Captain Obvious Says...

Captain Obvious here:  not all our fitness comes from actual workouts.  Here are some things that count toward fitness:

Moving.  It’s a little extreme to decide to go live somewhere else just for the fitness benefits, but all that packing and schlepping of boxes does in fact make us stronger.  This item is here to alleviate any guilt anyone might have for missing workouts during a move:  you are doing enough.

 

Gardening.  OK, not the kind where you sit in the shade and pull a weed every once in a while and you drink a lot of lemonade (although it does sound fun).  The kind where you need to mix a bunch of compost and vermiculite into your garden beds, rake up a bunch of debris, or lug a bunch of 5-gallon plants to their new locations.

 

Housework.  Again, not the light swishes of a feather duster.  More the heave-the-vacuum-up-the-stairs sort of housework, or the kind where all of a sudden there are fifty seven things in the wrong place and you need to run all over the place putting them where they belong because company is coming and God forbid they see you make messes sometimes.

 

Shopping.  That twenty pound bag of dog food counts as weight lifting.  Ditto the bulk rice, the cases of fizzy water, and the twenty cans of on-sale soup.  Depending on where you’re shopping, you may also have to walk miles and miles (looking at you, Costco).

 

Pro tip:  if you get sweaty and/or breathless, it counts as exercise.

 

Go play.