Getting a workout in and doing all the household chores can be a challenging task.
But if you know how to clean your house, you might be able to do both in one, experts say.
Scientists call these types of activities unintentional exercise or NEAT, which stands for thermogenesis without exercise.
The most popular form is walking 10,000 steps a day, but all other forms can help you burn enough calories to stay healthy, along with a balanced diet.
While you’re cleaning up your house, there are two ways to turn activities into a workout.
Vacuuming can burn about 80 calories in just half an hour. To intensify the activity, experts suggest switching hands everywhere
You can add calisthenics moves like lunges and squats, or simply be more intentional about the way you approach chores and put more physical effort into them.
Dr. Duston Morris, professor of health promotion and health behavior at Maryland University of Integrative Health, says consistency is key: “If you use house cleaning as a way to increase exercise and physical activity, do 20 to 30 minutes every day. ‘
Dr. Morris also recommended changing tasks to promote muscle balance. “Focus on laundry and dusting one day, the bathroom the next day, and vacuuming and sweeping on other days,” he said. The Washington Post.
Experts recommend that you start by cleaning the entire house with dusting. Doing this for half an hour can burn 80 calories for an average 175-pound person.
Scrubbing floors and carpets on your hands and knees will burn much more energy than doing it with a mop, and you’ll do a more thorough job
Stephanie Thomas, a certified personal trainer based in Annapolis, told the After that dust touches the shoulders and arms, especially in high, hard-to-reach places.
If you want to add an extra challenge, Ms. Thomas suggests adding lunges or squats as you move around the room. Research shows that every minute of squatting burns about eight calories. Even in 10 minutes you can already consume 80 calories.
You can also add standing side leg lifts while doing high planks to make it a full-body workout.
Dr. Morris also emphasized that people should switch arms room by room to ensure you’re not just working your dominant side.
Going to the bathroom, scrubbing the floors, showers, tub, mirror and toilet can all work up a sweat.
By mopping bathroom tiles for half an hour, you burn no less than 100 calories and activate the muscles in the hands, arms and shoulders.
Squats and standing calf exercises can also be added, and squat holds will give you an extra burn.
In the kitchen, tackling the dishes is a surprisingly effective form of exercise. Washing dishes by hand burns about 160 calories per half hour, while with a dishwasher you can still use about 105 calories by loading and unloading for the same time.
Just like mopping and scrubbing, moving heavy dishes will exercise the upper body. You can also try incline push-ups against the counter.
By leaning against an elevated surface, they are slightly easier to perform than traditional push-ups.
Doing laundry is another option to get your heart pumping. You can also use push-ups when folding clothes – against the bed or sofa to get an incline. Ms. Thomas suggests five push-ups between every five folds of clothing.
Laundry can burn up to 50 calories per wash half an hour, with actions such as squatting when loading and unloading the washer and dryer, transporting loads through the house and putting away clothes.
Cleaning floors is also a mini workout in itself. Vacuuming activates the core muscles and can burns 80 calories half an hour. Arms and shoulders will also be engaged.
By changing the hand position on the vacuum cleaner or on a mop or broom, you target different muscle groups.
Moving larger objects, such as sofas, beds and coffee tables, will not only work the biceps, triceps, chest and back, but also ensure you don’t miss a speck of dust lurking underneath.