Chores can be a pain, regardless of if you’re a stay-at-home mom or dad, or if you come home from work at the end of the day. Not many people enjoy the cleaning, scrubbing, and sweeping that is required to maintain a healthy-looking home, but do it out of necessity. But are more benefits to these chores than simply cleaning the house. Many household cleaning activities are great ways to get quick workouts in, as they help get rid of calories. But which ones are the best for dealing with that stubborn muffin top?
Vacuuming
Sucking dirt and crumbs up out of the carpet can really work up a sweat. You’re constantly pushing and pulling a bulky machine across the carpet from room to room, which helps to tone your arms and melt calories at the same time. Conducting similar chores will help maintain your fitness, like mopping any hardwood or tiled floors, as well as sweeping.
Laundry
You might find yourself doing more laundry than you would like, but washing those spaghetti stains out of your shirt does more than make you presentable. Doing the laundry once or twice a week can add up to many burned calories. Between loading and unloading the washer, folding, hanging, and possibly ironing a mountain of clothes, you’re sure to lose a little extra weight–and have fresh-smelling clothes when you’re done.
Cleaning the Dishes
Nowadays most of us just throw our plates and silverware into the dishwasher, but there are still those who wash some or all of their dishes by hand. It might seem inconvenient, but on the bright side, think of the calories that are burned off by doing so? You can burn additional calories when scrubbing down the bathroom toilet and bathtub. All those dirty dishes can add up, and more dishes mean more scrubbing, which in turn results in leaner forearms–and shinier plates.
Mowing
Okay, so maybe you don’t actually mow inside your house, but it’s close enough. This seasonal chore typically only needs to be done in the spring and summer months for many people, but it’s one that leaves calories dripping off you–literally. It gets hot outside, and combining that with an hour of pushing a lawnmower through the yard can seriously help with weight loss. Even with a riding lawn mower, you’ll sweat enough to make some kind of progress! But if you don’t have kids to mow the yard and you find yourself using a classic push mower, you’re going to need a comfy pair of shoes. Not wearing a quality pair of sneakers can cause blisters, sores, and in extreme cases, bunions. If you notice a lump forming on the side of your foot, visit northwestsurgerycenter.com for information on how to deal with it.
Thoughts
While these chores aren’t going to give you the superhero physic you’ve always wanted, they are a great way to work on slimming down while getting some work done around the house. Doing this housework might not be the most exhilarating thing in the world, but at the very least you can feel good knowing you’re getting work done and looking good doing it.
