Power Marketing

As I was doing my marketing yesterday evening, it occurred to me that this biweekly trip to the grocery store is a great opportunity to burn some calories. Having a tough time trying to figure out how to fit a workout into your busy schedule? Make your marketing work for you!

1. Park on the edge of the parking lot.
Do you drive to the grocery store? Well, put your legs to work next time and park your car at the very edge of the parking lot - as far from the store as possible. Not only can you avoid all the congestion near the closest parking spots, but you'll burn some extra calories walking to and from your car.

2. Take that cart up and down every aisle.
Every aisle - whether it contains items you need or not. Weave it in and out every stack of fruits and veggies in the produce section, too. And don't forget the bakery! As your cart gets more and more full, you're adding resistance to your workout. Not only is this a great opportunity to burn some calories and tone leg muscles, it keeps me from forgetting anything I need at home. I always take a list to the grocery store with me, but there's inevitably something that slipped my mind as I was making up my list. Walking up and down each aisle reminds me of anything that I'm low on and need to add to my cart.

3. Return your cart to the cart corral.
It's always been a pet peeve of mine when people leave their grocery carts willy nilly all over the parking lot --- ripe for rolling right into other cars or blocking off just enough of another parking spot that it has to be bypassed when spots are scarce. Take an extra minute and return your cart to the nearest corral. You'll be doing your fellow drivers a favor and burning a few extra calories at the same time. A win-win!

4. Take your time getting the groceries into the house.
The fact that my apartment is on the second floor of my complex gives me a chance to combine a stair-climbing workout with my marketing. Instead of trying to carry every one of my grocery bags into the house in one trip, I take just two bags at a time. One in each hand. If I've got a particularly heavy bag that needs to be hoisted and carried in my arms, I'll take that up by itself. I carry my bags all the way into the kitchen. Set them down on the table, then head back downstairs for the next (small) load.

I've never used a pedometer to try and calculate the amount of calories burned by adding these extra steps to my marketing trips, but all these little steps have got to add up when taken week in and week out. Think of it as "power marketing."

In a February 1944 advertisement, the Borden Company (think Elsie the Cow) offered up four tips of their own for weary wartime housewives. These tips were designed to make marketing a little easier during an era of food shortages and ration points, but the last one would be a great power marketing tip for those of you who live close enough to a grocery store that you might be able to turn a "quick run for a few things" into a workout. The Trader Joe's I shop at on Wednesday evenings is just two blocks from my apartment complex and I've always stopped there on the way home from work to do my shopping. Maybe it's time I start driving all the way home, then walk back to the store to pick up my groceries and carry them home in my own two arms. I never buy more than one bag worth on Wednesdays...

1. DO YOUR WEEK-END SHOPPING EARLY IN THE WEEK! Miss the Saturday mob - and get better service.

2. PLAN YOUR SHOPPING LIST AT HOME! Means less time in the market - and helps budget ration points.

3. KEEP UP-TO-DATE ON POINT VALUES! Check ration calendars... Know when points expire. Your grocer will love you for it - and you'll get your points' worth, too.

4. CARRY YOUR PACKAGES! Then you won't have to worry about slow deliveries.