housework counting as legitimate exercise

nave002

You can count anything as exercise that you want to count.

But if you find yourself in a month or so not losing any weight, remember this post.

LOL, I like that!! I know a lot of people record housework as exercise but for me personally, I don't and would only look at it as a bonus if it actually contributed!

hisirishwench

Without actually seeing you in action, I can't tell if it's exercise or not. Why don't you come by here. We'll have you do 2 1/2 hours of cleaning and ironing. I'll watch and then make a decision when you're finished. ;-)

When you are done there, you can come do my house it will help with the scientific study!

If you want to make housekeeping part of your work out I would suggest what some other have and add exercises for each room - so in the bathroom you can use your tub (as long as its not wet) to do step ups on, do 3 sets of 12, in the living room do pushups, do 3 sets of 12, kitchen do squats, 3 sets of 12, etc... personally I like having music on while I clean and often find myself dancing around the house, sometimes my 6 yr old daughter will join me and it turns into a dance off. it doesn't make house cleaning go faster but I certainly have fun and no, I don't count it as part of my workout!

cwolfman13

I'm amazed at how many people consider cleaning part of their daily routine. I HATE to clean and I sure as heck don't do it every day. So for me, I'd count it as "light cleaning" and probably use 1/2 the calories the MFP says. I also count mowing my lawn as exercise. It takes me 65 minutes to cut my entire yard and that's a lot of walking. One of these days I'm going to get a pedometer and wear it while cutting the grass. I'm guessing it's the equivalent of walking a couple of miles.

Also, I have always worked out. The only times that I've gone more than a short while without exercising where: recovering from numerous knee surgeries, the last month of pregnancy (I swelled so much I couldn't wear regular shoes), the first 3 months after having a baby, and 8 weeks after having female surgery. Yet, I still gained weight. So to the comment, that you did that and still gained weight, so you shouldn't count it doesn't cut it in my book. I count my exercise now.

I have two dogs, a cat, a toddler, and a 1 year old. Pretty much something has to be cleaned every flippin' day. I spend at least 2-3 hours per day cooking, doing dishes...cleaning or fixing something or trimming this or that in the yard, cutting the lawn, sweeping the patio, etc.

I'm amazed that so many people are so flippin' sedentary in their day to day that they'd actually consider cleaning and the like exercise.

Emisole

LOL you're assuming cleaning for me is a daily thing...

I count it if my legs are shaking by the end (don't make that dirty, c'mon now). That's more of a workout than I get on some strength training machines.

nicoleashley_24

I wouldn't log it. I agree, I can get a good workout in cleaning, but I gained weight while keeping a clean house. It's the same with shopping sprees, walks around the park with my kid, etc. If I did it when I was gaining/maintaining a heavier weight, I don't count it. Those are just parts of life for me, not "exercise".

bonniecarbtoo

This is always a concern for people. I have always paid folks to do my housecleaning, the last 30 some years. A neighbor kid, my brother, nieces, grandkids, etc. Since I retired in 2009, my grandkids did what I needed done. However, once a month I would go deep with it, and I have NO vacuum or carpet shampooer. I sweet carpets with a broom and mop them with a mop and bucket. I counted that, any time I cleaned, because its NOT part of my daily routine. I'm on 1200 calories, sedentary, and I was told, not by MFP, to count everything I did as exercise, and whatever came up, to eat it back. I have been made fun of, criticized, laughed at, for counting those cleaning episodes. Lost one of my MFP friends because I logged it. So do be careful logging what you would normally do cause yes it can mess you up. Good logging to you!

_AllieCat_

Since I have my activity level set to sedentary when I clean vigorously I wear my HRM, record the burn, and lower that number a bit because HRMs don't accurately track that type of exercise. HRMs are calculated to track cardio exercises such as walking/running/etc. If I'm scrubbing a tub and mopping floors for 3+ hours you better believe I'm going to count it to some extent.

Emisole

I'm amazed that so many people are so flippin' sedentary in their day to day that they'd actually consider cleaning and the like exercise.

Honestly, I'm not a domestic person. I don't stay at home. It's not my job to clean my house for three hours every day. It's NOT part of my daily activity. I would log half a day of vigorous house-sanitizing, and I'm not a sedentary person. I'm in the military and do PT every day. But cleaning is not part of my "daily" routine.

FussyFruitbat

If you're just making the beds and washing dishes every day, don't count it. If you're scrubbing top to bottom for hours and hours, and this is not part of your daily routine, sure you can count it. Don't let it take the place of a work out though.

UnoDrea3732

I don't count housework but I did count when we moved. That was definitely a workout that was not everyday stuff....

jfrankic

If you eat TDEE-%, then you don't have to worry about exercise calories. Much simpler way of life, for me anyway.

Wondering what this is? Here, read this: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/975025-in-place-of-a-road-map-short-n-sweet .

Wondering if this type of eating style works? Here, check out my profile before/after pix.

bonniecarbtoo

Emisole I like what you said. Nobody can assume what you do is part of your "expectations". It wasn't part of mine, so there are plenty of people that just are not "routine" like everyone else thinks you should be.

RunningRichelle

I have a BodyMedia armband- I wear it 24/7 except for washing up.

On days when I do around 5-8 hours of housework but don't actually do a structured workout, like Sundays when I do my food prep for the week, I will burn about 2500-2700 calories for the whole day.

On days that I term a 'rest day,' which means I don't to any exercise OR any housework, my burn for the day is about 2150-2250 calories.

On days that I term a rest day and I DO end up doing an hour to two hours of housework, my burn ends up around 2300-2400.

So my answer is COUNT IT! When you're working in the house, you are bending, stretching, reaching, walking, pivoting, squatting, etc. It's a much lower burn, but it adds up as evidenced by the burn I get on my Sunday food prep days.

And I believe my armband is 100% accurate, I've been dropping pounds like science since I got it.

Happy cleaning! (And subsequent eating!)

judypriv

I count it if it's mopping, hands and knees cleaning, scrubbing tubs out cleaning, that sort of stuff 'cause in a house with 2 dogs, a husband, elderly parents and three small kids - it's a workout. When I mow my acre of lawn, i count it since it takes hours and I sweat like a pig. If I am picking up, wiping a counter, doing dishes I don't count it.

GnomeLove

Most people clean their living areas on a regular basis...so it is not something out of the norm. If my house looked like an episode of Hoarders and I spent all day removing dead cats and mountains of mayonnaise jars and such...then, yeah, I might count that.

CharRicho

I don't count housework that is my normal every day stuff.

If I do a really big proper house clean then I do count it because that is hours of work, and lifting, and a lot more than I would normally do in a day.

bonniecarbtoo

I'm amazed that so many people are so flippin' sedentary in their day to day that they'd actually consider cleaning and the like exercise.

Lots of people are sedentary. It should not be taken negatively all the time. I am sedentary yet I workout 6 times a week. There are reasons for people being sedentary, dont confuse that word with "lazy".

sammniamii

I count vigorous housecleaning - but I clean house like a MAD woman. It's at least a 2-6+ hour affair, I sweat and I'm constantly moving. BUT I only count 50% of the time I do, IE: if I took 4 hours to clean the whole place, I'd maybe count 2 hours. Mostly because on those days, I'm not doing a "dedicated" exercise.

BUT I don't count daily straightening and such, only "hard-core" cleaning.

I DO count yard work, but for me that falls under the same rules as house cleaning. I normally only do it once in a great while and when I do, I DO EVERYTHING IN ONE DAY.

And I have counted mowing the yard, because it's not my "normal" activity - it's the hubs and I'm a perfection freak who HAS to have it right. My 1/16th of an acre yard will take me 45 min-75 min (trimming hedges, weed eating/edging & mowing).

dakitten2

Did you not clean your house before you gained weight? I mean why count the things you should already be doing? I have yet to see anyone post a success story saying, YAY I lost 100 lbs by cleaning my house!

This is my attitude too. Before starting my lifestyle changes, I was already cooking, cleaning light, cleaning deep, laundry, etc. I only count the things that are considered exercise or things I've never done before.

Mario_Az

Train insane or remain the same!

Tabby1216

If you have your activity level set to anything other than "sedentary", I wouldn't. I don't log things that I do on a daily or weekly basis (straightening up the house, laundry, dishes, food prep/cooking.) I do log when I am doing a deep cleaning, rearranging, or shampooing the carpets. Even then, I only log for part of the time.

BarackMeLikeAHurricane

Have you ever asked someone how they lost weight and had them reply "by keeping my house clean"?

Scottish_charlene_84

I wouldnt count it. Ur calorie are set at ur level of movement anyway so..

rharris86dc

I log housework, but only because I have my activity level set to sedentary. If you've already given yourself some wiggle room for daily activity, I wouldn't log it.

scrapjen

I wear a Fitbit, and as I clean (which I'm sure isn't as often as needed) I usually only show moderate activity still, not my "active" spike like during an ellipitcal/bike/treadmill workout. I'm sure I get a slight bump in calories. I mark in my personal notes if I mowed the lawn, walked to the park or played ping pong, but I don't actually record them as "exercise". Better to underestimate calorie burn ...

MelissaL582

I wouldn't. That's normal day to day stuff.

Exercise is just that, not chores.

This. I'm a SAHM, so I do all the cleaning and such around the house- I don't log that as exercise.

bagge72

Did you not clean your house before you gained weight? I mean why count the things you should already be doing? I have yet to see anyone post a success story saying, YAY I lost 100 lbs by cleaning my house!

This makes no sense. I worked my butt off in the gym, and still gained weight, because I ate too much. I just wear my fit bit all of the time, and if I do more work around the house than normal it adjust my calories so I can eat more, and I have never had a problem with that.

SweetJoanne

I don't count the regular day to day stuff, I know some people even log food preparation. I just log mine when I have a big house clean as I am down on my knees washing floors, cleaning windows and up and down the stairs 2 flights about 50 times. I work my *kitten* off when I clean my house every other weekend for a big clean

kiekokay

I think it depends on how you set your daily activity level. I am a psychologist (sitting all day!) so mine is at sendentary. Because of this I log things like walking the dog and my weekly cleaning routine because they are more active than what is in my normal daily routine. If I am going to spend 5 minutes sweeping the kitchen or some other daily chore, I don't log it, but my weekly routine definitely is more exercise than "sedentary" !

Also, I think people are confusing Heart Rate Monitors (HRMs) with electronic pedometers (FitBits, etc.). An electronic pedometer measures movement, so yes, repetitive sweeping would be interpreted as more exercise than it really is. A heart rate monitor though does just what it says, it measures heart rate. Our heart rate is directly related to aerobic activity, so it is far more accurate in measuring calories burned.

Moral of the story ~ If your setting are set to sedentary, I would consider counting things such as yardwork & cleaning that feel aerobic. Also, if you are using an actual HRM (not an electronic pedometer) that says you are burning calories, then you are!

Saucy_lil_Minx

I do not count housework I do it daily. I will count my lawn work my yard is very big, and I push the mower at a constant rate for 30 min. or more.