Worried about your weight? You might also want to check how the furrier members of your household are doing: according to new research from the PDSA, it's not just humans who are getting heavier - a quarter of British dogs are also obese. But tackling your plump pooch might be more fun than you imagine. Engaging with animals makes us happier and healthier - studies show that pet owners live longer with lower blood pressure and higher serotonin levels - so imagine how good you'd feel if you exercised with your pet.
Interested? Help is at hand. The Pet Health Council is to launch a Petsercise programme, where pet owners keep a food diary for themselves and their animals, and enjoy football, bat-and-ball games, inline skating and cycling with their four-legged friends.
Animal-crazy Americans have been adopting similar regimens with great gusto, indulging in a mind-boggling array of physical activities with their dogs, such as "boot-camp-style" workouts, golf and even yoga. While proponents claim it is possible to engage a whole range of different pets in these initiatives, they admit that cats haven't proved to be particularly compliant. Budgies, snakes and more unusual pets, such as iguanas, are also unlikely to make the grade. Horses and pot-bellied pigs haven't been ruled out - but, unsurprisingly, they say that dogs make ideal pet fitness partners.
Mikel Miller runs a business called Helping Udders in Kansas, selling a range of products designed to assist pet owners to work out with their animals. "God did a wonderful thing when he made dogs so compatible with us," she says. "People have always wanted to take exercise with their pets, but until recently there wasn't the equipment around."
Demand, she says, is increasing sharply. One of her best-selling lines is "cooling vests" for dogs that allow them to run alongside their owners without overheating. The vests are lightweight and maintain a body temperature of 15C (59F). Originally designed for military working dogs in Iraq, they are now a must-have for jogging canines. "People are marrying later and so their pets are becoming like substitute children. You take your child where you enjoy being and if you enjoy exercising, you want your pets to be able to do that with you," adds Miller.
The Bow Wow Boot Camp in California takes things a step further, offering more structured workouts for dogs and their owners to do together. The classes combine running and brisk walking with exercises such as squats, bicep curls and press-ups. While owners pant over their press-ups, their dogs are encouraged to "sit" and are praised for their obedience. Then the jogging begins again. A healthy-eating plan for people and dogs also forms part of the course and vigilance is emphasised, so that dogs don't become fatigued and dehydrated.
Dog lover and business coach Kelly O'Neil came up with the idea for Bow Wow Boot Camp because she was torn between spending time with her dogs and her love of working out. "I have four dogs and, after a day at work, I wanted to go home and be with my dogs but I also wanted to work out. If I went out without them my 'fur children' looked at me as if I just went to Disneyland and left them behind."
She discussed her problem with her personal trainer, Michelle Van Otten, who devised a workout suitable for both humans and dogs. The result is available on audio CDs, through telephone coaching and in face-to-face classes. She and Michelle are currently spreading the word by certifying personal trainers in the US and beyond to teach humans and animals how to keep fit together.
"I've been doing the programme since last August," says O'Neil. "One of my dogs has gained four pounds in muscle and I've lost 30 pounds in weight. Both of us have speeded up a lot since we started doing the workouts together. The dogs behave much better at home and my contentment levels have sky-rocketed because I can work out and spend time with my animals. These days everyone wants to multitask and this is a perfect way to do it."
For those who prefer low-impact exercise, a pet rescue centre in Seattle is running yoga classes for dogs and their owners. Yoga instructor Brenda Bryan developed the idea with Brenda Barnette, who runs the Seattle-King County Humane Society, after her dogs joined in while she was practising yoga at home.
"The more activity you do with your pets, the more you enjoy them, and the more energy you have. It's a win-win situation," says Barnette.
Bryan has adapted a range of yoga poses for these special "partnership classes".
"We do the downward dog, head-to-knee poses and, with the dogs, the stretches are from joints to paws. We also massage the dogs' jaws because, like humans, they have areas of tension."
She says that the yoga can help various animal ailments. "My nine-year-old dog used to limp after vigorous activity but since she's started the yoga her limp has disappeared."
Visions of doggy cycling takes ridiculous to new levels, but worry not - the dog does not mount the bike but merely runs alongside it. You can buy special leashes that help prevent fur and paws from getting caught in the wheel spokes. Swimmers, meanwhile, can invest in a doggy life vest, so their best friend can safely participate in water-based activities. And for golf nuts, there is the "doggy driver" that swings like a normal golf club but only sends the ball about 100 yards, which is a manageable distance for dogs to fetch.
Are animal lovers taking things too far? Mark Johnston, spokesman for the British Small Animals Veterinary Association, welcomes any initiative to improve animal and human fitness, although he's not convinced that some of these fancy gadgets are worth investing in. "One of the most effective methods of improving fitness for dogs and humans is for owners to take their pets for a 20-minute walk twice a day," he says.
