Deep cleaning the kitchen for TOMM bootcamp - exhausted

[tryingtosortmylifeout]

I moved into my new house around a year ago and never deep-cleaned I was hoping we'd get the kitchen replaced but we ran out of cash. The whole place is just a dusty, untidy mess, with piles of random crap everywhere, pictures that I haven't hung, unwashed laundry etc.

I've got guests coming to stay over Christmas and am now desperately trying to get the house looking a bit more presentable before they arrive. I'm also hoping to start following the TOMM method in the new year as I'm so sick of having an untidy house - it's soul-destroying!

So far I've spent about four days on the kitchen and have just finished giving it a serious deep clean - taking everything out of all the cupboards and disinfecting them, scrubbing the grease from the top of the kitchen cupboards, cleaning the washing machine bit where you put the fabric conditioner in, cleaning the gunk from under the dishwasher door, washing the windows and decluttering.

Now it's finally finished and looks so much better, but I've got to admit that it was seriously hard work. I think I've pulled a couple of muscles in my arms that I didn't even know I had!

Now I'm about to make a start on the other rooms in the house - probably beginning with the lounge. Please tell me it gets easier from here on in?

The kitchen is always the worst. It’ll be plain sailing from here. I’m going to start TOMM in the new year too.

Well done! I think the kitchen is one of the hardest areas to clean. Lots of small individual items, lots of places for grease and crumbs to accumulate.

How easy you find the rest of the boot camp depends on how much there is to do in your house, but once you get through it and start the normal daily/weekly tasks it's so much easier. Definitely worth persevering with it. Good luck!

It gets loads easier!

Maintenance is a walk in the park compared to the first deep clean.

Even subsequent deep cleans aren't as bad as long as you can keep reasonably on top of it in between

I bootcamped over summer and started TOMMing for proper once the DC went back to school. I didn’t have to do a single thing to get house guest-ready this year. It’s life-changing.

Thanks for the encouraging words everyone - it's just the motivation I need.

It's such a nice feeling knowing that the kitchen is finally grease and grime free. The other rooms are also in a state, but like you say, there are a lot less nooks and crannies and far less actual grime - it's more just dust.

I didn’t have to do a single thing to get house guest-ready this year. It’s life-changing.

@womanhuman that is literally my dream! I can't wait to complete the bootcamp phase (hopefully before the new year) and start TOMMing properly.

I decluttered as I bootcamped too. Be ruthless!

Microfibre dust mits are great for removing thick dust fast, use the thick side dry then damp cloth / spray with a fresh cloth for optimum dust removal.

I’m doing the clean for Christmas atm. I’m disabled and chronically ill so it doesn’t happen often!

I've finished the kitchen and the dining room now. Next up is the lounge.

This is taking forever!