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The time you spend sitting in a golf cart while you play golf could be making you fat. You may think that you are getting enough exercise while play golf, however, if you ride in a cart, you are eliminating the benefits of golf as exercise. Add a hotdog, chips, a soda or a couple of beers at the turn and you may actually be taking in more calories than you are burning.

The best way to get the health benefits playing golf could provide is to walk while you play. Walking is one of the best activities people of all ages can do to improve cardiovascular conditioning. A 150-pound person walking at a pace of 4 miles per hour could burn up to 400 calories per hour. Walking 18 or even 9 holes a couple of times a week could help you maintain or even lose weight as well as boost your endurance, lower cholesterol and prevent heart disease. But even if you are required to use a golf cart while you play at your course or you choose not to walk, you can still get exercise during your round by changing a few habits.

Playing golf can be a form of exercise, even if you are riding in a golf cart. Try these calorie burning, muscle toning tips the next time you tee it up.

Arrive at golf course with enough time to do a 10-minute warm up session before you play. Stretching before you golf loosens your muscles and prepares them for what lies ahead and can prevent injury.

Grab a pitching wedge, 6-iron and your driver and walk to the practice range before your round instead of hoping into the cart and riding the few hundred yards. The walk will serve to warm your muscles to prepare them to stretch and get your heart pumping to improve endurance.

Sit up straight- don’t slouch while you sit in the cart. While you sit in the cart, engage your abdominal muscles, align your head and neck with your spine and roll your shoulders back. Actively engaging your abdominal muscles with help strengthen them and protect your back. One minute of sitting actively burns 2 calories per minute.

One minute of sitting doing nothing burns only 1 calorie per minute, so with a little extra effort, you could be strengthening your abdominal muscles, improving your posture and burning a few extra calories while you play.

Stand up and be ready to hit. Don’t just sit there on the cart waiting for your turn. Not only will this speed up play, but also standing burns more calories than sitting. Sitting also restricts blood flow to your muscles, so as you sit your muscles are constricted and will not respond as well when you swing.

As you stand, place a club behind you back to remind you to stand up straight. This is also an excellent way to stretch your back, chest and shoulders.

Stretch in between shots. While you are waiting for the group in front of you to clear the fairway or green you can do simple stretching exercises that will keep your swing loose and supple and will increase your flexibility. There are inevitably always moments during a round where you are waiting to hit. Take advantage of this down time and work on your flexibility.

There are hundreds of spontaneous stretches that you can do while you are waiting for your turn to hit your shot. Stretching not only burns more calories than just sitting doing nothing, but stretching will keep you loose throughout the round and help you increase your flexibility for a more reliable swing.

Do you a have a golf specific fitness question or comment? Send your questions and comments to karen@golffitness-magazine.com