The Spick and Span Workout Plan

This is what happened to me this weekend.

My husband was sick and he turned into a waa waa baby.

My girls were all over the place.  “Mom, can I go to the mall?”  “Mom, you forgot the birthday party at the pool!”  “Mom, I have that Girl Scout thing at the school, are you going to let me go?”

The laundry and housework was slowly but surely beginning to consume me to the point I couldn’t breathe.  (You know, if mamma doesn’t do it…..no one does it. Grrrrrr.)

My plans for the weekend included a long run, some one on one time with my Kindle, and a hilariously witty blog post.   Yeah.  Not so much.  After getting the kids where they needed to be, loving on the sick sick boy, and catching up on the laundry, I only had about an hour left to do something for myself……and the house was STILL a disaster.

I have really been getting good at my exercise routine, so I was most disappointed that I wasn’t going to get a little work-out in.  So, I improvised.  I worked out WHILE I cleaned and I have to say it turned out AWESOME! 

The Spick & Span Workout Plan

This is a workout anyone can do.  (Cheesy name, but don’t knock it until you try it.)  You don’t need much, some comfy shoes and some imagination.  Put on some good shoes……something you can jump around in.  Fill up a nice big glass or bottle with water and you are ready to go!

To begin I made a little “workout station” on my dining room table.  Here, I put a notebook to write my plan on, a pen, my glass of water, and some hand weights.  (The weights are optional….depending on what your plan is.)

With my notebook I quickly planned out 4 exercises to include cardio, arms, legs, and abs.   For my workout I did jumping jacks (cardio), bicep curls (arms), squats (legs), and sit-ups(abs).  You can do whatever exercises you want though. 

For the cleaning portion of the workout you will be dividing your cleaning area into small sections.  The object is to do a burst of cleaning, and then an exercise.  For example, when emptying the dishwasher, you may want to divide it into two sections…..the top rack, and then the bottom rack.  Keep each cleaning job short, so you can get in all your workouts! 

To begin, start with 20 jumping jacks.  This will get your heart and body warmed up.  Then, let the cleaning/workout begin!  For my example you will be cleaning the kitchen.  This list includes your first set of jumping jacks.  Just follow along, or change the jobs according to your own kitchen.

·        20 jumping jacks

·        Empty the top rack of the dishwasher

·        10 bicep curls

·        Empty the bottom rack of the dishwasher

·        10 squats

·        Fill the dishwasher

·        10 sit-ups

·        Fill the sink with warm soapy water

·        20 jumping jacks

·        Wash around the sink until it is all clean and shiny

·        10 bicep curls

·        Wash off any counter-top appliances (coffee-pot, Kitchen-Aid, etc.)

·        10 squats

·        Wipe down half of the countertop

·        10 sit-ups

·        Wipe down the other half of the countertop

·        20 jumping jacks

·        Wash off the stove-top

·        10 bicep curls

·        Wipe off the half of the front of your cupboards (outside)

·        10 squats

·        Wipe off the other half of the cupboards

·        10 sit-ups

·        Wipe down any handles on drawers and the front of the drawers

·        20 jumping jacks

·        Empty the sink of dirty water, and re-fill it with hot soapy water

·        10 bicep curls

·        Wipe off refrigerator doors and handles

·        10 squats

·        Throw away any old food in the refrigerator

·        10 sit-ups

·        Take out the trash

·        20 jumping jacks

·        Take out the recycling

·        10 bicep curls

·        Sweep the kitchen floor

·        10 squats

·        Mop half of the kitchen floor

·        10 sit ups

·        Mop the other half of the kitchen floor

·        End your workout with 50 jumping jacks!

Whew!!!  The Spick & Span Workout plan is complete! Following this plan, you will have done 50 bicep curls, 50 lunges, 50 sit ups, and 150 jumping jacks!  Total time for the clean AND workout was just one hour! Just imagine if you did this three or four times a week while cleaning other rooms of your house.  Do it with whatever room you need to clean!  I PROMISE, you will be sweating and needing a shower when it is all over but you will be proud that you worked out AND cleaned!

Have I gone totally crazy?

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