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While talking to a taxi driver in Malaysia he had an interesting story of how his mother extracted latex from rubber trees and the transportation involved.

The process of extracting latex harks back to the traditional methods called tapping, which involves making an incision in a spiral like pattern around the trunk of a palm tree. Every day the tapper will collect the latex that had weeped from the palm tree into a little bowl on the side of the trunk. On average a person tap 100 to 150 palm trees per day.

The most interesting part of this story was that the taxi driver’s mother tapped up to 500 palm trees per day and collected 728 gallons of latex or 25 to 30 L (the equivalent weight of 25/30kgs). The most amazing part is that at the end of every day his mother who was 55 would carry the day’s worth of latex over her shoulders into 2 aluminium buckets connected by flexible timber rod and travel 2 -3 kms to the deposit zone.

On average the tappers would work from the age of 18 to 55 years old with the children clearing the ground around the canopy of the palm trees of weeds and other plant material. This work was very physically exhausting with minimal pay which made this a very demanding type of work exercise.

A great way to lose weight without trying is to incorporate a little bit of incidental exercise that will help burn calories while doing everyday domestic stuff. What we’re talking about is keeping the body moving so you break the sedentary lifestyle cycle of sitting all day long.

So try out these 10 great ways of burning calories while you’re out doing everyday stuff.

1.When you’re printing documents at work select a printer that is on the other side of the office.

2.Try cleaning your oven without the aid of nasty chemicals, use good old elbow grease.

3.Park your car at the furthest point at the shopping centre car park or better still forget where you park.

4.Clean your windows, once again without nasty chemicals. Try using good old methylated spirits and newspaper.

5.Take the stairs rather than a lift or escalator.

6.Walk and play with the dog, why let rover have all the fun!

7.Walk when picking up the kids. If you live close to their school, walking will help lead by example in setting healthy exercise habits:))

8.Always keep moving. If you’re a perennial sit-downer ie you spend long periods glued to the computer or TV screen, get up every 1 – 2 hours and go for a quick walk, it will boost your productivity and give your mind a break.

9.Sweep the footpaths and rake the leaves, it’s a great work out plus it keeps things tidy

10..Dust your blankets and small rugs by placing them on the clothesline and beating them with a broom handle, just remember to change sides to ensure an even workout.

While some of these may seem unconventional, they are a great way to burn some extra calories while going about your normal activities during the day.

Are you paralysed in taking the first step in undertaking any physical activity or adopting a healthier eating regime?
The ancient chinese philosopher Confucious Says “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”

Often getting started is the hardest past of any journey we undertake without it is trekking up the Himalayas or making some positive changes in your life.

So while it can be difficult, try taking the first steps to introducing physical activity into your life with healthier eating.

A great unusual exercise, trying to find your car in a massive carpark. Think about the distance that you can travel when getting back to your car or when you cannot find your car, having to walk or preferable run isle by isle.

The work out can be improved by carrying shopping in either hand, ideally a shopping bag in either hand, remembering not to internally rotate the shoulders and feeling the weight of the bags around your shoulder blades.

Remember no cheating by using your phone camera to determine your location before you leave the car or a GPS unit. The best results will be gained by keeping it a total mystery.