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The cheat's guide to exercise: Taking the stairs one at a time burns MORE calories than leaping up them
Lead researcher Rodney Kennedy said: 'Given that such improvement resulted from less than 30 minutes per week of moderate exercise, stair climbing in the workplace should be promoted as a health-enhancing physical activity.'
I'm a believer in "baby step" theories. Doing something is definitely better than doing nothing. It doesn't take much of a behavior change to make a big difference if one just sticks to it.
Starting in June of 2011, I have been climbing at least 20 flights of extra stairs each and every day. These days, I generally break it into 4 sets of 5 flights. Now that I'm in relatively good shape, they take about a minute each. That's roughly 28 minutes per week. No big deal!
It took so little to feel so much better. I'm about 20 pounds lighter than when I started. I'm generally doing a lot more activity per day than just 20 flights of stairs though. Exercise begets exercise. 20 flights is still my minimum. It's enough to keep me in the game, so to speak. Some days I just do the bare minimum. No big deal!
No stress. No eating rice cakes. No pain, no pain. I've been doing a lot of walking around the neighborhood in recent months. And I mean a lot! I honestly enjoy it. Rain? Shine? It's all good. That's what umbrellas are for. It all started with baby steps on the stairway.
“Focus on the journey, not the destination. Joy is found not in finishing an activity but in doing it.” - Greg Anderson
That's the difference this time. I'm doing what I think I can do every day for the rest of my life, and not because I feel the need to do it. I do it because I enjoy how it makes me feel.
And on that note, I'm off to walk a 1.5 mile loop around the neighborhood. It's a beautiful night. The air is crisp. I won't have to ask my dog to join me more than once. Dogs somehow inherently know that walking can be fun. And yet it is we humans that need to be trained? Go figure! :)
Thanks to Rik in the comments of this post for bringing the article to my attention.
6 comments:
I want to see an exponential failure trend here from 0 stairs to when you plateaued.
exptrend,
I want to see an exponential failure trend here from 0 stairs to when you plateaued.
Nice! I assure you there was an exponential failure. I pretty much did nothing but the minimum in November.
That said, I walked outside a LOT in November. 164.5 miles! It was actually a few miles more than that. I walked some extra miles on the 30th of November (that night) and it didn't make it to the chart. And if you look close, you'll see an exponential trend failure there as well. I assure you that I am not walking 300+ miles in December! :)
This month has been a mix of stair climbing and walking. It's a bit more balanced.
Okay, I'm now off to walk the 1.5 miles (and probably more later this evening).
Integrated lifestyle moderate exertion. That's the ticket. Mrs Dawg puts on my leash 4-5 mornings per week and takes me walkies for 3-3.5 miles between 5:30 and 6:30 mornings. Then it is up to me whether that is losing a pound a week or losing a half pound and enjoying a few indulgences or full on indulgence with no loss.
Rob Dawg,
That's great!
I've certainly been doing a lot of walking. I've gone at least 1.5 miles each and every day since the beginning of November. Last night was 4.5 miles in the pouring rain and too breezy for an umbrella. Still enjoyed it though. I can't explain it.
P.S. Maybe I can explain it. I think we're working on our 5th pie since Thanksgiving. That might have something to do with the extra walking, lol. ;)
exptrend, Stagflationary Mark,
"I want to see an exponential failure trend here from 0 stairs to when you plateaued.
Nice! I assure you there was an exponential failure. I pretty much did nothing but the minimum in November."
Yep, I literally laughed out loud when I saw this.
And I had to look in the dictionary to verify the correct spelling of "plateaued". LOL! My Webster's Ninth New Collegiate from 1987 doesn't have it.
I guess that's good for a sigh. Or a shoulder shrug at least. ;)
Fritz_O,
Plateaued is definitely a word and I am successfully living the dream. ;)
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