You and your dog can use jog-stop to lose weight

Weight loss can be speeded up with your dog and a routine called jog-stop.

A young dog or a puppy will find this way of exercising less boring. You will lose weight with an enjoyable exercise routine, ideal to be done in the morning, and your dog will sleep for the rest of the day.

You should always make sure your doctor is happy with you exercising and you should consider taking your dog for his health check from a local vet.

It is important that a dog who suffers from joint pains due to old age should not be considered a good companion for jog- stop exercising.

The rules are simple enough, drive or walk to a local park and do not let your dog off his lead until you are ready.

Once in the park you can take off the dog lead and command your dog to sit, then give praise and a small training treat.

Remember treats are food too so ensure you take this into account – you don’t want an obese dog.

The next step is to jog at a slow pace. Remember your dog at this time may be wondering what you are asking of him so be patient. Every now and then you stop, ask your dog to sit, then when he does so praise and reward him.

You could use a clicker dog accessory every few metres with encouraging praise. Once he realises it is fun he will not need too much encouragement.

To make it more interesting slow the pace down and then quicken the pace at different times.

At times stop to let your dog relieve himself and nose around – and it’s a good time to catch your breath too!

Vivien Richardson