Discovering the health value in everyday tasks

Chores are not usually fun. But what if we helped ourselves (and the young people in our lives) see them differently? What if sweeping, scrubbing or carrying laundry weren’t just household responsibilities, but hidden opportunities to build strength, coordination and stamina?

Many common chores mimic the same movements used in athletic training. By shifting the conversation from “work” to “movement,” we can help kids understand how everyday tasks help develop their bodies and prepare them for sports, play and life.

Here are 10 chores, the workout category they fall into, the muscles they activate and how they support fitness and even athletic performance.

1. Sweeping or vacuuming

Workout type: Core and upper body endurance
Muscles worked: Obliques, shoulders, triceps and lower back
Benefit: These muscles power rotation in sports like baseball, swimming and tennis

2. Carrying laundry baskets

Workout type: Load-bearing strength
Muscles worked: Biceps, forearms, traps and core
Benefit: Builds grip strength and upper-body control for wrestling, gymnastics and football

3. Scrubbing floors or bathtubs

Workout type: Dynamic core and mobility
Muscles worked: Core, triceps, shoulders and hamstrings
Benefit: Strengthens balance and core stability for soccer, martial arts and dance

4. Cooking and food prep (chopping, stirring, reaching)

Workout type: Fine motor and functional movement
Muscles worked: Forearms, deltoids, grip muscles and posture muscles
Benefit: Supports coordination and upper body control in basketball, volleyball and fencing

5. Washing windows or walls

Workout type: Shoulder and arm endurance
Muscles worked: Deltoids, traps, upper back and arms
Benefit: Builds strength for overhead motions in volleyball, swimming and tennis

6. Taking out the trash

Workout type: Compound lift
Muscles worked: Glutes, hamstrings, lower back and biceps
Benefit: Teaches proper lifting mechanics for safe movement in most sports

7. Raking leaves or pulling weeds

Workout type: Rotational core and grip
Muscles worked: Obliques, forearms, upper back and quads
Benefit: Strengthens core twisting power used in baseball, lacrosse and hockey

8. Making the bed

Workout type: Flexibility and functional strength
Muscles worked: Hamstrings, glutes, lower back and core
Benefit: Builds flexibility and coordination for gymnastics and cheer

9. Helping with groceries (carrying, sorting, reaching)

Workout type: Full-body carry and balance
Muscles worked: Core, arms and legs
Benefit: Reinforces balance and stability needed in soccer, dance and basketball

10. Putting away laundry

Workout type: Squat and reach movement
Muscles worked: Quads, glutes, calves and lower back
Benefit: Develops explosive leg strength for sprinting, jumping and change-of-direction sports

Before you get started, remember to warm up your body

Even before light to moderate activities, stretching and warming up are important because they prepare the body for movement, reduce the risk of injury and improve overall performance. A proper warm-up increases blood flow to the muscles, enhances flexibility and helps joints move more easily, which helps prevent strains and stiffness.

School clients, click here

To get warmed up, you can log in and check out Mobility for mobility sequences.

As an alternative, every lesson has a warm-up. To get your body prepped for movement, we recommend checking out the warmups in Strength & Conditioning. You can match the muscles worked to the area of the body you want to warm up. For example, if you’re getting ready to wash windows or walls (#5), you’ll want to warm up your upper body to prepare your shoulders and arms for a workout.

Library clients, click here

To get warmed up, log in to Hiveclass Digital and explore Mobility and Senior Mobility.

As an alternative, every lesson has a warm-up. To get your body prepped for chores, we recommend checking out the warmups in Strength & Conditioning. You can match the muscles worked to the area of the body you want to warm up.

For example, if you’re getting ready to wash windows or walls (#5), you’ll want to warm up your upper body to prepare your shoulders and arms for a workout.

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Give us a shout to learn how you can get access to Hiveclass.

Movement is everywhere

When we see chores not as a pain and a bore, but as opportunities to move, we get a cleaner and more organized environment and we get positive health outcomes. Chores become workouts. Habits become strength. Movement becomes part of everyday life.