I lived like an astronaut stuck on the International Space Station

They were only meant to be aboard the International Space Station for eight days, but two US astronauts won't get home until February. To appreciate what ISS astronauts are going through, MailOnline's Jonathan Chadwick has volunteered to replicate ISS life but down here on Earth The International Space Station is a large spacecraft that orbits Earth, 254 miles above our planet's surface On the famous space station, astronauts sleep in small phone booth-sized compartments called 'sleep stations', a bit like man-sized cupboards. Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams arrived at the orbiting station in June in Boeing's Starliner, but ongoing issues mean the craft isn't ready to fly home yet NASA's stranded astronauts won't have much time to feel sorry for themselves as they will be thrown into the space agency's demanding daily schedule MailOnline creates its own version of the ISS's sleep stations, featuring a sleeping bag secured inside a confined box There are no baths or showers on the ISS; astronauts wipe their body clean by using a wet towel or cloth They say breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and surely 254 miles above the Earth it's no different. MailOnline's futuristic space breakfast pouch contains cornflakes pre-mixed with milk powder ISS astronauts subsist mainly on dehydrated foods in vacuum-packed pouches that need to be rehydrated before consumption Sadly, the milk mixture is a bland, watery travesty and doesn't beat the taste of fresh semi-skimmed in the morning, but at least I have instant coffee to perk me up. Pictured, MailOnline's creamy pasta prior to rehydration NASA says ISS inhabitants exercise for around 2.5 hours per day to reduce the risk of muscle wastage - quite the task for an Earth-bound reporter After more work at my computer I tend to my plants – akin to the ISS's Vegetable Production System, a 'space garden' that lets inhabitants study plant growth in microgravity.