You’d be surprised by the calories you can burn doing regular, everyday activities. Don’t pressure yourself to go to the gym or feel bummed when you can’t squeeze in that running session on your treadmill at home. Just by doing the things you’re accustomed to daily, you can steadily burn calories and stay active.

Many people think the only way to staying fit and healthy is by exercising your brains out at a gym or using tapes at home to get a rigorous workout. Unfortunately, as busy as life can get, there are times when you may not be able to check into your local gym or take the time at home to exercise. If you have children, your time is usually not your own. Instead of fussing at yourself for not sticking to your exercise regimen and goals, try another way of exercising that doesn’t involve actual exercise.

We constantly burn calories each day and depending on what activity you’re doing, you can burn more calories than normal. Not convinced? Just doing work around the house such as cleaning, home repairs, maintenance, and cooking, you can burn between 75-140 calories an hour. Common household chores like ironing, lifting, vacuuming and mopping allows you to continuously burn calories without breaking a sweat. So if you’re a stay at home mom who is constantly running around behind the kids, take comfort in the fact that your body is in exercise mode.

Speaking of kids, playing with your children also qualifies as a form of exercise. Why limit yourself to sweating on a treadmill or lifting weights when you can have fun with your kids instead? If you have an infant or toddler, use them in place of a free weight. A playtime that consists of you lifting your child up in the air works your arms just like working with regular lifting weights. Try lying on your back and bringing your knees to your chest and resting your baby on your knees and lifting them up while holding onto their hands. Doing this playful exercise strengthens your leg muscles and your arms…and your baby will have a blast!

Gardening also offers a great opportunity to burn calories without thinking twice. This type of indirect exercise is a great form of cardiovascular exercise since it requires a lot of stretching and bending. Scheduling a special outdoor chore or activity each weekend can give you all the exercise you need while being able to get things accomplished around the house. Even washing your car can burn 300 calories an hour, so you can get fit and have a clean car without spending any money or time at the car wash.

You can even include your significant other to help you get a workout. For fun, try having a playful wrestling session with your guy. It’s always fun to break up the monotony by having a little chase around the house. While there are many myths about how many calories are burned when having sex, it has been proven that you can burn calories…it’s just a matter of a number of factors such as weight and lifestyle, but it never hurts to try. Sex is a very physical act so there’s no harm in enjoying some one-on-one time with your honey to get your heart rate going and your adrenaline rushing. Even sleep has been found to burn 50 calories every 8 hours.

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