There’s a certain feeling of satisfaction in knowing your home is clean, but actually going through the motions of cleaning gets tedious pretty quickly. It’s difficult to enjoy scrubbing a toilet and it’s never fun to twist and contort your body into a bunch of weird positions to reach places like the oven hood and the top of the refrigerator. But if you follow a quick nightly routine, you can keep a clean house without making yourself totally miserable.
The Quick Pick Up
Set a timer for 10 minutes. Now, rush through your house picking up all those items that are out of place. If you have a lot of stuff spread out everywhere, grab an empty laundry basket. Throw items in here as you move from room to room, and put items where they actually go as you make your way through the house. By giving yourself a time limit, you’ll be motivated to move quickly. Now, cleaning becomes a cardio exercise. Since you’re racing against a clock, you get everything done in one fell swoop.
Do One Task At a Time
The trouble with house cleaning is all the different implements you have to get out just to perform normal tasks. A single room in your home may require special cleaning formula, a lint roller, a broom and who knows how many other different items? Instead of cleaning on a room-by-room basis, commit to using one cleaning tool at a time.
First, run through the house with a feather duster and give all your wood surfaces, glassware and lamps a quick swipe. You’ll be surprised by how quickly you can get everything dusted off when this is your only task. Next, grab a lint roller and quickly run it over all your fabrics. Don’t forget about throw rugs, which can be a real pain to vacuum. A lint roller is an excellent way to remove hair and debris from these accents.
With just two implements, half your home is already clean and you’ve probably spent less than 20 minutes getting it done. Now you can grab that cleaning solution and wipe down your kitchen table and counters, the microwave and the trash can. Get a new cleaning cloth to wipe down the bathroom (or bathrooms) quickly. Go fast to burn up some calories while you clean.
As a final touch, grab your fabric refresher and your air freshener and quickly spray your fabrics and your air, respectively. When you’re all done, your home will be clean and you will have elevated your heart rate for at least 20 minutes.
Easy Nightly Routine
Turn housecleaning into a regular nightly routine, and you will find yourself getting faster and faster at completing this chore. Try to perform your cleaning tasks the same way and in the same order every night so that soon, you will be flying through it. You won’t even have to think about doing it, so your mind can wander and daydream while you’re beautifying your house. Soon, your cleaning routine begins to feel more like “you” time, which can at least bring you close to a place where housekeeping is almost enjoyable.