House Cleaning count as Exercise?

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  • HotMummyMission
    HotMummyMission Posts: 1,723 Member
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    I don't count day to day cleaning but I sure as hell count my spring cleaning
  • ducky715
    ducky715 Posts: 38
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    I always work up a sweat while cleaning. So, as an experiment, I decided to wear my HRM while cleaning one day. Turns out I actually burned more calories than MFP estimates. So, to me, it is a form of exercise. I may not always log it, but I consider it to be a calorie burning activity.

    Thank you for putting this up. :flowerforyou:
  • Kxgz
    Kxgz Posts: 198 Member
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    I think it's a joke logging cleaning. Pretty sure we didn't just start cleaning when we.decided to eat right and exercise. And then I see people log "cleaning calories" and then turn around and eat those "earned" calories. They are not doing themselves any favors by doing this.
  • mjcat002
    mjcat002 Posts: 15
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    Yes, housework burns calories. All activities burn calories.
    Here is a good link w/examples;

    http://www.livestrong.com/article/356409-how-many-calories-does-housework-burn/
  • krisjohnson121
    krisjohnson121 Posts: 87 Member
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    I typically do not log cleaning - however last Saturday I did not get to go to the gym but I cleaned all day I mean ALL day. We recently moved so I was unpacking boxes, going up and down the stairs - so I logged it! I think it just depends...
  • crazybookworm
    crazybookworm Posts: 779 Member
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    I'm a very active person. When I have my weekly cleaning day that includes vacuuming, mopping, dusting, Laundry(doing, folding and putting away) Cleaning the bathroom, scrubbing the kitchen...I can work up quite a sweat! So yes, I would definitely count it as a very mild form of Cardio. HOWEVER, I do not log my cleaning. Just like I don't log my Yoga or Dog Walks. It is all part of my daily routine. I did these things when I was overweight and it never contributed to my weight loss then:tongue: But there are those days when you do vigorous house work that you can definitely feel the next day!
  • newdaydawning79
    newdaydawning79 Posts: 1,503 Member
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    I'd call it cleaning. If you break a sweat then you are burning calories. That's good. Exercises are specific actions you take toward a desired goal. Cleaning is not specific at all. As many have said, just how vigorous is the cleaning? If you clean and can guess the calories burned you can then add it to your chart for the day.

    Sweat is not a determination of burning calories, just for the record. I barely break a sweat in a half hour of going hard on the elliptical, just because I don't sweat much. My BodyMedia shows quite the cal burn for that amount of time, regardless of what's coming out of my pores.
  • neandermagnon
    neandermagnon Posts: 7,436 Member
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    I think that it depends on what one's activity level is set at. Sedentary? Yes. Active? No.

    ^^^^ this, in terms of logging calories

    in terms of health benefits and feeling good about new lifestyle changes, for someone who has been very sedentary in the past and wants to change that, or has health issues that make many kinds of exercise difficult, I think they deserve props and kudos for anything that gets them moving more, including cleaning. And yes there'll be a health benefit from it, compared to being sedentary.
  • neandermagnon
    neandermagnon Posts: 7,436 Member
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    I'd call it cleaning. If you break a sweat then you are burning calories. That's good. Exercises are specific actions you take toward a desired goal. Cleaning is not specific at all. As many have said, just how vigorous is the cleaning? If you clean and can guess the calories burned you can then add it to your chart for the day.

    Sweat is not a determination of burning calories, just for the record. I barely break a sweat in a half hour of going hard on the elliptical, just because I don't sweat much. My BodyMedia shows quite the cal burn for that amount of time, regardless of what's coming out of my pores.

    ^^^^ this!

    otherwise I could just sit on my sofa all day without the air conditioning on and call it exercise! (I live in a hot humid climate)
  • cgirlygirl
    cgirlygirl Posts: 49
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    I NEVER count cleaning as exercise. I do have my calories set as sedentary since I work a desk job. I just consider it "extra burn" and mentally add it to my 3,500 I need to meet each week.
  • barbaratrollman
    barbaratrollman Posts: 317 Member
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    I only log cleaning chores if they were pretty big jobs that were more lengthy strenuous activities than usual, daily cleaning tasks.

    I keep my activity level set at sedentary, because my daily activities vary so much from day to day. Then, if I've done much more activity than would be considered sedentary, I may add it into my Exercise diary.
  • Flab2fitfi
    Flab2fitfi Posts: 1,349 Member
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    i dont log it but my fitbit picks up when I have a more active day cleaning. However if I was strip cleaning a room maybe then I would consider logging it.

    Someone said we were always cleaning even when we were over weight but I know the amount i do has increased as the weight has decreased. partly as I have more energy/ physically able to do it and partly just to get my daily steps in.
  • ZealousMissJJ
    ZealousMissJJ Posts: 454 Member
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    No, I don't log cleaning as exercize. I think there's a too fine line between how hard someone is working up a sweat cleaning. I see some friends logging cleaning as ONLY exercise (that and walking dog), and to be honest I hear them a lot about not losing weight.

    I run, do crossfit and lift heavy weights. However I try, cleaning my house would never burn the same amount of calories (if only it were that simple)..

    To each his own, but I wouldn't log cleaning (or gardening or walking your dog for 20 minutes) as exercise. It's too grey of an area for me as far as calorie burning goes.
  • tlorance100
    tlorance100 Posts: 18
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    I don't log anything that's part of my normal daily routine, but I do log the extra stuff. Right now I've been tearing apart room by room, patching nail holes, sanding, painting, rehanging all the pictures on the wall, moving furniture and cleaning out clutter. I've even emptied out closets to paint inside them! Boxes and boxes have been packed up, tossed in the truck and brought to goodwill. I certainly think that all counts as exercise.

    I know someone mentioned dog walking. I have been logging that, too. I have a Saint Bernard puppy who requires way more exercise than my Peke-a-poo does. I log his walks, but not hers. (And he doesn't stop every 3 yards to sniff like she does, LOL.)
  • Josalinn
    Josalinn Posts: 1,066 Member
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    When I got out the BigGreen Clean Machine to do carpets, you better believe I logged that as exercise. I was so sore and tired after doing the carpets!
  • Skratchie
    Skratchie Posts: 131 Member
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    Since I don't regularly clean house - my husband works from home and does most of the housework, and we have someone come in and clean for us; teen boys clean the kitchen four nights a week - and my activity level is set to sedentary, if I do quite a bit of cleaning on the weekend, I count it. If I were home everyday and I did housework every day I wouldn't, but usually when I clean, it's a deep clean - I do a deep clean every Saturday morning on the kitchen (I mean, come on, TEEN BOYS clean it four nights a week!) and spend a couple hours between cleaning all the appliances, countertops, and floors to my satisfaction. And I do a fairly deep clean on each of the three bathrooms every weekend (everyone is responsible for cleaning up after themselves daily, but I do the toilets, floors and tubs on the weekend). I also usually vacuum the stairs once a week and on occasion, I will do some other housework. But for the most part, the day to day stuff is handled by other family members.

    Doesn't matter to me what others might think about my logging it; I don't consider it part of my daily routine, so I log what I do when I do it. :-)
  • SoVeracious
    SoVeracious Posts: 17 Member
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    I only count it when I am doing deep/spring cleaning. Normal everyday cleaning activity I don't count.
  • Annerk1
    Annerk1 Posts: 372 Member
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    I think it's a joke logging cleaning. Pretty sure we didn't just start cleaning when we.decided to eat right and exercise. And then I see people log "cleaning calories" and then turn around and eat those "earned" calories. They are not doing themselves any favors by doing this.

    For years my son has handled all the vacuuming. Because it's good exercise I've recently taken that chore over. It takes me a full hour to properly vacuum the entire house--meaning moving furniture, getting into the many corners with a crevice tool, etc. I definitely work up a sweat doing it. So yes, I count it.
  • Annerk1
    Annerk1 Posts: 372 Member
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    I would count power walking as exercise so go ahead and log it...

    Thank you for your permission. :huh:
  • Annerk1
    Annerk1 Posts: 372 Member
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    I think it also depends on how big your house is. Sure, cleaning an 600 s/f apartment might not really burn enough calories to make much of a difference, but cleaning a 3000 s/f house sure does.

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