It might sound odd coming from a hypnotherapist, but it’s rare that I see I client and don’t recommend that they take some form of exercise as part of their life. It’s probably obvious for people who want to lose weight, but it’s also really effective at helping people who are suffering from stress or depression, can’t get pregnant, have low self-esteem, lack confidence and many other things too. Why?

Well, mostly it’s because exercise makes you feel good and if you feel good, you’ll be more motivated to achieve your goals. Exercise allows you to challenge yourself and find out strengths that you didn’t even know you had (ask anyone who’s run a half marathon!). And of course it also helps keep you fit and healthy. But you don’t need me to tell you that.

It’s great if you can make official exercise (sports, gym etc) non-negotiable and important enough to stick to. In addition, it’s fantastic if you can also integrate as much movement as possible into your everyday routine and habits.

So, in the spirit of making 2012 an active, healthy and happy year, here are 99 ways to move your body:

1. Ride your bike to work

2. Stand up on the tube/bus

3. Stand up for meetings and when you’re typing

4. Use an exercise ball instead of a chair if you need to sit down at a desk

5. Fidget

6. Yoga

7. Knit or crochet when you’re watching TV

8. Run - use Hypnogogo, sign up for a race or join a running club to help motivate you. Please do download this free recording if you need help getting started (http://www.hypnogogo.co.uk/promotions/get-up-and-gogo-for-womens.html)

9. Take a walk at lunchtime

10. Love your cleaning...

11. ...and ironing!

12. Dance around the kitchen when you’re cooking

13. Pretend you are a donkey and carry passengers (this works best in the park)

14. Walk up escalators

15. Use the ad breaks in TV programmes to do sit ups/crunches - see how many you can do in each commercial break

16. Blow up some balloons and hang them on your fridge

17. Do your Kegel exercises

18. Stretch your whole body when you first wake up

19. Carry your suitcases instead of pulling them along

20. Carry a bottle of water with you and use it to do some bicep curls as you walk or when you’re standing on the tube

21. Hulahoop

22. Sing in the shower

23. Go on a treasure hunt (make a list of 10 things and walk until you find them. It helps to make number 10 a pub or a coffee shop!)

24. Play football

25. Take a dog for a walk (and if you don’t have your own, borrow one)

26. Body brushing

27. Spring clean as if you have the Queen coming to stay

28. Take an exercise based holiday - yoga retreat, cycling, snowboarding, skiing

29. Aerobics

30. Pick up litter in your neighbourhood, park or favourite beach

31. Play follow the leader

32. Zumba

33. Step

34. Download an audio workout (e.g. 20 minute yoga)

35. Try out an exercise DVD instead of watching EastEnders

36. Have sex

37. Trampoline

38. Jump up and down whenever you are in a queue or waiting for the bus

39. Gymnastics

40. Go swimming

41. Lift weights

42. Put on your favourite song and dance and sing along

43. Skipping (with or without a rope)

44. Frisbee

45. Table tennis

46. Wii fit

47. Cricket

48. Rounders

49. Rowing

50. Basketball

51. Netball

52. Pushups

53. Go to the park and have a sports day - egg and spoon, sack race, three legged race - medals and fruit as prizes

54. Leg lifts (you could do this while watching the tele)

55. Make a game out of any jobs and get the whole family involved (e.g. time yourself to do things faster, pretend that you need to zap the dust aliens with the hoover)

56. Work using a treadmill desk

57. Capoeira

58. Tennis

59. Badminton

60. Squash

61. Wrestling

62. Dancing

63. Golf

64. Mountain biking

65. White water rafting

66. Diving

67. Bowls

68. Ten pin bowling

69. Kayaking or canoeing

70. Trapeze

71. Aqua aerobics

72. Play twister

73. Laugh (watch a funny video, tell some jokes, just laugh for fun!)

74. Spin class

75. Ride a micro scooter instead of taking the bus

76. Gardening

77. Ice skate

78. Run up and down the stairs (in a very tall building if they’ll let you in!)

79. Water skiing

80. Belly dancing

81. Tai Chi

82. Tae Kwon Do

83. Karate

84. Play the drums

85. Burlesque

86. Pole dancing

87. Wash the car

88. DIY

89. Pull your stomach muscles in whenever you see the colour red

90. Have a water fight or pillow fight

91. Hire a bouncy castle and bounce!

92. Croquet

93. Do some volunteer work

94. Bake some cup cakes and walk to your local old people’s home to deliver them (don’t lick the icing)

95. Run through sprinklers

96. Hockey

97. Play tag or stuck in the mud

98. Learn to juggle (balls not life)

99. Join a dance class - ballroom, lindy hop, ballet, jazz

Why not challenge yourself to try at least half of them by the end of the year? Who knows how good that could make you feel!

By the way, if you are starting a new exercise regime please do check with your doctor first.