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Question

debbiekuhn123
debbiekuhn123 Posts: 67 Member
edited January 1 in Fitness and Exercise
I mostly walk with my toddler in his buggie & sometimes it can have shopping bags on the handles too..

Now my question is: I'm i burning more calories off by pushing a toddler in his buggie than just walking on my own without a buggie?, as i feel your pushing a weight?

If im burning more calories this way, how do i figure the numbers out?

many thanks :)

Replies

  • debbiekuhn123
    debbiekuhn123 Posts: 67 Member
    Bump!
  • xxthoroughbred
    xxthoroughbred Posts: 346 Member
    It's probably a very small difference and not enough that I would record it.

    Be careful about your posture.
  • orangesmartie
    orangesmartie Posts: 1,870 Member
    there is something in the exercise database about pushing a stroller
  • omma_to_3
    omma_to_3 Posts: 3,265 Member
    If you were going the same speed, you would likely be burning a tiny bit more calories. However, I find I'm always walking a bit slower with the stroller so it's a wash, or even works out to fewer calories! This has been verified by my HRM.
  • RunMyOregonBunsOff
    RunMyOregonBunsOff Posts: 862 Member
    If you don't have a hrm then what I have been told in the past (as I push around a double stroller) is to pay attention to how you feel when you are just walking with the stroller and then go for a walk without it and walk at a faster pace until you feel the same level of exertion and then log your walking pace with the stroller the same pace as it took you to walk without it. I don't know how accurate it is but that was the only real advice that I was given on the matter.
  • RosaC773
    RosaC773 Posts: 126
    I agree with a previous poster, you shouldn't really count this if you are looking for true weight loss. Count calories where your shirt is drenched in sweat. I walk my dogs, but if I don't sweat - it doesn't count. Counting everyday activities can be discouraging to some because they may think they are burning calories but they are not losing the weight. It isn't a true workout.
  • debbiekuhn123
    debbiekuhn123 Posts: 67 Member
    Thanks ladies for your replies, I tend to walk a bit faster pushing him, i never entered stroller, i entered buggie/pram will go have a look now x
  • debbiekuhn123
    debbiekuhn123 Posts: 67 Member
    I agree with a previous poster, you shouldn't really count this if you are looking for true weight loss. Count calories where your shirt is drenched in sweat. I walk my dogs, but if I don't sweat - it doesn't count. Counting everyday activities can be discouraging to some because they may think they are burning calories but they are not losing the weight. It isn't a true workout.

    I disagree, we burn calories even by breathing, its not about having to sweat to burn, yes we burn more by working faster, any kind of movement is better than none x
  • sammniamii
    sammniamii Posts: 669 Member
    Heart Rate Monitor would be a good bet - I know bearing a load you would have work more, but I'm not sure how much more.
  • omma_to_3
    omma_to_3 Posts: 3,265 Member
    I agree with a previous poster, you shouldn't really count this if you are looking for true weight loss. Count calories where your shirt is drenched in sweat. I walk my dogs, but if I don't sweat - it doesn't count. Counting everyday activities can be discouraging to some because they may think they are burning calories but they are not losing the weight. It isn't a true workout.

    I disagree, we burn calories even by breathing, its not about having to sweat to burn, yes we burn more by working faster, any kind of movement is better than none x

    I disagree too. If you are walking, outside of your normal activities, it counts. I walked for 44 minutes on my lunch yesterday and burned just over 200 calories (for 2.3 miles). Why shouldn't I get credit for that? Normally I would have sat at my desk and done nothing.
  • GuruOnAMountain
    GuruOnAMountain Posts: 489 Member
    Pushing weight on wheels doesn't tend to burn loads more calories as the wheels/stroller are taking a lot of the weight. If you were going a walk carrying your kid on your back or something, you'd burn more.

    And although I agree with you that everyday activities burn calories, I also agree with the previous poster who suggests not logging too much everyday stuff....I found that for me, personally, that everyday stuff just isn't enough to make a difference. If it's something that you've been doing every day for most of your life and it hasn't made a difference to your weight, then it isn't going to do much now (although your reduction in calories will see you losing weight). If I were you I'd only count it if it was a long walk (eg. more than an hour) and if you were going at quite a pace (eg. I wouldn't log a walk if I was walking round shops slowly but would log my walk to work as it is an hour long walk and I walk fast to get there).
  • tuckerrj
    tuckerrj Posts: 1,453 Member
    If you put the word "push" into the cardio search box, it has an option for pushing a child in a stroller.
This discussion has been closed.

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