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Many years ago I concluded that spending hours pummelling a treadmill at the local gym was not for me. Neither was I too keen on bumping into people when trying to swim lengths at our local swimming pool. So I adopted an approach to keep fit that has resulted in my weight remaining steady for over 15 years and I am the same size now (at 45) as I was when I was 15. Here’s how I do it.

Firstly, I don’t use my car if I can walk instead. Whereas I notice my neighbours will hop in their car to pop to the local store for a newspaper or a pint of milk, I will always walk. It takes me longer, but then I’m nowhere near as fat as my neighbour. Also, when I walk I don’t simply stroll along. I push myself a little. I walk fast so that I get a little breathless. If I am not panting a bit when I get back from the shop then I haven’t really pushed myself hard enough.

I try and use my lunch-breaks at work to get a little exercise. We have a generous hour long break so I have tried to see how far I can walk away from my work place in half an hour. Then I turn around and walk back again. A whole hour of vigorous walking a few times a week works wonders.

When I lived in London I had a flat on the 11th floor of a tower block. My classes at University were often on the 7th floor of another high rise and so I decided to stop using the lifts. Walking up all of those stairs a couple of times a day provided quite a serious workout.

I no longer live in a tower block and I don’t get to visit many high rise buildings, but when I do I try not to use the lifts.

When I go to the shops and pick up a couple of carrier bags full of groceries I do a few ‘curls’ as I walk home. All the walking exercise I get is great for the legs and lower back but I needed to come up with some upper-body exercises and this is one that I use once or twice a week.

Another is working out while seated in front of the computer. My computer chair has a pair of arm rests and I use these to do a number of push-ups every day. I remain in the seated position, stretch my legs out straight and then lift my body off the chair using just my arms on the arm rests. Sometimes I’ll hold myself supported on my arms until they begin to shake.

In the evenings, when I am relaxing in front of the TV, I try to do a number of scrunches to exercise my abdominal muscles. I do this during the advertising breaks and I am certain this routine has helped me retain my six pack and board-flat stomach.

If you take a leaf out of my book you too will still look good in some trendy Roxy beach wear or Animal clothing this summer.