Workers increase their physical activity by 8 percent and burn 25 more calories on casual-clothing workdays than on workdays when they wear regular office attire.
Who needs suits? “Wearing casual clothing every day for 50 weeks of work would translate into burning an additional 125 calories per week or 6,250 calories per year – the equivalent of almost 2 pounds,” according to John Porcari and Reem Ekhwan, authors of this study.
John Porcari and Reem Ekhwan, “Do You Do 10K a Day?” American Council on Exercise, Fitness Matters, 2007, 12 (4).
People who want to quit smoking are twice as likely to succeed in quitting if they lift weights than if they don’t lift weights.
In the study that yielded this stat, one group of struggling-to-stop smokers engaged in 2 hours of weight training per week. Another group didn’t exercise, but watched health-related videos instead. 12 weeks later, 16% of the weightlifters had quit smoking. They had also lost weight. Only 8% of the nonlifters had quit smoking, and all 8% had gained weight. Resistance training is key says Parham: “Strength training builds muscle, which burns calories and knocks the weight off. Whatever you’re doing, do it more.”
Joseph Ciccolo et al., “Resistance Training as an Aid to Standard Smoking Cessation Treatment: A Pilot Study.” Nicotine and Tobacco Research, 2011, 13 (8), 756-760.