do you count walking?

17746991

hi
I was wondering if I should count walking in my exercise for the day
I walk about an hour a day to and from uni and I log this
yet I don't count the 8hrs I spend walking around at work other days
i think i log the hour because it is purposeful and the walking at work is just incidental to the job
so which should i count if any? or do you not count walking at all
and i do other exercise too.
thanks

Shelgirl001

Do you wear a heart rate monitor? It will let you know what you burn for calories, then you can be more aware of what you do that helps you to burn calories. I have worn one at work and when I am walking otherwise, also. It is a more accurate representation of your own personal journey.

ninerbuff

If it's not "everyday" walking like at work or at home. Intentional walking for exercise should be counted.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
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Timshel_

If you set your caloric intake based on sedentary, walking extra like that could be counted. If you set it as active it is already accounted for.

I only count things that raise my heart rate and that I do for more than 30 minute continuously. Others do it differently.

besaro

i have my base set at sedentary so yes I log my walks to and from work. When I first started one of my biggest forms of exercise was walking. You will have to decide what makes sense for you.

2essie

I count walking if it is as you say 'purposeful'.

I have two dogs that I have to walk each day but I don't log that because it is all stop and start with them sniffing. I know you can log an exercise that says '3 miles per hour walking dog'. Some dogs may walk at 3 miles per hour but mine don't. I just count the miles I walk on my own and then eat about half back. Seems to work for me.


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mustgetmuscles1

I agree with ninerbuff.

You could count it in your activity level if it is something you do everyday though. Wont make a huge difference unless you stop doing it or only do it a few times per week.

heybales

You spend 8 hrs walking at work other days?

Then if you selected Sedentary as your non-exercise daily activity, doesn't sound right.

Select Lightly Active, then don't count the walking at Uni, because that'll perhaps get close to the walking at work other 8 hr days.

You can either include the normal regular stuff in your daily activity level, or add it in later - same result.
You burn more each day than sedentary, and acknowledge that fact by your option.

ingehooper

Iv chosen lightly active for myself. Im a stay at home mum to two boy 3 and 2 yrs old and am quite active during the day. I only log workouts though but days I walk alot more then usual I will eat a little more if I need to. If you are quite active during the day go with lightly active as a level x

KANGOOJUMPS

HELL YES,,, race walking is WONDERFUL!

elliej

My rule is that I only count stuff that I didn't do while I was fatter.

Did I walk around the supermarket? Yes, I don't count it. Did I go on 3 hour walks in the countryside? No, so I'll count that. Nothing under an hour though.

WelshPhil1975

I wear my fitbit 24/7 and that counts the steps & gives a calorie adjustment. The only drawback is that it obviously counts "normal" walking that could be, say, from bed to bathroom, etc, but overall I do 4-5 miles per day so I just erly on it to give me the overall count/calories. I try to eat as little calores back though, I just use them as a buffer.

astronomicals

log consistently; adjust accordingly

silburnl

I suggest that you use a pedometer to figure out how much 'non-purposeful' walking around you do as part of your everyday routine and use that figure to set your activity level in MyFitnessPal - then record any 'purposeful' walking you do beyond that as exercise.

The mapping between steps-per-day and activity level is:

<5000 = sedentary
5000-7500 = low active
7500-10000 = somewhat active
10000-12500 = active
>12500 = highly active

Regards
Luke

yoovie

I count it because of 3 reasons

#1) I do at least 6 miles a day - except on days that are really bad where I only do 3. But since I tend to do about 9 on Saturday, I don't sweat it too much.

#2) It lends itself to my training. I need to maintain steady state cardio and build my muscular endurance, so I go for an hour and a half - it's a bit different than logging a 10 minute clip around my block or something.

#3) 10K a day means I need more fuel than if I ignored that burn. So I log it to remind myself that I did expend an extra few hundred calories and should therefore, eat them all.

yoovie

lol i wonder if I got a pedometer if it would quit when it found out i dont have a car.

stonegirldancing42

I also eat half back from my walks. I also walk 3mph, but log 2mph. But, I also know my heart rate doesn't go up that high because I'm so used to walking.

berz82

i wouldnt count walking,youre always walking that should be part of your lifestyle.

shadowofender

I work a desk job, and I walk across the street to CVS sometimes. If it's a walk to that building, or around my job, or at home, no because that's normal activity level.

If I decide on one of my breaks to walk the mile loop around my building, I count it because it's not part of my norm.

50sFit

Kate17746991 wrote: »

hi
I was wondering if I should count walking in my exercise for the day

Yes for sustained walking, but call it "hiking"...
That just has a better ring to it. As for daily activity, either use a pedometer, or just set your MFP activity level: sedentary - low active - somewhat active - active - highly active
- It's here:
- http://www.myfitnesspal.com/account/change_goals_guided
Good Luck!

k8blujay2

My fitbit counts my walking for me.

jennifer_417

Yep, I count it.

davert123

I would use a pedometer and see how much you are doing. I try and keep a constant calorie deficit so I want to know how much I burn. I use a pedometer on my phone and work out how many calories I burn from walking. I put my activity to sedentary and remove the first 150 calories I measure on the pedometer as I am assuming that this should go towards the activity included in the sedentary level on MFP

jaggerjia

One of the best ideas i've heard on here is not to count things that you did before you started watching/tracking, i.e... grocery shopping, mowing the lawn, walking for work, things that are not a change. i thought that was a great way to think about it.

squishycatmew

My Fitbit counts the walking for me, but quite frankly I almost never eat back exercise calories (I'm functioning more like I'm doing TDEE, though I haven't made any specific calculations). I'm set at "lightly active" but can easily hit more than 10,000 steps per day. If you're specifically walking and you have the option not to, I would count that *or* calibrate you MFP settings to account for the fact that you are that active.

ILiftHeavyAcrylics

I have a fitbit now so it counts steps and adjusts my calorie goal.

But before that I set my activity level to lightly active and then I only logged walking that I did above and beyond normal daily activity. I always ate back the calories and it worked well.

If you're going to wear a device all day, it needs to be a device that's intended to be worn all day. Most heart rate monitors are only accurate for steady state cardio, so wearing them for 24 hours isn't going to give you an accurate reading. There are devices that are intended to be worn all day though so if you want something like that I believe fitbit, Body Media Fit, and maybe Body Bugg (is that one still around?) would be some available choices.

tinapi96

I do not count ordinary walking, only, like others said, walking as purposeful exercise. To me, if you are walking to exercise you are walking at the high end of your speed and ability. Now, if you are hoofing it quickly and purposefully from university to home, then it should be counted.

claraoswold

The mfp app has a pedometer that links with your phone. I just keep my phone in my pocket and it adjusts my steps and activity level accordingly.