Shouldn't this count?

mskurski

Just moved a ton of stepping stones.... I was going to work out again.... But damn, shouldn't that count? Pooped!

arditarose

I guess

Whittedo

ABSOLUTELY!!!

blossomingbutterfly

My philosophy for logging exercise is that if I set out with the intent to exercise then I'll count it, if I set out because I had to do something (ex cooking, cleaning, laundry, gardening, going to the store, etc) then I don't count it. But alas, to each their own. Do what works for you.

spookyface

i just today looked up raking lawn and / yard work. said 150-250 calories burned an hr. Go ahead and count it ...

jonnyman41

when doing stuff like that I don't necessarily count it on here but might not bother with going to the gym etc if too tired. E.g I spent a day doing heavy gardening (moving logs, stone etc) and was too tired for gym but let myself off due to the gardening

nutmegoreo

I've been doing my landscaping this summer too. For several days I have been doing 3-4 hours of hauling gravel, stone, and soil plus digging. I am absolutely counting it. I can barely move after. It burns me out way more than any exercise sessions I have been doing and counting. I will not, however, eat back all of the projected calories burned (some yes, but not all).

Obviously, not everyone will agree, but only you know how much effort you have put your body through. Hauling that heavy stuff is hard work! Good on you for doing it!

Lounmoun

It is up to you. I will count things I don't normally do if they are a real effort.

frazerkate_sw

I only log stuff that was a conscious choice for fitness, so I personally wouldn't log this. But as others have said, if I was too tired I'd skip the planned workout. It does definitely count though ☺

foreverslim1111

I wear a HRM when I'm doing chores like that. I turn it on and call it a training session and when I'm done and end the training session, it tells me how many cals I burned. This type of chore often burns more cals than a gym training session for me.

BWBTrish

Lost 2.5 pounds overnight last week by moving stones and digging up the garden...so my guess is it counts

lemurcat12

This is why TDEE method is easier. ;-)

maxit

I just let my fitbit log steps for the yard work I just did, and calories burned above and beyond what gets calculated (the bending, lifting, dragging raking, cursing lol) are just gonna be bonus burn ;D I am tired, tho and I am glad that I won't be hitting the Y for the weight training until Tuesday.

mskurski

I don't have a Fitbit. Or anyway of knowing how many calories I burned. So I guess I won't log it. However, at the last minute.... I was GIVEN pavers for a patio I hv been wanting to put on my side yard. I had to go get the ASAP, soooooo i can say; i scored not only w my pavers but also w the weight lifting i did. I am abt to turn 50.... So as we all no, the weight is harder to get off. I took a 2.5 hr brisk walk on a trail. I am not even sure if I logged that correct. But I am working on learning. Thanks guys for all your input

nutmegoreo

That's a fantastic gift! I've seen some really inspirational stories on the success stories board. Age need only be a number, not a hindrance. Enjoy your new patio!

segacs

I solve that by just using TDEE-20% and not bothering to log any exercise. That way I don't have to scratch my head over whether something or not "counts" as exercise vs. normal daily activity, 'cause it's irrelevant. I also don't have to worry about over- or under-estimating workout calories.

Liftng4Lis

Sure it counts.

ninerbuff

foreverslim1111 wrote: »

I wear a HRM when I'm doing chores like that. I turn it on and call it a training session and when I'm done and end the training session, it tells me how many cals I burned. This type of chore often burns more cals than a gym training session for me.

HRM's are designed for steady state cardio work. It truly overestimates calories burned when doing anaerobic exercise and even just chore work.
I would count the work the OP did as exercise (since it's not a daily task).

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

bwogilvie

ninerbuff wrote: »

HRM's are designed for steady state cardio work. It truly overestimates calories burned when doing anaerobic exercise and even just chore work.
I would count the work the OP did as exercise (since it's not a daily task).

+1. Most HRMs don't do a good job estimating anything other than steady-state cardio at moderate to intense levels. There are a few that do OK with other activities but they're expensive. (Garmins and Suuntos that use Firstbeat's algorithm are the ones I have in mind.)

But if you do a lot of physical activity that is not included in your MFP non-exercise activity level, you should definitely log it. I walked 5 miles a day during my recent trip to Germany. Much of it was for transport, not exercise, but since my MPF activity level is set to sedentary, I logged the walking.

LAWoman72

I don't know how it would count exactly, if you're talking about total calories burned...but I can say with some confidence that if you've worked your muscles and have broken a sweat, I doubt your body cares whether that happened due to moving stones around or a sooper dooper workout DVD shot on location in Hawaii with cool background music. So did it count? To your body, I'm sure it did!

Merkavar

Something like that would be borderline for me. If I got a sweat on or was exhausted I would probably enter something as exercise. Under estimating the calories burned.