Calorie Expenditure

How many calories do I expend doing certain activities?

• Driving a squad car- 136 calories per hour- equivalent to eating 20% of a McDonald’s Big Mac with cheese

• Light office work- 105 calories per hour- equivalent to drinking half a can of Coke

• Walking for pleasure (or during a work break!)- 236 calories per hour- equivalent to eating 7.9 carrots

• Grooming which involves: washing, shaving, brushing teeth, urinating, washing hands, putting on makeup, sitting or standing- 136 calories per hour- equivalent to HALF a Grande Starbucks Café Latte with whole milk

• Dancing involving: waltz, foxtrot, slow dancing, samba, tango, mambo, and cha cha- 204 calories per hour- equivalent to drinking 2.5 glasses of wine (3.5 fl. oz.)

(Calculations are based on a 150 lb male)

The calories expended per hour depend on age, gender, and muscle mass. The above are just estimations that put some eating habits into perspective.

If you are interested in learning about how many calories are expended for other activities, the Calorie Count website: http://www.calorie-count.com/ is a fun tool!

I hope you are having a cool, summer weekend! If you have any specific questions or comments on health, fitness, or wellness feel free to submit comments on the blog.

Are you cardiovascularly fit? Cardiovascular fitness is the ability for the heart, blood vessels, blood and respiratory system to supply oxygen to the muscles during sustained exercises. As we age, our cardiovascular fitness typically declines due to sedentary lifestyles, certain eating habits and age. Luckily, those who train cardiovascularly for six months can significantly increase their cardiovascular fitness. Because everyone's body reacts differently, your cardiovascular fitness might improve in more or less time depending on your age, initial fitness level, gender, and time/intensity during your training workouts.

I challenge you yet again! Time yourself as you try to run 1.5 miles. If you cannot run the entire time, walk when you need to but challenge yourself by walking a little and running a little. Then go to: www.exrx.net/Calculators/OneAndHalf.html. There is a long equation I could give you to configure your fitness level and to practice your math skills, but I thought that the website would be easier and less stressful! The website will calculate your current fitness level after you enter your gender, age and time in which you completed the 1.5 mile run. Then, try to run the 1.5 miles each day, and in three months check the website again. I bet you’ll improve your time and fitness level! (Don't forget to write down your times and fitness levels so you can compare them in a few months.)

If you have any questions about anything related to health, fitness or nutrition - please make a comment on the blog and I will get back to you as soon as possible.

Happy running/jogging!

Eye Strain

Happy July!

I hope you had a safe and festive celebration this week. How are the push-ups and lunges coming along? I KNOW someone is secretly doing them and just isn’t telling anyone…

Exercising muscles that you can see and feel are often given the focus in articles. The muscles in the eyes, however, should be given special attention especially if you are constantly focusing your eyes on a computer screen.

Eye strain and postural problems are the two most common complaints among office workers. Let’s tackle those eyes! The following are a few exercises you should try to implement into your daily workplace routine:

• 20/20 rule: every 20 minutes look 20 feet away for 20 seconds.
• Scanning: Every hour stand up and scan the room by letting your eyes move in a fluid manner without moving your head making sure to look up, down, around, diagonally, etc. This works on the flexibility of your eye muscles. Do this for roughly 2 minutes.
• Head rolls: Every hour also implement rolling your right ear to your right shoulder, then rolling your chin to your chest, then your left ear to your left shoulder. Reverse and repeat it 2-4 times. This movement should be slow, and controlled. Make sure to drop and relax those shoulders, we hold SO much tension there!