最終把體操訓(xùn)練從我的日志中劃掉了。這里我從日常習(xí)慣中總結(jié)了一些包括活動(dòng)的小技巧，它能使我們從久坐不動(dòng)的生活方式中解脫出來，轉(zhuǎn)變?yōu)檫m度活動(dòng)的方式。
把車停得遠(yuǎn)一些：處于本能，我們都愿意尋找離目的地盡可能近的地方停車。那么不要習(xí)慣于把車停在只有一個(gè)街區(qū)遠(yuǎn)的地方，而要把它停在更遠(yuǎn)的地方，或者打在一個(gè)更遠(yuǎn)的停車場。如果你在商場購物，那么不要把車停在商店的區(qū)域，而選擇停在后排。很明顯，你不想被人看見推著購物車沿街尋找你的車。
爬樓梯而不乘電梯：如果在二、三樓，走樓梯好了。如果你需要上、下好幾層樓，那么走兩層樓梯再乘電梯。如果你已經(jīng)習(xí)慣了，那么增加爬樓梯的層數(shù)。 如果你在一個(gè)階梯停車場停車，要把車停在更高的一級(jí)，然后走著下來。
盡可能步行或騎自行車去上班：當(dāng)然不是人皆適宜，但如果你居住的地方?jīng)]什么污染，你工作的地方相對(duì)較近，那么選擇步行或騎自行車，而不去駕車。
錯(cuò)過車站下車：如果你的城市有地鐵或公交系統(tǒng)，那么你要錯(cuò)過你要到的車站，在前一站或其后一站下車，然后從那里走過去。當(dāng)你的心率升高時(shí)，你要呼吸一下清新的空氣，欣賞一下社區(qū)的風(fēng)景。
在購物過程中獲得最大的好處：當(dāng)你去雜貨店購物時(shí)，要養(yǎng)成逛遍整個(gè)雜貨店的習(xí)慣。穿過每一條走廊，尋遍每一個(gè)角落。不要避免走那些引導(dǎo)你走向垃圾食品的走廊，這樣可能破壞你多走幾步的計(jì)劃！注意：如果你存在消費(fèi)問題，可別這樣這么做耶。
在工作間隙做一下短暫散步：當(dāng)然這又取決于你的工作場所了，而我們的工作場所坐落在城外，在一個(gè)很大的私人場地之上。每天下午，我們幾個(gè)人都要做短暫散步（一里地行程），大約花15-20分鐘。這非常令人神清氣爽，在下午的工作中做了短暫休息。.
干你院子里的活兒：在夏季，當(dāng)草坪開始生長時(shí)，這是一段好時(shí)光，你需要修剪它，不至于讓它瘋長。與其雇人，不如自己親自干。這樣不僅鍛煉了身體而且節(jié)約了錢財(cái)，何樂而不為！
和孩子一起玩：現(xiàn)在的小孩子似乎總是躲在屋里玩電腦游戲而不像我們小時(shí)侯一樣總是在戶外活動(dòng)。因此，帶孩子到公園去，扔扔皮球，跳跳繩子等等。
播放你最喜歡的音樂，跳跳舞：這樣不但能得到鍛煉，而且能讓我們從忙碌的日子中得到放松。在記憶中的鄉(xiāng)間小路散步旅行，對(duì)于長時(shí)間沒有光顧這里的我們，別有一番風(fēng)味在心頭。
看電視的時(shí)候踱踱步、伸伸腰。在看電視的間隙與其不停地?fù)Q頻道，還不如站起來在屋子里走走。如果你的屋子有樓梯，每天至少在一個(gè)電視劇間隙或廣告時(shí)間，上下樓梯幾次。
選擇走過去，而不是打電話或發(fā)郵件：如果你有問題要問同事，不要拿起電話或發(fā)一個(gè)郵件，走向他的工作間。這不但能得到鍛煉，而且還能稍做休息。
邊走邊打電話：如果你工作中接聽電話的次數(shù)較多，那么不要坐在桌邊接聽，養(yǎng)成邊邁步邊打電話的習(xí)慣。行動(dòng)促進(jìn)心動(dòng)，也許通過鍛煉你會(huì)變得能說會(huì)道。
選擇活動(dòng)的娛樂方式而不是靜坐的娛樂方式：不去看電影，而是和朋友一起打網(wǎng)球（至少是保齡球）。放棄定期玩電子游戲，而和朋友喝咖啡聊天，或在太陽的余輝中漫步。
選擇度過一個(gè)充滿活力的假期：當(dāng)你計(jì)劃度假時(shí)，挑一些散步或徒步旅行的項(xiàng)目去做。當(dāng)你到一個(gè)新的城市度假，要步行觀光、避免駕車去觀光。能打高爾夫球就不去坐馬車。如果你呆在一個(gè)旅游勝地，那么利用那里的池水和體育設(shè)施，千方百計(jì)去猾雪、劃筏沖浪。
可能沒有任何技巧能立即讓你的生活方式改觀，但通過一段時(shí)間，你就會(huì)養(yǎng)成選擇積極的生活方式的習(xí)慣做日常生活的事。從長遠(yuǎn)來看，它能為你過上積極生活打下堅(jiān)實(shí)基礎(chǔ)，可以避免一些影響健康方面的問題發(fā)生，受益無窮。