Have you ever had the chance to observe an animal in the wild? Did they look overweight? Of course not. And why do you think that is? It’s because they get all the exercise they need just by doing their regular daily activities. They don’t need to join a health club or buy expensive exercise equipment. Everything they need to stay in shape is right within their environment. And that’s just as true for those of us that have retired and aren’t as active as we once were.

Generally, modern day humans seem to think that they must do some extraordinary things to keep their bodies in shape. If you are a professional athlete or body builder, that may be true. But, for those of us that just want to stay fit, be able to play with our grandchildren, and do a little garden work or shopping, the challenge is different. It requires a little bit of a mind set change. But, it’s a lot easier and more convenient than you might think.

Do you watch television? Do you consider yourself something of a “couch potato?” Many of us spend a few hours a day watching something on the TV. Some of us spend a lot more than just a few hours in front of the TV. Well, guess what? If you watch TV that means that you are subjected to commercials. Commercial breaks, on average, last anywhere from 2 to 4 minutes and there are at least 6 to 8 of these during every hour of television. That means that for every hour you are in front of a TV, you have at least 20 minutes you can devote to the pursuit of your fitness.

Let’s look at some of the things you can do while commercials are trying to get you to buy the latest low fat snack food or explain to you why you really have to have that new car. While seated in your easy chair or on the couch, you can raise your arms over your head or reach down toward the floor and stretch your shoulders, your back, your arms, or your legs. Also, if you keep some stretch bands next to that easy chair, you could pick them up during a commercial break and do some repetitions to strengthen your arms and legs. Or you can keep a set of small dumbbells near by and use them to do a variety of exercises for you arms, back, chest, and shoulders during a commercial break, or even while watching a program. If you push yourself to get up from that favorite chair, you could get down on the floor and do a few crunches or push ups, or you could do a variety of different floor stretches. The point is, that with little or no equipment or room, you can turn those wasted minutes during commercials into valuable exercise time that can help you become more fit.

Animals in the wild, and even our household pets, know how to make the best use of their time and circumstances to get the exercise they need to stay fit. There is no reason why we can’t do the same thing just by utilizing the wasted time we spend in front of our TV’s during commercials. And, if you want to get really motivated and fit, you can expand the idea of stretching and exercising to include the entire time you are in front of a TV. For many of us, that will give us hours every week in which to fit in the exercise we didn’t think we had time for.

Think about it. Put that treadmill or exercise bike that has been gathering dust in a corner in a position where you can see the TV. Now you can walk or pedal at the same time as you are watching TV and get hours of aerobic exercise without the need to find extra time to fit it in.

As we age, it is very important that we keep exercising to maintain our strength, flexibility, and balance; these things a crucial to our ability to remain independent and do the things that we both want and need to do in order to be healthy human beings. The time to exercise is available to all of us; sometimes it is really more a matter of thinking outside the box to discover ways that we can fit it into our schedule.

Remember, when we were younger we often exercised in the form of sports to keep in shape and have some fun. As we age, there is no reason why we can’t continue to exercise; we may just need to find different ways to be active. And one of those ways can be with the TV.