Formal exercise may be the best choice for weight loss and health. But if you cannot or choose not to engage in a regular exercise program, there are other ways to burn calories and keep in shape without logging hours at the gym.

I had an unexpected need to get a workout at home this past weekend. My midwestern state like many others was hard hit by a winter storm.

First we had freezing rain. Ice coated the tops of the tree branches and icicles 5 and 6 inches long hung below. Then the snow began to fall covering up the ice. Sometime during the night the accumulated weight of the ice and snow was too much for many of the trees in our yard. Limbs snapped, broken branches covered a good part of our front yard and the drive way.

So my husband and I woke up to find that we needed to not only shovel about 8-10 inches of snow but we would need to cut and drag a large tree limb and branches off the driveway. This is NOT how I wanted to spend my Sunday morning. It actually comforted me to know that I would easily get my exercise for the day with all of this. I just needed to go at it properly so that I didn’t injure my back. I tried to keep in mind the advice to not lift and turn in one motion.

We worked for more than an hour. I figure I was shoveling snow or lifting and moving tree limbs and branches for at least 40 minutes of that time. (During the hour plus that we worked, I needed to stop every ten minutes or so to rest a few minutes!) When we had finished my reward was having a cleared driveway AND I may have burned about 252 calories. Not bad.

How did I determine the calories burned? I used the free calorie calculator provided by Global Health and Fitness. It is one of the best calorie calculators that I am aware of on the web and likely one of the most accurate. In addition to providing results for formal exercise such as as running, swimming, and biking, it includes daily life activities.

This calculator includes everything from shoveling snow to housecleaning to raking leaves to the calories burned when having sex! In addition, the results are based on your individual weight and the number of minutes engaged in the particular activity.

Would you like to learn more about achieving weight loss and better health without needing to work up a sweat at the gym? Dr. Harvey Simon, a Harvard professor, has written a book called The No Sweat Exercise Plan: A Simple Way to Lose Weight and Improve Your Health Without Spending Hours in the Gym. Evidently he shares a refreshing exercise plan that shows you how. I’ve read positive reviews of this book but I have not yet had a chance to read it myself. I hope to soon.

In the meantime, maybe I’ll look forward to cleaning my house with more enthusiasm. And then again, maybe I won’t… Either way, I WILL burn some calories. That’s a good thought to keep in mind.