Household Chores Archives

September 23, 2019 By Parwage Alam 12 Comments

How to Turn Household Chores Into a Workout

Taking care of the house is a never-ending job! I still remember my mother being so caught up with household chores that she never got the time to workout. One day when I got home after working out, I saw my mother doing the regular housework and an idea struck me! What if we can turn daily household chores into a workout routine?

Benefits of Turning Household Chores Into a Workout

Most people struggle with the fact that due to the lack of time, they skip working out. If you turn household chores into a workout routine, you’re killing two birds with one stone. You find your chores as well as get a good, light workout.

Like any other physical activity, housework can tone muscles if done correctly and in the right posture. It’s already proved that short bouts of relatively mild exercise can help improve your fitness levels, especially for those who do little or no physical activity or are just getting started. To top it off, this can help you break the monotony of routine and add a little bit of fun to completing chores.

Here’s How You Get Started

Lunges (Vacuum Cleaning): While using the vacuum cleaner, you can walk in a lunges posture. Remember to keep your knees directly above your ankles, your back straight and your abs engaged. You will know this is working by feeling the pressure in your thighs and glutes. Lunges are a good exercise for strengthening, sculpting and building several muscles/muscle groups, including the quadriceps (or thighs), the gluteus maximus (or buttocks) and the hamstrings as well.
Squats: Pick up items on the floor or tables by squatting. Keep your back straight, squat deeply by bending your knees. Hold for 15 seconds before rising up again. A Squat is an exercise that primarily trains the muscles of the thighs, hips and buttocks. It also works the quadriceps (vastus lateral, vastus medialis, vastus intermedius and rectus femoris), hamstrings, and strengthens the bones, ligaments as well as the insertion of the tendons throughout the lower body
Make Sweeping Movements: Instead of cleaning haphazardly when scrubbing glass doors or cleaning windows, make long, sweeping movements. For instance, when you are cleaning the doors or windows, take long swipes from top to bottom, squatting (not bending) to reach the lower spots. This will give you a fantastic shoulder workout and engage your entire lower body. If you want you can also hold a small bucket of water in your other hand to increase the strength of your arms.
Sweeping: While sweeping, tuck your stomach and oblique muscles in, keep your back straight and bring the bristles of the broom as far as possible and pull in.
Dance on the Beat: Turn on the music system while doing household chores and dance to the music the way you want. Try to use some fast music so you’ll be encouraged to pick up your speed and break a sweat. If you’re wondering how dancing helps your health, click here.
Step it up: Use a stepladder, stairs or step stool when you need to reach high areas. Try to repeat the same steps 8-10 times. Trust me, this is a really great exercise for your hamstrings, provided you keep your back straight. You can simulate your own step aerobics session this way!
Loading the Washing machine: When you are loading or unloading your washing machine, just twist and move more. This movement will help to strengthen your core.
Sculpt and Fold: Lifting laundry can be the toughest part of your routine. Tone your arms by holding them raised at 90° angle as you carry the laundry basket. Use the squats and lunges posture with your legs as your fold.
Take a Swing. Instead of cleaning your rugs, carpets, sheet using a vacuum cleaner, take them outside, hang them up, pick up your broom and show your muscular talent! Swing away to beat out the dust and dirt. Performing this activity will help you involve more muscles than vacuuming alone and help you get some fresh air as well.
Always Prefer Stairs: Instead of making one trip up and down, try to convert it into multiple trips with the clean or dirty clothes. Remember, we have a target to do more work as a workout, not less work with the help of machines!

What are you waiting for! Make your household chores something to look forward to by turning them into a workout. Try this for a week and let us know if you see any changes. Leave your thoughts in the comments below!

#BeTheForce

June 28, 2019 By Gitanjali Bahl Leave a Comment

5 Common Mistakes Women Make

We have always heard that women are more prone to most diseases but have you ever wondered why? Before we discuss the common mistakes that women make, take a look at this scenario…

Let’s go over the case of an average 32 year old female who has two kids, one being 5 and the other 1.5 years in age. She starts her day at 6 AM and begins preparing meals for the family. She gets her oldest child ready for school, does other chores and by the time she is free, it is 11 AM and she eats her first meal. Till her oldest child arrives back from school and till she finishes her remaining chores, she has delayed her meals, hasn’t gotten adequate rest and is fatigued.

This results in increased weight, pain in muscles, poor mental health and lack of interest in any task. This busy routine is what plagues most women in India today. It is even tougher for working women as the burden of managing work and household chores can place tremendous stress on them.

In some cases, poor health arises out of genetic composition but not always. It is also because of stress and negligence towards health.

Here Are Some of the Most Common Mistakes Women Make

1. Missing Meals, Especially Breakfast

It doesn’t matter if you’re a homemaker or an office goer, you need adequate nutrition. Most of us skip breakfast which is considered to be the most important meal of the day. Either that, or we eat late which is equally harmful. Starving the body may lead to overeating and can cause a number of problems.

2. Inadequate Nutrition

If the quantity of the meal is less, most women starve themselves and offer the meal to others or opt for the most convenient option available, despite the fact that it has no nutritional value. Both of these lead to deficiency. This is also a reason for low haemoglobin, calcium, Vitamin D and Vitamin B levels in women nowadays. Ensure that you have at least two servings of fruits and green vegetables a day.

3. Budget Management

Sometimes due to financial constraints or just to prove that they are good finance managers at home, some women deprive themselves of good and quality food, which is again wrong. Managing budget is good but depriving yourself of essential nutrients isn’t. Plan in a way that you can accommodate everything. For instance, make sprouts, paneer, curd at home which will be healthy and economical too!

4. Being Over-Organized

Some women are so busy with their schedule and are so organised, they want to finish their work first and focus on themselves later. As a result, by the end of the day, they are so exhausted that they get no time for themselves. Working is good but not at the cost of your meals and/or exercise. Fix a time for your exercise and meals and stick to it!

5. Sleep Deprivation

Due to family responsibilities, women tend to compromise sleep. Whenever there are guests over or there’s additional work, women take on the responsibility and lose out on much-needed rest. Avoid doing so at all cost! Compensate the next day. Remember that even a machine needs a break or else its efficiency gets affected.

Remember that health is wealth. To take care of the household, you first need to be healthy and fit yourself. Learn from these common mistakes women make and take a positive u-turn towards a healthier lifestyle!

#BeTheForce

March 28, 2018 By Dr. Viral Thakkar 7 Comments

Household Chores, your way to health

I visited a village sometime back and was amazed at the physical strength of the women there. While I do not deny that the rural areas have their own set of health issues, but, it cannot be denied that women, due to the physical labour that they are involved in, are much stronger than many urban women.

The act of using a hand mill to grind wheat builds your hand muscles. Many women are farm labourers too and spend their early morning in the field which ensures that they are not Vitamin D deficient. Farm work itself provides exercise to upper and lower body, limbs. And guys, this is hard labour work.

Household chores are considered to be boring and financially worthless but we cannot deny that they are helpful in keeping many of us fit. You will not find many women with a bulging stomach in villages! This does not mean we all become farmers, but kick the laziness now to be healthy!

Dust with a lemon cleaner: Be happier

A citrusy scent is a potent mood booster, according to a 2014 Japanese study. Research shows that spending as little as ten minutes inhaling a citrus fruit can decrease the overall mood disturbance, a measure of tension, anxiety, depression, confusion, fatigue and anger. So carry a citrus flavored soap when you do your dishes. According to Ayurveda, you will be in touch with the water element of existence which is an instant mood elevator. This is also a great time to practice breathing exercises.

Clean up your garden!

People in the gardens are in touch with the energy of the earth and sun. According to Ayurveda, the energy from these two play a critical role in balancing one’s health. Apart from that, you breathe fresh & the vitamin D is critical for your health. In recent Swedish study it was found out that people with sedentary life style, spending most of their time indoors are likely to suffer from more cardiovascular diseases. Australian researchers discovered that a chemical released by freshly cut grass makes people feel more relaxed and more joyful.

Grow flowers and vegetables: Lower depression risk

Gardening is known to have reduced depression according to a study done in Norway. People diagnosed with depression spent six hours a week gardening; after a few months, they experienced a notable improvement in their depression symptoms, and their good moods continued for months after the study ended. Well, you might not be able to have gardens in cities, but get on with your small flower pots, indoor plants, or best, have a volunteer group, adopt a village and help the farmers!

Image Credit: http://christsoldiergirlfitness.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/chores.jpg

Chopping Vegetables

This extremely boring task is usually diverted to the maids in our houses in India. However, if you have the time, do it yourself with complete mindfulness. Ensure that every slice is of the same size and watch your breath. It is bound to increase your awareness and concentration.

A better sex life

According to a 2015 study from the University of Alberta. “If a partner isn’t pulling their weight in housework, either one will have to pick up the slack, or the chores will remain undone. This will develop tension and bitterness in the relationship, which will transfer into the bedroom,” according to Medical Daily. So all you orthodox men out there, share the chores for some awesome time in bed!

Every household chore is equivalent to an exercise in a gym or in a park. Did you know 30 minutes of ironing equals 11 minutes of step aerobics.Think of ironing as weight training for the upper body? Make sure that you stand up straight and work your arm muscles hard as you press down. And remember to change hands regularly, so that you don’t end up with one arm more muscular than the other.

For a complete work out, play with your children in your garden, run after them and trust me you won’t go fat! Be happy! Be healthy!

Track these yourself with your GOQii band!