Cleaning the house could help burn hundreds of calories and make up for lost time in the gym, it has been revealed. Experts from weight-loss aid Zotrim have researched how many calories can be burned by doing simple household chores.

Keeping up with regular weekly chores, including washing up for 15 minutes every day, scrubbing the bath for 15 minutes and an hour of laundry could help burn 255 calories, the same as playing an hour of doubles tennis.

A spokesperson for Zotrim says: ‘With gyms and swimming pools being shut due to coronavirus many people are trying to be more imaginative with their gym routine. What’s not commonly known is that many of the day-to-day jobs that we’re all doing are also helping lose calories without us knowing. Just as with exercises at the gym, different chores will focus on different muscle groups, and spending a little time thinking about your posture and what you’re tensing as you complete the task, could go a lot further in terms of toning and exercising.’

These are Zotrim’s pick of the best calorie-burning chores:

Washing up

Washing up

Spending 15 minutes a day cleaning dishes can help you lose 147 calories over the space of a week. This is around the same as playing rugby for a quarter of an hour.

Scrubbing the bath

Cleaning the bath

This chore is perfecting for toning the arms and shoulder muscles as you bend down to reach the corners of your bath rub. Plenty of elbow grease can help burn up to 44 calories in 15 minutes.

Ironing

Ironing

Everyone knows that standing up helps burn more calories than sitting down, and ironing also has the added bonus of working your core as you move the iron about. Three hours of ironing will help you lose 249 calories, the same amount as using a rowing machine on 150 watts for half an hour.

Mopping and sweeping 

Mopping floors

Vigorous weight-lifting, such as using free weights or power-lifting, burns around 80 calories – the same amount as cleaning floors for 30 minutes.

Laundry

Laundry

Considering everything you have to do with laundry, loading and unloading the washing machine, hanging up the clothes to dry and folding them to put away can burn up to 64 calories an hour.

Gardening 

Gardening

An hour of working in the garden can burn around 136 calories, the same as cycling steadily for four miles.

Vacuuming 

Vacuuming

Half an hour of vacuuming can help you burn the same amount of calories as boxing a punch bag for 15 minutes – 85. Depending on how big your house is it will also help you towards the 10,000 recommended steps a day.

Dusting

Dusting

Spend 15 minutes dusting around the house to lose 24 calories, the same amount as 15 minutes of yoga.

Cleaning windows 

Cleaning windows

If you’re struggling to find things to do still in lockdown, cleaning your windows – both inside and out – will help make your house sparkle, as well as helping to burn 127 calories an hour.

Making beds

Making the bed

Changing bed sheets can burn 32 calories in half an hour, equivalent to diving for 15 minutes.

Mowing 

Mowing the lawn

An hour of mowing the lawn with a regular push mower can burn the same amount of calories as strolling for three hours, 306.