Three Ways To Stay Fit Without Exercise
July 16th 2008 05:00 am
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“I hate going to the gym”, “I hate running”, “Exercise is so boring”. The more I speak to people who exercise the more negative responses I get. So let me get this straight people intentionally spend 30 minutes, 60 minutes or more daily torturing themselves. Isn’t there a better way?
Actually there are three better ways:
1. Find fun ways to exercise. If you enjoy playing basketball, then basketball isn’t exercise it’s fun time. Simple enough.
2. Replace exercise time with other productive physical activities. See: How Avoiding Exercise Can Make You Fit and Productive
3. Don’t be Lazy. During the day there are plenty of opportunities to be active- embrace them. Read: Exercise is for Lazy People
How do you stay fit without exercise?
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Eli responded on 16 Jul 2008 at 8:30 am #
Actually, in my house we rarely “exercise”. I’m the biggest fitness buff in the house and I go for walks (lets me escape the kids, wife, work and everything else for a while). However, we are quite active.
One of the best pieces of fitness equipment in our house is our Wii. We started with the basic Wii and the Sports pack. The boxing is enough to wind most people, but the golf, bowling and even tennis is enough exercise for most people.
Then we got the Dance Dance Revolution mat and game. That is where the “fitness” part of it all starts. Now we have 2 mats and we can “battle”. Last night we brought it out for fin and I was sweating up a storm in about 20 min. There is a workout mode, but it is so much fun that you don’t really notice you are exercising.
So, that is my 2 cents worth and our “fitness” regime. My wife uses the Wii every day, and I walk every day and Wii occasionally.
I look forward to hearing from other people.
Bart B responded on 16 Jul 2008 at 2:22 pm #
I too, like the idea of having an active lifestyle instead of being a gym rat. For me, I have rather physical hobbies: Jujitsu, gold panning, rock climbing, eating, and curiously wandering around. They tend to keep me pretty fit.
However, I’ve other hobbies that I integrate physicality into, like photography. I choose to shoot a lot of nature photography, which means a good deal of walking.
Other things I’ve done to promote a healthy life style: Have more sex, build stuff (model rockets to rock sculptures in my backyard), sing vigorously in the shower and car, and replace video games with social games (Crainium, Balderdash, Apples to Apples) that create belly laughs for me and the family.
One of my rules of life is to try to create for entertainment instead of just absorb like a couch potato.
To Eli:
I’ve been considering a Wii for a while now. I like masculine types of games - sword fighting, boxing, empire building - do you think the Wii has some decent titles that I’d like?
Eli responded on 16 Jul 2008 at 4:32 pm #
@Bart B
Oh heck ya! The sports pack comes with Boxing, but it pales in comparison to some of the boxing games out there. There are some more “masculine” games, however many of the games are targeted for kids. If you have kids, the kids games like Mario Olympic Games has lots of fun games that adults can play and it burns a LOT of calories at the same time.
However, the boxing games, sword games and the like are definitely there, and the Wii-motes (remote and nunchuk) ensure you are not a couch potato either.
Hit your local Walmart or video rental store to see what is out there. Some video stores may even rent you a system for a week so you can try it out (I know there do here). Or check to see if a friend/co-worker has one that you can test-drive.
And, since you are into “social” games, there are tons for the Wii as well. Brain Age Academy is quite skill-testing and it’s also quite addictive.
Heshy responded on 16 Jul 2008 at 9:54 pm #
You convinced me I’m getting a Wii- my kids will love you for it (they’ve been after me for a while for it).
I should add one more way to stay fit and have fun is play with your kids- especially when they’re as active as mine…
Eli responded on 20 Jul 2008 at 9:46 pm #
I have not tried the WiiFit…Yet. It’s on our “to buy” list. My wife uses the DDR (Dance Dance revolution) mat daily and she has lost 6 lbs in about 2 weeks. She sets it to between 250 and 500 calories (in workout mode). She tends to do about 300 but will occasionally push it. We now have 2 mats and have “battles” now and again.
If I were you (and I was last year), I would get the Wii, a game or two for the kids and the DDR. Start there and you’ll see how much fun it is. Don’t think about using it for weight loss or anything, just play with it… daily. With the kids, the hubby/wife, neighbors or by your self. Just do it! (Apologies to Nike)
Our next purchase of the WiiFit will be in the future (I’m between jobs, so it’s not an option), but it will be a welcomed addition. I’m looking forward to the Yoga and other “low impact” exercises. I hope to incorporate that into my “daily exercise without exercising” regime.
Let me (us) know how it works out!
CustomEric22 responded on 29 Aug 2008 at 2:45 am #
What gave you the idea to write about Three Ways To Stay Fit Without Exercise | Success Making Machine ? I read the whole thing and was a bit surprise.
Camille responded on 29 Aug 2008 at 4:49 pm #
Interesting because while searching the net I found your site about Three Ways To Stay Fit Without Exercise | Success Making Machine of course i dont agree with everything but you have good points. thx for the info!
Heshy responded on 01 Sep 2008 at 12:29 pm #
@CustomEric22
I wrote this because “Laziness is the mother of all invention”. I want to avoid exercising- don’t you?
@Camille
what don’t you agree with?