Logging Everything or only Intentional Workouts?

JonoK

Are you the type of person who logs every activity they do during the day? I tried this a few years back, putting in everything from Cleaning the house to my Insanity workouts. I found that my calorie count was way off. I then switched to only putting intentional workouts into FitnessPal and results seemed to be more accurate. Recently, iOS8 allows FitnessPal to use the "steps" ability to add calories back for steps taken each day. It hasn't changed much when it comes to achieving my goals, so I haven't thought much about it - but I am curious. Do you log every activity or just the intentional ones? Sometimes I see friends who log "180 Minutes of slow walking - shopping." For me, I can't log that because that's just regular activity.

Let me know how it's working for you.

Walter__

I don't bother logging any workouts.

I find it's not necessary if your routine is consistent. I've been doing the same workout routine for the past 6 months or so, never logged one day of it. The only thing I keep track of is food. When I want to change my goals, I simply adjust my food intake.

jdhcm2006

I only log intentional workouts, I don't log shopping or dancing around my room or anything else like that. That seems like too much work.

KANGOOJUMPS

yep, everything

dym123

jdhcm2006 wrote: »

I only log intentional workouts, I don't log shopping or dancing around my room or anything else like that. That seems like too much work.

Yep, this is me. I always think its kinda funny when people on my thread log things like "running errands" or "cooking". I figure these are things I do anyway.

Adc7225

I log my intentional workouts but I will turn on my Map My Walk app when I am out and about, not really shopping unless I am walking to the store and/or home. I usually pause it while in the store, no housework or anything like that, I consider that part of life

jbee27

dym123 wrote: »

jdhcm2006 wrote: »

I only log intentional workouts, I don't log shopping or dancing around my room or anything else like that. That seems like too much work.

Yep, this is me. I always think its kinda funny when people on my thread log things like "running errands" or "cooking". I figure these are things I do anyway.

I agree. I think it's so strange when people log things like this, even cleaning. I know that certain hardcore cleaning probably burns a fair amount of calories, but I prefer to use those as a "cushion".

sofaking6

I do NOT log regular activity - I figure I was doing all of those things while I was gaining weight. My favorite is when people log "walking up stairs, 3 minutes"...I live up 4 flights of stairs (no elevator) and again, I gained weight going up them at least once a day.

cwolfman13

Ummmm...when you select an activity level, you get some allotment of calories for daily chore type of things along with your basal calories. Even if you put sedentary, you're getting some credit for doing basic things like going to the grocery store and whatnot.

When I did MFP method I logged my deliberate exercise with some allowance for estimation error. Once my exercise became more consistent I just switched to the TDEE method and included exercise in my activity level.

jdhcm2006

cwolfman13 wrote: »

Ummmm...when you select an activity level, you get some allotment of calories for daily chore type of things along with your basal calories. Even if you put sedentary, you're getting some credit for doing basic things like going to the grocery store and whatnot.

When I did MFP method I logged my deliberate exercise with some allowance for estimation error. Once my exercise became more consistent I just switched to the TDEE method and included exercise in my activity level.

Yeah. I do the TDEE method as well. It just makes things easier. I log my exercises b/c I like to look back at what I was doing x amount of time ago.

amtru2015

I only do intentional workouts because your deficit isn't going to come from what you always do---did that make sense??

FitPhillygirl

I only log weightlifting and my Insanity Max 30 workouts. The only calories that I eat back anyway are the ones I burn from weightlifting.

h7463

Just logging intentional workouts....unless it's a physically demanding outdoor activity, like stacking fire wood, throwing hay bales, or running with the heavy weed eater for several hours..wearing a HRM...then I will log those, too..

La5Vega5Girl

only intentional work-outs such as weight-lifting and cardio on treadmill, etc. sometimes i might log a bike ride, if i pull my daughter in the bike trailer, but a normal bike ride i do not b/c i do it so frequently. if it's part of my daily routine, i just consider it life. my cousin used to log cooking a meal, cleaning her bathroom, walking her dog, walking upstairs (at home) and she could never lose weight. she would eat-back all those "exercise" calories, and she was never ahead.

SarcasmIsMyLoveLanguage

I only log intentional workouts. Less chance of over estimating my cals burned that way.

blankiefinder

I only log intentional workouts, and delete the calories my phone gives me for everyday activities. Everyday activities are already included in the settings you chose when you set up your goals and profile (sedentary, etc). Plus I figure if I was already doing it when I was gaining weight, that it won't help me lose.

vixstew

Best is to follow your food plan. A good rule of thumb is "exercise less...eat less" ....exercise more, eat more". Not to say eating more = eat whatever and as much as you want. If weight loss/fat loss is the goal, eating is 85%... To help w/caloric burn is moving more and throwing in "intensity"...and exercise is CRUCIAL to maintaining weight. But I can put in the "caloric burn for spinning" at my weight & gender and it Severely Reduces the calories I actually burn. Then I can plug in the same amt of time for Les Mills Body Step and it says I burn 100 more calories within the same time. I know FOR a fact that is wrong. But all of this is a guesstimate ...

Azdak

"Sedentary" does NOT equal "inert". If you start logging casual activities, you will be counting many of your activity calories twice.

Notreadytoquit

I log everything from digging ditches to cooking and cleaning. Opening a yogurt is not equal in energy expenditure to cleaning the kitchen, gathering food from garden, cooking for 3 & cleaning up again. Since I no longer engage in hard core "intentional workouts" my intent is to make every effort count. Must be working as I've finally hit goal weight with only 1 "intentional workout". Real life activity burns just as many calories as "intentional" activity.

oriole35

I would think if you log everything then you have to remove everything. The program automatically estimates a calorie expenditure based on the original preferences. If you said you do exercise at all, it will still subtract calories for the 2k steps and normal activities you do during the day.

cwolfman13

oriole35 wrote: »

I would think if you log everything then you have to remove everything. The program automatically estimates a calorie expenditure based on the original preferences. If you said you do exercise at all, it will still subtract calories for the 2k steps and normal activities you do during the day.

Actually, when you say you're going to do X amount of exercise, MFP doesn't believe you and doesn't adjust your calories for exercise. Your calories are only set per your activity level...which if you're doing MFP as designed is only your day to day hum drum. This is why you log exercise after the fact and get those calories to eat back.

cwolfman13

Notreadytoquit wrote: »

I log everything from digging ditches to cooking and cleaning. Opening a yogurt is not equal in energy expenditure to cleaning the kitchen, gathering food from garden, cooking for 3 & cleaning up again. Since I no longer engage in hard core "intentional workouts" my intent is to make every effort count. Must be working as I've finally hit goal weight with only 1 "intentional workout". Real life activity burns just as many calories as "intentional" activity.

Are you logging those and "eating back" those calories though? Yes, daily living burns calories...in fact it burns far more calories than deliberate exercise...but those calories are accounted for in your allotment.

I burn around 2400 calories per day without intentional exercise...that's my basal rate plus being lightly active in general...but if I were to log and eat back the calories I burn from cooking meals for my family and cleaning my house, I would be double counting.

Notreadytoquit

It is a mistake to presume that everyone is the same and one set of protocols is effective for all. While I don't understand what you just posted I do know I reached goal doing real life exercise. Intentional workouts burn calories, real life work burns calories. It's very discouraging to new members who are not savvy exercisers to tell them only intentional workouts are going to lead to success. It's not true either.

zipa78

La5Vega5Girl wrote: »

my cousin used to log cooking a meal, cleaning her bathroom, walking her dog, walking upstairs (at home) and she could never lose weight. she would eat-back all those "exercise" calories, and she was never ahead.

No wonder, especially since MFP seems to overestimate the calories by a factor of three or so.

jennifer_417

Only when it's above and beyond my normal activity (like spring/deep cleaning) AND I'm desperate for a few extra calories.

zoeysasha37

I only log intentional workouts. Mfp already accounts for regular daily activities like cleaning your home, walking to the kitchen or around work. There's no need to log that stuff.

cwolfman13

Notreadytoquit wrote: »

It is a mistake to presume that everyone is the same and one set of protocols is effective for all. While I don't understand what you just posted I do know I reached goal doing real life exercise. Intentional workouts burn calories, real life work burns calories. It's very discouraging to new members who are not savvy exercisers to tell them only intentional workouts are going to lead to success. It's not true either.

at what point did I say only intentional workouts are going to lead to success. I was merely explaining how this tool works (reading comprehension skills are off the charts here). When you select an activity level, your day to day stuff is accounted for in your calorie goal...then you log exercise (if you do it) after the fact. You then get more calories to eat. I'm not presuming anything...that is the way this tool is designed.

Like I asked before, were you just logging that activity or were you logging that activity and eating back those calories?

Nottafattie

I can't say that I haven't logged a daily activity, but I do not log anything that doesn't require an effort on my part. Before I started making an effort, I would take around 3,000 steps a day. Anything over that on a typical day would be logged as walking, but not the first 3,000. Likewise cleaning. Base was around an hour a day, spread out without real effort. When I put on my iPod and dance around the house while busting it out all day, the effort got logged minus the base (and usually divided in half to ensure I didn't over-calculate).

The important thing to remember is that diet is for nutrition. If you are keeping the calories down but not meeting your nutritional goals, your body will keep telling you that you're missing something, making you more likely to fall off the wagon or potentially causing your body to try to reserve nutrients and the weight that goes with it.

Exercise is for fitness. Fitness alone will not cause weight loss, no matter if it's intentional or typical daily activities.

Weight loss happens when Nutrition and Fitness are a balanced marriage and together create a weight loss baby named Deficit. As long as you are not using that deficit as a free pass to consume whatever junk lies hidden in your sock drawer, you will find yourself losing weight.

ktrn0312

I log intentional & purposeful workouts only.

EDollah

My #1 point for advocating a Fitbit is that I find it takes care of the routine activities so I just log exercise, or "intentional workouts" as you're calling it. If I have a sedentary day, the device will deduct calories and if I happen to do more walking than normal (say, shopping) then it adds appropriately for that.

yourpalsoap

I actually don't take off any calories for exercise. I log the time I spent doing it to record the workout but turn the estimated burn down to 1 (it doesn't let you put zero).

I do yoga for 15-45 minutes every morning and weights 2 times a week for 45 minutes, neither of which burn that many calories compared to, say, cardio. I just worked out my TDEE based on being lightly active and eat the same amount every day.

ETA: I, personally, don't really like the idea of exercising more to allow myself more food. I do exercise to increase my fitness, if it means I burn an extra few hundred calories overall then ok. I'm in maintenance and have been at the same weight for a while, so I guess I'm eating the right amount anyway.