A study out of Great Britain shows doing household chores can help extend your lifespan by burning a high number of calories.

The study, done by electrical goods giant Philips, was based on surveys completed by 3,000 middle-aged civil servants.

“I feel dead tired after I’m done,” said Erin Bleichrodt, a manager at Mile High Maids.

“When I first started, I was obviously out of shape,” said Bleichrodt. “After a while, my body got used to it.”

The most common chores that burn the most calories include laundry, vacuuming, and ironing.

The study didn’t surprise Dr. Neil Wolkodoff – an exercise expert at Rose Medical Center in Denver.

No matter what the activity, Dr. Wolkodoff says that to avoid metabolic diseases, like diabetes, “you want to get up to that magic number of burning 2,500 calories a week, any way that you can do it.”

While Dr. Wolkodoff says running or swimming are probably the best ways to stay healthy, he says cleaning can help, if it is done the right way.

“It’s far better if you’re doing housework, to do it in little bursts during the day,” said Dr. Wolkodoff. “You’ll actually end up burning more calories throughout the day than if you do it all at once.”