Do you consider this exercise?

SerenityRabit

I don't count household jobs as exercise, because it doesn't really get your heart rate up or increase cardiovascular muscles, sometimes it doesn't even work your muscles to the point you can feel it.
Unless it's something more intense, maybe like moving heavy boxes for a extended period of time..
but defiantly not cooking, or cleaning,etc.
Just my opinion on what is and what isn't exercise...

jayliospecky

Interesting! So, in summary would you say that the Keurig is overrated? Now, this is useful information!

It's actually pretty good, especially if you get a good blend you like. We have a commercial one hooked up to a water line, but we used to have a consumer one. Went through two of those (the pump gave out both times) before getting one designed for an actual office.

It is by far better than most brewed office coffee. At least as good as Starbucks brewed coffee, not quite as good as McDonald's premium coffee (McD's coffee is pretty good - great for fast food coffee), and nowhere near as good as freshly brewed coffee from freshly ground beans. So.. not overrated. But ugh, I hate the trash it generates.

Oh. Okay. Thought for a minute I could take it off of my "things I kinda' want" list. Not just yet, apparently...

kit_katty

To each their own, I'd rather under log than over log. If I break a sweat and the activity was say a min of 15 minutes, then I'll log it. Or a decently long walk, ie not to the mail box on the corner. Otherwise, I might actually eat more calories than I actually burned.

Jeff92se

If you work hard at it, I can be. Do you get your HR up? Sweat? Then probably yes. But it also depends on your activity level you're set at. Set at highly active? then no. Set at hardly active? then perhaps.

If you count it, keep under your calorie goals and you gain, then something is wrong.

20More

I never count that as exercise either. My job is very physical and I don't count that either. If I am power cleaning or shoveling snow and really break a sweat, I think of this as bonus or hidden calorie loss. It will add up eventually and show up ont he scale but to think to log that too is too much work

KeegansMomma

I ALWAYS count my house cleaning. Daily chores and picking up, no. But cleaning, yes. I also count laundry as my washer and dryer are down stairs...and going up and down them on a daily basis is something I do not do.

I do have to chime and say though, that to a completely sedentary person, any little bit of daily house cleaning/picking up/taking out the trash is exercise. This is assuming they are very large and it gets them winded doing little things.

Really, rather you count it or not is up to you. But, every thing you do during the day burns calories...and my thought is, if I'm burning calories, I should go ahead and count it.

giggitygoo

I only count something that is extra and outside of my normal daily life.

sweet110

I use to have an *opinion* about things like this. "Grocery shopping? Really? That's exercise now, lazy bones?" But you know what? If that person is achieving their goals, well, um, I will just pat them on the back and say well done. Because that's how I'd like to be treated in return.

If they ask my opinion, I'll tell them what *I* do and why. Then they can decide for themselves what they want to do. But if they don't ask? Well, they'll figure out, through trial and error, whether it works for them or not. No judgment or evaulation from me needed.

...And everybody's happy.

frycase

I really only count exercise (going to the gym, running, etc.) as exercise. I may burn extra calories by cleaning or shopping or whatever, but without paying attention to exactly how long I was doing these activities and exactly how hard I was working, I'd be really guessing at how many. I'd prefer to not count that as exercise and be pleasantly surprised that I'm losing more weight than expected, rather than try to record every extra movement I make and wonder why I'm not losing at my projected rate.

kauaibaby

I have Rheumatoid Arthritis and Fibromyalgia and lost 90lbs in a two year period--yep you guessed it by cleaning and doing daily activities. These are the things I'm physically capable of doing on a paced schedule. I didn't step into a gym or break a sweat! I guess it all depends on the person. You bet I'm going to log that! As long as my two feet are moving and my A&& isn't planted on the couch I KNOW I'm losing!

Jeff92se

Depends on your set activity level here. If you put it on active and then count house cleaning (especially if you're not really working that hard), then you're only cheating yourself.

It's of no consequence to any of us if you want to track it or not. But the end results will show in your body shape or body weight. That's the only thing you're accountable to.

frycase

Interesting! So, in summary would you say that the Keurig is overrated? Now, this is useful information!

It's actually pretty good, especially if you get a good blend you like. We have a commercial one hooked up to a water line, but we used to have a consumer one. Went through two of those (the pump gave out both times) before getting one designed for an actual office.

It is by far better than most brewed office coffee. At least as good as Starbucks brewed coffee, not quite as good as McDonald's premium coffee (McD's coffee is pretty good - great for fast food coffee), and nowhere near as good as freshly brewed coffee from freshly ground beans. So.. not overrated. But ugh, I hate the trash it generates.

Oh. Okay. Thought for a minute I could take it off of my "things I kinda' want" list. Not just yet, apparently...

I didn't actually end up reading this whole exchange, BUT, for what it's worth, I absolutely ADORE mine. I use the one I have at home pretty much every day, and we have one at work too. I'd had a Tassimo before this, and ended up giving it away because the coffee just wasn't that good and I barely ever used it. But the Keurig is fantastic. <3<3

GoreWhore72

Standing at an easel all day painting acrylic on canvas burns a lot of calories. Think about people who are standing all day at work. Walking to the bathroom, seems weird, but vigorous house work, and etc. well, that's worth documenting. Look at most house cleaners who clean all day, they are burning a tonne of calories.
I only clean my house once a week. I share my son back and forth. We are not messy, but there are days where I clean a lot, like wash my floors on my hands and knees, etc. It's considered burning calories as far as I'm concerned.
DANCING!! Which I do a lot of in my house while I paint burns a tonne of calories as well, only if you dance like I do, I guess.
I've lost 19 lbs just by cleaning, dancing, walking, and painting in 3.5 weeks, and strength exercises maybe, once per week. Some yoga, pilates, that's about it. I was an ex athlete, perhaps that's why.
Anyhow, your statement is very judgmental.
There are some people who really struggle with their weight, and have not done any exercise, barely ever in their life.
I feel very upset by your posting, and documenting all activity is fine in my books, as long as people are active.
The only thing I had to do different was count my calories. I was a very active person, the same as I am now.
COUNT IT ALL PEOPLE!! YOU ARE ACTIVE!!

GoreWhore72

It takes me up to three hours to shovel all the snow when it falls, especially when it's a foot, and heavy, not light fallen snow.
you tell me I'm not sweating when I'm done.

kellicruz1978

I agree with those who are say that if it's not what you do normally, then go ahead and count it...such as 4 hours of cleaning, vigorous garden work, shoveling snow...etc.
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jazzalea

I'm wondering if people are taking into account the fitness level of different members.... I don't consider my housework the same "work" that I did when I weighed 300 pounds.... back then bending over to pick up the dustpan made me light headed and hurt my back. It took me 20 minutes to sweep my floor and an hour to mop it. with a fifteen minute break in between lol .....

now I don't even think about it and I'm already done it and onto the next chore..... I'm still doing the same "work"... I just wouldn't call it work anymore....... I just know that I'm not sitting on the couch either

adjones_21

Exercise~ an activity that requires physical or mental exertion...if your heart rate is elevated why not consider it exercise.

spiralated

i count my cooking when I'm doing a catering job. I'm standing preping/cooking for 2 hours or more than lifting/serving/etc., which is above and beyond my normal day job of desk jockey. But day to day cooking/cleaning? forget it.

tanigrrrrr

Wow, its so interesting that people actually think to record their day to day duties as calories,Id honestly never thought of it.
Truth be told, I do a huge clean on my house fairly regularly, and did it before i tried to loose weight and I still remained fat whilst i was doing that task regularly. So, I personally would never count it, and only count what I have done over and above my previous life style. If that means that Ive burnt off too many calories in a day, then thats just cream for me and Im sure I will make it up somewhere down the track, when I have misjudged something, or eaten something extra that I havent recorded.

Interesting topic though.

kayleystar

Nope, I don't count housework as exercise, even if I break a sweat. Yard work such as push mowing, yes. I burn a lot of calories doing it, and we have a HUGE yard, so it's quite a bit of a walk.

jenifer7teen

WWJD...........what would Jillian do?

i am sure this isnt the first time this has been said, but it's the first time i've heard it! hahaha

armaretta

If you have yourself set to truly sedentary, that means you sit on your butt ALL DAY. Walking around burns twice the number of calories as it does sitting down. Maybe they are 600lbs and even walking to the bathroom or tying their shoes is a daily struggle. Maybe they suffer from obsessive compulsive disorder and can not function without logging every last moment of movement. It's not a perfect formula. 1200 calories is not a magic number. If they want to eat that extra 5 calories MFP gives them for taking out the trash, that is not going to be the ultimate cause of their success in weight loss and a healthy lifestyle.

I've logged my cleaning before, does that make me a worthy of your scorn and ridicule? Am I a failure?

nicoleelizabethj

...

kirstand

i log in cleaning as exercise when i'm doing a non-stop 3-4hour job for someone else...but not my own housework(unless it's more than 30mins...)
i also log in horse riding as exercise as i can be riding horses for nearly 1/2 a day (but not the catching/tacking/washing down, etc...)
guess it depends on what you've set your activity level at to begin with.
it can be a good way to learn how many calories you can burn doing certain things during the day at first, then you can decide whether to log or not to log it later on once you are motivated and started seeing results...
long as you are happy and are seeing results it doesn't matter what everyone else does...long as it works for you. :bigsmile:

sexforjaffacakes

I log everything I do because 90% of the time I'm sitting on my *kitten* in front of my laptop (like right now). I log SHOPPING, DRIVING (sometimes), WALKING.

How is driving exercise? o.o like, at all

nicoleelizabethj

I'm sure I'm going to make a big fuss over this but I feel it's something I must share........do you consider cooking, cleaning, walking to and from kitchen, bathroom etc in your house and other daily activities exercise????

I don't understand that completely.......Anything I have to do/regularly do in a day I don't count as exercise........Cooking myself dinner isn't exercise, I have to eat to live and I'd be doing it anyway.......cleaning my house is something I have to do unless I want mice and ants everywhere and walking to the kitchen and bathroom and back........it just doesn't make sense to me?

I am here to lose weight, and if I was to count every step I took or every movement I made as exercise I'd be cheating myself......the only time I consider any of those things exercise is when I'm like scrubbing the floor with a brush or shoveling snow because I break a sweat with those...........

I guess I just needed to put my 2 cents in on the subject.......

No, I don't. I also laugh at people who log taking out the trash, or cleaning.

I feel like they're just being lazy, hoping that that'll count towards exercise so they don't actually have to get their *kitten* in gear.


Breaking a sweat doesn't relate to losing weight all the time. Sweating is just your body's cooling system. If you're wrapped up in a jacket shoveling snow, is your heart rate really over 100? You're just warm b/c you're not sitting still outside in the cold, so your body is cooling itself.

I hardly sweat at the gym, but I can knock out 600 calories rather quickly

My god, cleaning, and cooking are a PHYSICAL ACTIVITY , its takes PHYSICAL EFFORT to do.. therefore you are burning calories. You burn calories sitting and breathing and talking and typing also etc etc but with cleaning and cooking you burn MORE calories. so why not log it?? WHO SAYS CLEANING AND COOKING ARE THERE ONLY LOG FOR THAT DAY?? I workout out a good hour a day if i can and if i cook or clean also, i count it as well. standing in a kitchen back and forth from the counter to the stove to the table for a good 30 mins + can be quite a bit of physical activity. same with cleaning, youre picking up and moving heavy things, youre dragging and 10-15 pound vaccum around, etc etc. if you think people are just cheating themselves out by logging it THAN LEAVE IT ALONE, STICK TO YOUR DAILY ROUTINE AND LOGGING, AND GET OVER IT. let them lose weight how they want to...

Twins2007

Let's remember that some people are here with over 75,100,150 and sometimes 200 pounds to lose...ANYTHING counts for them to continue to be motivated...

So if some want to count when they shoveled the snow, cleaned the house from top to bottom or whatever else makes them feel like they have exercised, who are we to judge them?

jayliospecky

I didn't actually end up reading this whole exchange, BUT, for what it's worth, I absolutely ADORE mine. I use the one I have at home pretty much every day, and we have one at work too. I'd had a Tassimo before this, and ended up giving it away because the coffee just wasn't that good and I barely ever used it. But the Keurig is fantastic. <3<3

I just yelled out "Look at the cookie face!!!" to my husband. That is awesome!

Oh, and good to know...Tassimo bad, Keurig good. Check. That's one.

jayliospecky

I use to have an *opinion* about things like this. "Grocery shopping? Really? That's exercise now, lazy bones?" But you know what? If that person is achieving their goals, well, um, I will just pat them on the back and say well done. Because that's how I'd like to be treated in return.

If they ask my opinion, I'll tell them what *I* do and why. Then they can decide for themselves what they want to do. But if they don't ask? Well, they'll figure out, through trial and error, whether it works for them or not. No judgment or evaulation from me needed.

...And everybody's happy.

You win for profile pic that I can't stop staring at today.

Plus, good points, etc. etc.

Trail_Addict

I don't think it should count if it was something they did while they were gaining the weight in the first place. If it wasn't sufficient enough to stave off weight gain, why should it count during weight loss? Just a thought.