So, is housework considered exercise or is it not?

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Replies

  • highervibes
    highervibes Posts: 2,219 Member
    If it's something that I don't ordinarily do, like weed gardens in the heat from sun up to sun down then I will definitely add calories to my day, because I'm not sitting at a desk or doing laundry or tidying up the house. I don't count vacuuming or anything like that. Yard work makes you hungry for a reason, you're using a lot of energy to make it happen!
  • QueenWino
    QueenWino Posts: 106
    I wear my polar hrm when I know I am doing a huge cleaning & then I subtract at least 3/4 of the time from the chart. I put my lifestyle as sedentary on purpose. To me, if I know what I am doing is hard work, janitorial, and I am spending a nonstop two hours doing it, I will take at least 15-20 mins for it. I verify w/my hrm that I burned a ton of cals first. There is some crazy judgment going on in this thread but for an obese person, doing strenuous housework IS exercise. If I was a well oiled 135 lb machine I doubt I'd ever log it.
  • roughneckswife
    roughneckswife Posts: 341 Member
    Only on MyFitnessPal have I seen people consider cleaning and food preparation to be "exercise."

    HaHa! Really.
    I have to!
    Super annoying when they whine about not losing after working out so much...hmmm
  • peeaanuut
    peeaanuut Posts: 359 Member
    for that sort of stuff I just have the fitbit in the pocket, so whatever it logs. The steps, stairs, activity etc. I dont specifically log time or anything, just whatever the fitbit logs.I usually only gain about 100 calories throughout the day from it as both fitbit and MFP are both set to sedentary.
  • NaughtyForties
    NaughtyForties Posts: 69
    Ahh a question dear to my heart.

    Well I see it this way, I live in a home that needs cleaning periodically. When I put on a few pounds I still lived in the same home and still cleaned periodically. Therefore I can not add this as a burn, cleaning didn't help when I was a few pounds heavier, so how can it help in reverse.

    In fact it annoys me when I see someone post cleaning as an exercise. Simply put, I know how hard it is to motivate yourself to run a distance, lift weights, skip (jump rope), sandbag train, biking etc. So I find it insulting that some MFPers log cleaning as an exercise.

    I guess it's a case of 'to each, to their own' so on that note, I wish the housework exercises brigade well, it'll be a very long weight loss process washing dishes, (good luck with that).
  • pinkraynedropjacki
    pinkraynedropjacki Posts: 3,027 Member
    If you're heart rate is nice and high and you're sweating then..... maybe but I never count that as exercise.

    I sweat in my sleep.... and if I have a bad dream my heart is racing ..... does not mean I'm exercising. Please don't be one of those that decide that sweating means you are exercising hard.
  • meeper123
    meeper123 Posts: 3,347 Member
    I dont but to each their own
  • meeper123
    meeper123 Posts: 3,347 Member
    Ahh a question dear to my heart.

    Well I see it this way, I live in a home that needs cleaning periodically. When I put on a few pounds I still lived in the same home and still cleaned periodically. Therefore I can not add this as a burn, cleaning didn't help when I was a few pounds heavier, so how can it help in reverse.

    In fact it annoys me when I see someone post cleaning as an exercise. Simply put, I know how hard it is to motivate yourself to run a distance, lift weights, skip (jump rope), sandbag train, biking etc. So I find it insulting that some MFPers log cleaning as an exercise.

    I guess it's a case of 'to each, to their own' so on that note, I wish the housework exercises brigade well, it'll be a very long weight loss process washing dishes, (good luck with that).

    Its really not healthy to let this bother you so much. Let others live and learn thier own life lessons. They will find what isnt working without you. We are all pretty small in the grand scheme.
  • Angel4ever44
    Angel4ever44 Posts: 26 Member
    I don't log it do to it being in my regular schedule. (everyday things like brushing my teeth, getting dressed, letting the dog out to pee etc). But to each's own
  • __Di__
    __Di__ Posts: 1,659 Member
    I wear my polar hrm when I know I am doing a huge cleaning & then I subtract at least 3/4 of the time from the chart. I put my lifestyle as sedentary on purpose. To me, if I know what I am doing is hard work, janitorial, and I am spending a nonstop two hours doing it, I will take at least 15-20 mins for it. I verify w/my hrm that I burned a ton of cals first. There is some crazy judgment going on in this thread but for an obese person, doing strenuous housework IS exercise. If I was a well oiled 135 lb machine I doubt I'd ever log it.

    Only problem is, that HRM won't give you an accurate reading as it is meant for elevated heart-rates during cardio sessions. I think a Bodybugg can be worn all day to give accurate readings though, but not an HRM.
  • laddyboy
    laddyboy Posts: 1,565 Member
    No it's not.
  • battyg13
    battyg13 Posts: 508 Member
    Nope. I don't count house work, playing at the park with my kids, or anything like that. I only count intentional exercise.

    This.

    If its something that needs to be done then i dont log it.
    ie my walk to work, running about the office, a lunch time walk to town to buy something.
  • xampx
    xampx Posts: 323 Member
    I logged 'housework' once when I had been stripping wallpaper, sanding walls and re-painting a room for a whole weekend.

    And I would log gardening if I had been digging over the garden and laying 5kg patio slabs all day.

    I might log if I was moving house and hauling tons of heavy boxes and furniture, but I wouldn't log it as house work.

    Washing dishes, ironing, vacuuming etc are NOT exercise!
  • GameOfPounds
    GameOfPounds Posts: 128 Member
    I usually dont log it but I'm happy because I know I was active.

    If I do something heavy though,I log it as "moderate effort".
  • Anna_Joys_Journey
    Anna_Joys_Journey Posts: 253 Member
    Nope. I only count intentional exercise. I don't count daily routine things as exercise. I did them before I was trying to lose weight, and I still do them now...so not exercise. :)
  • sylnova
    sylnova Posts: 100 Member
    I don't log it. I work a desk job thus I set MFP to sedentary and I wear a fitbit, so everything in my normal routine is accounted for. I only log intentional exercise.
  • jkleon86
    jkleon86 Posts: 245 Member
    When I log house work it is when I am wiped out afterwards and then I don't log but a 1/4 of the time.

    food prep ?? no , if I logged prepping I would also have to log eating and that doesn't seem right at all, although I do work in a school kitchen and lug heavy pans and boxes :) but still No on that.
  • AbnormalYak
    AbnormalYak Posts: 55 Member
    I don't log it but I'm not against people who do. If logging it motivates you to do more of it, then log, log, log away! I wear a FitBit activity tracker and since I started wearing it I am more likely to walk places rather than drive, to take the stairs than the elevator, to do gardening, cleaning and other things because I like seeing the numbers go up on the tracker. And this is a good and healthy habit to have.

    My only concern is that MFP seems to have a really insane idea of the amount of calories these kinds of things burn, and if people are eating back their exercise calories and think that 30 minutes of folding laundry means they can have an extra cheeseburger, then they are going to gain weight and be discouraged.
  • jetlag
    jetlag Posts: 800 Member
    Housework doesn't burn calories?? WTF?

    All of the not-sitting-on-your-*kitten*-watching-jerry-springer activity you do is beneficial to you and burns calories. Is it going to get you Jillian Michaels' body? No.

    Is it exercise? YES!!!! Should you log it? Well, that depends on your activity level settings. If you said "sedentary" then yes, why not? I only really log "housework friday" when I lift and wash all the rugs, hoover and mop all the floors, change the bedding, clean the bathroom from top to bottom and so on. I don't log doing the daily dishes or picking up the dog toys. I would take with a pinch of salt what MFP says about the calorie burn, though. I log about half the hours that I actually do.

    Please read about Non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT). This is thought to be why some people are naturally thin (basically, they move around a lot more in their normal lives).

    The American Journal of Preventative Medicine says:

    http://scholar.google.co.uk/scholar_url?hl=en&q=http://www.researchgate.net/publication/49672694_Integration_of_short_bouts_of_physical_activity_into_organizational_routine_a_systematic_review_of_the_literature/file/79e41507c5afe8ee69.pdf&sa=X&scisig=AAGBfm3VXRcd87oNV2JEKvOaV7fp3RdXpQ&oi=scholarr&ei=wnbmUaLYLMOl0QWvioCQDw&ved=0CC4QgAMoADAA (opens in a PDF)


    YOU DO NOT HAVE TO GO THE GYM TO LOSE WEIGHT.
  • __Di__
    __Di__ Posts: 1,659 Member
    Housework doesn't burn calories?? WTF?

    All of the not-sitting-on-your-*kitten*-watching-jerry-springer activity you do is beneficial to you and burns calories. Is it going to get you Jillian Michaels' body? No.

    Is it exercise? YES!!!! Should you log it? Well, that depends on your activity level settings. If you said "sedentary" then yes, why not? I only really log "housework friday" when I lift and wash all the rugs, hoover and mop all the floors, change the bedding, clean the bathroom from top to bottom and so on. I don't log doing the daily dishes or picking up the dog toys. I would take with a pinch of salt what MFP says about the calorie burn, though. I log about half the hours that I actually do.

    Please read about Non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT). This is thought to be why some people are naturally thin (basically, they move around a lot more in their normal lives).

    The American Journal of Preventative Medicine says:

    http://scholar.google.co.uk/scholar_url?hl=en&q=http://www.researchgate.net/publication/49672694_Integration_of_short_bouts_of_physical_activity_into_organizational_routine_a_systematic_review_of_the_literature/file/79e41507c5afe8ee69.pdf&sa=X&scisig=AAGBfm3VXRcd87oNV2JEKvOaV7fp3RdXpQ&oi=scholarr&ei=wnbmUaLYLMOl0QWvioCQDw&ved=0CC4QgAMoADAA (opens in a PDF)


    YOU DO NOT HAVE TO GO THE GYM TO LOSE WEIGHT.

    Out of interest, how many calories would you log for, say vacuuming? or ironing?
  • jetlag
    jetlag Posts: 800 Member
    Read my post and see if you still need to ask me that question.
  • __Di__
    __Di__ Posts: 1,659 Member
    Read my post and see if you still need to ask me that question.

    Right, just read your post. So how many calories are you logging for various housework?
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    Only on MyFitnessPal have I seen people consider cleaning and food preparation to be "exercise."

    LOL this^

    its not exercise.
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    Why do people care what other people log it doesn't effect you.? If it works for them great if it doesn't work there problem not yours.

    because the topic specifically asked if housework should be considered as exercise???? So your saying if we think no we should not opine?
  • jetlag
    jetlag Posts: 800 Member
    Oooh, little miss confrontational!
    I only really log "housework friday" when I lift and wash all the rugs, hoover and mop all the floors, change the bedding, clean the bathroom from top to bottom and so on. I don't log doing the daily dishes or picking up the dog toys. I would take with a pinch of salt what MFP says about the calorie burn, though. I log about half the hours that I actually do.

    I don't log "ironing" because a) I don't do ironing and b) I already told you that I log "hours" of housework, not independent activities, so you lose points for not reading my post.

    On housework friday, I clean off and on all day, but take breaks so probably get about 4 hours of proper work in. I will log 1 or 1.5 because MFP notoriously overestimates. So, that would give me 212 calories an hour. Considering that my heart rate monitor says I get 353 for an hour of walking, I would say that that is a fair number.

    Now, it's time for YOU to do some thinking and answer a question. Do you honestly think that standing up and ironing for 30 minutes doesn't burn more calories than sitting down watching the telly? Can you hand on heart tell me that vacuuming for 10 minutes does not burn more calories than sitting down?

    Have you read about NEAT or are you just in the mood to be contrary?

    Housework may not be "exercise" but it burns calories, just like everything else.
  • keenesmom
    keenesmom Posts: 115 Member
    Nope. I don't count house work, playing at the park with my kids, or anything like that. I only count intentional exercise.

    This for sure. I just consider any calories burned outside of intentional exercise "bonus points" floating out there in the universe. I do not enter them.
  • __Di__
    __Di__ Posts: 1,659 Member
    Only on MyFitnessPal have I seen people consider cleaning and food preparation to be "exercise."

    LOL this^

    its not exercise.

    Although it is not exercise, it is staying active, however, I fully agree. People were doing housework when they were overweight and it did not help them then.

    I have seen somebody log 1900 (yes nineteen hundred) calories per day for housework, they then added this to their exercise diary and proceeded to eat all calories back, they did this day in, day out. They lost 2lbs in the year.

    I am going to do two hours worth of ironing shortly, will I log it? No, I bloody will not, standing there moving my arm backwards and forwards and walking to and from the hook to hang the clothes up does not constitute exercise to me, it is just doing day to day stuff.
  • dym123
    dym123 Posts: 1,670 Member
    Nope, and if you see my house you'll know why. I do count outdoor work, such as raking leaves, cutting grass, etc.
  • __Di__
    __Di__ Posts: 1,659 Member
    Oooh, little miss confrontational!
    I only really log "housework friday" when I lift and wash all the rugs, hoover and mop all the floors, change the bedding, clean the bathroom from top to bottom and so on. I don't log doing the daily dishes or picking up the dog toys. I would take with a pinch of salt what MFP says about the calorie burn, though. I log about half the hours that I actually do.

    I don't log "ironing" because a) I don't do ironing and b) I already told you that I log "hours" of housework, not independent activities, so you lose points for not reading my post.

    On housework friday, I clean off and on all day, but take breaks so probably get about 4 hours of proper work in. I will log 1 or 1.5 because MFP notoriously overestimates. So, that would give me 212 calories an hour. Considering that my heart rate monitor says I get 353 for an hour of walking, I would say that that is a fair number.

    Now, it's time for YOU to do some thinking and answer a question. Do you honestly think that standing up and ironing for 30 minutes doesn't burn more calories than sitting down watching the telly? Can you hand on heart tell me that vacuuming for 10 minutes does not burn more calories than sitting down?

    Have you read about NEAT or are you just in the mood to be contrary?

    Housework may not be "exercise" but it burns calories, just like everything else.

    I have just explained about the ironing and I do not consider fitting to log everything I do when moving about, unless I want to fool myself that is.

    Ironing burns 150 calories per hour, HOWEVER, take off 80 calories - why take off 80 calories you may ask - because 80 calories are what I would burn anyway sitting about.

    Don't get sarky with me please, I am putting my opinion forward, you don't like it, perhaps that is because I have hit a nerve. I do not need to ask your permission to write my own opinion and I certainly am not obliged to agree with yours.
  • theplumgirl
    theplumgirl Posts: 12
    I count it. I go off feel...and after a day of my housework I am exhausted!..At my house where we are off the grid/on solar power etc etc...there is a lot of "housework"...chopping wood, digging the gardens, building stuff, lifting stuff, slashing vines/lantana, and such from over taking the garden...it's really quite physical because we don't have access to vacums, irons, etc etc...it's all man and woman powered...

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