Plenty of everyday household tasks have many potentials to help improve our health and fitness by burning calories, building muscle and improving flexibility – this is excellent news for those who have recently been stuck inside during the long winter.
Even just increasing our movements from around the house can improve mental health, reducing stress, anxiety, and depression.
With this in mind Predator Nutrition, has put together a spring cleaning home workout plan that incorporates your everyday activities (that’s right, Netflix watching will burn those calories!) and household chores – getting both the house and yourself summer ready!
How many calories have we been burning the past year while doing our usual lockdown activities?
Watching Netflix: Sitting down watching TV usually burns less than 30 calories an hour — you burn more calories per hour of sleep; however, watching something that increases adrenaline increases this number. Studies show that watching a 90-minute horror or thriller movie burns an average of 113 calories, roughly the same as a 30-minute walk!
Gaming: Sitting in front of a screen playing a console or PC game will burn roughly 70 calories an hour.
Picking up an Amazon parcel: Moving and carrying boxes can burn up to 7 calories a minute, and 30 minutes of unpacking boxes can burn over 100.
Working from home: Half an hour of typing can burn between 41 and 61 calories.
Napping: The average person burns an estimated 68 to 91 calories per hour of sleep. Getting frisky: passionate kissing can burn up to a whopping 470 calories an hour, speeding up your heart rate and your respiration.
Baking bread: Studies show that kneading dough and baking bread are good stress relievers and help combat boredom. An hour of kneading can burn about 100 calories!
The Best Cleaning Exercises
Housework helps to exercise the major muscle groups, working out your arms, shoulders, back, legs, and core. Here are some additional tips to make the most of your movement and get a great workout at home,
- Keep your core (abs) engaged and tight while you work.
- Focus on keeping a good posture and avoid slouching.
- Use your legs when you vacuum, mop or sweep to take the strain off your shoulders and upper back.
- Place your hand at the top of the handle when you’re mopping to keep your back straight.
- Ensure the broom, vacuum and mop you use at home extend to suit your height, which is better for your back.
- To pick something up, like a box or a basket of laundry, bend your knees and squat down instead of bending over. Not only is this a good workout, but it’s also better for your back.
- When cleaning a toilet or a low area, squat or kneel instead of bending over.
- Stretch extra-high to get into corners overhead, or get down on your hands and knees for low-lying clutter and grime.
- Make large up-and-down movements (e.g. clean windows and shower doors with big, consistent circles.
Here are a few of the best cleaning tasks for building muscle and burning calories
(These numbers are based on a 140-150lb body weight and 30 minutes of activity.)
Here’s an example of how you can incorporate housework into Your Spring Workout Plan
- 20 mins brisk mopping or vacuuming, switching arms every 5 minutes: 82 calories
- 20 mins cleaning countertops, mirrors and shower doors, using large circles: 53 calories
- 20 mins picking up clutter, squatting to pick up each item: 140 calories
Total calories burned (based on a 140-150lb body weight): 275