Workout vs. Housework

Yesterday I did a little experiment with how I burn calories.

As you know, I wear the GoWear Fit and I am able to track exactly how many calories I'm burning throughout the day. Here are my averages: 2100-2200 -- non active, sedentary days 2300-2500 -- work day with a normal walking workout in the evening 2500-2900 -- active day of errand, shopping, housework with or without a formal workout.

So yesterday I decided to forego my typical 1 hour nature trail workout after work and instead dedicated 1 hour to brisk housework at home. At lunch yesterday I took a short walk (15 minutes) around the parking lot, then hit the grocery store on the way home from work. Then when I got home I cleaned the kitchen and did a bit of decluttering in the storage room, also putzed around getting lunches ready for the rest of the week and organizing cupboard a bit.

So in the end I put in a total of 1 hour of dedicated housework, then another 20-30 minutes of putzing around later.

Here's the comparison on calories burned:

2500 -- what I probably would have burned for the day with the 1 hour walking workout
2380 -- what I did burn without the formal workout and doing housework instead

Not bad, huh? And the best part?

I woke up this morning and walked into a gleaming kitchen. That's enough to put a smile on my face and give me a good start to the day. So today I'm going to mix it up a bit more. Going to see where I end up if I do about 30 minutes of a walking workout and 1 hour of housework. My goal is to find a balance that will keep me up in the 2500-calories-burned range.

Lately I've been feeling like I spend too much time out and about, running around or working out or at meetings and not enough time at home doing what needs to be done to keep a neat and clean home. I feel like lately I've literally just been sleeping at my house - not really living there. I get home late (8-9pm), drop my stuff, grab something to eat and head to bed within an hour or two of getting home. Then weekends are packed with either obligations or going out and playing or doing stuff. My housework has suffered and my goal of decluttering and purging hasn't been worked on at all. So I'm hoping this new balance will still give me the calorie-burn that I want, but also give me a balance in my life that makes me feel like I'm an actual home owner.

I'll keep you posted.

~Pam