healthier you today

To get the most from your workout, health professionals advise working out for half an hour to an hour every day. But what if your work schedule or other factors don’t leave you that much time to devote to exercise?

Be aware of opportunities

Maybe you can’t rearrange your schedule to accommodate your workout, but you can certainly change your exercise plans to fit into your day. Fitness professional Ann Grandjean says that getting off the sofa and working around the house is a great way to get in shape. Cleaning, gardening, and any other chores will burn calories and move you closer to your fitness goals.

Every stolen moment counts

A couple of 10-minute windows in your day may not seem like enough time to get a good workout, but a recently conducted study suggests differently. It determined that men and women who took 10-minute walks or engaged in other exercise for a similar amount of time had a higher probability of exercising regularly. Also, they lost more weight on the whole than participants who worked out in 1-hour intervals.

What other experts say

In a groundbreaking study made in Virginia, Glenn Gaesser, an exercise physiologist, instructed the male and female participants to accomplish 15 sets of 10-minute exercises in one week. In less than a month, each participant’s fitness level matched that of persons belonging to a much younger age group. Their endurance, strength and agility are comparable to those who are 20 years younger.

Breaking your workout up into small chunks to better fit lifestyle has many benefits. Harold Taylor, who specializes in time management, says that short bursts of exercise can boost your self-esteem and keep you motivated to stay healthy and keep moving. Otherwise, you can become frustrated that you don’t have time to work out and give up altogether.

An Addition, Not An Alternative

Remember, however, that short exercise blocks are intended to make use of available free time; it should not take the place of your existing fitness program. Here are some practical tips to squeeze exercise in your daily routine even if you “don’t have the time.” Don’t tackle all of them in one day; simply choose the ones that work for you.

* Take a quick walk to the corner and back, about 5 to 10 minutes of your time, first thing in the morning.

* If you’re stuck at home to care for a sick child, work on the exercise bike or Stairwalker while your “patient” is asleep.

* Do some jumping Jacks for 5 or 10 minutes. 10 minutes can burn 90 calories.

* Practice upright push-ups in between household chores by pushing in and out from the shoulder.

* Play games with your kids during the afternoon. Kickball and croquet are good for younger children. Older kids will enjoy playing football or other sports.

* Take a moment to do a few dumbbell exercises before going to bed each night. Sheila Cluff, a professional exercise instructor at The Palms in Palm Springs, CA, leaves a set of dumbbells in her bathroom.

* Walk around the field while your son has a baseball practice.