Snowshoeing works your heart, lungs, quads, hamstrings and hip flexors; if you use poles – to maintain balance – you'll also work your tricep, bicep, chest and back muscles. Snowshoeing at a moderate speed of two to 2.5 miles per hour on varied terrain can burn up to 500 calories per hour; increase to three to 3.5 miles per hour and you can burn up to 1,000 calories.
Cool spots: Prince Edward Island National Park; Fundy National Park in Alma, N.B.; Halfmoon Lake Natural Area, northeast of Edmonton.
Walking/hiking
Walking briskly for 30 minutes, four to seven days a week, may reduce your risk of morbidity from heart disease, high blood pressure, obesity, osteoporosis, non-insulin-dependent diabetes and certain cancers. Regular walking can also reduce anxiety, tension and depression.
Cool spots: Kejimkujik National Park and National Historic Site in Annapolis County, N.S.; Bruce Trail in central and southern Ontario; Whiteshell Provincial Park near Falcon Lake, Man.
Skating
Find a frozen surface – a rink, your own flooded backyard or a lake (frozen to appropriate thickness, which the Canadian Red Cross says is at least 15 centimetres) – and lace up. Skating can build muscles and endurance.
Cool spots: Rideau Canal in Ottawa; Meewanis Skating Rink in Saskatoon.
Hockey
This quintessential Canadian sport offers the benefits of skating, plus teamwork. Organize teams and rent a rink, or play on a frozen lake (Canadian Red Cross says ice for hockey needs to be 20 centimetres – five centimetres thicker than for regular skating).
Cool spots: North Side Sport and Leisure Complex in Fredericton; Outdoor Ice Oval in Prince George, B.C.
Curling
More than one million Canadians curl at least once a year at one of the country's 1,200 clubs. The low lunges you have to get into to throw a rock help increase hip flexibility, and the vigorous sweeping exercises your arms, legs, lungs and heart.
Cool spots: Mayflower Curling Club in Halifax ; Top of the World Curling Club in Dawson City, Yukon.
Dogsledding
Sign up for a dogsled expedition – it's more than just a ride. At some places you'll learn how to handle the dogs and drive the team.
Tip: A reputable outfit will only use sociable animals that behave well around children. However, sled dogs are strong, and if they get excited they can knock a small child over, so parental supervision is necessary.
Cool spots: Haliburton Highlands region in Ontario; the Anvil Range in central Yukon; Jasper National Park in Alberta.
Trail horseback riding
You might wonder about the fitness benefits – after all, the horse is carrying you, not the other way around – but horseback riding is great exercise for the butt, legs and inside of your thighs.
Cool spots: Cache Rapids Stable in Deer Lake, Nfld.; River Ranch Horseback Adventures in Coldbrook, N.S.; Big Bar Guest Ranch in Clinton, B.C.
Building a snowman
Packing, rolling and lifting heavy wet snow, the kind that's ideal for snow sculpting, will work your back, arm and leg muscles (bend your knees and lift with your legs).
Tip: Do some light stretches before and after.
Cool spots: Yards all across our great nation!
Dreading the food tables at those annual holiday parties? Click here to learn some tips to avoid overeating.
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