Do you count housework towards your daily cals.

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  • SenshiV
    SenshiV Posts: 131 Member
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    Because we can;t really imagine what you do, I think the best thing you could do is a calorie counter, maybe cross check your tdee and the calories you burn doing your routine.

    I wouldn't log that but what I can understand is your concern of not eating enough, I think that if the answers did not help you, you should get a fitbit, or any other that works.
  • DeeVanderbles
    DeeVanderbles Posts: 589 Member
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    It's really personal preference. If you want to log it, log it. If you only want to log half, log half.

    Personally, I only log cleaning if it's far outside of my "normal." A deep clean, I would probably log half. General daily or even weekly cleaning, I wouldn't log it.

    Another example, unless I'm walking briskly as a warmup exercise, I don't log walking. However, when I'm out Christmas shopping for hours at a time, I'll log it as a slow pace and only log half the time because shopping for hours at a time is not my "normal."
  • AlsDonkBoxSquat
    AlsDonkBoxSquat Posts: 6,128 Member
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    Nope. Consider it bonus calories burned.

    I believe that's called exercise.

    You burn calories just by being alive. Does being alive count as exercise?

    No, the activity of simply being is set into your base calorie goal, then you set your normal activity level, then you decide if based upon your set activity level you need to log an activity as exercise or if it's already a part of your base.

    Not sure why you're telling me how this site works. I know how it works.

    The person said that burning calories = exercise. That is not true. I pointed this out.

    I saw you asked a facetious question, so I gave you a truthful answer. The person was saying that the calories burned over your base should be logged as exercise calories, you're saying that the calories burned over your base calories aren't exercise calories . . . but then what are they?
  • 150at502012
    150at502012 Posts: 4
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    I originally joined Weight Watchers before I found My Fitness Pal and they counted house work as exersize.
  • Verity1111
    Verity1111 Posts: 3,309 Member
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    Yes. I rarely clean because I'm normally tired, sick and lazy, so when I clean a lot I count it.
  • wibutterflymagic
    wibutterflymagic Posts: 788 Member
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    I believe many of the poople on here are not understanding what is being asked and are being quite nasty in their comments.

    The poster is not asking if regular normal everyday cleaning such as washing the dishes, straightening up or laundry would be considered exercise but is wondering about a periodic excessive house cleaning in which you are doing heavy lifting, a lot of bending, stretching and moving which probably results in several hundred calories burned could be logged as exercise.

    Apparently many of you don't understand that "exercise" is not strictly activities that you do in the gym, or by sports. Not everyone is able to partake in those activities but that doesn't mean that other activities that get your body moving is not "exercise", good for the body or can't be logged under our exercise tab.

    If you do any activity out of the norm(for your life) where you are moving your body and burning calories it's "exercise".
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
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    I originally joined Weight Watchers before I found My Fitness Pal and they counted house work as exersize.

    Just to be clear... MFP doesn't count anything as exercise... the users/people do. In an ideal world, people would base their decisions about what is or isn't exercise on how they set up their profile. But it seems a lot of people don't have that level of understanding about the energy balance equation and how the MFP calculations work.
  • Lala20112
    Lala20112 Posts: 72 Member
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    I don't log house cleaning, I don't feel I've worked enough to burn a lot .i have logged yard work as I have a lot of property to tend ,takes 4 hrs to get it done . I guess it can be your personal perf. :))
  • TubbsMcGee
    TubbsMcGee Posts: 1,058 Member
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    I'd clean my house whether I was fat or skinny.
    Logging it as exercise doesn't make me feel like I should skip my actual gym workout because I scrubbed the tub.
    I'd just be happy that the tub was cleaned....
  • Mokey41
    Mokey41 Posts: 5,769 Member
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    The last 2 times I did the deep clean I wore my Heart Rate Monitor. First time the 4 hour calorie burn was around 800 cal. the second time 3 hours was 625. I count it. Not the regular daily stuff. But, the "Dang my house is dirty" cleaning I do. Usually once a month.

    But your HRM doesn't deduct your BMR so you're double dipping already by taking the total calorie burn not to mention that a HRM isn't accurate unless your HR is significantly elevated. Lower level HR's give inflated numbers, that why a HRM is only used for "exercise" which housecleaning isn't.
  • rciszek
    rciszek Posts: 134
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    Only if it's the deep cleaning one I do, you know with the FULL do everything that you could imagine. Mop, Dust, Vacuum, Laundry, etc. I don't if it's just the general one where it's a light week.
  • kerock37
    kerock37 Posts: 10 Member
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    I could agree more with tmatzk2! Thank goodness I have a thick skin, but others may not. I simply wanted to know if deep cleaning, cleaning ceilings, windows, fans (taking apart and cleaning), up and down on a ladder, scrubbing floors on hands and knees should be counted as it is outside my daily cleaning. For someone new to the site I cannot believe how ugly some people can get. I will not be posting anymore questions or ask for advice. I thought the message boards were for encouragement and feedback in a respectful manner, not necessarily positive but respectful. Apparently I was incorrect. As soon as I can figure it out I will be deleting this topic.
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
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    posted by tmatzke2
    I amazes me that people are going to poo, poo someones activity just because it's not "gym exercise". Just because someone isn't bench pressing or running at the gym doesn't mean that what they do to burn calories isn't exercise. Disgusting that people are dissing others means of "exercise". You should be ashamed of yourselves!

    Yes, house cleaning is exercise. If you are doing any activity that gets your heart rate going and you are physically fatigued you can log that under your exercise tab.
    posted by kerock37
    I could agree more with tmatzk2! Thank goodness I have a thick skin, but others may not. I simply wanted to know if deep cleaning, cleaning ceilings, windows, fans (taking apart and cleaning), up and down on a ladder, scrubbing floors on hands and knees should be counted as it is outside my daily cleaning. For someone new to the site I cannot believe how ugly some people can get. I will not be posting anymore questions or ask for advice. I thought the message boards were for encouragement and feedback in a respectful manner, not necessarily positive but respectful. Apparently I was incorrect. As soon as I can figure it out I will be deleting this topic.

    tmatzke2 and kerock37... I just reread the whole thread, every response. Who is "dissing others means of exercise"? Who is "being ugly"?

    kerock37:
    Your subject line is "Do you count housework towards your daily cals." Most people answered that question. A few people answered the question you asked in your post ("Once a month I deep clean the house, ceilings, baseboards, fans, on my hands and knees waxing the floor, etc. Would you count this as an activity?").

    Just because someone doesn't do what you do, do it the way you do it, or give you the answer you want to hear doesn't mean they are "dissing" you or "being ugly".

    Don't ask for opinions if you don't want opinions.
  • yoovie
    yoovie Posts: 17,121 Member
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    not unless Im moving apartments by foot.
  • ZombieChaser
    ZombieChaser Posts: 1,555 Member
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    No - If cleaning made me skinny, I'd have lost weight years ago.
  • Amberonamission
    Amberonamission Posts: 836 Member
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    The last 2 times I did the deep clean I wore my Heart Rate Monitor. First time the 4 hour calorie burn was around 800 cal. the second time 3 hours was 625. I count it. Not the regular daily stuff. But, the "Dang my house is dirty" cleaning I do. Usually once a month.

    But your HRM doesn't deduct your BMR so you're double dipping already by taking the total calorie burn not to mention that a HRM isn't accurate unless your HR is significantly elevated. Lower level HR's give inflated numbers, that why a HRM is only used for "exercise" which housecleaning isn't.
    What the hell do you KNOW about me? I lose a pound every 4 days. How about you? Deep cleaning HR over 130.. getting logged. End of thought for me. But, be as big a know it all you like. I am sure that burns something for YOU.
  • pastryari
    pastryari Posts: 8,646 Member
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    I could agree more with tmatzk2! Thank goodness I have a thick skin, but others may not. I simply wanted to know if deep cleaning, cleaning ceilings, windows, fans (taking apart and cleaning), up and down on a ladder, scrubbing floors on hands and knees should be counted as it is outside my daily cleaning. For someone new to the site I cannot believe how ugly some people can get. I will not be posting anymore questions or ask for advice. I thought the message boards were for encouragement and feedback in a respectful manner, not necessarily positive but respectful. Apparently I was incorrect. As soon as I can figure it out I will be deleting this topic.

    In other words, you didn't get the answer you wanted so everyone who didn't give you that answer is a bully.
  • neelia
    neelia Posts: 750 Member
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    When I was mostly active, no, I didn't count housework as exercise.

    Now that I'm pregnant and work an extremely sedentary job, yes, I count housework as exercise.
  • AlabasterVerve
    AlabasterVerve Posts: 3,171 Member
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    Just because someone doesn't do what you do, do it the way you do it, or give you the answer you want to hear doesn't mean they are "dissing" you or "being ugly".

    Oh, puh-leze. Someone started a thread mocking this one, that's not just giving a differing opinion in a straightforward manner. They're just being **** heads and having fun at other peoples expense and everyone here knows it.
  • LetsGetFitMama
    LetsGetFitMama Posts: 102
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    I could agree more with tmatzk2! Thank goodness I have a thick skin, but others may not. I simply wanted to know if deep cleaning, cleaning ceilings, windows, fans (taking apart and cleaning), up and down on a ladder, scrubbing floors on hands and knees should be counted as it is outside my daily cleaning. For someone new to the site I cannot believe how ugly some people can get. I will not be posting anymore questions or ask for advice. I thought the message boards were for encouragement and feedback in a respectful manner, not necessarily positive but respectful. Apparently I was incorrect. As soon as I can figure it out I will be deleting this topic.

    In other words, you didn't get the answer you wanted so everyone who didn't give you that answer is a bully.

    In other words, you and a few others cannot leave it as a simple no and feel the need to belittle people. I don't know why. This is supposed to be a place for people to go and feel encouraged, not make them feel stupid.

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