5 Ways You Can Burn A Stack Of Calories Without Ever Stepping Foot In The Gym

You don't need a fancy gym membership to torch calories. Doing these five small things will help work them off too.

woman at the gym

1. Drink lots of water

Now there’s another reason to get your eight glasses. Chugging H2O helps to flush out your body and keep you hydrated, which in turn gives your metabolism a major boost. In fact, one study found that drinking water increased metabolism by up to 30 percent. Once in this heightened metabolic state, your bod will burn off an excess of calories, and bonus point: getting up and down from your desk for refills we’ll burn a few extra cals, too.

2. Keep the heating off

Turn off the immersion! Being on the chilly side makes your body work a little harder to keep warm, and this triggers your body to burn off those extra calories. Keep cool while watching TV, making dinner, or even while you’re asleep to increase calorie burn by seven percent. Guess we won’t be reaching for our blanket scarf this season then so…

3. Breathe deep

Breathing is a natural motion to us, we do it all day er’day, after all. But using long, deep breaths, instead of short, shallow ones can cause an increase in calorie burn of up to 140 percent, and it’s all down to an increase in oxygen intake, which breaks down fat molecules.

4. Doing the cleaning

We know, we know, cleaning is a major chore, but it makes an amaze-o alternative to hitting the gym. That’s because, depending on your weight you can burn around 150 calories an hour ironing, cooking and washing the dishes, while a vigorous mopping sesh will burn off a masso 250 calories plus.

5. Take the stairs

It certainly doesn’t seem as strenuous as working out at the gym, but taking the stairs is classed as a vigorous exercise AND it burns more calories than jogging.  Add to that, it takes nearly nine times the amount of energy expenditure as sitting at a desk, making it a deadly excuse to skip taking the office lift.

Tags: