Episode 57Apr 8, 2026· 7:10

Your Chores Count: The Science of Everyday Movement with Physiotherapy Researcher Sunaina Chopra

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About this episode

This episode covers non-conventional physical activity and the health benefits of everyday movement including gardening, household chores, and playing with children or pets. Physiotherapy researcher Sunaina Chopra cites a Lancet community gardening study (reduced stress and anxiety, increased activity over 2.5 years), a 12-week housework-versus-exercise study (housework equally effective for fitness), and research…

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Who this episode is for

This episode may resonate with you if:

You have a packed schedule and keep skipping your planned workouts because you can't carve out a dedicated gym block — and then feel like you've failed at fitness for the day.

You're a parent or caregiver whose daily routine is dominated by looking after kids or pets, and you're trying to figure out whether any of that physical effort actually counts toward your health goals.

You're working within a tight budget or live somewhere that makes gym access difficult — weather, cost, or location — and want to know if what you're already doing at home is enough.

You're someone who gardens, does housework, or does other physical chores regularly but doesn't count any of it as 'real' exercise — and you're looking for evidence that it actually contributes something.

You're trying to build a more sustainable movement habit but keep burning out because you've set a rigid standard for what counts — and you want a research-backed reason to loosen that standard.

What you’ll learn

Reframe 'did I work out?' to 'how did I move today?'

Recognize that household chores can match traditional exercise for fitness

Use the activities you're already doing as a base, then add a little more

Don't let rigid definitions of 'real exercise' stop you from moving at all

Questions this episode helps answer

Does housework count as a workout?

answered

According to Sunaina, yes — a 12-week study found housework was just as effective as traditional exercise for maintaining, if not improving, fitness, which she calls 'a really big deal' for people who can't carve out a separate workout.

"and found that housework was just as effective for maintaining, if not improving, fitness. And that's a really big deal, especially for people who feel like they don't have enough time to carve out a separate workout in their day. And"

Is gardening actually good exercise?

answered

Sunaina points to a Lancet study following community gardeners over about two and a half years that found people became more physically active and their stress and anxiety levels went down — noting gardening involves squatting, lifting, digging, and reaching, making it 'a full body movement.'

"not feel like a workout, but you're squatting, lifting, digging, reaching. It's a full body movement. And research backs this up a lot. A study published in The Lancet followed people involved in a community garden over about two and a half years. What they found was pretty"

How do I stay fit without a gym membership?

answered

Sunaina frames everyday movement — gardening, chores, walking the dog, playing with kids — as legitimate fitness, and directly addresses people 'feeling overwhelmed, short on time or funds' as the audience for whom this reframe is meant.

"are feeling overwhelmed, short on time or funds, or not just motivated to be outside with all of your busy life, this is your sign to think differently. Your walk with your dog counts. Your time spent gardening counts. Cleaning your space counts. It all contributes to your overall"

How do I stop feeling bad about skipping the gym?

answered

Sunaina suggests swapping the question 'I didn't work out today' for 'how did I move today?' — because chances are you did more than you think, and that's something to be proud of.

"health and well -being. So next time you catch yourself thinking, I didn't work out today, maybe pause and ask, how did I move today? Because chances are you did more than you think, and that's something to be really proud of. How good"

How do I know if I'm moving enough if I don't track formal workouts?

answered

Ashley suggests doing a personal movement audit — looking at your own life and asking how much movement you're actually doing — and if it feels like not enough, that's the sign to get up and move more, even something as simple as jumping up and down or dancing at your desk.

"life. How much movement are you actually doing? And if you feel like whenever you do like a personal audit of yourself that you're not moving enough, let that be your sign that it's time to get up"

Setting expectations: This episode is not a deep-dive into exercise science, physiotherapy techniques, or structured fitness programming. It's a short voice note from a PhD student making the case that gardening, vacuuming, and playing with your dog already count as movement, followed by Ashley's personal reaction to that idea.

Tone & style

The episode opens with the assumption that gym-based exercise is the only movement that counts, then uses three cited studies (a Lancet community garden study, a 12-week housework comparison, and dog-walking research) to dismantle that belief, landing on a reframe: swap 'did I work out today?' for 'how did I move today?'

Research-backed claims from a physiotherapy and PhD student, supplemented by the host's personal experience. Not medical or clinical advice.

toneUpbeat & validating

focusMaking the case — with cited research — that gardening, housework, and playing with your dog or kids count as real physical activity.

stylecasual_chat

energymedium

complexitybeginner

pressure Levellow

emotional Textureencouraging, light, practical

Notable quotes

"a question. Have you ever felt like if you can't make it to the gym, your physical activity for the day just doesn't count? If that sounds familiar,"

— Famous Ashley Grant

"health and well -being. So next time you catch yourself thinking, I didn't work out today, maybe pause and ask, how did I move today? Because"

— Famous Ashley Grant

"to do it a specific way. If you get too hung up in the specifics and you and you force yourself to like only do certain things to consider it counting, then you might not move your body at all. And that's the whole point is I want you"

— Famous Ashley Grant

Episode transcript

Organized into 6 chapters — open any part to read the full text.

0:001. Introduction and Sunaina Chopra's Voice NoteAshley Grant introduces the episode and plays a voice note from Sunaina Chopra, a physiotherapy and PhD student at the University of British Columbia.0:222. Rethinking What Counts as Physical ActivitySunaina challenges the idea that only structured gym-based exercise counts, introducing the concept of non-conventional physical activity as equally beneficial.1:153. Gardening, Chores, and Playing with Kids or PetsSunaina walks through research-backed examples — a Lancet study on community gardening, a 12-week housework study, and data on children walking dogs — showing everyday activities contribute meaningfully to fitness and mental well-being.4:194. Sunaina's Takeaway: Ask How You Moved, Not If You Worked OutSunaina wraps up by encouraging listeners to reframe their self-assessment from 'did I work out?' to 'how did I move today?', emphasizing that movement doesn't have to be perfect or structured to matter.5:235. Ashley's Reaction and Personal Spin on the MessageAshley reflects on Sunaina's message, connects it to her own Snowmageddon experience of working out at home, and encourages listeners to do a personal movement audit and find small ways to add more movement to whatever they're already doing.7:106. Outro and Listener InvitationAshley invites listeners to send their own voice notes or share their fitness journeys at famousashleygrant.com/fit, and closes with her signature sign-off.

Open full transcript

Mentioned in this episode

personSunaina Chopra

A dual physiotherapy and PhD student who submitted a voice note to the podcast arguing that everyday activities like gardening and chores count as meaningful physical activity.

organizationUniversity of British Columbia

The institution in Vancouver, Canada where Sunaina Chopra is pursuing her dual physiotherapy and PhD studies.

placeVancouver, Canada

The location of the University of British Columbia, mentioned by Sunaina when introducing herself.

studyThe Lancet community garden study

A study published in The Lancet that followed people in a community garden over about two and a half years, finding they became more physically active and had lower stress and anxiety levels.

websitefamousashleygrant.com/fit

Ashley's website where listeners can submit voice notes or share their own fitness journeys.

Key themes

Gym-or-nothing thinking

Sunaina opens by naming the feeling that if you can't make it to the gym, your physical activity for the day 'just doesn't count,' framing this as a widespread but mistaken belief.

Non-conventional physical activity

Sunaina introduces the term 'non-conventional physical activity' to describe everyday movement — gardening, chores, playing with kids or pets — and argues it can be just as beneficial as structured exercise.

Gardening as full-body movement

Sunaina points to a Lancet study on community gardening over two and a half years showing participants became more physically active and saw reduced stress and anxiety.

Housework vs. traditional exercise

Sunaina cites a 12-week study finding that household chores like vacuuming, mopping, and laundry were just as effective as traditional exercise for maintaining or improving fitness.

Playing with kids and pets as movement

Sunaina references research showing children and youth who walk dogs or play with pets are significantly more likely to meet physical activity recommendations, and adds a lighthearted aside about kids using this as a 'solid evidence-based argument' for getting a puppy.

Reframing 'did I work out?' to 'how did I move?'

Sunaina closes her voice note by urging listeners to swap the question 'I didn't work out today' for 'how did I move today?', suggesting most people did more than they realize.

Movement fitting into your actual life

Both Sunaina and Ashley emphasize that movement doesn't have to be structured or time-consuming — it just has to fit into what you're already doing, especially for people who are overwhelmed, short on time, or short on funds.

Over-specificity stopping movement altogether

Ashley warns that getting too hung up on doing movement the 'right' way — only counting certain activities — can result in not moving at all, which is the opposite of the goal.

Stacking movement onto existing activities

Ashley suggests small additions to whatever you're already doing — extra squats while gardening, an extra lap when walking the dog, a jumping jack challenge with your kids — rather than carving out separate workout time.

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