What should I log playing with my dog as?

MorgueBabe
MorgueBabe Posts: 1,188 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
She likes to play tag/chase in the yard. We run back and forth (I guess sprinting?) or in circles. I tag her and then run she tags me and I run.
(She's also MUCH fast than me.... >_< and I always lose)
«1

Replies

  • Controversial
    Controversial Posts: 157 Member
    You shouldn't. It's called life, not exercise.
  • MoreBean13
    MoreBean13 Posts: 8,701 Member
    I wouldn't log that, its fun, not exercise.
  • DrBroPHD
    DrBroPHD Posts: 245 Member
    I log it as water
  • indymom72
    indymom72 Posts: 8
    My 5 year old and I ran races over the weekend and I didn't count it. I just thought of it as a fun bonus. :)
  • RotterdamNL
    RotterdamNL Posts: 509 Member
    You shouldn't. It's called life, not exercise.
    Miauwww someone is being *****y here
  • Cinflo58
    Cinflo58 Posts: 326 Member
    I would log it as aerobic - it's running so definatley log it. It's not "life". Although it is fun. Life for me is sitting on the couch, anything else is exercise.
  • lizziebeth1028
    lizziebeth1028 Posts: 3,602 Member
    I wouldn't log it. When you start trying to count every single thing that you do all day long....that's when you start to over estimate your calories burned thus causing plateau's or even weight gains. I would consider this as part of my daily energy expenditure.
  • KristenE83
    KristenE83 Posts: 187 Member
    I have logged things like that. Although, it is kind of controversial on this site. It all depends on your activity settings. I have mine as sedentary because I work a desk job, so I log things like this. I don't eat back my calories though. I just like to track my activity, so can understand why people want to log this. You could log it as running, just underestimate the time and and speed. That is probably a safe bet. The other day I was going to do a little at-home workout (sit ups/push ups/squats... the usual), but my 19 month old wanted to play, so I dragged him in lol I did the sit-ups holding him and I ran around w/ him and had fun instead of my typical work out. I ended up logging it as low impact aerobics or something like that. Do whatever works for you!


    Edit: Also, if I know I am going to do something random and want to log it, I put on my HRM so I can get an accurate cal burn.
  • MoreBean13
    MoreBean13 Posts: 8,701 Member
    I would log it as aerobic - it's running so definatley log it. It's not "life". Although it is fun. Life for me is sitting on the couch, anything else is exercise.

    It should be figured in to your activity level, or perhaps use a pedometer or fitbit type tracker for all the little odds and ends of NEAT activity, but you can't log every little thing you do all day. Where do you draw the line? I drank a lot of water last night so I made X trips to the bathroom, how do I log that? Its not sitting on the couch.
  • TAMayorga
    TAMayorga Posts: 341 Member
    You could also use a pedometer to see how many calories you've burned. There are some decent, affordable apps out there.
  • lcuconley
    lcuconley Posts: 734 Member
    i generally agree with the prior posts. However, it depends on how your account is set up. If you assume that you are completely sedentary, you could log the play time. I would just pick a slow running speed and log that, since you are stop/start with the doggie and it averages out.
  • JustJennie1
    JustJennie1 Posts: 3,749 Member
    If you're working up a sweat and playing with your dog for a long time then I don't see why it couldn't be logged as aerobic. But if it's just normal dog play then I wouldn't log it.

    I log the walks that I take my dog on because they're pretty aggressive and they're usually between 2.5-3.5 miles in length.
  • jimmie65
    jimmie65 Posts: 655 Member
    Lighten up, people!
    If you spent a long time playing with the dog and get out of breath / work up a sweat, by all means log it as exercise. Probably light impact aerobic.
  • ItsCasey
    ItsCasey Posts: 4,021 Member
    If you were wearing a HRM and you have an actual calorie burn reading, log it. If you ran a certain number of sprints and let the dog chase you, log it. If you can't measure it, don't log it. But just because you don't log it doesn't mean you can't consider it when deciding whether or not to eat an extra cookie. Just don't get into the habit of guessing at your activity. Before you know it, throwing a tennis ball in the yard for 10 minutes turns into "running, 10 mph" for 10 minutes.
  • MoreBean13
    MoreBean13 Posts: 8,701 Member
    I have logged things like that. Although, it is kind of controversial on this site. It all depends on your activity settings. I have mine as sedentary because I work a desk job, so I log things like this. I don't eat back my calories though. I just like to track my activity, so can understand why people want to log this. You could log it as running, just underestimate the time and and speed. That is probably a safe bet. The other day I was going to do a little at-home workout (sit ups/push ups/squats... the usual), but my 19 month old wanted to play, so I dragged him in lol I did the sit-ups holding him and I ran around w/ him and had fun instead of my typical work out. I ended up logging it as low impact aerobics or something like that. Do whatever works for you!


    Edit: Also, if I know I am going to do something random and want to log it, I put on my HRM so I can get an accurate cal burn.

    How could you know if your numbers are accurate or just totally wild guesses if you dont eat them back? Sorry, but your HRM could tell you 12 calories or 12,000 calories and using your method you could log it and have exactly the same results, just with a different number on your screen at the end of the week.
  • livitup85
    livitup85 Posts: 231 Member
    You shouldn't. It's called life, not exercise.

    ^^^This! I came here to say the exact same thing!
  • CEHayes73
    CEHayes73 Posts: 221 Member
    Lighten up, people!
    If you spent a long time playing with the dog and get out of breath / work up a sweat, by all means log it as exercise. Probably light impact aerobic.

    ^^ This!
  • jehavin
    jehavin Posts: 316 Member
    I would log it as aerobic - it's running so definatley log it. It's not "life". Although it is fun. Life for me is sitting on the couch, anything else is exercise.

    I think that this statement is actually a sad reflection on why a lot of people don't lose weight, because daily functions, (such as me lifting my kids fifty times and carrying them up the stairs, which does wind me, but doesn't count as exercise,) are NOT aerobic activity. Unless you have a heartrate monitor on you, have elevated your heartrate to at least 65% max for 15-20 minutes sustained, then it is not exercise.

    TDEE is actually based on the calories it takes to LIVE (aka move around, pick things up, put things down, squat on the toilet, bend over to pick up your backpack, walk to class/work, take the stairs,) otherwise, if you agree with the above statement, then you should set your calorie goal as whatever the "basic minimum" (BMR?) to stay in bed and keep your heart beating is---I think it's like 1000 if you're being generous. Burning the "average" TDEE of 1800-2200 calories takes a lot of movement!

    I rationalize that, long ago, people who "sat down" all day would need the amount of calories of the amount of food they were able to attain that way. AKA very little. It takes a bit of effort to till a garden, grind wheat or run down an deer, so I imagine the opposite is true as well.
  • concordancia
    concordancia Posts: 5,320 Member
    I wouldn't log that, its fun, not exercise.

    Wow, so I can't log this either?

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HL28h1SS7qw
  • jehavin
    jehavin Posts: 316 Member
    If you were wearing a HRM and you have an actual calorie burn reading, log it. If you ran a certain number of sprints and let the dog chase you, log it. If you can't measure it, don't log it. But just because you don't log it doesn't mean you can't consider it when deciding whether or not to eat an extra cookie. Just don't get into the habit of guessing at your activity. Before you know it, throwing a tennis ball in the yard for 10 minutes turns into "running, 10 mph" for 10 minutes.

    Great, sensible advice =)
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,409 Member
    Okay, ignore everyone else on this thread. Log it as 11 minutes aerobic and 3 minutes calesthenics and 7.5 minutes running at 4MPH. Only this will make you lose weight. I'm right and everyone else is wrong.

    Gotta love MFP.


    "I have a question. Is the sky blue?"

    A: No, it's azure.
    A: No, it's grey
    A: No, it's periwinkle
    A: Did you eat after 7PM? Then, no, it's black.
  • hulkweazel
    hulkweazel Posts: 36 Member
    If I walk to my fridge to get a sandwich, that counts as aerobic exercise, right?

    If I'm driving my car, the time turning the steering wheel should be logged, right?

    brb, all this typing is expending a lot of energy, need to log this as well.

    Come on, people. Whatever happened to ENJOYING things like playing with your dog?
  • KristenE83
    KristenE83 Posts: 187 Member
    I have logged things like that. Although, it is kind of controversial on this site. It all depends on your activity settings. I have mine as sedentary because I work a desk job, so I log things like this. I don't eat back my calories though. I just like to track my activity, so can understand why people want to log this. You could log it as running, just underestimate the time and and speed. That is probably a safe bet. The other day I was going to do a little at-home workout (sit ups/push ups/squats... the usual), but my 19 month old wanted to play, so I dragged him in lol I did the sit-ups holding him and I ran around w/ him and had fun instead of my typical work out. I ended up logging it as low impact aerobics or something like that. Do whatever works for you!


    Edit: Also, if I know I am going to do something random and want to log it, I put on my HRM so I can get an accurate cal burn.

    How could you know if your numbers are accurate or just totally wild guesses if you dont eat them back? Sorry, but your HRM could tell you 12 calories or 12,000 calories and using your method you could log it and have exactly the same results, just with a different number on your screen at the end of the week.

    Well realistically it could be totally wrong, which is why I don't eat back the calories. I personally just like to keep track of things like this from an activity level perspective not an "I'm gonna eat back all fake 1500 calories I just logged cuz I chased my dog for 10 minutes" perspective. It has worked for me so far. To each his/her own I suppose!
  • JustJennie1
    JustJennie1 Posts: 3,749 Member
    Come on, people. Whatever happened to ENJOYING things like playing with your dog?

    She's the one that wanted to know if she should log it and if so as what. There is no problem enjoying playing with your dog but if someone wants to log it as exercise then why not? It's not effecting you or the universe so whatever someone wants to log is their prerogative.
  • MrsSardone
    MrsSardone Posts: 194 Member
    If I'm not breathing heavy, heartrate at peak maximum, red faced and sweaty, for AT LEAST 30 consecutive minutes... I don't log it.
  • jehavin
    jehavin Posts: 316 Member
    OP, it's not that you're not burning calories by playing with your dog. It's not that your muscles and cardiovascular aren't "working."

    The point is that (theoretically, unless you have a HRM and are tracking it,) you are not doing something that is vigorous enough *long* enough to get any fat burning or anaerobic muscle building benefits from it.

    All the "normal" activities are just that: "normal." If they weren't "normal" for you before, then this is a positive life change because walking/jogging/climbing short distances throughout the day, picking up semi-heavy things (like kids/pets/groceries,) and bending/squatting to do housework SHOULD be "normal" for every human being!
  • MoreBean13
    MoreBean13 Posts: 8,701 Member
    I wouldn't log that, its fun, not exercise.

    Wow, so I can't log this either?

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HL28h1SS7qw

    You can log whatever you want to.
  • KenosFeoh
    KenosFeoh Posts: 1,837 Member
    My baseline is set at sedentary, so I log anything that keeps my whole body moving for more than 15 minutes. I don't care who agrees or disagrees, it's my body and my exercise log. If I had kept track of it and knew that I was running around with the dog for a specific amount of time - like 20 minutes - I'd log it as aerobics. If I didn't know, I wouldn't log it and just think of it as a bonus.
  • bhawkj
    bhawkj Posts: 1
    What about playing backyard football with your kids?
  • jimmie65
    jimmie65 Posts: 655 Member
    Come on, people. Whatever happened to ENJOYING things like playing with your dog?

    She's the one that wanted to know if she should log it and if so as what. There is no problem enjoying playing with your dog but if someone wants to log it as exercise then why not? It's not effecting you or the universe so whatever someone wants to log is their prerogative.

    ^^^ This ^^^

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