Housework= workout?

Nope because it's just part of normal life -just like i don't count the walk to and from the train to be part of a workout -it's part of my lifestyle.


How long you should clean your house is entirely dependent upon how messy it is... :D
 
Yes I count housework as part of my exercise. It really depends how you clean though.

I get up really early and have the same routine nearly every morning. I enjoy the housework because I know I am getting a clean house and doing good for my body at the same time.

I do everything fast and with a lot of effort. Sweep decks, hang out washing with squats in between, mop floors vigorously to tone arms, walk up and down the stairs constantly to put away toys in small groups, walk back and forth from the vege garden to gather salad ingredients, that sort of thing. I don't stop moving.

I do the same thing when I play with my children, when I walk around the shops, stretching in ad breaks if I watch tv, or even when I am driving I am checking my posture etc.

I find if I do these things then if I don't get in a hard core cardio session I don't have to feel so bad.

Exercise was never really meant to be something you have to think about or schedule. But in this modern world we have made it that way.

Go for it!
 
Loseit99 said:
So, since I dont want to go outside in the insane cold weather during the weekends(my gym is closed on weekends...ERR!!!), I started cleaning the house a bit(gives me a good excuse)....was wondering how long should I clean to consider it a workout>? do you guys consider housework/cleaning apart of your regime when you cant make it to the gym>?
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If you cannot go outside, and do not fret! You always have a machine available to workout: YOUR BODY, and merely performing body weight exercises. And, your source for finding these, are right at your finger tips.

Your body: Its all put together, and ready to rock, with just a tad inventive with things around the house.

Three things can be your friend then:



1. Your imagination (and mind), 2. Your body weight, 3. The yearning of education within the basics and advanced basics of diet and fitness; An on-going continued pursuit.


These links may provide some useful information

The Ultimate Bodyweight Exercises Archive for Strength Training and Body Toning

Bodyweight Exercises

Bodybuilding.com - Mike Mahler - Bodyweight Exercises For Size & Strength!

Additional examples:

Back (and other muscle recruitment):

Grab a broom stick (or a mop handle, or something similar), and do an inverted row (wide and narrow grip). Slap the handle between two chairs, crawl underneath (face up), and pull (overhand grip or underhand grip).

Or 4 chairs, two broom sticks, and step in between them, and do dips, bending at the knees.

Eventually if you need more weight, fill a water jug with water (sand if available). If you have weight baring objects around the house. Just about anything that has weight to it will work (if small enough). When adding weight you could put your feet up on the chair, and allow the weight to rest near the core, as you pull up.

and/or

Chest (and other muscle recruitment):

Two mop handles (or something similar), get two chairs (if you have telescoping ones or some that can go higher than waist high--the better), and do dips (bending at the knees).

Additionally, you could use a series of chairs for various kinds of push ups, triceps exercises (such as reverse dips, etc)
=========================================================

Hey, I go on business trips, and sometimes do not have access to my home equipment, but.....I have access to a hideaway walker, that opens up to chest high, and I sure can bust out some DIPS on it......huh ha!

I got the idea a few weeks ago, from my In-law (who is 75 years old), that uses a walker to get around, and I started to look at it, and said to myself, hey, I could use this to bust out some dips! So, I had to test it, ya, know......So I started to bust out some dips (bending at the knees)---not to the pleasantries of my wife who was on looking. :).

I can provide other information, of you want.....just let me know!


Best wishes

Chillen
 
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i dont consider housecleaning a workout because even when io left my job as a customer service agent sitting on my butt all day, to a stay at home mom running around the house all day it did't effect me at all. even when i then moved into a house with stairs that i have to run up and down all day(to the basement doing laundry, upstairs putting it away, going up to the bathroom, up to change diapers, the list goes on) and that effected my weight by MAYBE a few pounds but i wouldnt exactly call it a workout. housecleaning is something i do every day and doesn't make me feel better if i missed workinf out. I think you need to consider things you can do inside your home. I do. I can't afford a gym membership right now. I cant go out and run or bike ride because the ground is covered in snow and ice. I did shovel my driveway yesterday which has me quite acheytoday i'm even thinking about skipping my upper body workouts.
Personally I use wii fit to excersize at home and it helps me keep on track, but all you really need to do is look up some excersizes and just do them... you dont need weights or machines.
I found this article when i was trying to find out which kind of excersizes would be best. I found it very useful. it basically a list of excersizes that work a the most amount of muscles at once. hope it helps :)
 
I count housework if it's vigorous (mopping, sweeping, shampooing carpet, scrubbing floors on my hands and knees, etc) because it gets my heart rate going. If it's stuff like putting laundry away, dusting, straightening, etc., I don't.
 
txsqlchick said:
I count housework if it's vigorous (mopping, sweeping, shampooing carpet, scrubbing floors on my hands and knees, etc) because it gets my heart rate going. If it's stuff like putting laundry away, dusting, straightening, etc., I don't.
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I agree !

Have a housecleaning..........:party:
 
I don't count housework, even vigorous housework, as a workout because it's something you should be doing anyway- working out or not. I'll certainly acknowledge the benefits of getting your heart pumping from a good house cleaning, but I'll just consider that as a nice bonus in addition to my normal workout. To each their own I suppose.
 
I assume most of us clean our house, whether we we are slim or overweight. So if you're overweight and that house cleaning never was enough exercise to get your weight down, why would it be helpful now that you're trying to lose? If cleaning was something you've never done before and its now something you've added to burn more calories, then it may have a slight effect depending on how hard you work. But most of us have been cleaning for ages and its never done anything to control our weight, hence why us lovely chubettes are on the forum. Same example as mal, I live in a walking city and walk several blocks a day--hoofing it fast mind you and often pushing a heavy and getting heavier by the day baby stroller. But in order to maintain my goal weight or to lose weight, I've always had to add more exercise in than just my daily everyday walking. That's why I don't even count it as exercise, even though technically it is since I'm working up quite a sweat in an effort to get from point A to point B as quickly as possible. Racing to the office is a common theme..
 
Blancita said:
I assume most of us clean our house, whether we we are slim or overweight. So if you're overweight and that house cleaning never was enough exercise to get your weight down, why would it be helpful now that you're trying to lose? If cleaning was something you've never done before and its now something you've added to burn more calories, then it may have a slight effect depending on how hard you work. But most of us have been cleaning for ages and its never done anything to control our weight, hence why us lovely chubettes are on the forum. Same example as mal, I live in a walking city and walk several blocks a day--hoofing it fast mind you and often pushing a heavy and getting heavier by the day baby stroller. But in order to maintain my goal weight or to lose weight, I've always had to add more exercise in than just my daily everyday walking. That's why I don't even count it as exercise, even though technically it is since I'm working up quite a sweat in an effort to get from point A to point B as quickly as possible. Racing to the office is a common theme..
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Well, some of us may have had housekeepers previously and are now taking on the work ourselves, or are doing it far more frequently than we used to. I used to sweep up and mop once a week. I now do it nearly every day, and I do so every day simply to get more movement.

I don't count it to "burn more calories" but basically any activity other than sitting on my ass or doing very light activity counts on FitDay because of the "lifestyle" I have selected (seated all day).
 
there lies a good point. though i dont count it as my daily excersize it's much better to be running around Cleaning the house then sitting infront of the boob tube or here on the computer. As much as I love this forum it gets in the way of my daily chores at times which makes me feel like im kind of lazy... lol a bit of a contradiction. the more time i spend on the weight loss forum the more i feel like a fat ass lol
but yeah better moving than sitting and the bonus is a nice clean house which also makes me exceptionally happy to have :D
 
Any movement of your body burns calories. I suppose if you did a good intense half an hour of housework, it would provide a reasonable workout. If it makes you out of breath and your muscles ache a bit, then you will know you have received a good workout!

:cheers2:
 
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