If you are anything like me, New Year’s resolutions are fading away and you are rediscovering the eighth wonder of the world, Pizza (or other fatty/fried foods). I started the year strong by running every other day, buying “workout” Xbox360 games, signing up for races, etc. As the weeks went on though, I started slowly eating less healthy, taking a day off from running here and there, and eventually fell back into my old routine. Now that spring is here, it is about time to get back into it the groove and make the “New Year’s” resolution a permanent thing.
For me, it is taking place in three phases:
1. Be less sedentary
2. Eat healthier
3. Increase exercise.
In adhering to my plan, I’ll be tapping into a few Merchants using the ShareASale platform and some of the products they sell.
Sitting for five or six hours a day, even if you spend an hour a day at the gym, is the equivalent of smoking an entire pack of cigarettes.
-Rachael Anderson| Sharecare| Healthy Living
1. Be Less Sedentary
According to a number of researchers, most notably Dr. James Levine of the Mayo Clinic, sitting for more than 6 hours a day can be worse for the body and overall health than smoking is. He urges people to consider “that sitting is the new smoking. That sitting is literally bad for you”. The products I have enlisted to help here are:
Adjustable Desk: I try to stand for one hour and then sit for one hour. Doing this reduces my sitting by 4-5 hours per day and I burn roughly 500 calories a day by doing this.
Under the desk pedal: When I am not standing, I still try to keep slightly active by slowly and quietly pedaling under my desk. I do not do it for the whole hour because that is just crazy, but after 10-15 minutes, I feel much better about sitting that hour. Roughly 100 calories burned per hour pedaling!
2. Eat Healthier
1/4 of vegetable intake in American children is through potato chips and french fries.
– CBS Interview with Eric Schlosser of Fast Food Nation
Not too long ago, I purchased a Vitamix blender. The price tag is high, but the benefits outweigh the cost more than I could have imagined. Since buying it, I have been consuming at least one green smoothie per day and have never felt better! If you are not familiar with green smoothies, The Chicago Daily Harold has a well-written description of them here. Two ingredients I like to add for extra “boost” can be found through another ShareASale Merchant, AbesMarket.com:
Chia Seeds and Coconut Oil: Many of these “superfoods” have a myriad of beneficial effects on overall health. I throw them in my Vitamix with the other fruits and vegetables for extra flavor and/or nutrients.
3. Increase Exercise
Activities – calories burned per hour:
- Light walking = 240 calories
- Jogging = 600 calories
- Sleeping = 80 calories
- Cooking = 230 calories
- Bowling = 260 calories
- Table Tennis = 345 calories
- Light Aerobics= 520 calories
Obviously, pedaling under my desk and standing are two wonderful additions to my new “exercise” routine, but I also noticed my belly fat not going away and I was still having a hard time breathing after walking up two flights of stairs.
To remedy this issue, I bought a new pair of running shoes from Reebok.com, as well as the new Nike+ Kinect training game for my Xbox360 from thenerds.net
With my new purchases, I switch daily between running 2-5 miles and 30-40 minutes on the Nike+ Kinect Training Game. This provides me with roughly 30-60 minutes of active exercise every day.
With all of these great exercise-related products available, and the numbers to back them up, I no longer have any excuses for bailing on my New Year’s resolutions!
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