Help with logging exercises

jeniferdawn6

So I have a desk job and before I started trying to lose weight I sat all day long and went home and sat a majority of the night. When I started on MFP I of course chose Sedentary lifestyle. I am confused as to what I should log as exercise and what I should not. I try to walk on my 10 minute breaks at 4mph and I log that, but would I log normal steps in a day, like grocery shopping and when I have to walk from one end of the building to the other (2mph), since I chose the sedentary lifestyle on my profile?

Tari_D

I don't know if there is a prescribed way you are meant to do it but generally I (and I've also picked sedentary as I've got a desk job) only log things that I do for excersize. So a long power walk, time in the gym, swimming, football etc. I only log things like shopping if it is for example an occasion where I walk into town and all round the shop for a few hours and feel very tired afterwards and even then I try and underestimate the calories/time. This way I figure that I might be burning more calories than I'm logging but it's better than logging more calories than you are burning.

Laoch_Cailin

For me personally I only ever log exercise that is structured - like my zumba class or a jog. I always think things like house cleaning and doing my shopping are everyday things that I always did even when I was larger. So I don't log those if that makes sense. xx

Sarah_LM

Hi

I am on sedentary too and I would not long things like shopping unless it was a few hours browsing round the shops. Definately I wouldn't log grocery shopping, its not exercise.

I wouldn't log what I walked at work unless I was in an active job because even at sedentary level you have some extra calories added in for daily activity.

I would though log the four mile per hour walks because that is a really brisk walk and should burn some calories.

As a rule, its better not to count daily activity because its already accounted for in your daily calorie allowance. For example, if you look up the medical definition of sedentary its defined as having no vigorous exercise - shopping and slow walking are not burning many calories so I wouldn't count them. So unless you are doing some significant exercise or a lot of walking its already accounted for in your calorie allowance.