Doing housework can be as good for you as the gym
It could even extend your life!
It could even extend your life!
Excellent news for those of us who don't make it to the gym quite as often as we probably should - because a new study has revealed that simply could be just as beneficial for your health.
It turns out that doing half an hour of housework, including hoovering and scrubbing the floors, can help keep your heart healthy and extend your life expectancy, reports.
The study, published in the The Lancet medical journal, revealed that exercising for just 150 minutes a week – or 30 minutes a day– can cut your risk of early death by 28% and your chances of developing heart disease by a fifth.
You don't have to to experience the benefits. The team from McMaster University in Canada found that the type of physical activity you undertake is almost irrelevant: meaning that the likes of housework, gardening and just walking to work count, too.
Researchers concluded this after quizzing 17,000 people in 17 countries about their levels of physical activity and keeping track of their over a period of seven years.
"Going to the gym is great, but we only have so much time we can spend there. If we can walk to work, or at lunch time, that will help, too," said lead researcher Scott Lear.