What do you log?

gigglesinthesun

I log all the food and drink, but you are right that when you look at other peoples diaries and they log light cleaning (2-3h every day and according to MFP that burns like 800-1000 cals) it makes me wonder. I don't log any 'exercise' that I did before when I was gaining weight. I also remind myself that I am not a athlete so I will not burn a 1000 cals when swimming for an hour, regardless of what MFP says, so I double check with other sites what they think I have burned.

oiseau17

There's actually someone in my newsfeed that logs calories burned preparing a meal. Cracks me up every time!

manda1978

I don't log incedental exercise like housework, gardening, walking around the shops etc.I only log actual excercise I purposely do.

MrsFowler1069

I log all the food and drink, but you are right that when you look at other peoples diaries and they log light cleaning (2-3h every day and according to MFP that burns like 800-1000 cals) it makes me wonder. I don't log any 'exercise' that I did before when I was gaining weight. I also remind myself that I am not a athlete so I will not burn a 1000 cals when swimming for an hour, regardless of what MFP says, so I double check with other sites what they think I have burned.

MPF seems to run high on some things, I agree - but it's really easy to double-check online calculators and see how they compare. If a person is typically sedentary I can see logging any extended periods of exertion, especially at a heavier weight. I just used three different calculators and they said I would burn 365, 440, and 460 calories per hour of light, general house cleaning. Obviously, it's not exact, but any of those is quite a bit to ignore. When I do my own normal stuff around the house, I don't log it, but when I clean for other people (which tends to be heavier work - scrubbing walls, ceiling light fixtures, baseboards, etc) the deal I have with myself is to log half the time as light house cleaning. I figure it's a good average for when I am doing lighter tasks on the same job and offsets any overestimates on the calories burned, but it's better than logging nothing. Plus it's satisfying to put something in!

Since my jobs and schedules vary a lot, it's easier for me to approach it this way instead of changing my activity level. Sort of convoluted, I know, but it seems to be working.

As for food, I log pretty much everything except spices. I don't go crazy...I know I forgot a 55 calorie corn tortilla the other day, but I was under anyhow and wasn't about to go back in and change it after closing out for the day. lol I probably would have if I have been close to going over. Why? Because it feels more honest? Idk.

I do log my vitamin as of just recently, but that's more to see how much the micros are affected in the system...just curiosity, really. Oh, and occasionally I'll eat a serving of 5 green olives out of the jar, standing in front of the fridge, and just because I like to live on the edge, I don't log those or their friend, Sodium. I'm just a rebel like that.

Some_Watery_Tart

For exercise: if it's not a routine daily activity for me and I work up a good sweat doing it, I log it. Yes, I log my serious house cleaning. I sweat and am sore for days after spring and fall cleaning. I'm taking credit for that!

For food: all of it. Every calorie that goes in my mouth. I don't log water. Water intake has never been an issue for me.

stacyhaddenham

I log everything I eat and most of my water. I logged my vitamins long enough to see that my diet was sufficient I didn't need them and that I might actually be going way too far over on some.

I wear a pedometer to work and walk an average of 8,000 steps in a given shift. As a result I have started only logging anything over that as well as swimming. I do not log housework at all but I also have MFP set to moderately active.

My spouse who is a disabled student has hers set to sedentary and does log housework along with exercise. So far it seems to be working for both of us.

Mokey41

This is what is basically considered in a sedentary person's daily activity.

Sleeping - 8 hours
Personal care (dressing, showering) - 1 hour
Eating - 1 hour
Cooking - 1 hour
Sitting (office work, selling produce, tending shop) - 8 hours
Driving car to/from work - 1 hour
General household work - 1 hour
Light leisure activities (watching TV, chatting) - 3 hours

Most people don't do much more than that without inserting some intentional exercise.

stephiehampshire

I dont log housework and I dont log the short 5 min walk to the shops or anything like that. For me exercise is something that gets me breathless and sweaty for 20 minutes or longer and that I make a concious descion to put on my gear and get out of the house.

I try to log everything that passes my lips. I add my own reciepies on here to ensure it is as accurate as possible (rather than selecting a generic meal I always create my version of it based on how I cook it)

I try and weigh everything, some exceptions are bananas and apples as we dont have scales at work (I get my fruit for free from work) but I figured the little bits of walking that I am doing and not logging will hopefully counter act the fact that I estimate some of my fruit

When I get some money I want to buy a heart rate monitor so that my exercise calculations are more accurate (I use map my ride which calculated one of my bike rides at 800 calories but on MFP the duration and speed calculated the same ride at 550 calories, I go for the lower of the two)

gracielynn1011

As we look at other people's logs, we really need to take it with a grain of salt, we don't know what their daily routine is. For example, when I first started I had myself set as sedentary and logged cleaning a lot. Because that's my job. People probably looked at my diary and thought why is she logging 4 hours of cleaning? In reality I actually spent 7-8 hours that day doing a thorough deep cleaning that left me exhausted, sweaty, and in need of a shower.

Now that I have learned more, I know that my daily routine is not sedentary at all. I usually count myself as active and only add back specific exercise calories when I do a focused exercise. People learn more as they go and they tweek things here and there to make the system better for them.

pinupchick82

i am seditary and i dont do house hold chorse regularly at all so when i get in to a big cleaning spree it is ushually several hours and burns a sweat it is just my hubby and my self and we do light pick up but i dont have to deep clean all the time. I do not do dishes as i cook daily so he dose dishes so i dont log cooking or simple cleaning. as for shoping i dont generally count that but i do if i am walking the mall on purpous but the mall whare i am is large

Greenrun99

I log items with calories in them, and I add for exercises anything that would be considered a workout (no walks, no cleaning, no yard work).

iechick

I've been in maintenance for a few months now and don't track anything. I eat intuitively-eat when hungry, stop when full. I also eat a mostly whole foods, plant based diet so that seems to be helping keep the calories in check as well. I do still measure out serving sizes of higher calorie foods-like nuts etc. Otherwise I just eye ball it. I do track my exercise here, since this is the main reason why I joined mfp.

DeeDeeMee

As we look at other people's logs, we really need to take it with a grain of salt, we don't know what their daily routine is. For example, when I first started I had myself set as sedentary and logged cleaning a lot. Because that's my job. People probably looked at my diary and thought why is she logging 4 hours of cleaning? In reality I actually spent 7-8 hours that day doing a thorough deep cleaning that left me exhausted, sweaty, and in need of a shower.

Now that I have learned more, I know that my daily routine is not sedentary at all. I usually count myself as active and only add back specific exercise calories when I do a focused exercise. People learn more as they go and they tweek things here and there to make the system better for them.

You have a good point Gracielynne. I see some people logging a couple of hours of housework a day and I think "Holy #$%^!" Their house must be completely and utterly spotless all the time (our house isn't massive, but I'm pretty OCD and it doesn't take me that long every day to keep the place looking really good). But if they've set their MFP to sedentary and cleaning is their job then it would be very different.

engodwin

As we look at other people's logs, we really need to take it with a grain of salt, we don't know what their daily routine is. For example, when I first started I had myself set as sedentary and logged cleaning a lot. Because that's my job. People probably looked at my diary and thought why is she logging 4 hours of cleaning? In reality I actually spent 7-8 hours that day doing a thorough deep cleaning that left me exhausted, sweaty, and in need of a shower.

^Great point! (Honestly, I don't really look at anyone else's log. I am here to encourage and be encouraged - not judge) :happy:

I know I'm like a year late (and a dollar short) but I was looking into this bc well idk what is going to work for ME yet, and I'm just getting ideas.

But I know that I've made a commitment to log my vitamins and water bc I am not great at remembering those pesky vitamins and I am chronically dehydrated (according to the good 'ol MD).

I love the person who posted that she logs everything she eats - even those three chips! LOL You go on with your bad self! But, I don't think I'm going to be that fanatic about it... I understand that it can be important, but I think I would get bored or overwhelmed with tracking if I had to log every grape/chip that went in my mouth. Is that a crazy mindset? Besides - I don't usually snack throughout the day (that much) unless I'm at an event with tables of food. (Forth of July Cookout anyone?) On a daily basis this isn't a huge issue for me.

I, like many others, only track planned exercise. Again if I logged everything little thing (making the bed, cooking, etc.) I'm sure I would give up (again) in no time!

Side note - my BodyMedia "thingy" should be here today *YIPPIE* so I may not have to log activity at all... We will see how well that little guy works soon enough.

VladaLucia

I log everything that goes into my mouth except water and gum. I haven't logged vitamins so far, but I will definitely start now. I always log coffee, tea and diet sodas even though they don't do much of a difference on my calorie count, because I like being able to look back at my days and get a clear view of how it actually went and why. For example if the count is unusually low, I can see it's because I went a bit overboard on low calorie drinks and therefore wasn't hungry, so this gives me a better understanding of my body, which I like.

If I make a salad and have access to a scale, I will weigh each ingredient even though the piece of cucumber might only be 3 calories etc, because I like having a clear view of not only the calories, but also the nutrition part of the day, so I tend to avoid using the "quick add calorie" since it messes up everything.

As for exercise I don't do much, and I always underestimate (if I even log it) because I'm more interested in what I actually eat, so I want the weekly totals and averages to be what I ate, not NET calories. But sometimes I will log it and just keep in mind that the average is really NET, so I don't go around think I've been that good, haha.

Despite being so fixated on details in my logging, I never take my calorie intake/outtake/NET too seriously, because I know that calories are very complex, not to mention our bodies. Our bodies react differently to different calories, certain foods may increase our energy/metabolism for the day more than others etc, so I take these numbers with a grain of salt (metaphorically speaking ofc.) and make sure I always listen to my body and how I feel more than look at the summary and let my expectations based on those numbers overshadow my body's responses.

Go_Mizzou99

I log everything when I gain a few pounds and need to get back on track.
When at goal, I log nothing.
When close to goal, I usually log everything up to supper, then stop logging as I am basically lazy and know the numbers so well that logging it will change nothing.

LSinVA

I don't log anything that I would normally do. If I did a lot of heavy housework or was running around doing a lot during any given day, I'll just shorten my workout to 20-30 min.

On the other hand, I log everything when it comes to food. I do log my vitamins since depending on what I take and how many, it could be upwards of 30 calories for those alone. I feel like I need to be strict with myself right now as I'm only six weeks into my weightloss attempt. If I hit a plateau in the future, I'll have an exact of idea of what's going on.