Tips for Increasing Your Physical Activity

In order to live healthier and to lose weight, physical activity is going to have to be a large part of the process. If you are life is busy, as most of ours are, it isn't always easy to find the time to fit any more activities into an already packed schedule. However, if your goals are to be met it is important that you do so. With a little creativity and planning time can be made for physical activity.

Every little bit of physical activity helps. Take a look at your current schedule and look for little places here or there where you can fit in an additional amount of physical activity. Take a look through some of these suggestions and maybe you can use them, or they will spur your mind to come up with something similar for your life.

- Instead of driving to work or school or wherever you need to go on a daily basis, consider walking, skating or riding your bike.
- Get a hold of a group of friends or start a group of people with similar interests and make it a habit to meet somewhere once a week to go for a walk together. Not only will you be able to increase your physical activity, but you will also be able meet new friends.
- If you are a smoker, instead taking a smoking break take an exercise break. Do exercises by your desk or take a walk.
- The biggest win-win situation is to spend more time playing with your children. You get the physical activity you need and your children get into the habits early in their life to live the same way.
- If you have pets, spend more time playing with them. They'll love the attention.
- On shopping trip, or any other outing for that matter, park your car a distance from your destination. The additional five minutes of walking time will be great.
- When the opportunity presents itself, instead of using and elevator or escalator you can take the stairs.
- Do more around the house or outside of the house. Perhaps you could take up gardening or, if you already have a garden you can increase the size or shape of it.
- A great activity is to push mow your lawn without the use of a riding lawn mower or one that is self propelled.
- Go out dancing. This is not only a great activity but it's also something fun for you and that special person, or people to do.

The opportunities to increase physical activity are all around you, even on the busiest days. Five minutes here and five minutes there is definitely better than no physical activity at all.