Although some people enjoy going to the gym and hitting some weights, others feel overwhelmed or uninspired about the gym. Some people like biking while others live in cold, rainy climates. And, sometimes you just get BORED! But, who says you have to exercise the same way every time? Get out of your rut and use this list of 30 ways to exercise and burn approximately 300 calories to switch things up!
- Vacuum and Clean House for 90 minutes to 2 hours – The house isn’t going to clean itself. Crank up the music and get after it! Depending on your weight and how big your house is, you can burn 150-200 calories an hour. But, if cleaning isn’t your thing, there are many ways to exercise!
- Ride a bike at a moderate speed for 30-45 minutes or at a leisurely speed for 45-60 minutes – As with anything, the more you weigh, the more calories you burn but this will get you close. Alternatively, you can ride a stationary bike for an hour while you watch your favorite streaming service such as Netflix. You can watch a couple of episodes of your favorite comedy or watch most of a short movie. Why not move while you do it? While you can spend thousands of dollars on a Peloton or similar, there are some great recumbant bikes for less than $1,000.
- Take a walk or a hike for 60-75 minutes – Depending on how much you weigh and how fast you walk, you can burn 250-500 calories very easily. Walk your dog, walk with your spouse or partner, put your earbuds in and listen to music or your favorite podcast. The bonus is you can get your daily dose of Vitamin D, too!
- Do Yard Work for an hour – Whether it’s mowing the lawn, landscaping, or gardening, you can easily burn 250-350 calories beautifying your yard, a family member’s yard, or your neighbor’s yard! If it’s something you enjoy doing, don’t feel like you always have to hit the gym. Beautify the world!
- Jump Rope for 30 Minutes – This can get a little repetitive but there are jump rope workouts you can do. It’s not necessarily something you’ll do every day but once or twice a week can help you burn fat away. And, jump ropes are so cheap and adjustable! It’s much cheaper than joining a gym and you can do it inside on days with bad weather.
- Go Golfing – They say many business deals are made on the golf course so what better time is it to learn to play? Golfing 18 holes with a cart burns 1,000 calories and if you skip the cart and walk the average 5 miles it takes, you can burn up to 2,000 calories! Just make sure you don’t replace them with lunch and beer afterward. 😉 And, did you know core exercises can improve your golf game?
- Go Bowling – Speaking of core work, bowling can burn 150 to 300 calories per hour, too, so if you bowl 2-3 games, you can burn over 300 calories!
- Do Laundry – The average full laundry basket can weigh 15-20 pounds or more! So, fill up your laundry basket and walk the floor for 10 minuntes several times on laundry day. You’ll burn some calories and speed up your metabolism!
- Walk Flights of Stairs – Put on some music or call a friend, and walk up and down stairs for 30-45 minutes. You can walk leisurely or burn more calories by going at a faster pace. It’s up to you! Take the boredom out of the equation by occuping your mind with music or talking to someone. If they’re exercising, too, even better! They won’t mind the panting. The bonus is you’ll be building muscle in your legs and muscle means more calories burned throughout the day without added effort!
- Do Jumping Jacks – Similar to jump rope, you can do jumping jacks. Start by doing jumping jacks for one minute, rest one minute, and repeat until you’ve done 10 minutes. And, then do that several times a day. You can work your way up to an hour sprinkled throughout the day, between binging shows, or between phone calls. You’ll be surprised how much you can speed up your metabolism simply by moving more often throughout the day rather than doing a “workout.”
- Play Pickleball – No longer for just grandparents, pickleball has become more popular in the past few years. It’s easier to learn than tennis and you can burn 300 calories in an hour or so and up to an average of 600 calories if you play an intense game.
- Shoot Baskets – No need to play a full game of basketball if you don’t want to. Shoot some baskets and it will burn 300+ calories to retrieve the ball and shoot baskets.
- Jump on a Trampoline – Jumping on a trampoline is considered a low-impact exercise but 10 minutes on one of these can burn the same amount of fat as a 30-minute run! You can burn an average of 250-300 calories an hour depending on your weight. If you jump with a higher intensity, you can burn that many in just 30 minutes!
- Play Frisbee – While not as popular of a game as it once was, playing frisbee outside can give you your much-needed Vitamin D and let you relax with a friend or family member. The average person can burn 220-300 calories per hour and if you play competitively, you can burn over 500 calories in an hour.
- Wash Your Car – Drive around in style by washing your car for 30-60 minutes. You’ll burn more calories by cleaning the inside as well as the outside. And, if you add waxing the car, you’ll burn an extra 70 calories.
- Swimming – If you swim, this can be a very good way to burn calories because it is not hard on your joints at all unlike running. But, swimming is a very good cardio workout where you can burn 150-250 calories for every 30 minutes of swimming.
- Rollerskating or Rollerblading – Finding ways to exercise can be challenging if you live in a cold climate. But, if you live in a nice climate, rollerskating or rollerblading could be a great way to burn some calories. Inline skates start at just $59 so you can get started without too much investment.
- Go Shopping – Similar to going for a walk, you can walk with a purpose by walking through the mall window-shopping. To burn more calories, you need to walk at a faster pace and not stop too often. While grocery shopping or start/stop shopping can burn some calories, you need to sustain effort to burn the most calories and fat.
- Try Kickboxing or MMA Training – Even if you don’t actually want to hit anyone, you can try kickboxing or MMA training. In just 30-45 minutes, you will burn over 300 calories! I, personally, go to 9Round, a kickboxing fitness center, 5-6 times a week and I love it! Not only do I burn the calories but I’m adding lean muscle and strength.
- Take a Dance Class (or Just Dance or Play Just Dance!) – Dancing can burn 200 to 400 calories for just 30 minutes of continuous dancing. If you don’t want to dance alone or join a class, my sons and I used to play the video game Just Dance. We would get winded and sweat up a storm! In addition, you’re moving your arms and legs so you’re building up muscle.
- Get Cooking – Did you know that cooking can burn 150 calories an hour? No wonder many of us are becoming overweight due to eating at restaurants. Not only are we overeating by eating huge portions at restaurants but we aren’t even burning the calories by cooking our meals in the first place! Talk about a double whammy.
- Use a Standing Desk – There are many ways to exercise but did you know you burn 100-200 calories an hour by just standing? Whether you are working at home or at the office, getting a standing desk is an excellent way to burn more calories throughout the day!
- Use a Stability Ball – A standing desk isn’t cheap necessarily and your joints may not like being on your feet all day so in addition, you can consider sitting on a stability ball. It’s very inexpensive and you can burn an extra 75 calories per day. However, if you just do a 10-minute stablity ball workout 2-3 times a day, you can easily burn 300 calories!
- Do Side Steps – While watching TV, listening to music, or tuning into your favorite podcast, you can do side steps with resistance bands on. You can even do it while sitting down working at your desk!
- Ditch the Conference Room – Who said meetings have to be in a conference room or office? Try asking your coworker if you can do a walking meeting where you can brainstorm ideas. Not only will this help you burn calories but a Stanford study found that walking has been shown to improve creativity. And, if you have a Zoom meeting where your video doesn’t have to be on, why not put in your earbuds and walk during the meeting?
- Give Back – No matter your passion, you can find a way to volunteer, usually. Burn some calories by volunteering at the food bank, animal shelter, homeless shelter, nursing home, etc. Just getting out of your house and doing something will help you burn more calories in the moment AND all day!
- Stand and Walk During Phone Calls – If you’re on the phone, do you have to be sitting? No! Pace the house, walk up and down the stairs. Try to avoid sitting for at least 20-30 minutes for that phone call. Some of my phone calls easily last an hour (I can talk!) so why not burn some calories in the process?
- Jog or Run for 30 Minutes – The old tried and true, you can jog or run for 30 minutes. No one said you have to train for a marathon or even a 5K. Jogging at a slow pace will get the job done quickly!
- Play a Musical Instrument – Have you thought about playing the drums or violin? Depending on the instrument, you can burn 150-200 calories per hour. Practice your favorite instrument for 90 minutes to two hours and you’ll burn 300 calories.
- Row or Kayak – Due to all the upper body work, you can row or kayak to burn 300 calories in 45-60 minutes. If you don’t have water near you, you can consider a rowing machine or a facility such as Orangetheory.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this list of 30 ways to exercise without hitting the gym. With this list, you can do something different just about every day of the month and avoid the boredom that often leads to people quitting. It’s also another way to change your lifestyle rather than “go on a diet!” Speaking of that, be sure to download our free e-Book, 10 Practical Ways to Lose Weight Without Counting Calories.