Bocce - Hey, It's Better Than Nothing

Bocce: Not just for aging Italian men anymore. Photo: Eric Perrone, Flickr

Even those of us with the healthiest habits can get thrown off course on a holiday weekend. Too much eating and drinking paired with a lot of sitting and chatting can totally derail your diet. However, with the slightest amount of planning, you can mitigate the damage (at least a little bit).

Take bocce, for example. The D.C. Bocce League (whose motto is "Our balls are harder") allows people of all ages (yes, young folks play bocce, too) to get together and be, well, somewhat active. Definitely more active than, say sitting in a lawn chair. Or a bar stool. Or the couch.

The game, for those of you who are unfortunate enough to be unfamiliar, is an ancestor of bowling that initially became popular when soldiers in ancient Rome tossed stones to stave off boredom between battles. It now consists of tossing a two-pound ball toward a small white ball across a lawn. No, you're not going to work up a sweat, but it'll burn more calories than the 12-ounce curls you'd planned on.

This article in the Washington Post suggests taking a cue from Rapid Throw Bocce to up the fitness factor -- get in some cardio by adding sprints to the end of each round. The team who collects all their balls the fastest gets extra points.

If bocce isn't your thing, think about other games you do like. Tag, touch football, frisbee -- they're all great options, and infinitely better than sitting on your behind.

What will you do with your time off this weekend?