Regarding logging house cleaning calories...

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Rae6503
Rae6503 Posts: 6,294 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
So I have a BMF. It provides me with an estimate of my daily TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure, or how many calories I burn all day from living, digestion, exercise, normal activity).

I see people question those who log cleaning as exercise, so I thought I'd share this:

A normal rest day where I work I burn about 2300 calories. If I go to the gym and work I burn about 2600 calories. Today, I'm probably going to burn 3400 calories. So, did I run 20 mlles? Lift weights for 2 hours? Ride my mountain bike? NOPE. I cleaned my house, worked in my yard, took care of my children, and went to the grocery store.

So the moral of my story is: Don't underestimate the power or importance of non-exercise activity levels.

The End.
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Replies

  • missikay1970
    missikay1970 Posts: 588 Member
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    I think the problem for me is that is so routine, its part of what I normally burn. Even going to the gym at this point is routine and I have to work extra hard to burn what I did 8 months ago.
  • hedgiie
    hedgiie Posts: 1,245 Member
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    nicely said
  • LindaLouLu
    LindaLouLu Posts: 271 Member
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    Thank you!
  • mes1119
    mes1119 Posts: 1,082 Member
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    I completely agree with this.

    I don't have a special thing to track it, but the other day I spent a good 4 hours moving and cleaning the pool, and it's deck and furniture (I'm a lifeguard) so that we could be ready for opening. I KNOW I burned more than I would during my normal day with a 30 min run.
  • AndiJoy812
    AndiJoy812 Posts: 236
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    I can not WAIT to get a hrm or something that accurately measures caloric burn - just so I can wear it on one of my marathon deep-cleaning days! Lol...funny how much my idea of fun things to do has changed since I started mfp! :laugh:
  • brittanylock09
    brittanylock09 Posts: 197 Member
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    I think the problem for me is that is so routine, its part of what I normally burn. Even going to the gym at this point is routine and I have to work extra hard to burn what I did 8 months ago.

    Try a different activity or take a different class. Change up the routine and change up your diet or the times you eat food. That may help, then you don't have to push yourself super hard in the gym b/c you could end up straining something and be out of the gym for a bit. Just like people say even walking. They go one way over and over and over but as soon as they turned it around the other way, they started losing more and burning more. someone on here said that but can't remember who
  • cgsr
    cgsr Posts: 113
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    My only issue with "cleaning calories burned" is weren't you cleaning and such leading to your need to loose weight and use MFP as a tool to do it?
  • PunkyRachel
    PunkyRachel Posts: 1,959 Member
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    My only issue with "cleaning calories burned" is weren't you cleaning and such leading to your need to loose weight and use MFP as a tool to do it?

    lol..I'll admit I'm a slob and so is my husband. I'm not as bad now, and I clean way more now than I ever did before. I just don't log it unless it takes a while and I'm working up a sweat.
  • rextcat
    rextcat Posts: 1,408 Member
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    My only issue with "cleaning calories burned" is weren't you cleaning and such leading to your need to loose weight and use MFP as a tool to do it?

    weren't you walking/lifting/ect before joining mfp to?
  • tripitena
    tripitena Posts: 554 Member
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    I have serious joint injuries. Some days I can put in 3 or 4 miles on the treadmill. Some days I can't walk through the house. On those days, if all the movement I get is house cleaning I'm damn well logging it. I see the complaints about housework as exercise. To them I say: walk a mile with my disabilities and then we'll talk. Until then, you should work on your very pressing problem of not being able to mind your own business.
  • BeautyFromPain
    BeautyFromPain Posts: 4,952 Member
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    My only issue with "cleaning calories burned" is weren't you cleaning and such leading to your need to loose weight and use MFP as a tool to do it?

    I wasn't actually and still only do it a couple of times a year at most. shhh.
    Between 2 jobs (one full time, one part time) plus going to school full time, i'm home long enough to sleep, shower and pack my lunch.
  • UpEarly
    UpEarly Posts: 2,555 Member
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    AMEN - Rae! Some of my biggest calorie burns come from the days I don't exercise, but stay busy doing other stuff - cleaning, shopping, running errands, etc.

    If I have a relaxing day - sitting at my desk job, watching TV in the evening - but still make time to do a TOUGH 90 minute workout, my calorie burn will still be MUCH lower than it is on a non-exercise busy day.

    Exercise is important and necessary, but being non-sedentary in general probably makes a bigger difference over the long run.
  • kelley_lynn
    kelley_lynn Posts: 133 Member
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    :flowerforyou:
    I have serious joint injuries. Some days I can put in 3 or 4 miles on the treadmill. Some days I can't walk through the house. On those days, if all the movement I get is house cleaning I'm damn well logging it. I see the complaints about housework as exercise. To them I say: walk a mile with my disabilities and then well talk. Until then, you should work on your very pressing problem of not being able to mind your own business.

    :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou: nice said :)
  • tialynn1
    tialynn1 Posts: 886 Member
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    I don't usually do when I vacuum the floor and just run a feather duster over things. But, when I spend hours doing a heavy duty cleaning, since it isn't something I do all of the time, then I do log it.
  • SorchaRavenlock
    SorchaRavenlock Posts: 220 Member
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    I don't usually do when I vacuum the floor and just run a feather duster over things. But, when I spend hours doing a heavy duty cleaning, since it isn't something I do all of the time, then I do log it.

    That's how I do it as well.
    I have to admit I don't always put a lot of elbow grease in my cleaning, so when I'm gently pushing the vacuum cleaner around or doing dishes or something like that, I won't log it. that's just my normal routine.
    Washing the windows, pushing the furniture around, anything that makes me sweat or breathe heavier then normal gets logged though.
  • sistergoddess
    sistergoddess Posts: 38
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    I have 3 kids 4 if you count my husband ( when it comes to cleaning I do!) It is nothing for me to spend 3-4 hours ever other day or every couple of days. I'm bending lifting, carrying, scrubbing sweeping mopping, bagging trash, doing windows and beds. It is every bit as intensive as one of my Jillian workouts and done for longer. Didn't I always clean.. yes and no, the cleaning up after an infant is so much different than a toddler and a kindergärtner and with the 9 year old toys are bigger. I'm no Martha Stewart but I like things to look "Nice" and I consider the sweaty, hard work I do to get them that way. Just that "work". If you don't agree, Ok. However, it is not your place to judge me. If you look at my diary and it says Pizza and bon bons and all I do is cleaning every couple days and i'm complaining about not loosing wt, well then offer some constructive advise or click off my post and make fun of me in your news-feed. We are all here for support, if you can't provide it in a polite manner. Don't.

    "If you can't say nothin nice, don't say nothin at all" Thumper
  • RachelsReboot
    RachelsReboot Posts: 569 Member
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    You all have my support. I own a commercial cleaning business, I took my first cleaning job as a way to get more active and make some money, Last week I took another contract which means I spent 65 hours a week cleaning, walked over 40 miles, climbed 66 flights of stairs and had a calorie deficit of over 17,000. If anyone thinks that I am not logging that they can get their heads examined. Oh and to the others who say well that;s your job part of your normal activity...I didn't do this when I was fat, I had a desk job then.
  • Givemewings
    Givemewings Posts: 864 Member
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    I agree. Well said. I say if it burns calories you can log it. Cleaning the house can be a really good calorie burner; I certainly didn't look at cleaning the house in the same way before MFP and probably didn't do it so often either but so what? You're burning calories and you're making your house nicer to live in !
  • Rae6503
    Rae6503 Posts: 6,294 Member
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    My only issue with "cleaning calories burned" is weren't you cleaning and such leading to your need to loose weight and use MFP as a tool to do it?

    What does that have to do with any thing? You log exercise and activities in order to get the best estimate of your TDEE in order to maintain a constant desired calorie deficit. I exercised before staring MFP too...
  • 100over
    100over Posts: 53 Member
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    I don't log regular housecleaning like vacuuming, dusting, toilets etc. but I will log as exercise if it's a an extra super cleaning day like scrubbing the deck, cleaning the windws etc. Gardening of course, cause that feels like the hardest cardio I can do - lol.

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