The easiest world records you can attempt without leaving home

Can you put 28 socks on one foot in just 30 seconds? You can! Wow, well then, do 29, and you will be a record breaker. Pavol Durdik from Slovakia currently holds the record for this, with the only rule being that you have to put them on one at a time. That’s right, there are no rules for them to be clean, so you can raid your laundry basket for this one.

One of the most recent records on the list, Indian actor Akshay Kumar took 184 selfies in under three minutes as a promo for his movie, Selfiee, but if you were doing this from the comfort of your home, would you be able to take even more? You tell us. Just make sure you have a decent selfie stick to get the best angles.

We know you have been stocking up on the toilet paper, so why not put those (currently) unused rolls to good use and try to win the record for the tallest toilet paper tower? The current holder, Silvio Sabba (a name that crops up a lot in world record lists), managed 28 rolls. The only rule is that you must only touch one roll at a time.

You can use Smarties or M&Ms; we're not fussy with this one, but we actually reckon that this one is easy to beat. Eating 20 Smarties in one minute is simple… What’s that? You need to use a blindfold and chopsticks? Well, that changes things somewhat. You can only pick up one Smartie or M&M at a time.

If you have a Mr Potato Head lying around (everyone should, to be honest), then you can try to break the record of the fastest time ever to assemble him. The rule is very Radiohead, in that everything must be in the right place. To win the record, you’ll have to beat Samet Durmaz from Turkey, who managed it in an unbelievable 6.62 seconds.

Don’t blame us if this leaves your face rawer than your scrubbed hands after doing this one. We are just putting it out there that if you did manage to clip 52 clothes pegs on your face, then you would beat Silvio Sabba’s current world record of 51. This record has stood for eight years now. Surely it’s time for us all to get our pegs out and try to break it?

Don’t have enough toilet paper rolls to attempt the toilet paper tower? This one only requires a single roll. And a whole lot of manual dexterity, because you need to unravel it with a single hand. This one has been held by a Serbian chap called Dalibor Jablanovic, who also holds the record for the most spoons balanced on his face (31). He managed to unravel a toilet roll in just 9.8 seconds, back in 2013.

This record is currently held by a Brit. Stephen Buttler from the UK has managed a whopping 90 push-ups with hand claps in one minute. 90. That’s a phenomenal achievement. We can only assume that he has the upper-body strength of a three-year-old when you try to take cake out of their hands. Impressive stuff, but we’re sure you can beat it.

In 1999, Leo Clouser of the USA sent a rubber band flying over 30m in a school gym in Wyoming. No special tools were used here, just the rubber bands and hands. Of course, this one does require a large space; most of us don’t have access to one at home. The record was set indoors, meaning Clouser did not have to worry about any negative or positive effects of additional wind resistance. Still, we’re tempted to try this one down at the local park.

You might need to invest in an additional set of cutlery for this one. The record for the highest number of spoons balanced on a person’s face is 31, set by Dalibor Jablanovic in 2013. Judging by his own image, it looks like you need to make good use of your eye sockets with this one. And you can have more of the things sticking out of your ears.

How hard can blowing a great big bubble gum bubble be? You might feel your confidence drain away when you hear the record-breaking bubble’s diameter was more than three times the width of the average person’s head at 50.8cm. This record had been held by American Chad Fell ever since 2004. You’d better start exercising those jaw muscles. Chad’s pro tip is to use three pieces of Hubba Bubba, apparently.

OK, we're going to need a lot of tins of beans and some nice, sharp cocktail sticks. Surely UK folks can't let this one stand? The record for the most beans is currently held by David Rush, who set the standard in Boise, Idaho, back in 2018.

He managed 68 in a minute, and in the same session, he also set the record for three minutes (178 beans). At around one a second, we reckon we could challenge that with a bit of practice and luck. What do you think?

Get you namaste on and charge your chakras because this one is going to require some serious zen. Spain’s Christian Roberto López Rodriguez managed to keep an object on his nose for two hours and 42 minutes. What object? A broom. He also holds the record for balancing a pool cue on one finger, doing so for four hours and 32 minutes. That’s some test of patience, folks.

If you feel the cold, you have probably managed to complete this record without even knowing it. But, if you want to do it officially, then you have to beat Ted Hastings’ record of wearing 260 at once. You can use any size, short or long-sleeved, t-shirts for this one - and you can get a friend to help pull them down. But only one at a time, please (t-shirts, not friends).