It is safe to assume that nobody truly enjoys doing household chores. Unfortunately, they are a necessary evil we must tackle daily, but shifting how you view the task may turn it into an activity you somewhat enjoy.
Health experts recommend that a healthy adult does at least 30 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity five times a week. Assigning days to tackle your list of chores is the perfect opportunity to get this exercise in, with many offering plenty of chances to get your heart pumping.
So, throw on your favourite music playlist and muck boots and get stuck in some garden work or those chores around the garden you’ve been putting off.
Sweeping
When engaging in an activity we don’t find stimulating, we often overestimate how long it takes the complete. What feels like an hour might only be 10 minutes. For this reason, if you are using housework to reach various fitness goals, ensure you are correctly timing your activity to guarantee you are busy for the required time.
Thirty minutes of consistent sweeping, mopping, or even vacuuming can burn around 80 to 100 calories. Furthermore, it helps to work those arm muscles.
Clearing gutters
If you are looking for something to motivate you to clear your gutters after winter, consider that just 30 minutes of this task can burn over 200 calories. You can maintain the upkeep of your home and contribute to your daily workout goal.
Remember to exercise caution with this task, though. Work with a partner who can stabilise your ladder and give you any necessary tools you might need without having to leave the ladder. Consider installing gutter guards to lighten your load next season.
At-home carwash
Nothing is nicer than having a sparkling clean car to welcome the warmer weather. And what better way to get a full body workout than to tackle the task yourself? Deep cleaning your entire vehicle, both inside and outside, can burn up to 300 calories and work nearly every muscle group in the body.
Carrying large buckets of water builds abdominal muscles, stretching and squatting to reach every area works your legs and glutes, and the swiping motions of cleaning are ideal for shoulders, arms and back.
Deep cleaning the bathroom
If you spend just 30 minutes deep cleaning your bathroom, you will be rewarded with shining and germ-free surfaces as well as strong arms. However, because the bathroom is prone to grime and dirt that can build up fairly quickly, it takes more effort to remove the dirt completely.
Cover all the bases, from the bath to the shower and sink, to maximise your time spent. It will all benefit immensely from being cleaned, and you will save yourself the hassle of having to come back at a later stage to finish the job.
Meal prep & clean-up
A delicious and healthy home-cooked meal is hard to match, and the prep and clean-up before and after just add to the overall benefits this task provides. Chopping vegetables, setting the table and doing the dishes when you have finished all help to keep you active and breaking a sweat.
Furthermore, standing and doing dishes by hand can burn almost 300 calories, depending on how much and how vigorously you decide to scrub.
Painting jobs
Painting a room or a wall in your home might feel like a hassle, but it is a relatively calm chore that allows you to explore your creative side. With this change in mentality, you may overlook the great workout you are getting simultaneously.
The constantly reaching, squatting and painting motions are good exercises for your legs and arms, while stabilising yourself on a ladder will test your abdominal muscles without you realising.
Mowing the lawn
Anyone who has ever mowed their lawn, especially on uneven ground, knows how tiresome this activity can be. The strain of pushing the machine across the garden or up and down hills provides a killer leg and arm workout.
As you walk around the garden, you are further contributing to your cardiovascular health by engaging in low-intensity aerobic exercises like walking. Just remember to stay very hydrated and well-protected from the sunshine.
Staying NEAT
NEAT, or non-exercise activity thermogenesis, refers to the energy that is burned while doing daily activities like sleeping, eating and exercising. Household chores can significantly contribute to your NEAT score.
Research done on the importance of NEAT has found that it plays a significant role in maintaining a healthy weight and overall fitness in the long run. Furthermore, housework can also contribute to preventing and decreasing the risk of developing dementia.
Spring cleaning
A study showed that three out of four families typically engage in an annual spring clean, with women shouldering nearly 70% of the workload. Cut the work in half by turning this day into a fun family event.
Assign tasks based on age appropriateness and capability and give out small rewards to keep everyone motivated. In addition, it will allow the entire family to engage in low-intensity and very beneficial cardio exercise, supporting the health of their hearts.
