Ross: The fitness program that’s all around you

I think the most important thing I can do this morning is call your attention to today’s edition of “Paging Dr Cohen” which is about the importance of incidental exercise.

There’s nothing that shortens your lifespan like putting on too much weight — which is easy to do because the temptations are everywhere. But the great thing about incidental exercise is that the opportunities to BURN those calories are also everywhere.

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And a few little adjustments can add up.

For example, according to the National Academy of Sports Medicine, a 145-pound person burns about 102 calories an hour sitting at a desk.

But if you stand at the desk, it burns 174 calories an hour.

Over the course of 250 work days that’s five pounds.

And standing at work is just one thing you can do. You can also wash the car BY HAND. Challenge yourself to make the bed in under five minutes. Vacuum as though company was coming. Shop with a hand-held grocery basket instead of using a cart.

Pace around as you talk on the phone.

And true story about the power of moving as you talk on the phone. Last Thursday it was such a gorgeous day that I decided to walk around Lake Union after work. So I parked at Mohai and headed out along Westlake and about a half-mile from the Fremont Bridge I got a FaceTime call from my granddaughter who wanted me to play various pretend characters. I got so absorbed, I missed the stairs to the Fremont Bridge, and ended up stuck on the south bank of the Ship Canal, and by the time the call ended, I was almost at the Ballard Locks.

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So I thought, what the heck, I’ll keep going, cut across the locks and have lunch at the National Nordic Museum, with its airy cafe, where they serve that healthy Nordic soup and low-calorie Nordic yogurt.

Anyway, by the time I got back to Mohai, according to my phone, the battery was down to 5% and I had walked 24,748 steps – 10.5 miles; 846 calories.

I had a wonderful time, and got an amazing arm-tan.

I also discovered the Ballard Bridge is lot longer when you’re on foot, and a little terrifying. Although I believe FEAR also burns more calories.

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