Do You Count Cleaning as Exercise?

flrancho

Just curious if anyone counts cleaning as exercise on MFP. Do date I haven't, through I was thinking about it for two things in particular, though I would have no idea how to calculate calories burned for such activities.

I have a 75 gallon fish tank, which needs to be cleaned out, gravel vacuumed, and have about a 10-20 gallon water replacement every week (which granted I am lax about doing). Lugging the drum of dirty water throughout the house to dump it and then having to go back and forth with clean water for the tank gets exhausting and I'm sure I'm burning substantial calories doing such, at least more than I would with dusting to mopping the house or something.

My other consideration was my 22 finches - yes 22. Spread throughout four different cages, two of which are over five feet long and three feet high. Put together I'm probably replacing paper, vacuuming and manually hand-scrubbing a total floor space of 21 feet, not to mention removing nests, perches, plants or food and water dishes that may need cleaning.

Would you add these in as exercises? or not since they are something neccessary that I would have to do every week anyway. Its not really something I go out of my way to do, its something I have to do. I'd lean towards not adding them myself, but wanted some opinions since they seem a little more substantial than making the bed or something. If I did treat them as exercises, how would I even determine how many calories I'm burning?

thepetiterunner

I consider counting things towards exercise only if they are not something I would do as part of my everyday life. So if I'm just running errands, cleaning the house, etc, I will not count them. My logic is if I'm already doing it and my body is already used to or accounting for those burned calories, I am not really using them as a calorie deficit.

BUT... we are all different and you are welcome to count whatever you wish.

JustSomeEm

I DO count cleaning, BUT I work during the week at a desk (sitting on my behind all day). When I get home I'm usually pretty worn out and I don't worry about house work. On the weekends, I tend to tackle my house with a vengence during a 4 or so hour spree, and I tend to work up a sweat while doing it. So once a week, I count around 4 hours of 'light house work - moderate effort' (it's called something similar here, I think).

Mokey41

Have you dropped huge amounts of weight in the past from doing this stuff? No? Then it probably isn't going to help you now if you count it unless you're just doing so for the ****s and giggles of putting it on your timeline. Even if you got an estimate of some calorie burn you'd need to subtract your calories that you would have burned sitting on the couch then at most you might eat 50% back so probably you would burn off more doing the math.

JustSomeEm

flrancho - if you are doing these things every day, then is your activity level on MFP set as active? If so, then maybe you don't need to track that, since it's already been accounted for. I have mine set as 'sedentary' since I sit all day long.

Iron_Lotus

Nope

JenMc14

If you search for this topic, there's tons of posts with tons of advice on this very issue. The debate can get very heated sometimes as well.

I only count dedicated exercise, I do not count cleaning or the times I take the stairs at work or walking around the mall, etc.

MinimalistShoeAddict

I use a TDEE model which I find to be an easy answer to this problem (my TDEE goal includes all exercise already).

If you are using the MFP model, there is nothing "wrong" with including it. Problems only arise if you overestimate your caloric burn from such activities.

jacksonpt

HELL NO.

Cleaning =/= exercise.