THE ULTIMATE CORE WORKOUT AT HOME (TURN YOUR CHORES INTO A WORKOUT)

Let's be honest: most of us don't love doing housework. Mundane chores like vacuuming, washing dishes, and dusting are just a necessary evil.

But what if you could improve your swimming and your overall health while doing them? What if you could turn that boring chore into a powerful core workout?

This article will show you how to do exactly that, using a simple principle from the gym to spice up your housework and build a stronger, more stable core.

Dive Into: The Housework Core Workout

• Why a Strong Core is a Swimmer's Superpower
• The Gym Secret: How Balance Builds a Strong Core
• The Workout: Turning Chores into Core Training
• The Takeaway: A More Noble Goal
• Frequently Asked Questions

Why a Strong Core is a Swimmer's Superpower

In most of my posts, I repeat that a strong core body is a necessity for good swimming technique.

The core isn't just your abs; it's all the muscles that span from your sternum to your hips. These muscles are what keep your body nicely aligned while you swim, decreasing drag and preventing your hips from snaking from side to side.

This is why learning to swim can be difficult for some people. They don't know how to engage the right core muscles to keep themselves stable. The stronger your core, the better swimmer you will be.

Weak core = ineficient swimming due to poor technique

The Gym Secret: How Balance Builds a Strong Core

There are many exercises in the gym designed to strengthen the core, and many of them use a balance board. A person stands on the board while performing other exercises (throwing a ball, pulling stretch cords or using dumbbells), and this added instability forces the core to work much harder to keep the body balanced.

Having a strong core is like having great balance when you stand on one foot.

The Workout: Turning Chores into Core Training

We can apply this same "balance board" concept to our boring household chores.

Obviously, you can't stand on a balance board while moving around the house. However, you can vacuum while you stand and jump around on one foot. Or you can wash dishes while balancing on one leg.

The instability you generate by taking one foot off the ground forces you to engage all the small stabilizing muscles in your core that you wouldn't normally use. These muscles are crucial for joint stability and core strength.

You could even create a routine: left foot, left-hand vacuuming in one room; left foot, right hand in the next. The same goes for washing dishes or wiping down counters.

The Takeaway: A More Noble Goal

As with any exercise, maintaining good posture is a must. So next time you are cleaning the floor, vacuuming, or doing dishes, just think "core body workout" to spice it up.

Perhaps it won't be as boring as before, since you now have a more noble goal of health instead of just getting the dirt out. And to top it off, your better half will thank you for doing your part! So, this is a win-win situation.

The best part is, you can apply this same "workout while you wait" philosophy to other parts of your day. If you have a daily commute, check out our guide on how to turn your time on public transportation into another powerful core workout.