Skip the gym, do something fun.

Adult and Children's pool viewed from above

Working out at the gym is the nadir of the adult human physical experience. Adults possess the skill of taking fun activities they engaged in as youngsters, and making them solitary and monotonous.

• Swimming: Brownian motion of splashing about turned into swimming laps (see above).
• Walking: Running down the street to someone's house to play evolved to an electric machine in front of a flat panel.
• Riding a bike: Short sprints and BMX turned into a discipline requiring expensive, precision machines and unflattering clothes.
• Sledding: Sledding down icy hills and splitting one's head open turned even more dangerous with luge (yeah!).

I'm mindful of this silliness and even give in to a gym once in a while, but I try to avoid them in my day to day. Frankie keeps me popping about in erratic patterns no matter what she's doing. If I can keep up, it's good. On the way home from work, I stop in at a local park for chin-ups, push-ups, dips and a few stomach exercises, it's outdoors and the scenery's great. The wife's been doing dropoff and pickup this Summer, so I get to walk to work a couple miles each way - very cool. I drop into an empty room once in a while for a quick series of stretching exercises. A few times a week, I run stairs at work; it's the perfect interval cardio routine.

Opportunities to burn calories - and have fun - are everywhere.