OMG! Could we be any happier at the moment? Payday is on the horizon, the snow has gone and now we find that shopping is justified as a great way of burning up calories and losing weight.

According to a survey by Debenhams, most British women cover an estimated 154 miles a year and burn approximately 385 calories a week – just by shopping!

Debenhams tested 10 shoppers with calorie-counting pedometers and surveyed 2,000 more shoppers to gain an understanding of the health benefits of the nation’s favourite past time. According to the figures, us ladies cover nearly 3 miles every time we shop, taking an average of 7,305 steps!

Ed Watson, spokesperson for Debenhams said, “The distance walked by an average British woman each year while shopping is the same as walking from London to Hull. This mileage is in addition to the stretching benefits gained while reaching for that must-have pair of shoes and strengthening arms muscles by carrying heavy shopping bags”.

So next time your partner moans at you for spending hours out shopping, you can tell him that you were actually out exercising. All we need now to complete our happiness is a calorie free chocolate bar…