SHOVELING
Many consider snow shoveling a necessary evil. However, done with caution and preparation, shoveling can be a fun and simple exercise. As long as you're physically fit and don't take on too much of the white stuff at once, shoveling can be part of a healthy winter exercise routine. Regular exercise strengthens bones and muscle, combats illness, relieves stress, improves mood, assists in good sleep patterns and is an important part of a healthy lifestyle.
Calorie Burner: Shoveling is a great calorie burner. A half-hour of moderate snow shoveling can burn more than 250 calories and help maintain weight during the holiday-heavy season.
Cardiovascular: Cardiovascular or aerobic exercise is important for your heart and circulatory system. Any exercise that involves large muscle groups, like your legs, is beneficial to your heart and lungs and can help lower blood pressure and bad cholesterol.
Muscle Development: Bending, lifting, reaching and tossing with a weight of snow at the end of a shovel is good for muscle tone and development.
Vitamin D: Depending on where you live and how much skin is exposed during your shoveling endeavor, you may be lucky enough to absorb a little of the winter-elusive UVB rays that help your body make Vitamin D.
Caution: While snow shoveling can have health benefits, many people make the mistake of thinking of it only as necessary task and not as the strenuous exercise it is. Even healthy adults should exercise caution by stretching before and after shoveling, taking frequent breaks, staying hydrated and avoiding overexertion. And people with heart or other serious medical conditions should avoid the activity altogether.
Read more:
Physical Benefits of Shoveling Snow | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/info_8592862_physical-benefits-shoveling-snow.html#ixzz2GGeJKOaY
SKI WARD
Ski Ward Ski Area, located in Shrewsbury, MA has lots to offer those in search of fun winter activities. If your primary interest is tubing then make your way to "Tubaslide", Ski Ward's snow tubing center. Here you will find all the elements to make for a fun day for your family or a group of friends. There is very little waiting in the Tubaslide area because there are six highly active chutes running. Once down you discover that the old days of dragging your snow equipment back to the top of the hill are a nightmare from the past. Tubaslide is equipped with rope towing that will whisk you and your tube back to the top for another great run. Ski Ward has in place snow making equipment that will keep operation humming throughout the winter months regardless of the amount of natural precipitation. For just $19 you can enjoy two full hours on the slopes. With the quick lift to the top which allows for so many extra runs, two hours generally satisfies even the snow tubing diehards for a while. Read more at
www.skiward.com
MAKING A SNOWMAN
Building a snowman is not only a great activity for the entire family but it is also good exercise. Our sonwmen are usually about 2 feet tall and look more rectangular than anything. But, we always have so much fun making them.
How to Build a Snowman from Buzzle.com
For people who live in cold countries where there is abundant snowfall during the winter months, building a snowman is a good pastime. Although snow restricts our options for moving around, it is the same snow that we can use to build a snowman in the yard or out in the open where there is enough snow around. So, for those who are wondering how to build a snow, here we go...
Factors to Consider
The first and foremost aspect to consider for those who want to know how to build a snowman is to make sure that the snow is of the right kind. The snow should be wet just enough so that it can be easily packed. Test this by taking some snow in hand and make a ball out of it. The ball must stay together and not crumble easily.
One also needs to decide the size and the place where the snowman is supposed to stand. In case it is a large snowman and the place which is chosen for it to stand is far off from where the balls are made, then carrying it over to the site will a difficult task. Also one needs to understand that the top and the middle balls of snow need to be lifted up and placed on the lower balls one on top of the other. Hence, the size of the snowman should be decided keeping in mind the number of people who are building the snowman.
Steps for Building a Snowman
The Belly - Lowest Portion
Take a small amount of snow and start making a ball by pressing the snow together with your hand. Once it becomes too large to be handled by you, place the ball on the ground and roll it over the snow around. As you roll it, more snow will stick to the ball. Press this snow firmly onto the ball. Roll the ball in all directions so that snow sticks to all sides and what you get is a good spherical ball of snow that is equally round on all sides. This is the bottom potion of your snowman. Place this ball of snow to a place where you want the snowman to stand. You definitely don't want to shift the position of your entire snowman after it has been made. Scoop some snow out from the top in the center of this ball so that the next ball of snow can be placed comfortably over this ball that forms the lowest portion of the snowman.
The Heart - Middle Portion
Now make the middle portion of the snowman. This is as we call the 'heart and soul' of the snowman. Start the same way as you did while making the lowest ball of snow. Take some snow in hand. Make a ball by pressing the snow together. Now roll the ball over in all direction and press the snow that accumulates around it. Only remember that this ball has to be smaller than the lowest ball, say about two third the size of the lower ball. Also be sure that the snow in this ball is all clumped tightly together. I am sure you do not want the snowball to crumble when you are placing it over the other ball, do you? Make a hollow at the top in the center as you had made in the previous ball. Now gently place this middle ball over the hollowed area on the lowest ball. Put some more snow around the place where the two balls are in contact. Press the snow firmly and clean out the extra snow to give a clean look to the meeting edges of the two balls.
The Head - Top Portion
This is the last ball of snow and has to be done the same way as the other two balls. Only that it has to smaller than the middle ball that makes up the snowman. Place it on the scoop that is made on the top central portion of the middle ball and seal the joining place with some tightly packed snow and remove the extra amount.
The Face
Making a snowman is not just about piling one ball of snow on top of the other. Now that you have built your own snowman, what about giving it some identity? You can use coal, rocks or even paper dishes (depending upon the size of the snowman) for the eyes. For the face, arrange pieces of coal, pebbles or rocks into a smile. For the nose, the most common option is to use a carrot. Alternatively one could also use a fir cone, tangerine or anything else that you wish to choose. Only be careful that while inserting these objects, the snow ball does not crumble.
The Arms
Though some wish to leave their snowman without arms, one with its appendages looks more attractive. One can use sticks or even snow to make his snowman's arms. It is better to have the sticks slanting slightly upwards or downwards than sticking right out of the sides of the snowman horizontally. In case you want your snowman to hold a broomstick, ensure that the end of the stick is buried a few inches below the snow. This is to ensure that it is not blown away by a strong gust of wind. Also be careful that while inserting the stick into your snowman. Just as with the nose, the snowball may crumble if the sticks are inserted in haste.
Accessories
What about putting a muffler around the neck of your snowman? Not only would it give a look that it is ready to face the cold out there but also break the monotony of white color. Just ensure that you tie the muffler into a neat knot so that it stays where it is supposed to be - around the neck of your snowman. You could put some leafy branch of a tree for hair of the snowman. If you are planning to provide your snowman with a hat, consider knit hats as they are better options than top hats that tend to be blown away by wind if not secured. Scarves is a good alternative to hats.
This was just one of the ways for those who want to know how to build a snowman. Alternatively, instead of using two balls of snow for the body, one could just make a single mound and place a round ball of snow for the head on top of the body. As far as decorating and giving a real look to your snowman is concerned, the sky is the limit. Enjoy your winters holidays and build your own snowman!
