Finding a Balance

Sitting at your desk??

Many of us spend a majority of our work day sitting at a desk.  I challenge you to make a conscious effort to get up and move throughout the day just to get the blood pumping in your legs and arms!

Here are a couple articles from MPR that will make you think twice about spending your day glued to your desk chair!

Health-Chair Reform: Walk, Don't Sit At Your Desk Minnesota Public Radio News

Sitting All Day: Worse For You, Worse For You Than You May Think

National Bike to Work Day

Don't forget that National Bike to Work Month is MAY, National Bike to Work Week is May 16-20th and National Bike to Work Day is May 20, 2011!  Get geared up and if you need information for your business or for your commute check out the Bike to Work Tab at the top of the page! 

Bike/Walk Week for the Twin Cities is June 4th-12th, and on their Facebook page they had a clever fact:  "You never have to pay to park your shoes"  For those who work anywhere that you pay daily, weekly, monthly, or yearly  to park this might be just the fact to get your walking to work! 

Insider

The Buffalo, Hanover, Montrose School district has a  monthly newsletter and this month Live Wright grant projects "Grow Lunch" at Discovery Elementary and the Opening Doors Garden Club are featured in the Newsletter. To read the articles and other great news going on at BHM visit:

http://www.bhmschools.org/sites/default/files/downloads/insider-april2011web.pdf

Snow?!?!

Star Tribune Photo of a Monkey at the MN Zoo during the lovely snowfall today!

Yes, Minnesota winter brought it's top players this year and even those winter enthusiasts, the "true" Minnesotans are saying "enough is enough already!"  We have started to see plants shoot up and the grass was really starting to get green when the snow decided it hadn't quite had enough face time with us.  So, we began retreating back to the comfort of indoors...even I will admit that as much as I have begun to loathe the inside of a gym, it was just too sad to go outside and have to deal with the "too cold for spring temps" and there was no way that I was going to get slapped in the face by this "wintry mix."  So back I go to the monotony of the gym and wishing that I could get my 5 month old shoes a little dirty outside so they don't look like I just pulled them out of the box!  I've only got until the end of April and then the weather really had better shape up because my gym membership is over!  And then I'll have to take it outside no matter what!  The day will come soon enough though, that we will begin to complain about the heat and humidity of Summer and look forward to the cool-down of Fall, just to start complaining about Winter all over again, well most of us will anyway!  :)  

Here are a few ideas for indoor activites that will help get physically active for those of you who like me are refusing to "play in the snow" at the end of April!!

Dance!  Crank up the music (just loud enough so your neighbors don't complain) and dance!  It doesn't have to be choreographed, just gets you moving.  This is a great way to just let loose, you can really work up a sweat and not even realize it!

Video Games - I know.. I know...not the answer you were expecting, but when I say Video Games I'm not talking about giving your thumbs a work out and sitting on a couch killing zombies and aliens, I'm talking about all the options of physical movement in video games now, with the X-box 360 Kinect, PS3 Move,& Wii , there are so many games out there for all three of these game systems to get you moving and work up a sweat!

Workout DVDs- you don't have to purchases these, you can visit your local library, this gives you the oportunity to try out a couple different videos!


*As always before you start any new exercise routine, make sure to check with your doctor!