Ways to Develop an Active Lifestyle

What does it mean to live an active lifestyle? This is a phrase that we hear all the time. When someone is healthy, others often consider that person active. Does that mean he or she exercises daily or has a high energy level? Often, the answer is yes to both.

Living an active lifestyle means you take every opportunity to be more active than you are sedentary. People who are active take small opportunities to stand up and move; they often make a way of life out of it.

Those who are active daily are often in better shape, have an easier time managing their weight level and burn more calories daily than those who are sedentary. During your medical weight loss program, developing a more active lifestyle may help you reach your weight loss goals.

How to become more active

Exercising is the first step to becoming more active, but it isn’t your only means of developing a healthier, more active lifestyle. To be active, think proactive. Consider the ways that you can be more active in the tasks you already do.

Here are a few tips to becoming more active:

• Schedule active time with friends and family. Instead of going out for dinner or seeing a movie, go ahead and plan to spend a day at the park or go for a hike at a local park.
• Start playing sports again. Join a local sport league for adults, or take part in a walking or running club in your neighborhood.
• Rotate your commute. Take every chance you can to walk or bike instead of drive, whether it is to work, to the store or to a friend’s house.
• Move around at work. Instead of sitting in your desk chair the whole day through, stand up or sit on an exercise ball.
• Increase incidental activity. Pass up the elevator ride to take the stairs, stand in line instead of waiting in a chair and walk around your office instead of just sending out emails.

Regular activity is looked at as a fundamental aspect of any weight loss program. This is because to lose weight, you need to manage the calories you take in with the calories you put out. The American Heart Association recommends that every adult engage in at least 30 minutes of physical activity five days a week.

Becoming more active in your day to day life will make reaching your daily activity goals easier. While heading to the gym for 30 minutes is great, finding ways to be more active in everything you do is even better.

Make an effort to implement small changes in your personal activity level throughout your daily routine. You will likely find that as you become more active, you’ll also start to have higher energy levels, increased mental health and cognitive clarity, and may even have an easier time reaching your weight loss goals.