Don't Cheat Yourself.......

ChChCharlie

I see people logging 'working' 'cleaning' 'sex', surely these are a normal part of our routine?

I dunno - sometimes I'm just too lazy for any of these!
Possibly some of these are just for amusement? Once I considered logging a couple of gnats I consumed on a bike ride, but they were too small to have assigned calories.

Ha ha you got it spot on

sunyg

I've started logging carrying my son when we go for walks. He's a 25 pound chunky monkey. I have to get some benefit from it.
I'd log in sex if I was having it, just for the fun of it.

Jenscan

Accuracy is important in logging. But all of the numbers we use are estimates. And sometimes we just have to go with the best number we can get. However, I think one of the important things to remember is that UNDER logging your exercise is just as bad as overlogging it. You should attempt to be just as accurate in your calorie burns as you are with your calorie intake. Not logging something may be "cheating" just as much logging it, depending on the individual circumstances.


^^^From ladyhawk's post - too lazy to quote and delete

This.

I log heavy cleaning and yard work like trimming my hedges. It's very strenuous. I'm going to wear my HRM when I do these next, but I guarantee you it's a significant burn. For day-to-day stuff, no.

I have to log every calorie that goes IN, I'm sure as hell going to log the calories that go OUT if they are over and above my usual activity level..

mrmchap

I always log my hard core cleaning, in other words scrubbing the bathroom from top to bottom while sweating the whole time, and vacuuming the whole house, as "light cleaning" I would rather take TOO little calories for those Non-Normal things than to cheat myself.

Roadie2000

I try not to cheat myself, but I also try to make sure I'm calculating everything correctly.

Some days i do absolutely nothing (well, not so much anymore, but maybe during football season). Other days I work out, cut the grass, take the dog for a walk, cook dinner, do dishes, do laundry, etc. I assume my lifestyle is sedentary because I sit in front of a computer all day, but I don't count the little things. As a general rule, I don't count anything that doesn't make me break a sweat or get my heart rate up. I'll count walking the dog and cutting the grass, but not cooking and cleaning.

shopgirl192

I completely agree with you! Unless it's vigorous gardening/mowing a large lawn, I couldn't ever justify that as exercise. Although, I suppose if they are wearing a HRM to accurately count calories burned. I just finished my school year and I spent 2 weeks packing everything up - of course I burned LOADS of calories, but I didn't log anything. I only log when I'm done with cardio at the gym or swimming!

tacticalhippie

I usually put light cleaning so that I don't cheat myself.
I only count it when it's above what I do at work.... Which is me being on my feet and walking/reaching/etc for 7 hours a day. WHich is 5 days a week so I have MFP set at lightly active. Now when I am off and I clean, I don't log it... nor the weeding I do in my square foot garden.
I also figure my time cleaning down.

I sometimes log walking/shopping with my kiddos when I wear my 36 pound daughter on my back in the ergo carrier. But if we're out for a couple of hours, I usually only log half.

nicole716

BUMP! i agree completely

jessradtke

I don't count everyday cleaning like doing the dishes and laundry, but I figure if I break a sweat or know I'm going to feel it the next day, it counts! lol WHAT I'm doing isn't as important as just getting up and MOVING.

writtenINthestars

Bump...I agree.

Anything I would do regardless i.e. cleaning my house...I don't count it as I've been doing it every week since I was a kid....

Gardening I do not do regularly so when I do set out to do it, it's something I p ut time aside for and it is a workout for me...it's exhausting!

I work a second job where I stand all the time (but my profile is set to sedentary because my FT job is at a desk) and I certainly don't count that as any type of exercise (running around like a crazy person working retail) UNLESS I'm stuck putting a shipment away....cuz that is a heck of a lot of lifting and up and down the ladder!

Trinity0210

If you don't normally play kick ball with your kids, then yea count it LOL, i totally get what you mean!

NancyAnne1960

If I sweat, no matter how small or quick the sweat appears, I log it. After all, I don't sweat in my normal daily routine. Using cleaning seems a safe and reasonable activity. It just adds enough to say I over extended myself during the day, and I may need more food to keep me going.

Keegansmum6

If I vacum (which i dont do every day),do alot of bending down,dusting,sweeping I count it,I dont really count picking up my sons toys and dishes as added activity, I also dont count shopping unless it involves going to a big city such as newyork or boston and walking alot then maybe i would count it

TS65

It really depends on your settings. If you are set as sedentary, then anything outside of sitting is basically exercise. I'm set at sedentary, but I only count things that make me sweat & get my heart rate up.

That being said, I never thought of gardening as exercise - UNTIL I wore my HRM. In 86 minutes, I burned 574 calories. Of course, that included quite a bit of shoveling and digging. You'd better believe I counted it.

Oh yea... and if you saw my kitchen floor, you'd take back that statement! (who puts white linoleum in a kitchen... in the country?!? I have a dog, a cat, a 7 year old and a hubby in construction... white is not good. *hands, knees, scrubber brush, hours... ugh!*) :laugh:

calmmomw3minimeez

When I first started on MFP, the first 2 weeks, I lost about 8lbs by following a specific meal plan and no exercise. Week 3, I started doing like 5min of exercise(had to make myself get started because I HATED exercise) and later worked my way up to doing regular workouts...by week 4-5, I hit a plateau that lasted about 2-3 weeks. I didn't know what to do and then I started to notice some of my friends logging the cleaning, gardening, etc.:noway:

I felt that it didn't make sense to log something that I did all the time but I was desperate so I tried it anyway...I have been losing consistently every since with the exception of water retention gains once a month:explode: , but of course that goes away.

I don't always sweat while cleaning(usually I do), but I don't log the entire time either. I guess that whatever you do that is not lying in bed or sitting still is considered exercise, because your body burns calories while sedentary also, so whether you're out of breath or not - it's movement which is exercise.:huh:

I usually overestimate my food a little, and underestimate my exercise a little which has been working for me, so I think that if you are logging cleaning and gardening as exercise AND YOU'RE LOSING WEIGHT, it's not cheating... it's working.

FairyMiss

it was part of my normal routine I wouldn't log it. I see people logging 'working' 'cleaning' 'sex', surely these are a normal part of our routine?

heh My boyfriend lives in another state, so some of those things are not a part of m normal routine

Barneystinson

I add exercise on here, but I'm hesitant to really do that anymore. I have an idea of how much I'm burning but not an exact figure (even with an HRM) and I do a lot of short burst stuff through the day, spend a lot of the day standing, and goof off on a regular basis...soooooo....

I'm more of a "lifestyle multiplier" person where I determine my caloric needs through my perceived lifestyle. Because I walk a considerable amount (for an American, maybe) and work out 5-6x weekly I place myself within the moderately active category. Basically ends up being my BMR x 1.6 to determine my maintenance needs. My deficit varies.

My activity level will go up and down some weeks, of course.

Cleaning and gardening can be a ridiculous workout, depending. I busted a sweat this morning hauling around laundry...

kcavities

i set my activity level as either lightly or moderately active--can't remember which--and i still log things like long walks, etc. HOWEVER, i do NOT EAT THOSE CALORIES BACK once they have been accounted-for. i think that's what matters...that's where "cheating oneself" as a concept comes into question.

makcarly

I logged my cleaning yesterday. I cleaned like a crazy woman and burned like 900 calories according to my Bodybugg. :noway: I never log grocery shopping but my Bodybugg says I burned 1,000 calories in the 3 hours I was out shopping today.