noodle

After watching some really, really lazy girls in the parking lot at the SuperTarget drive around, around, around until they found a parking space about four spaces from the front of the store, I got to thinking... I park where there is a spot. Walking isn't going to kill me. They passed 20 -30 spaces that were a good 1 - 2 minute walk to the front door and wasted 5 minutes looking for that spot... maybe more. I'm always trying to do a little extra to burn a few more calories most days. So, I thought I'd contribute a little more around here too and maybe get some ideas on how others have found ways to get a little bit more calorie burning extras. Here are some ways I do it...

If I've forgotten anything reasonably carry-able, I'll walk to the Jiffy Store or Target next door to pick it up, rather than driving. The 20 lb cat litter box was a one-time mistake.

Park at least a full minute's walk from the front door of the office, store, etc. weather permitting.

Purposefully leave one or two things downstairs in the car that I might need, to add that extra trip up and down the stairs.

Make an extra pass up and down the stairs if I think about a boredom snack, and then see if I'm actually hungry.

Anywhere within a 4 mile round trip is worth walking, 6 miles if there's a movie or some break involved, weather permitting, of course... it is Florida, after all.

At work, I'll visit patients on different floors and take the stairs in a pattern that requires several trips up and down (e.g. 4th floor, 6th, 3rd, 5th, etc).

I also make myself walk around the outside of the building at least once each day when I'm getting sleepy around 2pm... then I get my coffee.

I keep clorox wipes in every bathroom, kitchen, entry area and will randomly burst into a cleaning spell if I see something yucky and sing at least three songs while doing it to ensure 10 minutes elapse. *note... I sing them in my head, not out loud. The cats bite me when I sing aloud.


Where/how do you find ways to sneak in a little extra burn?

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snowy

We walk to buy groceries fairly frequently. The nearest store (hippie food co-op) is 2 blocks away--why wouldn't I walk? The only exceptions are if I'm stopping there on the way home or on the way to something, or if I'm buying ice (they have the best ice in town). The other store is 1/2 mile away, and the same rules apply, except for it's pouring buckets and we don't want our stuff to get soaked. Rain is a big factor in whether we walk or not, though we do have good raincoats and waterproof shoes (thank you, Gore-Tex), so walking is still a frequent choice.

We live in a very walkable and bikeable area, though, and so we walk and bike a lot. We walk to the pub. We walk to the coffee shop. We bike to school and to work. Anything more than 1/2 a mile, we bike. I don't bike to work if I have stuff to carry (like today, had to pack my car full of stuff from work to take to Goodwill) or if it's at night; biking at night around here is not something I enjoy.

I take the stairs instead of the elevator.

I clean when I'm bored instead of sitting still.

I fidget. Right now, I'm bouncing one foot up and down.

I randomly burst into dance. This is why my housecleaning playlist has Lady Gaga on it.

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LordEden

I try my best to walk around as much as I can. When I was in a kitchen I walked alot more than I do now, which is why I have gained weight. I never knew being on my feet and walking around as much as I did kept my weight off.

I grab the first parking spot I can no matter where it is, I hate looking for a spot for more than 2 minutes.

I like noodle's ideas for beating boredom hunger. Good call noodlez.

Thinking about biking to work instead of driving since work is only a mile away.

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Ourcrazymodern?

Y'know, when I started reading the OP, I thought this was gonna be about gasoline.

I burn calories making up haiku.

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lurkette

Nothing new to add on the activities - all mine have been said (leaving things up/downstairs deliberately, parking far away, stairs instead of elevator). But I do beat the snackies sometimes by making myself have some water first. One, it makes me walk all the way down the hall to the fountain, and two, I sometimes can't tell the difference between hungry and thirsty. If I'm still hungry after the water, then I know I need a snack. If I'm not, then I have successfully diagnosed and treated thirst, a thing most 3-year-olds have mastered

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Cynthetiq

Sometimes I walk the longer way to work.

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Tully Mars

I find if I work out first thing in the morning I have more energy all day. Which makes it more likely I'll walk more and do more laps in the pool rather then sit around or float around.

On another note... I'm in love with Lurkette's avatar.

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FuglyStick

I probably do more manual labor than 99.9% of the members of this site.

Wanna burn some calories? Do some landscaping.

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Lindy

I usually work three or four days each week on the sixth floor of a building, and I usually take the stairs, which keeps my glutes firm and works my hamstrings. Not to mention my lungs. Walking makes me feel good, I enjoy it, but I won't delude myself about it making much difference in my weight.
Just look at the math:
I weigh in (happily) at about 110 pounds.
At 4 mph or 15 minutes per mile (a good "brisk walk" pace) I only burn about 62 calories each mile.
It takes burning 3500 calories to lose a pound. (uh-oh, I see where this is headed)
At 62 calories/mile that works out to just under 56 and a half miles. To lose one pound.

So for me to lose about ten pounds (from walking alone) I would need to walk the equivalent of from Boston to Richmond, VA, Denver to Salt Lake City or Omaha, Portland (Oregon) to Sacramento or Missoula, or from New York City to Toledo, Ohio.
Of course, everyone's mileage varies. If someone weighed 220 pounds, they'd only have to walk from Pittsburgh to Cincinnati to lose ten.

I don't think walking a little farther in the mall or food store parking lot is gonna make that happen. It can make me feel like I'm doing the right thing on a number of levels, but it won't burn off much weight.


Lindy

lurkette

Well, looked at another way:

Say you could walk a cumulative mile every day at 62 calories. Over a year you would burn 22,630 calories, which at 3500 calories/pound is just under 6 1/2 pounds, which I find pretty a pretty impressive return on a minimal investment (having just struggled to lose about the same amount in about 2 months). If you're seriously overweight it's not going to solve the problem by itself, but it's an extra 6 1/2 lbs nonetheless!

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Baraka_Guru

My trick I guess was to get rid of my monthly metro pass. I now have to pay out of my pocket each and every time I want to take the bus. This has forced me to walk in some instances where I would have taken the bus. My rule of thumb is that I'll walk if it's within 30 minutes one way.

It also helps to have a dog...in the city...with no yard. I easily walk one or two hours a day because of the dog.

Unfortunately, it isn't so simple. The "returns" on the calorie burning will diminish over time as your body adapts and becomes more efficient. This is why you won't lose 6.5 lbs., year to year until you whittle down to literally nothing.

The idea is to do progressively more until you're happy with what you're doing. If the body isn't challenged, the body won't be forced to adapt. This is why I've never really bought into the "take the stairs" mentality to burn fat. There are days where I'll walk for up to 3 hours or more cumulatively, in addition to any gym time. I used to get to work and take the elevator up four floors. The stairs would have been a drop in the bucket.

Walking isn't anywhere near the best way to burn fat. It happens to be the easiest, cheapest, and most convenient. It just takes a long time and can lose its effectiveness.

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Humankind cannot bear very much reality.
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lurkette

Excellent....permission to ignore the annoying "take the stairs" signs by the elevator

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"If ten million people believe a foolish thing, it is still a foolish thing."

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Jove

Usually take the stairs while at work, so on a busy day I may go up and down three flights of stairs 30 times in 8 hours and on a non busy day, probably 10 times.

Idyllic

I pour my beer into a heavy glass mug, that way instead of lifting just an ultra-light can or a slightly heavier bottle I actually have to lift the entire beer AND the glass mug, sometimes I even stand up while I'm doing it. This would explain the extra 5 pounds I have gained since "Natural Manhood" showed up....

I guess it's time for some real exercise, kegels anyone? (kidding)

++++++++++++++

Dancing during housework, (dancing in house in general w/ the kids), leg lifts at the computer, sit-ups (crunches), stretching and leg lifts in bed before I get out. Bus stop exercises while I wait for the bus, etc....

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PonyPotato

I usually take the stairs, mostly because it's faster than the elevator.

Otherwise, I don't really go out of my way to burn more calories. I am at an ideal weight, I'm very fit, and I sometimes have trouble eating enough to sustain my level of physical activity. I usually ride my bike/go to spinning class/go running/go swimming 6 days per week, and I usually ride a horse or two nearly every day, as well. I also do some other physical labor at home and with the horses, so I'd say I'm okay in the calorie burning department.

Considering I'm a person who chooses to go on "dates" with her SO that involve 50 miles on a bicycle instead of a "date" to the movies, I think the key is not making a lot of tiny decision to burn extra calories - it's the major decisions that matter. I choose activity over inactivity (i.e. going for a run instead of watching TV), and that will keep me healthier in the long run.

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Idyllic

I'm so very envious of you right now, I miss riding, I miss it something terrible. I can't even remember how comfortable one becomes after riding so often, I love the gentle giants, everything about them, I USED to ride daily also, long ago in a different life (feels that way anyhow). I am green with envy PonyP

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you can tell them all you want but it won't matter until they think it does

p.s. I contradict my contradictions, with or without intention, sometimes.

Plan9

ADHD keeps me fit.

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noodle

This topic really didn't come up for me as a discussion about weight loss.
Instead it was more a thought process on ways that I've found to get something done in a way that helps me to remain actively involved in my own health, and to make positive choices. It keeps me motivated to do 20 minutes of housework to know that I balanced out my little banana with breakfast. Just a way to make something that I already do or have to do a little more beneficial for my own health. Physical and mental. I know that it takes 3 miles on the bike per shot of vodka, too.
Walking up the stairs several times is four minutes of a higher heart rate than I would have had if I'd just made one trip and sat on my ass for three minutes.

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MSD

But if you took a short walk after eating, your body would burn simple carbohydrates firs, lessening the need for an insulin response that inhibits lipolysis and decreases whole-body lipid oxidation. It's not just a calories in, calories out equation.

raging moderate

Often I agree with you, and factually this is no exception; however, I disagree with some of the logic and the conclusion. For one, if walking is as ineffective as you say, why do you do it so much? Why not just save the money and pay for the bus pass? I think it can be very effective, at least to keep the weight off if not to lose any.

Second, idk about you but I live in one of, if not the, fattest country in the world. Actually, I live in one of the fattest states in that country, one in which 2/3 of the population is overweight and 30% is obese. I would never try to dissuade anyone from walking anywhere at any time. If they only lose three pounds by walking somewhere regularly instead of walking, so be it, at least that's three pounds closer to not being overweight or obese.

anyway not to threadjack. to the OP i like to take my bike to anywhere that's bike-able - popular destinations include the laundromat (to switch from washer to dryer), liquor store, and the gas station (for beer). often times it is also a happy coincidence that I should not be driving anyway...

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formerly Murp0434

Lindy

MSD, I agree 110%, except I never (well, very rarely) even eat simple carbs. I follow a high protein, some would even say high fat, diet. I'm not a strict carnivore, because I eat a lot of salad and cruciferous veggies, green beans, and squash, and plenty of berries and melons, but meat, dairy, eggs, and fish are my mainstays. I eat whole grains on occasion, but I can't even remember my last white bread, rice, or potato. I'll admit a weakness for steel cut oatmeal, though.

Lindy

PonyPotato

I used to have a diet like that. In fact, I prefer to have a diet like that - I don't really like the taste of most bread/pasta/etc. and the feeling carbs leave in my mouth.. but I've had to increase the carbs in my diet as my activity load has drastically increased. If I don't essentially carb-load a bit every day, my muscles have no fuel for my next long workout and it doesn't go well.

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"Without passion man is a mere latent force and possibility, like the flint which awaits the shock of the iron before it can give forth its spark."
— Henri-Frédéric Amiel

Baraka_Guru

My point is that in my case, taking little snippets of walks will have almost no return because I already walk so much. I'm not losing weight by walking 2 or 3 hours a day because I've already lost it from that type of activity. There is an equilibrium your body will achieve at a certain sustained activity level. If you were to take a person who is sedentary and obese and have them walk 2 or 3 hours a day, they're going to burn all kinds of weight off over time. But even then there will come a time when the weight no longer comes off. They will need to do more, such as high-intensity cardio and/or resistance training.

Again it comes down to this: if your body isn't challenged, it won't need to adapt.

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Knowing that death is certain and that the time of death is uncertain, what's the most important thing?
—Bhikkhuni Pema Chödrön

Humankind cannot bear very much reality.
—From "Burnt Norton," Four Quartets (1936), T. S. Eliot

Ourcrazymodern?

I burnt a few reacting to this.

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Bretz

HI,
According to me swimming is a better way to burn more calories and also there is no feeling like irritation in it...
So i would prefer this one...

Xazy

In the past 8 weeks I have lost 8 pounds by just walking the stairs more, being a little more self-conscious what I eat. I went from 175 to 167. I did not change my diet outside of being just a little more self-aware of how much I am eating and having a little less pasta.

In the past 2 weeks however I have not lost anything, the pounds were only lost in the first 6 weeks. Due to some stressors I have been drinking a bit more soda the past 2 weeks which probably accounts partly for the lack of losing any weight.

I hope to get down to 155, what I weighed 7.5 years ago when I got married.

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EventHorizon

i walk .3 miles from my room to the mess hall and .3 back twice a day for my beakfast and dinne

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rmarshall

When my last contract job ended, I got a job delivering papers. It pays $16/hour (as a driver) and is one day a week. So, for one day a week, I walk (and drive) and go up and down front steps for 8 or 9 hours. I feel pain in my legs for a day or so after, each week.

After a while, I got another part-time job fixing computers for 4 days a week. I'm mostly on my feet all day. I could work 5 days, but I decided to keep the paper job.

I figured the exercise is not enough, so I got another job delivering Sears catalogs. I deliver about 800-1000 catalogs twice a month. This job pays by the catalog, usually 17 cents each, but can go as high as 25 cents for the few really big catalogs. But I can only do about 35 or so catalogs per hour, so I only make about $6 per hour.

I started to walk each street twice: once to deliver and again to walk back to the car. Then I got smart and looked at the map as collection of circuits. I go down one street, maybe another street or two and walk to the car via another street. So, I learned to walk each street only once. This cuts down the walking and increases the papers per hour.

I don't know how many miles I walk but its a lot. I do this job in my "spare" time. The time I used to waste playing on the internet.

Why do I do it? For the exercise. Walking 40 to 50 hours per month, 2 hours each morning and 2 hours each evening delivering catalogs, on top of the 8 hours each thursday delivering papers is keeping me in shape. My blood pressure has gone down and my legs don't hurt any more.

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Wandrin

I have a dog who expects me to throw the frisbee for him and take him for some interesting walks each day.

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amonkie

I moved to Chicago and sold my Truck.

When I can I walk home after work. 4 miles each way and I enjoy having the scenery of the lake.

I have to carry all my groceries home. That includes the laundry detergent, cat litter, bags of rice.

I get off the train 1 stop before my actual stop, and get on there too. That extra step right there gives me about a 6 minute walk each way thats a little bit more I can add to the bucket.

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