How active are you *other* than when you're working out?

[horsemom2]

When home and have an errand within a mile radius, will walk it, weather permitting. When not home, will take every advantage to walk extra, use stairs, etc.

When home and weather not being agreeable,
try to do at least one exercise spark before dinner.
Have a rebounder in the living room and try to bounce whenever I walk through the living room.
Otherwise, best way to keep active at home for me is to drink alot of water because the bathrooms are not on the main level of our home where I spend most of the day. LOL

Barb S

[laurajhawk]

I'm not terribly active. I'm not much into sports and my DH isn't into hiking and such (so I do less of that than I might), I have a desk job, don't live within walking distance of anything much, and my DH does most of the housework. This is one reason it's important to me to work out!

I do get up and walk around when I can, though, and sometimes take a walk around the building (inside or outside, depending on weather) during the afternoon. I'd take the stairs more, but there are no stairs where I work.

[violingal3]

I have a desk job and sit most of the time. I try to get out and walk during lunch, but I don't enjoy it. First, I am in dress clothes and heels, and I work downtown where you can't walk down the pedestrian walk without someone blowing cigarette smoke in your face.

I try to get out and walk as much as possible on the weekends and after work, I get the bike out when the weather warms up. Obviously, I'm more successful with the biking/walking part on the weekdays after work when the days are longer.

[athompson10]

Intermittently active. I do Pilates twice a week at a studio, and walk a fair amount since I'm in NYC, but home workouts are the majority of my daily activity.

I used a pedometer for the month of January to track my steps and was surprised how much I walk on days I have errands, and how little when I'm at home all day, supervising contractors and fussing on the computer. Now that I have a better pedometer, I need to join other VFers on the check-in to keep myself moving.

[horsemom2]

Fidget Queen,

I thought I needed caffeine for energy but found sometimes the right kind of movement can be energizing, both mentally and physically. Try to find something fun or feel good you can do for just a few minutes whenever you feel really tired or down.

Barb S
who finds music can be a great movement stimulator

[Christine L.]

I wish I could be more active when I'm not formally exercising, but my job and home location make it really tough.

I have a desk job that provides very few opportunities to get up and move around. I'm a programmer and I'm expected to be at my workstation, working/coding/etc. People in our workplace *despise* pop-in office visits. So, it's really frowned upon to get up, go to a colleague's office and ask something in person that could have been asked by email or instant messenger. I get up 3 or 4 times a day and roam the halls, but that's not really enough to count for anything.

I would love to bike to work, but it's just a little too far and along a very dangerous road. In fact, two acquaintances of mine have been killed biking to work over the past ten years. We don't live within walkable distance to any grocery or other stores, so that's out of the question too. (it's at least 10-15 miles to the closest store.)

When I get home from work, I exercise daily for about 45 minutes. All other activity I get is from daily cooking and light housekeeping. On weekends, I'm much more active with my heavy-duty housework, errands, dog-walking, hiking, riding my bike, etc.

[cooldham]

I'm surprised dog owners aren't chiming in...I have a desk job, so not much activity during the day. Now that it's warming up I was considering bringing sneakers to work and popping them on a for a quick 1 mile walk. But, in addition to my AM workout, I have two giant beast dogs that get a 30-60 minute walk when I get home. It feels good to get outside after sitting all day.

[acescholar]

Originally Posted by horsemom2

Otherwise, best way to keep active at home for me is to drink alot of water because the bathrooms are not on the main level of our home where I spend most of the day. LOL

Barb S

This is my primary source of daily activity (along with getting up frequently to make a cup of coffee or tea and thus increase said activity)!

Most of my day is spent reading and writing (especially this year since I took some time off to just write), so it's not a very active life. I do always park a ways away from the entrance in parking lots, take the stairs whenever possible, and usually walk to my terminal in airports.

[Lucky Star]

Originally Posted by cpcathy

I would venture to guess that most of those who will answer this will say they are pretty active. Just a hunch.

See, I haven't read the replies yet but I would guess the other way. So many people have desk jobs that keep them sedentary, and a long workday plus whatever commuting is required often leaves one tired by the end of it. Add children and other household responsibilities and that doesn't leave a lot of time and energy for a very active lifestyle, apart from planned exercise.

But maybe I'm wrong. I'll read the replies now.

[veggiesultana]

I am pretty active, I am a professional dancer and instructor so I am always on the go teaching or performing on the weekends