The Checkup: How to Exercise While Cleaning Your House

Photo from Digital Vision

• I’m all about killing as many birds with one stone as possible. So the idea of getting in a good workout while cleaning my house is pretty attractive, actually. Stevie Markovich and Carolyn Barnes, who each have exercise programs designed around housecleaning, are banking on lots of multitaskers like me. The Wall Street Journal posted a story earlier this week about Markovich and Barnes and their fitness programs, which teach moves like vacuum-cleaner lunges, window-washing squats and sofa lifts. There’s even a video demonstrating some of the moves. (Spoiler alert: it’s pretty hilarious.) While I think the cleaning workout is a great idea in theory, I’m not sure I’d actually do it in my own house. I think I’d feel too self-conscious—even if my cat were the only one watching.

• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has charted a nearly 30 percent rise in home births between 2004 and 2009. Driving the trend, according to the report, are the 36 percent of white women who’ve opted to give birth at home; the CDC says 1 in 90 births to white women now occur in the home.

• Here’s something you probably could have guessed: Working too much puts you at a greater risk for depression. A new study of British government employees found that people who work 11 or more hours a day are twice as likely to suffer from depression than those who work seven to eight hours a day. Something to think about next time you find yourself burning the midnight oil at the office. Read more here.