Escaping calories: simple ways to burn and avoid them

Why should burning calories be limited to the gym? Here are some simple ways to burn and avoid some calories outside of your workout:

Always take the stairs: Whether you're shopping at the mall, parked on the third floor of the parking structure, or making it back up to your apartment located on the fourth floor of your building, always choose to take the stairs over the elevator. Carrying in a load of groceries? Even better! These can double as weights, increasing the calorie burn!

Park further away from your destination: Rather than parking at the front of the grocery store or searching for the closest spot to the restaurant, park furtherest away to get a short walk in.

Share your dessert: Maybe not the most appealing of tips, but by sharing your dessert, you consume less calories while still satisfying your sweet tooth. 

Offer to help carry your friend's bags: Be it groceries, a backpack, or a duffle bag, ask your friend if you can help carry some of their things if they're looking weighed down, or even if they're not!

Eat breakfast: If you don't already, start eating breakfast every morning shortly after you wake up. This gets your metabolism running, has you consuming fewer calories over the course of the day, and amps up your body's leptin output (a hormone that suppresses appetite).

Drop the soda: Instead, whip up a concoction of fruit juice and soda water, or switch to other alternatives such as IZZE Esque (a low-calorie sparkling juice drink).

Take a walk after your meal (or even just pace around for a while): Instead of plopping down on the couch or heading straight for a nap, move around for a bit. In doing so, you will also help your body with the digestive process.

Don't be afraid to manipulate your order: When eating out, make adjustments to your meal (i.e. no salt, grilled instead of fried, sauces/dressings on the side) to up the healthiness of your dish.

•  I want to emphasize having your sauces and dressings put on the side, for this is where the majority of a dish's calories are packed into. Even a healthy salad can easily become a calorie-bomb due to its dressing. Rather than pouring the dressing/sauce on, dip your fork into it before each bite to greatly reduce calories and still get the flavor.

Cook your own meals: By cooking your own meals, you control what goes into it. This means you can healthify any dish of your liking by reducing the amount of salt or sugar the recipe calls for, and you can even incorporate some healthy substitutions that you won't even notice are there.

Go for almond milk: When making smoothies or whipping up a bowl of cereal, use some Silk Pure Almond Unsweetend milk (Vanilla or Original flavored), coming in at only 30 calories per serving.

Get active while relaxing: While watching TV, do some hip raises, and during commercial breaks, challenge yourself to hold a plank until your show comes back on (considering how long commercials can be, this would be something to work up to- push yourself to hold the position a bit longer with each go!).

Have a mini-dance party: In need of a study break? Instead of switching on the TV or looking up gifs of angry cats, why not crank up the music and dance around? Not only will you be burning some calories, but you'll also be releasing some of that pent-up energy and anxiety you may be experiencing, and waking yourself up after nearly passing out on your textbook. 

Eat on a smaller plate: When you use a bigger plate, you feel the need to fill it. Instead, opt for a smaller plate. This will give you the impression that you're eating more, keeping you from overloading your plate and consuming more than you should be.

Nix the sugar: Instead of using sugar to sweeten your coffee or tea (or anything else you would normally sweeten), go for stevia instead (all natural and 0 calories!).

Dilute your juice: Though juice is full of antioxidants, it's very high in sugar. To minimize your calorie intake, dilute half of your glass with water.

There are plenty of other ways to avoid and burn calories, all it takes is some creativity and motivation!