your opinion please!!!!!!

Rum_Runner

I personally would not. I am not a fan of entering calories burned by shopping, cleaning, walking up the stair to my office or anything else that I *HAVE* to do regardless. My exercise is the extra effort I put into it. Regardless if you were on this site or not...you'd be having to shop or clean or walk the dog. So I don't see that those count for much as your body is already accustomed to that exercise and therefore its not really adding to yoru weightloss efforts.

bellygoaway

It kind of depends on what you set your activity level to be. Did you figure it in when you were deciding if you were Lightly Active, Active, or Very Active? If so, then you should not count them. If not, then count away baby!

lporter229

If I don't have to put on a sports bra to do it, it's not exercise!

Microfiber

I count ironing as I only do a big iron once a week!!

NicholeElizabeth92

I'm a college student at one of the largest campuses in the US so I totally log my time spent walking to class carrying my 20lb backpack but any other walking, shopping included, I don't log.

dym123

Other than my normal workout, I log when I walk the dogs, I usually do it before I workout and its a nice warm-up. I will log yard work/cutting grass because this usually takes at least a couple of hours of strenuous work. I don't log shopping (even my trips to Costco and you know that's a workout trying to avoid all the free food samples) or housecleaning.

MizTerry

I'd never thought of that! Ha!

Would dragging my kids who REALLY don't want to go be considered resistance training?

I do log when I go and clean my Moms place because I'm usually there for hours. Heck, you can log sex too, if you're feeling devilish.

Susie_is_me

In my opinion it definitely counts as exercise - research has shown that simply standing instead of sitting when doing things like watching tv burns calories so walking around the supermarket should count too!!

nancycaregiver

As you can see, the answers are varied as I expected they would. I'm just glad there aren't a ton of rude comments like I've seen on other similar posts. I agree with everyone who says you add what YOU want. I mean...I saw a post the other day that someone is counting driving/commuting as exercise. Now that one I think, is kinda stretching it. I mean, I usually sit while I'm driving! I certainly think you burned more calories walking around the store than you did driving there!!! I'd probably log it but not eat back more than half the calories. But I usually don't eat more than half when I workout hard.
But that's just my opinion! Do what works for you!

disdatdude

There's too much starting and stopping to count it as exercise. Plus, half the time you will spend shopping is going to be standing in line. I think if you want to be serious about your workout regimen...it needs to start with your entries. Honestly, you burn calories sleeping, but you never log it. If I was in construction, swinging a hammer all day and demolishing walls...I couldn't log it as exercise. You should only log serious, devoted effort (as in set aside specifically for your goal), but that's JMO :drinker:

MizTerry

As you can see, the answers are varied as I expected they would. I'm just glad there aren't a ton of rude comments like I've seen on other similar posts. I agree with everyone who says you add what YOU want. I mean...I saw a post the other day that someone is counting driving/commuting as exercise. Now that one I think, is kinda stretching it. I mean, I usually sit while I'm driving! I certainly think you burned more calories walking around the store than you did driving there!!! I'd probably log it but not eat back more than half the calories. But I usually don't eat more than half when I workout hard.
But that's just my opinion! Do what works for you!

They have a Flinstone car.

WhoTheHellIsBen

if you want to split hairs like this all day long the honest answer is you are going to be out of shape for a very looooooooooooooooooooong time. If it's not a real work out then don't log it. This also goes for cleaning the house, doing dishes, mowing the lawn, SLEEPING (yes I've seen people log naps before) And all that other dumb crap. Just forget about that stuff and see yourself rewarded down the line when your goals are met.

MinnieInMaine

You'd think it would count for a lot, especially if you're like me and walk really fast down the aisles and pretty much cover all departments of a Super WalMart store. So one day I decided to wear my heart rate monitor and I only burned like 50 calories in the almost 45 minutes I was there.

The only time I count shopping is, like someone else posted, if I'm out all day like outlet shopping with my mother. I know I must've burned calories because my bum is sore from all the walking and I'm tired. But even then, I only count half of what MFP gives me for walking at 2mph because I know I wasn't moving the whole time.

Cleaning is 50/50 for me. If it's the usual chores I don't count it but if I do something extra like scrub the walls, clean the windows, move some furniture around, etc, I'm going to count it.

lowpro1983

I normally don't include what I consider "small daily tasks." Now if I'm spending half a day clearning my house, I sometimes log that. To each his/her own.

lpina2mi

It is not cheating, BUT when MFP is calculating how many kcal your burn by just being alive for day--I have been assuming that my normal and usual habits are included.

That said, once a week a thorough cleaning of the house that included moving furniture to vacuum behind it and mopping floors and cleaning toilets and polishing windows et cetera. Those 2 hours are above and beyond my usual pick-up-doing laundry-cooking. So I log the 2 hrs but not the other usual. I break out in a sweat doing the once a week thing.

During gardening season, the early season and late season chores are heavy, so I count those. The piddly stuff I do in between is not something I tracked in the past (albeit a different tracking software).

So with your grocery shopping--do you take the same long strides, as if you were outside on a path? Is the load in your grocery cart significant? I think you know best, whether your grocery trips counts for anything above what MFP is calculating for your daily being-alive-burn.

MinnieInMaine

In my opinion it definitely counts as exercise - research has shown that simply standing instead of sitting when doing things like watching tv burns calories so walking around the supermarket should count too!!

This may be true but if your activity level is set at sedentary, that accuonts for some of those little extra activities. You're sitting most of the time but of course you're going to move around a little...going to the bathroom, standing around talking to co-workers, walking to the file room, etc.

lauralind5

My thoughts are....did you not go to the grocery store before you started MFP? Or clean your house or whatever typical daily activities we do.

eclarso

I would say it's okay to log light exercise like that, but just don't get too carried away with it or use it as an excuse to overeat. Try only eating back 1/3 to 1/2 of your exercise calories. That way you can reward yourself a little bit, but still stay on track for weight loss.

dovetail22uk

I still walked around the shop when I was gaining weight!

In my opinion, don't log it unless it raises your heart rate for a sustained period. You're only kidding yourself. Especially if you are expecting to eat those "exercise" calories back!

Edited to add that the heart rate thing is for cardio. Obviously different for strength training etc.

Jennikitten

I personally count it because I put my lifestiyle as sedentary and I don't eat all of it back. I tend to use it more of a gage of my fitness