Exercise With Your Pet

Running dog
Until a few years ago I wasn’t much of a pet lover. Things changed drastically when I got a puppy for my birthday. I soon found out that not only was it a great companion but it also helped me fight my weight problems.

Everything happened so naturally that I didn’t even realize I had replaced a sedentary life with one where walking and running were so much fun. We all know that working out is crucial for a healthy life, but doing the same type of exercise can become something boring.

Most people have the tendency to give up after training gets into a routine. To avoid that, I am going to give you some solutions to keep on moving but also enjoy it. All you need is a pet!

Walking your dog can be a lot of fun. Trust me, you don’t even realize when time passes and you burn calories. If you jog with your pet, you can burn from 200 to 300 calories per half an hour. According to Health Status this variation comes from the weight of each person. Even walking or playing with your pet burns between 110 and 200 calories, also per half an hour.
Pets boost motivation level. A study conducted by the College of Veterinary Medicine from the University of Missouri-Columbia chose participants that were mainly people with a sedentary life that didn’t own a pet. They were given a pet to take care of for a period of one year. The study concluded that all the subject were extremely motivated to increase the exercise regimen. They seemed to have a lot of fun and lost an average of 14 pounds during the program. After the study ended, the researchers came up with another great idea – taking your pet to the gym. I can hardly wait to see the results! It would be really fun if I could see the participants training with their dogs, cats, or other pets.
Who needs yoga exercises when you can stroke your pet? Trust me there is nothing more relaxing than nursing a puppy. Many studies have revealed the fact that this can calm one down really fast. Furthermore, the effect lasts a long period of time. So, whenever you feel frustrated because you want to eat all the unhealthy foods you can think of, just look in the eyes of your puppy and you will be immediately distracted from all these thoughts.

I have to say that I definitely advocate for owning a pet no matter if it is a dog, a cat, a hamster, a rabbit or whatever suits you best. Trust me, you won’t be disappointed!

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