Exercising Without Working Out

I hear a lot of excuses why people can't get to the gym: "My car is broken", "I don't have the time", "My arm is broken"(this one is kind of valid), and so on. It's sad how much people rely on the gym for their exercise, when they don't really need a gym to get their bodies pumping and that fat burning! Good news all you who can't hit the gym: you can exercise without working out with weights. You'll be able to get a great workout at home, and you'll have a clean home at the same time. That's right, I'm talking about clean-ercise!

Sweeping

I swept my driveway the other day, and I really put my back into it. I blasted through the driveway, and 30 minutes later I was soaked in sweat.  In those 30 minutes, I burned a pleasant 150 to 200 calories, and my arms and shoulders were exhausted.

Mopping

Mopping actually burns more calories than sweeping does - though probably not more than my intense sweeping! I'll burn about 200 calories in 30 minutes of mopping, and the house does look a whole lot cleaner once I'm done.

Climbing Stairs

I hate climbing stairs, but I do it because it's great exercise! I can burn up to 15 calories per minute of climbing stairs, so I'll run up and down the stairs a few times just to get in a good workout throughout the day.

Extra Cleaning

Time to clean out the basement or the attic? Don't complain to the missus, but get down to the cleaning! Moving heavy boxes, cleaning out the storage, and hauling out old junk can burn easily 200 to 300 calories in just 30 minutes, depending on how hard you work.

Rake Leaves

I'm not a huge fan of raking, but having trees on my property means I have to spend time cleaning up. It's not as strenuous as sweeping, but you can work up a sweat and burn easily 300 calories in an hour if you really put your back into it.

Chop Firewood

[caption id="attachment_9545" align="alignright" width="800"] For all the ladies to enjoy...[/caption] This is probably the manliest clean-ercise on the list, and one of my favorite!  You can burn 650 calories in an hour, and you'll really feel the burn in your arms and shoulders. It's also a whole lot of fun, and great if you need to blow off some steam!

Clearing the Pantry

Want to earn extra brownie points with the wife while getting a good workout at home? Clear out the pantry, and kill two birds with one stone. Not only will you get good exercise lugging all those sacks of flour, rice, and beans around, but your house will be much cleaner as a result.

Baking

Have you ever spent 30 minutes trying to whip egg whites into merengue, turn heavy whipping cream into whipped cream, or kneading a huge lump of dough? You can burn as much as 115 calories in half an hour just by kneading the bread, and you'll add another 100 or so when you whip up the merengue and the whipped cream. (Just don't sample your baked goods too much, as that will counteract all those calories you burned!) Yes, a cleaner house is not only good for your eyes, but for your waistline as well. Can't hit the gym today? No worries, your home gym is ready for you to get cleaning!