15 Amazing Ways To Lose Weight While Doing Household Chores

6. Car Washing For most people, a car is more than just a machine that takes you from one place to another. For many, it is… Simi - January 23, 2018

6. Car Washing

For most people, a car is more than just a machine that takes you from one place to another. For many, it is like a second home. Therefore, its exterior and interior, just like your home should conform to your personal taste and standards. There are many people who take their cars to car washing services. However, if you have weight problems you may be missing a good chance to use it to your advantage. You can lose weight by washing your car.

It has been determined that a standard and manual car wash can burn close to 150 calories. This is for every 30 minutes of car washing that you do. If you are living with your partner who has another car, it means that washing both cars will burn 300 calories in just one hour. This activity is as good as having some intensive exercises in the gym. If you are struggling with weight problems, consider washing your car every weekend.

There are several activities that are involved when washing your car. Some of them include rinsing the car with water, rubbing its surface to remove dirt, and scrubbing with a sponge. Furthermore, you will be required to rinse it away from the soap and dirt. All these activities are very involving and will take a lot of your time and energy. When using the water, ensure that you use a bucket rather than a hosepipe to get water.

The work needs to be done by using your arms, legs, and abdominal muscles. There are several body movements. For instance, there are sweeping movements, lunges, and squats that will be involved. All these form part of the work and are exercises on their own. The muscles in your legs and arms will be toned. In addition, you can wax your car to burn even more calories.

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7. Chopping Firewood

There are some people who have lots of trees growing in their yards. There are some dead trees which are dry enough to be burned in the fireplace. The firewood comes in handy during winter period when you need it for your fireplace. Unfortunately, most people buy the already prepared firewood. Chopping the wood that is in your yard will help you remove some calories. If you are up to it, then start chopping it yourself rather than buying it.

There is even no need to hire someone to do it for you. This will only prevent you from losing some weight if you had to do it yourself. It has been determined that chopping the wood can burn 300 calories in every 30 minutes. This can be strenuous work and should be done continuously for 30 minutes it is better for you. It is effective when it’s done non-stop because that’s when the body reaches its peak rhythm while working.

When chopping the wood, you will involve the whole body. It involves arranging the wood, picking, pulling and splitting it. This means that you will tone the muscles of your back, shoulders, arms, and legs. Importantly, chopping and splitting help to improve your cardiovascular endurance and your general body strength. While you are targeting removing the extra fats, you will also benefit from having a healthy body.

Chopping wood can be dangerous if it’s not done properly. Therefore, ensure that all the safety precautions are in place. You will need to have a good ax that is well-sharpened. It is important to have a good grip on it so that it can not slip away from your hands while working. It is also ideal to wear protective gear such as safety glasses, gloves, and heavy boots.

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8. Shoveling Snow

There is no doubt that shoveling is hard work and can be a challenge to most people. This presents a good opportunity to lose some calories when you spend most of your time indoors. Shoveling snow is one of the best workouts that can be done in your home. However, this work should not be done by those who have health problems. Health issues such as back problems and allergy to cold weather should be considered.

The cold weather during winter means that you spend most of your time indoors. This is not good for your health because you will be accumulating lots of calories. If you cannot go to the gym for a workout, then consider snow shoveling as a workout. The activity works in the same way as any physical activity that you usually do. The general health benefits that you get from working in cold weather cannot be ignored.

By shoveling snow, you can burn between 300 to 500 calories for every hour that you work. This is as good as doing any intense exercise. The good part of this is that you will continue to maintain your fitness throughout the year despite the weather conditions. Furthermore, it can help your heart to be strong and assist aerobic fitness. Shoveling involves several muscles and this means that you will improve your muscle endurance.

It is significant to use your legs to assist you to lift the snow. This means that the leg muscles will be toned. Keep your abdominal muscles tight so that your lower back is protected. Always wear the proper clothes such as a hat and gloves to protect the exposed parts from the harsh weather. To make it fun, you can do the snow shoveling with some friends. This will help you have fun and get motivated while working together.

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9. Paint a Room

There is a lot of fun and fulfillment when painting your own room. If you are creative and do-it-yourself kind of a person when it comes to fixing your home, consider doing the painting. You can burn a lot of calories by painting. It was found that painting a room for an hour can get rid of 306 calories. This is the same as laying a carpet or putting furniture in your home. What makes painting your room even better is the fulfillment which comes with it.

Painting involves a lot of body movements. It can be intensive and tiresome. It will require you to move around a lot as you paint your house. You should be ready to keep on standing, reaching, climbing, squatting, and sitting. You will have to bend over and carry around heavy buckets of paint. Actually, your whole body will be involved in all these movements. This means that almost the whole body will get toned.

When painting indoors, you will need to move some furniture away from the walls. This will create enough space for you to effective paint the walls. The brushes and rollers will be used in painting. All these activities mean that your body will benefit from and involves the muscles working. It’s a good idea to paint during the weekend as you will have enough time to complete it.

Painting for one hour is a good enough workout. It will tone the muscles in your arms, tighten your abs, and strengthen your core muscles. If your entire house needs painting then do it in stages. You can start by painting each room at a time. When the work is completed, then consider going outdoors. The exterior walls and roof can be painted as well if they need that.

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10. Start Cooking

There are several ways of managing your calories in your body. The first step starts with the diet that you take. Eating healthy foods will help you lose weight. It is important to cook and eat only the food that will help you achieve your weight loss goals. Cooking also involves a lot of activities. Collecting the cooking utensils, food and walking require energy to spend. This means that cooking is another activity that can turn into a workout session.

There are different cooking types that depend on what you want to cook. For instance, it can involve peeling, chopping, stirring, whisking, and beating. All these activities will burn calories from your body. However, there are some cooking preparations that are intense and you will spend more energy. Making your own bread starts with kneading the dough. This is hard work that will burn more calories.

Where there is any cooking activity, you will need to wash the dishes. Most people don’t like washing their dishes by hand. But, this activity, actually, is better than using the dishwasher machine. Washing the dishes by hand will help you tone your muscles in arms. If there are more plates to wash, then it’s better for your health because you will lose more calories. Whatever the case, ensure that you do the dish-washing yourself.

If you have to go to a grocery to buy food for cooking, take a walk instead of using a car. Walking will help you lose more calories and is good exercise. Carrying shopping bags is another good workout. You can carry them for 30 minutes and the number of calories that you will lose will be substantial. However, make sure that you distribute the weight evenly between the two hands.

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11. Childcare

Babysitting is one of the toughest jobs that you can ever take. This is the reason most parents put their children into childcare services for the day. The children are more active than the parents and to keep up with their activities can be strenuous work. Babysitting your own child has many benefits for both you and the kid. This involves emotional and physical aspects. If you are struggling with weight gain then try babysitting to remove some calories from your body.

Taking care of a child requires several activities to be done. It involves lots of playing which requires energy to be spent. Apart from losing these calories, you will also have lots of fun playing with your child. This will help both of you get connected emotionally. One thing for sure is that you will lose weight but it has to be done consistently and with high intensity. Activities such as pushing the pram can help you lose weight.

It has been found that you can lose 300 calories per hour by pushing a pram and 400 calories per hour by carrying your kid. Furthermore, you can lose 500 calories per hour by playing with your children. Playing with the children requires patience and creativity on your part. Children are persistent and relentless and you will need to keep up with their levels. The more time you spend with your child, the more kilos you will get rid of.

There are several activities that you can do with your child for you to lose weight. Some of them include playing hide and seek, singing songs, walking and making some bubbles. The others such as swimming, walking the dog, and playing a game will also help in your weight loss. Always ensure that you keep up with the energy levels of your child.

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12. Mowing the lawn

Mowing the lawn is tedious work that requires a lot of patience and determination. It is also a great way of having a workout. If you are using a push lawnmower to mow your lawn, you will use your cardiovascular system. The legs, the muscles that are in your back, shoulders, and arms, all these muscles will be toned when working with your lawnmower. It is ideal to do lawn mowing during the weekend as you will have enough time.

When mowing, try to do it at a fast pace to keep your heart rate up. Try to walk as quickly as you can even when mowing in the wet grass. Wet grass can sometimes slow you down. Most of the lawn mowers have bags that fill up as you mow. Let the bags get heavier until the mower finds it difficult to easily move. Emptying heavier bags will burn more calories as you walk and shake it. This will have your heart pumping hard.

Have a proper posture when mowing. Try to adjust your lawnmower handle so that it has a comfortable height. Keep an upright posture when mowing. Use your legs and hips to move the lawnmower forward. Avoid putting your body weight into the lawnmower as this can be dangerous. Your back can get affected and you will burn fewer calories. Always have a bottle of cold water at hand because you will need to hydrate yourself frequently.

It is important to have weight loss target when you are mowing. This can be done by calculating the time you want to spend mowing and total calories you want to burn. The size of your lawn will determine the amount of time that you will spend mowing it. If the lawn is small, then consider doing it several times a week like twice a week.

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13. Vacuuming

Vacuuming your home is one of the jobs that most people try to avoid as much as possible. It’s not everyone who enjoys moving around the home while carrying and pushing a heavy vacuum cleaner. It’s worse for those who have stairs in the house because they have to carry it up and down. However, if you have weight problems, this is one of the best workouts that you can possibly have. Its heavy weight is a bonus for you to lose some kilos.

Vacuuming is an intense workout that involves using your arms, hips, and legs. It needs a lot of time to ensure that your house is clean. This means that you can lose more calories by vacuuming your home. There is a lot of walking and this helps your leg muscles to be toned. Since it’s an activity that requires more energy, your heartbeat will always be beating fast. It helps your cardiovascular system as you do the chore.

It is important to vacuum your whole house every few days. It also helps keep the rooms nice and clean. When vacuuming, you can perform forward lunges as you push the vacuum forward. By doing 15 to 20 minutes of lunges, your thigh and hip muscles will be toned. Furthermore, if you want a strong toned lower body, lunges are an absolute necessity. In a short while, when vacuuming, you will feel tired. This is good as it means the calories are getting burned.

You can turn vacuuming into an exercise routine. Perform forward lunges every time you push the vacuum clear forward. Have at least 15 to 20 minutes of lunges every time you are vacuuming. This will help your thigh and hip muscles to be toned. You can burn more calories by doing fast-paced lunging and vacuuming. This will also help you finish your work to be done faster.

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14. Caring your pet

Caring for pets can be a good way to lose some weight. Feeding, bathing, and walking them can be physically involved. There are many people who have reached their fitness goals by using their pets. Dogs have specifically been recognized as good companions during weight loss programs. Carrying a pet like a dog requires to use of the muscles in your arms. During bathing, time carry your dog. This activity ensures that the muscles will be toned.

Researchers at Michigan State University found that dog owners reach their fitness goals faster than those who don’t have them. The study determined that dog owners are 34% more likely to get fit. This is after 150 minutes of walking per week with their dogs. Furthermore, the study established that dog owners have good health and fitness levels. This applied to those who had puppies. Taking a puppy for a walk increased physical activity by 69%.

In another related study at the University of Michigan, they also found that puppies are good companions when walking. Walking with a puppy led to a 28% increase in walking speed. There was only a 4% increase in speed when walking with a fellow human being. Speed is important when walking. When you have more speed, you can lose more calories. You can reach the optimum level of exercise quicker as well.

Apart from speed, distance covered is also important. If you cover more distance, it means you will burn more calories. This will help you achieve your fitness plans. In addition, dog owners are most likely to stick to their fitness plans. Dog-owning families have been known to have fitness plans for the whole family. If there are children in the family, they are bound to take the dogs for a walk. This enables them to lose calories. They become fit in that process.

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15. General maintenance of the house items

The home needs to have general maintenance work to be done frequently. There are several maintenance jobs that can keep your heart pumping. Doing swimming pool maintenance needs a lot of energy. Carrying chemicals such as tins of chlorine can test your arm muscles. When applying chlorine make sure that you carry that heavy tin of chemicals around the swimming pool. This will help your muscles to become physically fit.

Cleaning a swimming pool also needs to brush the inside of the pool. It will mean using your hands and arms when brushing. This activity helps your muscles in the arms to get strong. There are other activities that can be done such as scraping off the old paint in the swimming pool. This is good for the triceps muscles and you will burn more calories. After scraping off, you will need to repaint. The more work you do helps in reducing weight.

Gutter cleaning is another home maintenance work that you can do. Carrying the heavy ladder for the cleaning job will help your arm muscles get toned. Climbing up the ladder will involve the legs. This will help you burn calories and work your legs. Scraping out the dirty and old paint in the gutter means more calories will be burned. Even carrying the trash pile will mean using your energy which is good for weight loss.

Home appliances such as fans, cookers, and broken doors require being fixed sometimes. This work needs to use your muscles to unscrew and screw the bolts. It may seem like simple work but you will be using a lot of energy to achieve this. The biceps muscles can be taken to task by these small maintenance work. It will mean losing calories while performing these minor tasks.

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