by Melinda Hardeman

Created on: March 06, 2008

If you are like the majority of people in the United States, finding time to squeeze a work out in between family, friends, the every day home tasks, and work is almost as hard as finding the winning lottery numbers. Luckily though, there is somewhere where the chances of getting in a few extra calorie burners can be easily found with minimal going out of your way. Here's four easy sure fire ways to sneak a little work out into your daily routine.

PARK IT! Who hasn't circled the parking lot cursing silently to ourselves that we can't find a parking spot close to the front? Well, curse no more because here you can squeeze in just a bit of exercise by parking at the far end of the parking lot. Even if you are in a rush, this just means that you will have to step up the pace to get clocked in! Count a couple extra calories gone for that!

STEP IT UP! If you work in a building that has an elevator, skip it and take the stairs. This is a great way to sneak in some let work!

STAND UP! If you have a desk job this one is particularly important. You must, I repeat must, stand up and stretch, even if it's just putting your arms over your head and raising up on your tip toes, or reaching back over your shoulder and trying to pat yourself on your back (hey, we need that every now and then don't we?). This keeps the body interested in burning calories as well as keeps your joints from aching.

LUNCH TIME? MOVE IT! Lunches were made for relaxing, chatting about whatever with your co-workers, and overall doing nothing. But instead of doing that, take the stairs up and down a couple times, or go outside if it's nice and walk around the building. Then come back to a healthy lunch, that means no fast food! Think of it this way, if you've gone out of your way to sneak some exercise in, why waste it by eating something that has more calories in it than you can burn in a day? You can even spread the exercise wealth by grabbing a friend on this work out.

Keep in mind that working out doesn't have to involve a work out uniform, gym membership, pain and a lot of sweating (though it helps sometimes). Sometimes getting a little exercise into your day can be as simple as not getting angry when there's no "up close" parking spots at work, and even better, these things can be used when you are shopping too. Making small changes in your life, how you do things, can make a difference!

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