Some ways to burn 500 cals

1. Dance for just two hours and torch 500 calories. (A little air guitar will burn a few extra calories, too.)

2. Get enough sleep. A lack of shut-eye can make you snack, new research from the University of Chicago shows. People who got only 5 1/2 hours of sleep noshed more during the day. Snooze more and save about 1,087 calories.
3. Don’t eat in front of the TV. You’ll eat up to 288 calories more, according to research from the University of Massachusetts. Instead, eat at the table, and trade one hour of TV for a casual walk. Together, that’s 527 calories burned.
4. Get in tune with your tummy. Pay attention to how full you feel, and put down your fork when you’re satisfied. Listen to your body’s cues—instead of looking at whether the plate is clean—and save up to 500 calories a day.
5. Use smaller plates. Swap your 12-inch plate for a 10-inch one. You’ll eat 20 to 25 percent less— and save up to 500 calories. You won’t feel any less full, either, researchers say.
6. Kick the soda habit. A 12-ounce soft drink has about 150 to 180 calories. If you down two or three a day, you’re getting lots of extra calories. Quench your thirst with water and save as many as 540 calories..

7. Eat less pasta. One cup of pasta is just 220 calories. But typical dinner portions at restaurants can be as much as 480 percent larger than that 1 cup, according to New York University research. That’s 1,056 calories. Even if you eat 2 whole cups of noodles, you’ll still save 616 calories.

8. Clean house. Tidy up for 2 1/2 hours and burn 510 calories.

9. Help a friend move. You’ll burn more than 600 calories in one hour of carrying boxes and furniture up and down the stairs.

10. Shovel snow. Clearing the driveway and sidewalks for one hour and 15 minutes will torch 510 calories.

11. Ice-skate for one hour and five minutes and burn 516 calories. (Or go inline skating and slash 562.)

12. Tap your foot. Your skinnier friends are probably fidgeters, who burn up to 350 calories a day just by tapping their feet or being restless. Try it for a few days. Walk around while you’re on the phone, or tap out a tune with your hands or feet (in the privacy of your own office, of course).

13. Be the hostess with the mostest. Go grocery shopping for one hour, put away your groceries, spend two hours cooking a fabulous holiday feast, set the table and serve. Then toast yourself for the awesome 640 calorie-burn. (A glass of champagne is only about 106 calories, so you’re still ahead.)

14. Go window-shopping. Whether you buy anything or not, an afternoon of walking around and

trying on clothes can torch 548 calories.

15. Hit the pool. Do one hour of laps or 55 minutes of jogging in the water to burn 500 calories.

16. Stroll your way slim. Spend an afternoon at the zoo (or around the aquarium or museum) and burn 523 calories.

17. Head to a county fair or amusement park. You’ll slash 612 calories in three hours from the casual walking and standing in lines. (Subtract 105 calories if you have cotton candy.)

18. Play a game of touch football or basketball with your kids or friends for one hour and burn 500 calories.

19. Do an hour of circuit training and you’ll burn 544 calories.

20. Tackle the garage. Clearing out junk for 1 hour and 30 minutes will burn 510 calories.

21. Rake the leaves. Do garden work for 1 hour and 45 minutes and burn 512 calories. 

22. Kickbox. Sign up for kickboxing and burn 510 calories in a 45-minute class.

23. Exercise at home. Pop in a one-hour aerobics DVD, and finish with 20 minutes of yoga—500 calories, gone.

24. Walk or run a 10K and you’ll burn up to 680 calories.

24. Go hiking. Just one hour and 15 minutes will burn 510 calories.