It's the holiday season and on my planet, the United States, that means people are preoccupied with how to stay slim during this season of indulgence. Magazines typically feature articles on how to burn calories by doing ordinary things -- such as walking to the mailbox instead of driving, or by choosing the 500-calorie Chocolate Drummer Boy Mousse over the 600-calorie Maraschino Kwanzaa Double Delight.
But the U.S. could learn a lot from Japan, where even the foreigners are slim. This is because in Japan, every day is a diet. Did you realize, for example, that opening those heavy doors at the Daiei department store burns 100 calories? And that doing "mawasu" for a free gift at the shopping mall uses up to 50 calories each time you crank the wheel? Buying a hot canned drink from the vending machine just to keep your hands warm while you wait for the train uses 129 calories!
Consider the following everyday activities and calorie expenditures: