Article 21: Taking the stairs instead of the elevator

Chapter Four: The Benefits of Lazy People's Exercise

Don't put too much hope on planned exercise.

Think about how to increase supplementary exercises. No matter how small the amount of exercise,

It can help with weight loss.

Instead of taking the elevator, take the stairs.

We all know that exercise is important for weight loss and also for physical and mental health. Weight loss is actually a mathematical equation, with energy intake on one side and energy expenditure on the other. Exercise helps us increase energy expenditure, which naturally helps you lose weight.

While the principle is simple, sticking to exercise is difficult. Have you ever had this experience: you set new goals for yourself at the beginning of the year, spent hundreds or even thousands of dollars on gym memberships, signed up for various classes, or bought running shoes and exercise equipment, ready to go all out? But after exercising a few times, you couldn't maintain the routine for various reasons, and in the end, your membership or equipment just gathers dust at home. This is similar to the diet-based weight loss method I mentioned before. Yes, there are many weight loss diets on the market that can help you lose weight in the short term, but you can't stick to them long-term. The same applies to exercise; any weight loss that cannot be sustained is fake weight loss, whether it's exercise or diet.

So how can we keep exercising without feeling tired? It's simple, just change the way you exercise.

There are actually two types of physical activity: planned activities and accessory activities. Whether we go to the gym, go running, play ball, or do aerobics, these all require prior planning. Exercise that requires dedicated time is called planned exercise. The exercises we do unconsciously in daily life, including going up and down stairs, walking, standing, getting up, and squatting, happen naturally and are therefore called accessory activities. The problem here is that when trying to lose weight, we often focus on planned activities and neglect accessory activities. Planned activities naturally burn more energy and are more effective, but the biggest problem is that they are difficult to maintain.

The logic is simple: planned exercise takes time! Even if you only plan to exercise for 40 or 50 minutes at the gym, the journey there and back takes time, potentially adding up to an hour. Plus, you need to pack your clothes and bag beforehand, and shower and do laundry when you get home, taking another half hour. A 40-minute workout can take two or three hours in total-who can stick to that? If you have nothing to do all day, then spending three hours exercising is fine, but for most people, we have to go to work or school, earn money, eat, do cleaning, see family, date, and meet friends. How can we possibly spend several hours every day planning an exercise routine?

Another reason we dislike exercise is that it feels tiring. The thought of doing a lot of movements, possibly leaving us breathless and covered in sweat, makes it seem too challenging. It's as if we have to specifically schedule it, find a time when we're in good spirits and full of energy, and make sure we have no other plans afterward so we can rest as much as we want before we're willing to do it.

So what should you do? Stop exercising? Of course not. I strongly suggest you don't place too much hope on planned exercise; instead, think more about how to add supplementary exercises.

For example, if you go to work every day by bus or subway, could you get off one stop early and walk one stop? You might enjoy the scenery along the way, which could improve your mood and your work performance. If you drive to work, could you park further away so you can walk a bit more, or take the stairs instead of the elevator? If you find your commute too rushed, could you only do this on your way home? If climbing ten or more floors seems too difficult, could you climb four or five floors before taking the elevator? Or get off the elevator two or three floors early and walk the stairs for the remaining floors?

When you're at work or school, could you try to stand up and move around every hour or two instead of sitting for hours on end, letting fat accumulate on your stomach and buttocks? We can get up to go to the bathroom every hour or two; that's like doing two squats with each rise and fall. Or go downstairs for a walk and get some fresh air. If you need to talk to a colleague, go directly to them instead of sending a WeChat message. Go to different floors to use the restroom, or even just walk to the water dispenser to get a glass of water or take out the trash. No matter how small the amount of exercise, it will help with weight loss. At lunchtime, could you refrain from ordering takeout? Instead, could you invite a colleague to go out to eat or pick up your own food? This way, you can walk a little further and relax from your busy work schedule. Even cooking your own meals can increase your exercise. When you have time, go to the market to buy some fresh vegetables and cook them at home. This not only increases your exercise but is also much healthier than eating takeout all the time. If you still find it difficult, you don't need to do it every day. Can you set a schedule to do it every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday?

So, there are actually many ways to change our daily habits and increase our supplementary exercise. You might say, but this amount of exercise is very small; can it really help me lose weight? True, supplementary exercise is much smaller than planned exercise, but the key is that we can stick to it. Running 5 kilometers is impressive, but what's the point if you only run once every two weeks? However, if you just walk a little more each day, say 4 kilometers, you'll accumulate 56 kilometers of walking in two weeks, which is much better than running 5 kilometers, isn't it? Now, we can track our steps on our phones, so we can see our results very clearly.

Therefore, don't underestimate seemingly insignificant supplementary exercises. For those who find it difficult to stick to a regular exercise routine, their weight loss effect is far superior to planned exercise. A research team from the University of Colorado School of Medicine conducted an interesting comparative study. They wanted to know why some people easily gain weight while others don't, when everyone ate the same amount and didn't intentionally exercise. The results showed that those who didn't easily gain weight simply had more supplementary exercises. (Schmidt, Harmon, Sharp, Kealey & Bessesen, 2012) Doctors at the renowned Mayo Clinic conducted an even more interesting experiment. They replaced the clinic's desks with a treadmill-based platform, allowing doctors to work while walking. Three months later, they found that these doctors had lost an average of nearly two kilograms of weight and their body fat percentage had decreased by nearly 2%, without feeling like they had done anything extra. (Thompson, Koepp & Levine, 2014) They also conducted another experiment, using the same treadmill-based work platform, and had 36 white-collar workers who disliked exercise use it for a year. The results showed that after a year, even those who were not overweight had lost weight, with the smallest loss being nearly 1.5 kilograms and the largest being nearly 5 kilograms. Those who were slightly overweight lost at least nearly 2.5 kilograms and the largest nearly 6 kilograms. (Koepp, et al., 2013) Please note that this weight loss was achieved without any deliberate exercise or dieting!

Looking at these research results, you'll easily see that small changes in life can lead to big results. Because they are small, we can maintain them and lose weight without even realizing it. So, if you consider yourself a lazy person, increasing supplementary exercise and changing your daily habits is the most reliable and sustainable way to lose weight.

How exactly to do this depends on your living environment. Generally speaking, we need to move around more. We mentioned earlier that you can take the stairs more often, walk more, and cook for yourself as much as possible. There are actually many other things you can do. For example, even just standing a little longer will increase your incidental exercise: stand up after eating, stand up and work for a while after sitting for a long time, stand while watching TV, stand while using your phone-just stand as much as you can. In addition, do things yourself whenever possible, such as cleaning, doing laundry, and going to the supermarket. Don't rely on others or leave it to machines. These small habits not only increase our physical activity but also improve our mood, and might even save money-why not?

Homework

1. Starting today, consciously increase your amount of supplementary exercise.

2. In the coming week, please start with the simplest supplementary exercises, such as getting off the bus or train one stop earlier on your way home from get off work and taking the stairs instead of the elevator.