Not sure what I should consider exercise, please help.

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Endriena
Endriena Posts: 16
in Fitness and Exercise
So, me being the newbie that I am, I am not sure what to count and what not to count towards my exercise. For instance, I have been doing some house cleaning and in the process DANCING. If anyone could offer some advice or help I sure would be appreciative! Thanks so much. :embarassed:

Replies

  • Plates559
    Plates559 Posts: 869 Member
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    Did you clean your house at your heaviest? If you did I wouldn't count it.

    Its your dairy so your rules though.
  • myfitnessnmhoy
    myfitnessnmhoy Posts: 2,105 Member
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    When you went through the setup process, you were asked to choose a lifestyle that accurately described you. Anything that is already in that lifestyle is already accounted for in your calories. Anything that is NOT included in that lifestyle should be counted.

    You may also choose to respond inaccurately to that lifestyle, by either

    (a) seting it to "sedentary" even if you lead a more active lifestyle, and count the majority of your activities (other than things like walking to and from the car and the average activities of an average person) as exercise.

    or

    (b) setting it to "active" and holding yourself responsible for performing (and not logging or counting) sufficient exercise to make up the difference.

    If you actively dance during housekeeping, great. Depending on your lifestyle setting and/or personal preferences, it may be optimal for you to log that to both encourage you to dance all the more vigorously and make sure you are nourishing your body properly. Or you can choose not to.

    The whole point is to try and be accurate in assessing how many calories you are burning in a given day so you can eat a REASONABLE amount of calories below that number. There are no moral judgments (or there shouldn't be, but there are some really judgmental people sadly). There is only math and experimentation to see what works for you.
  • ChelsG77
    ChelsG77 Posts: 35
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    When I clean, I break a sweat cuz i dance along too! And especially if your doing it for a while you can type it in exercise, it wont be a lot of calories burned but add it for sure
  • lhergenr
    lhergenr Posts: 242 Member
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    i only count something as exercise if i'm putting on my work out clothes and tennis shoes and intending to exercise. whatever works best for you though.
  • Bingbi
    Bingbi Posts: 12
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    For me it only counts if 1) I break a sweat and 2) I feel the burn.
  • PatsyFitzpatrick
    PatsyFitzpatrick Posts: 335 Member
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    I say over 65 yrs or need to loose more than 99lb you can count house work. Otherwise get out the bike or run. Just sayin. :bigsmile:
  • IveLanded
    IveLanded Posts: 797 Member
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    Honestly, I don't ever count anything I ever NORMALLY did. I see people counting house cleaning or whatnot........and I think that probably gives you an inflated idea of what you burn. TO me, if I got fat doing all that stuff anyways, then my body is probably acclimated to it and it's not necessarily contributing to my weight loss. I countEXERCISE and as excercise. Running, walking for the purposes of working out, and going to the gym.
  • buzzcockgirl
    buzzcockgirl Posts: 260 Member
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    I've been told that you count something that is "Exercise for the sake of exercising". Like a previous poster said-- you put on your workout clothes and intend to 'exercise'. Anything else is considered 'healthy lifestyle'. Like when I walk my kids to school (approx. 1/4 mile each way) I dont count that as exercise... it's part of a healthy lifestyle. I could drive, but I choose to walk - healthy lifestyle choice. But when I put on my workout clothes and go for a 3.5 mph walk and I break a sweat and am huffing along- that's a walk that was intended to be exercise.
  • Endriena
    Endriena Posts: 16
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    Thank you all for all the input, I have been living a very sedentary life style, I sit to fold laundry, I sit to do just about everything. It's been this way for so long, I just wanna do this right, I need to do it right. I don't want to lie to myself. I really do appreciate all the help and comments! I know where to go now and what to count.
  • Endriena
    Endriena Posts: 16
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    I won't be counting it as exercise. As one poster said, I will make it part of my healthy lifestyle!
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
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    Did you clean your house at your heaviest? If you did I wouldn't count it.

    Its your dairy so your rules though.

    I took long walks and jogged at my heaviest. So that doesn't count? I never understood this logic.

    OP -- I only count deliberate exercise. I don't count housework (though I did once a couple weeks ago because it was more intense than usual). But if you're dancing while doing it and getting and keeping your HR up, then I would count that. You'd really be counting the dancing, not the housework.

    Some people count everything they do. My take on that is if they are getting the results they want, then who am I to say they're doing something wrong?
  • tami101
    tami101 Posts: 617 Member
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    When I first started I counted housework. It motivated me to clean my house and I got to eat a little more! Win, win! I lost weight while doing this also. I am now in better shape and can burn 600 or more calories in a workout so I don't need to extra calories from the housework. Doing housework doesn't burn a lot of calories, so if you feel a little hungry and need those few extra calories, add them. =)
  • dansls1
    dansls1 Posts: 309 Member
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    When you went through the setup process, you were asked to choose a lifestyle that accurately described you. Anything that is already in that lifestyle is already accounted for in your calories. Anything that is NOT included in that lifestyle should be counted.

    You may also choose to respond inaccurately to that lifestyle, by either

    (a) seting it to "sedentary" even if you lead a more active lifestyle, and count the majority of your activities (other than things like walking to and from the car and the average activities of an average person) as exercise.

    or

    (b) setting it to "active" and holding yourself responsible for performing (and not logging or counting) sufficient exercise to make up the difference.

    If you actively dance during housekeeping, great. Depending on your lifestyle setting and/or personal preferences, it may be optimal for you to log that to both encourage you to dance all the more vigorously and make sure you are nourishing your body properly. Or you can choose not to.

    The whole point is to try and be accurate in assessing how many calories you are burning in a given day so you can eat a REASONABLE amount of calories below that number. There are no moral judgments (or there shouldn't be, but there are some really judgmental people sadly). There is only math and experimentation to see what works for you.

    This is the correct answer!

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