Let the bloodbath begin....

econut2000

I was reading another forum post where everyone was bashing the OP for wanting to log an activity that no one else seemed to deem as exercise. Am I one of the few on here that realizes that llllooooonnnnnggggg before there were gyms, people did chores to keep themselves fit?!? There was no such thing as an eliptical and people seemed to do just fine so why the heck shouldn't I log doing chores as exercise????

And, let the bloodbath begin....

Dagoth

Because chores are a part of your daily routine. You don't account for them because it's a normal part of your day. You might as well log your trips to the bathroom as Walking, 2 mph, slow pace (2 minutes). It's basically the same thing. I think anything you have to go out of the way to do that requires strenuous effort can be logged. Everything else is null.

Pebble321

I don't know why either - people seem to take it as a personal affront if someone else logs something that does't involve lycra or Jillian Michaels or a gym membership. Perhaps they feel ripped off, that someone else gets to eat more when they don't?

My personal favourite is when people say "I got fat walking the dog so I'm not going to count those calories". I suspect they were also breathing, walking around and going to bathroom when they got fat, but those same people will usually earnestly tell you that they don't eat less than their BMR (which of course includes all those things).

It really is simple - everything we do burns cals, you just have to decide whether you want to include it in your daily activity level, whether you want to log it as an extra, or whether you really don't care about cals in/cals out in which case there is no point worrying about it.

econut2000

It's not part of my daily routine. I know a lot of other people who don't strenuously scrub their floors on their hands and knees daily but they will log it if they do it. My levels are set to sedentary because I SIT almost all day long - so if I do clean, it's outside of my daily routine of sitting. Once again....our ancestors used chores as exercise, so why shouldn't people on MFP?????

Pebble321

Because chores are a part of your daily routine. You don't account for them because it's a normal part of your day. You might as well log your trips to the bathroom as Walking, 2 mph, slow pace (2 minutes). It's basically the same thing. I think anything you have to go out of the way to do that requires strenuous effort can be logged. Everything else is null.

But perhaps chores aren't a part of someone's regular daily routine - it's such an individual thing, I can't make any blanket statement about what your day includes, just as you don't know what is "regular activity" for me. And perhaps those chores are pretty strenuous. Again, it's personal difference and personal choice on how people choose to set up and log things.

Kara52217

I log my cleaning and chores IF they go above what I consider my normal routine and I am DEEPLY cleaning. Otherwise I just dont count it.
But hey if some do count it and as long as they are losing who cares :-). To each their own

econut2000

I don't know why either - people seem to take it as a personal affront if someone else logs something that does't involve lycra or Jillian Michaels or a gym membership. Perhaps they feel ripped off, that someone else gets to eat more when they don't?

My personal favourite is when people say "I got fat walking the dog so I'm not going to count those calories". I suspect they were also breathing, walking around and going to bathroom when they got fat, but those same people will usually earnestly tell you that they don't eat less than their BMR (which of course includes all those things).

It really is simple - everything we do burns cals, you just have to decide whether you want to include it in your daily activity level, whether you want to log it as an extra, or whether you really don't care about cals in/cals out in which case there is no point worrying about it.

^^Totally agree. If you have your settings set to high levels of activity, then maybe putting away your dishes wouldn't be something you would log. On the other hand, if you have a disability, and putting away dishes is difficult for you then maybe this IS something you should log. I just don't understand when people have a hissy fit if I want to log "walking to the bathroom". Maybe I am cheating myself if that's what I log, but it's only me I'm cheating! Just to clear up any confusion, since I KNOW there will be, I wouldn't log "walking to the bathroom".

milf_n_cookies

Because chores are a part of your daily routine. You don't account for them because it's a normal part of your day. You might as well log your trips to the bathroom as Walking, 2 mph, slow pace (2 minutes). It's basically the same thing. I think anything you have to go out of the way to do that requires strenuous effort can be logged. Everything else is null.

That, exactly. I clean my house every day and I cook dinner every night, that is included in my calculations of "active" or "sedentary" so I feel like it's double dipping if I take it twice. Now if I am spending an hour or two hand scrubbing the floor or moving furniture around the house I might count it (depending on length of time and how hard it really was) because its not part of my daily activity.

BeautyFromPain

haha, chores are so NOT a part of my daily routine.

I work full time and go to school full time.
In the school holidays is usually the only time I have to clean my room which will usually take some 5+ hours. I use my HRM, put some music on, wiggle away and my HRM says that I burn 1000+ calories so why shouldn't I log it? It makes me sweat for sure.

bulletprooff

If your settings are "sedentary" and you don't normally break out a sweat/increase your heart rate similarly as you would with other forms of exercises, then log it.

If you're logging it so you feel better about eating more, than you probably shouldn't log it.

shoobz

Because chores are a part of your daily routine. You don't account for them because it's a normal part of your day. You might as well log your trips to the bathroom as Walking, 2 mph, slow pace (2 minutes). It's basically the same thing. I think anything you have to go out of the way to do that requires strenuous effort can be logged. Everything else is null.

Why is it taking you two minutes to walk to the bathroom at 2mph? That's like 105 metres. If your house is really that big, you gotta get yourself a second toilet.

econut2000

I log my cleaning and chores IF they go above what I consider my normal routine and I am DEEPLY cleaning. Otherwise I just dont count it.
But hey if some do count it and as long as they are losing who cares :-). To each their own

^^ agreed. I have neurological problems. Chores are NOT a daily part of my life. So, when I do them, I log them. But, if I cleaned my bathroom everyday, I probably wouldn't log it.

Alex_is_Hawks

My problem is the ripping into other people...

I couldn't care less about logging chores or not. I do not log them, I count them as part of my daily activity but if someone else logs them because they feel they worked up a sweat what do I care...

really, it's their journey and only they really know how hard they work.

Lauren

Bobby_Clerici

I found a way to log in such things as house cleaning and yard work that work beyond mere "activity".
This has always been a disconnect for me.
I bought a 70 lb weight vest that I wear, and I feel like it's a workout.
Do what works for you folks!
The fruit of your philosophy is your weight loss.
All Is Possible:drinker:

Diary_Queen

I spend most of my time working, so chores are not part of my daily routine. They are the thing that I spend all day Saturday doing. Washing everything, sweeping, mopping, vaccuming, scrubbing, washing the car, raking the yard, folding laundry and going through drawers, bins, closets and cabinets to make sure all my kids clothes still fit. This is how I spend my Saturday. I track all my moving and energy expenditure by my FitBit. If it gives me more calories, so be it. I'm not one to eat back even a fraction of my exercise calories, but when I was 327 lbs. and could barely be bothered to get up from the couch to walk to my bed at night, that kinda of moving was a big deal for me. It's better than sitting on your butt all day and doing nothing.

caraiselite

i sit at a desk or lay in bed all day.
i don't clean everyday.
when i do clean, of course i log it.

laceybrobie

THIS IS YOUR JOURNEY. not anybody elses. Dont let anyone get you down by logging something you want to. People on here are so concerned with everyone else they forget the are just like the rest of us.

Log that cleaning. I will tell you what, my cleaning is deep cleaning scrubbing the floor boards etc. Get an HRM and see how many cals you burn on a Sunday cleaning day.

Dont let them get to you! you do what you do to keep going...

danimal5867

If you're logging it so you feel better about eating more, than you probably shouldn't log it.

^^Winning answer is...^^

jagwab

Why is it taking you two minutes to walk to the bathroom at 2mph? That's like 105 metres. If your house is really that big, you gotta get yourself a second toilet.

Exactly what I was thinking.

Zarebeth

I have a FitBit. They count every move I make, all day every day. So I set my activity level to sedentary - anything other than laying in bed counts. And I stick to it... I start with a lower calorie count and have to EARN every extra calorie I get.

Silverkittycat

so why the heck shouldn't I log doing chores as exercise????

Why the heck do you care what someone on the internet thinks you should do?
Log what you want, it's your diary.

teacupowl

I absolutely loathe cleaning, so it's really not a regular part of my day. I tend to clean huge chunks of the house on my days off - which usually entails constant movement for several hours. If I break a sweat doing it, I don't see why I can't log it. Scrubbing your floors is definitely an arm workout!

If I did it everyday, then no, I probably wouldn't log it since I would include it in my daily activity level. But I definitely don't do it everyday.

Really, though, you burn calories doing literally anything and everything. Why can't we just be supportive that someone is making the effort to do at least a little something? Who cares if they log it or not?

itsjustdawn

I just think people need to stop judging others. I look at it this way : some activity, including cleaning, is better than sitting on your *kitten*. If cleaning (for example, because that one comes up a lot) counts as activity and burns calories for an otherwise sedentary person, then good for him/her!

shorty35565

I think logging clean or walking ur dog, stuff like tht is like a sorry excuse for exercise. Cleaning & walking is part of daily life. It something we all do. Now if they person is older or has an injury and walking is the only exercise they can do, then I can understand tht. But if ur healthy, then it doesn't cut it imo, but i dont call ppl out on it or anything. I do think it though. I know when I was fat & this was about 3 yrs ago b4 I even began dieting & I was just tryin to be able to fit in my wedding dress, i would walk a mile for exercise. I only did it cuz it was easy & I was lazy. I say if u wanna lose weight, then u should really go for it. Go hard or go home! (if ur physically able).

Rae6503

Weekdays sitting for 8 hours a day burns 2200 calories.
Weekends cleaning and taking care of kids burns 2900 calories.

700 calories is a significant burn.

ZoeyRobinson

I log every time I garden. I consider it a workout because I don't do it everyday and most of the time I am lugging heavy bags of dirt or moving pots and sweating my butt off. Ever tried weeding a huge yard? It's not that simple.

I also consider cleaning a workout as long as I don't do it everyday. When I remove everything from a room and sweep, clean floors and dust everything and move all the furniture back it is a workout. However, the sweeping I do everyday I don't count.

I think people need to do whats best for them. If someone hasn't worked out in 40 years and needs to start slow and they feel good about themselves for cleaning for an hour then they should log it as exercise. If it is motivating you then keep at it and eff whoever disagrees with you.

CassieReannan

I don't log cleaning unless its a big clean and I am completely exhausted after, like when I work out.
Just understand some people dont normally clean, and arent really active. So cleaning is their exercise. I know sometimes when I clean I crank up the tunes and move more.

JennieAL

When I spend the day cleaning & doing household chores it can increase my burn by up to 500 calories... but, since I don't do that every single day, I could understand if someone wanted to log it that day. Something I do every single day like making coffee & doing a load of dishes/clothes... no. But really... log what you want. It's your right to do so, of course. I think it's kind of time consuming to log every thing you typically do in a day, but whatever.

KelseyPalmtree

I agree. It doesn't seem like something people should be getting into a tizzy fit about. Personally, I only log cleaning if it takes longer than like half an hour or forty five minutes. If I'm legit cleaning (scrubbing or something else like that), I'll usually work up a bit of a sweat. That's a workout. It might not be a high-calorie burning workout, or the kind that gets you in shape to do tons of cardio, or anything like that, but it's still burning calories.

And I also agree with everyone that's questioning why people even care. If they don't think it's a workout, then they can continue not logging it. But what does it hurt them for other people to log it??? It doesn't. Just seems like another instance of people wanting people to do everything their way.

dixieredhen

I say you are RIGHT ON!, because the whole thing I am trying to re-orient myself toward is the idea that I need to think of my calorie burning as activity rather than as exercise. Exercise is a loaded word for me that has emotional baggage tied to our culture and my child hood and my young adult hood and the past in general. However, the word activity is neutral. I want to have stable weight in my life. Calories are super-available and so is activity. I don't clean the house at all, because my spouse does all that. If I added that activity, then I would be adding the burning of about 150 calories per hour. That is the way my life is today due to my new orientation about balancing activity and calories. I am a 6'7" 209lbs 45 year old who sits behind a desk all day. I have lost 21 lbs since April by using the myfitnesspal app on my phone and increasing my activity.

Rock on and make it bloody!!!!

Beets are good too (cooked and raw) ; don't eat them around white material.:

Jules2Be

so why the heck shouldn't I log doing chores as exercise????

Why the heck do you care what someone on the internet thinks you should do?
Log what you want, it's your diary.

Yep....sometimes i make my own titles like Jules burned 575 calories taking things up and down the stairs...if you dont like it bite me:bigsmile: