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30 Easy Ways to Burn Fat in 30 Minutes (Without the Gym!)

Old 06-18-2013, 09:22 PM
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Default 30 Easy Ways to Burn Fat in 30 Minutes (Without the Gym!)

I came accross this article the other day (I won't name the website it was on) and by the time I had finished reading it I was pretty damn angry about all the cr@p I had just read. I expected it to be as the title says "30 easy ways to burn fat in 30 minutes (without the gym)" yet what I found was almost the opposite.

30. Walk to Work
Not able to get in your workout? Take a hike. Walking for 30 minutes at a brisk 17-minute-mile pace burns almost as much as jogging two miles on the treadmill would.

Calories Burned: 178

OK, the article is off to a decent start, advocating walking rather than driving/taking public transport to work.

29. Grocery Shop with a Cart
Believe it or not, grocery shopping is good exercise — even if you use a cart. As you cruise around the store, lifting and pushing movements work your shoulders and core. Thirty minutes of grabbing food and you’ll be hungry for a snack.

Calories Burned: 155

Not exactly something you plan as a work out but at least it burns calories.

28. Shoot Pool with Your Friends
Need a good reason to go out? Here’s one: for every couple games of pool you shoot at the bar, you’ll burn almost the same amount of calories as there are in a 12 oz. bottle of Budweiser.

Calories Burned: 111

Well as long as you like pool I guess it's OK.

27. Cook a Romantic Dinner
Get on her good side by whipping up a romantic candelit dinner for two. Turns out, cooking is great exercise as you employ your core and arm muscles to chop, move pots of water... Point is: after a few hours in the kitchen, you’ll be ready to chow down.

Calories Burned: 111

You'll soon see why it's "cook a romantic dinner" instead of just "cooking" as this article soon falls off the wagon.


26. Sit or Stand at Your Desk
No guy likes feeling chained to his desk. But if you sit up straight and move around every hour or so, you can burn off lunch. Standing is even healthier (if you can score an elevated desk) because you'll snuff 22 more calories per half hour.

Calories Burned: Sitting, 71; Standing, 93

I don't know anyone who lies down at their desk so this is kind of moot.

25. Clean Your Apartment
Next time your lady asks for help cleaning, grab a rag and get dusting. A general apartment cleaning (think: windows, mirrors, kitchen, floors, bathrooms) burns calories at an alarmingly high rate. Plus, she'll be so thrilled you can probably convince her to have post-cleaning wind-down sex.

Calories Burned: 155

Lame sexual reference #1

24. Ride at a Local Skateboard Park
It should come as no surprise that skateboarding is a good workout. Go ahead, as a throw back to your childhood, screw around on a board for an afternoon at a local skate park. The sport engages your fast-twitch muscle so you can stay balanced as you shift your weight.

Calories Burned: 222

I'm guessing that of people older than 20 less than 1% skateboard, so fairly useless.

23. Get it On with Your Woman
Good news guys: sex not only feels good, but it’s also a sweet cardio workout. Go ahead, spice things up with your girl by suggesting role play or trying a new position. Trust us, there’s a reason you're exhausted at the end.

Calories Burned: 207

Lame sexual reference (or was it less subtle?) #2
Just a side note, Fitday logs vigorous sexual activity at a lot lower than this amount so what is going on?


22. Play Pick-Up Basketball with Coworkers
The stop-and-go high intensity of a pickup basketball game is just what you need to torch a bunch calories fast. During your lunch break, grab a ball and coax your coworkers to play. Thirty minutes of 5-on-5 and you'll definitely break a sweat.

Calories Burned: 355

If you're into basketball and their is a hoop nearby then sure, but how often is that the case?

21. Cycle to Work
Live across town from work? Here’s an incentive to commute on two wheels instead of four: if you cycle into the office for 30 minutes at a medium-intensity pace of 12-13.9 mph, you’ll burn off two bowls of cereal by the time you reach your desk.

Calories Burned: 366

Live in a big city? See that space on the sidewalk? And this might be nitpicking but having walking to work and cycling to work in the same article kind of defeats the point for me.

20. Bartend for Friends
Next time you throw a party, step in and play bartender. Mixing drinks for your friends for 30 minutes burns the same amount of calories in a shot of vodka. Plus, you can talk it up with the sexy neighbor girl over the bowl of jungle juice.

Calories Burned: 111

Lame sexual reference #3
Ever bartended before? In 30 minutes you can mix a lot of drinks, more than enough for how many friends and "sexy neighbor girls" you invited. Not to mention that if you want to burn calories it might be best to stay away from the temptation of alcohol, just saying.


19. Relax in a Sauna
Steaming your muscles in a sauna is a great way to relax after a workout and promote faster recovery. Plus, you’ll sweat off a handful of calories and it’s good for your skin, too. Enjoy.

Calories Burned: 84

85% of saunas I know are at gyms...


18. Shovel Your Sidewalk
Winter’s over for now. But if the U.S. gets pounded with snow in 2014 like it did this year, you better have a shovel on hand to move it. Bundle up and crush calories outside with this awesome total-body workout.

Calories Burned: 266

I'll accept this one even though it applies to very few people.

17. Shower with Your Girl
Looking for a way to spice up your relationship? Take a hot shower with your woman and enjoy lathering each other up. When you're finished, towel dry her body and head to the bedroom... use your imagination for the rest.

Calories Burned: 70

Lame sexual reference #4
Could have just said spend 30 minutes in the shower instead of 10...


16. Host a Badminton Tournament
Want to throw a cool beach party? Pack a 6-pack of beer, barbecue stuff, and a badminton set and head to the water. Invite friends and set up a day-long tournament. Winners get to throw losers into the ocean.

Calories Burned: 200

I could write a book about all the things wrong with this one but I'll try and relax before I start googling how to DDoS this website where I read all this cr@p.

15. Stretch Out Your Muscles
Believe it or not, stretching your muscles works stiff limbs and uses a surprising amount of energy to do so. Grab a floor mat and burn calories while you improve your flexibility.

Calories Burned: 100

And we are back to easy ways to burn calories again, thank goodness

14. Go Bowling for a First Date
It doesn’t matter if you suck at bowling. On your first date, take her to the bowling alley for a few games. You'll score a bit of exercise and you can crack a few jokes about your horrible skills. If she’s cool, she’ll laugh and think your sense of humor is hot.

Calories Burned: 133

Lame sexual reference #5
I wanted to read an article about easy ways to burn calories not a 15 year old girl's diary.


13. Whip a Frisbee
Catching and whipping a frisbee for 30 minutes works your upper body and core muscles and it's so addicting it'll barely feel like a workout. Bonus: a frisbee is light and small so you can always have it on hand in case you find green space or a beach.

Calories Burned: 133

Ever thrown a frizbee for 30 minutes? Yeah, that's what I thought, not so addicting after all. I don't carry a frizbee around with me everywhere mainly because I'm not a 1970's hippy.

12. Fight Fires
Firefighting is so intense it's one of the top professions for highest calories burned per hour. These guys work so hard and wear such heavy gear, they torch hundreds of calories per hour depending on the size or intensity of the fire.

Calories Burned: 355

The Coup De Grace! Better go change my career quickly...


11. Downhill Ski
If you have a buddy who’s getting hitched next year and you have to plan a bachelor party, consider this: host it at a Colorado or Vermont ski resort. Alpine skiing is a killer leg workout and you can max out the apres-ski nightlife to celebrate his last days as a single man.

Calories Burned: 266

I don't know how easy it is for you to pack up and spend a weekend at a ski resort but for me that's kind of time consuming.
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Old 06-18-2013, 09:23 PM
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(Broken into 2 since it's so long)

10. Move to a New Apartment
Whether you’re moving in with your girlfriend or you can finally afford that awesome apartment with rooftop access, moving house is practically a full body workout. Especially if you have to haul boxes them up stairs.

Calories Burned: 311

Better change my apartment once a month since this is a nice easy way to burn calories.

9. Wake Up with Hatha Yoga
Wake up with a half an hour of hatha yoga to warm up your muscles and clear your mind for the day. Download a free podcast to guide you through sun salutations, or simply grab your mat and work through the poses you know. Afterward, you'll feel more awake than you would if you had drank two cups of coffee.

Calories Burned: 107

Back on track temporarily.

8. Climb Up Subway Steps
Feel like running errands around the city wipes you out? You have good reason. If you skip the escalators and opt for stairs every time you hike out of the Subway system (sometimes the stairs seem endlessly long!), you’ll torch an insane amount of calories.

Calories Burned: 285

I always take the stairs at the station and it accounts for about 3minutes of my day, don't know what kind of stations you are going to where you can log 30 minutes of this.

7. Vacuum Your Floors
Vacuuming your apartment doesn’t burn a high amount of energy, but it’s a good excuse to get off the couch and get moving. Plus, she’ll definitely notice the clean floor. Points to you.

Calories Burned: 90

Lame sexual reference #6

6. Wash Your Car
Next time your car is dirty, skip the crappy gas station job and do it yourself. Come on, it’s summer after all — what better way to spend a sunny Saturday afternoon. Throw on boardshorts, grab your girlfriend and have fun getting sudsy together.

Calories Burned: 200

I don't know what sudsy means but I think that might be another lame sexual reference.

5. Rearrange Furniture
If you haven’t given your apartment a good spring cleaning yet, you better get on it. That means moving the furniture and cleaning underneath it, too. And if she wants to rearrange everything for a different look, help her — the lifting is a good workout.

Calories Burned: 266

I rearrange my apartment 4 times a day, don't you?


4. Play Beach Volleyball
If you want a perfect beach game, opt for sand volleyball. Running on sand is a tough cardio workout but low-impact and easy on your leg muscles. You'll feel it the next day, but your spike-winning points will be worth it.

Calories Burned: 355

I'll accept this although not many people have beach access.


3. Fix-It Projects with Heavy Tools
Every man has his to-do fix-it projects around the house. And while it’s annoying to have a list looming over your head, bite the bullet and pick up a hammer. It's good for you — most heavy, non-power tools require shoulder and core strength to operate.

Calories Burned: 355

We are really scraping the barrel to get 30 now.


2. Mow the Lawn
When you cut your grass, using a push mower, as opposed to a riding machine, requires push-and-pull motion that mimics lifting in the gym. To boost your upper body strength and have a nice looking lawn simply put in your iPod and go.

Calories Burned: 244

I'll accept although not many people have lawns.


1. Swim
Hands down the best part of summer: getting wet. Whether you’re a marathon surfer, cliff jumper, or weekend beach goer, swimming — a killer cardio/ muscle-building workout — slashes calories super fast. Watch out Phelps.

Calories Burned: 266

At least they tried to save the article with this one.

So I'm just p!ssed off about wasting my time reading this and I apologize to everyone who had to read my even longer rant about it.

/RANT
iansteele is offline  
Old 06-19-2013, 02:22 AM
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Your comments about each activity don't make sense to me. I don't get the anger over the article?

Not trying to be mean but a lot of the suggestions are just normal, everyday activities for a lot of people.
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Old 06-19-2013, 05:50 AM
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I agree, Ian, it's a pretty lame article. I find it hard to believe that grocery shopping burns 155 calories, and then for swimming, it doesn't even give a calorie count. Basically, the article could have just said "do anything but sit or lie down for 30 min."

Off the top of my head, here are my suggestions for burning calories without a gym (most don't require 30 min):
1. Exercise while watching tv (do stretching, leg lifts, etc. on the floor, or walk in place).
2. If your home or building has stairs, make it a goal to climb 500 stairs a day.
3. Don't have weights? Use canned foods, or empty juice or soda bottles filled with water as weights.
4. When you drive somewhere, park a bit away from your destination. You'll get a little extra walking in and maybe provide a random act of kindness along the way (maybe the closer parking place will be claimed by someone who really needs it).
5. You have access to hundreds of personal trainers in your home. Use youtube and other internet sites for workout videos, yoga or dance instruction, interval workouts, etc.
6. Fidget. Fidgeting burns a few calories an it increases your metabolism.
7. Keep cool. In cool weather, don't keep your house too warm. Your body burns calories trying to keep your core warm.
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