Vacuuming and mopping burns 50,000 calories/year

A piece of advise for all you fitness-conscious people -- clean your house regularly, for a new study has found that the mundane task of washing the dishes or dusting the shelves helps you burn approximately 50,000 calories a year.

A new poll, conducted by electrical goods giant Philips, has found that the average number of calories burned off each year simply by doing household chores is 50,261.

Researchers discovered that a year of cleaning our homes is equivalent to more than 22 miles of walk a year.

They also found that keeping the house tidy annually burns the same number of calories found in 603 glasses of wine, 192 bars of chocolate, 369 cans of fizzy drink, 146 cheeseburgers or 394 packs of crisps.

The study, which polled 3,000 Britons, found that housework gives us more of a workout than spending an hour a week at the gym. 

Roughly two-thirds of those polled said that they cleaned more carefully to try to get some exercise, while 94 per cent said they worked up a sweat while doing the chores and half could feel their muscles burning afterwards.

The study also revealed that 44 per cent danced while cleaning to lighten the boredom.

"To prevent weight gain, most adults need to expend around 400 calories per day in physical activity, which is equivalent to around two hours of dusting and cleaning or 82 minutes of vacuuming and mopping," the Daily Mail quoted Dr Gary O'Donovan, a lecturer in sport and exercise medicine at the University of Exeter, as saying.

The survey placed vacuuming as the most popular chore, with 35 per cent indicating a preference for it, followed by doing the laundry and washing-up.

"Any household activity is an exercise and that is good for you. So do your housework as often as you can, but make it fun by putting on your favourite music and go for it!" former morning TV fitness guru Derrick Evans, said.