Logging 'food preparation?' /rant

I don't count stuff that I do on a daily basis, becuase my body is already used to burning those calories - but, for example, raking leaves and shoveling snow are things I don't ordinarily do that do provide a nice burn. Last fall when I raked leaves, I realized that I hadn't been working out all of my arm muscles, because I was sore in the upper arms and back the next day. A couple of years ago my town got almost two feet of snow over about 18 hours. I spent four hours SHOVELING (not snow blowing) layers of snow off the walk at not only my house, but seven of my neighbors' houses, and THEN we shoveled out close to 15 cars so they could be moved for the plow (which was difficult because the guy kept coming by and plowing us back in), and then walked a block through more snow to shovel out an elderly neighbor. I'm pretty sure that counts as a workout.

As for logging "food preparation," I don't log it when I'm making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich or something normal; I log it when I'm spending 30-45 minutes cooking, ESPECIALLY when I make cakes. The logic is as follows: I am a sitter; I like to do everything sitting down. When I make food, I'm standing up - which is already burning more calories than I normally do - but then I'm also moving around. I'm back and forth between drawers and bowls and the fridge and the cabinet. I also don't have a mixer (hand or stand mixer) so I mix all of my batters by hand. This may have been normal for my great grandmothers (and seeing how chunky my dad's side of the family is, I'm guessing his grandmothers had excellent arm muscles), but for me, stiring batter until it's all mixed in and clump-free is a decent arm workout - and I get both arms involved because it can be tiring.

When I joined MFP, I thought the idea of considering a day-to-day activity (like walking from the car to the house) an "exercise" was silly - but you have to realize that there are people who eat out three meals a day or don't leave the house very often and these small things actually do have an impact on them. You should also realize that there are people who log it as part of work; I was the cashier at a slow, yet seriously understaffed pizza place -- meaning that if we got an order for anything more than 2-3 pizzas at a time, I was also the cook, and sometimes the back-up delivery person. I could be running back and forth between phone calls and three different kitchens (one for pizza, one for salads and sandwiches, and the third for pastas and fried foods - and I mean run, because you can't miss a call or burn the food). While the average person shouldn't fool him/herself by including "food preparation" as a daily activity, it's hardly going to make a difference, because I'm guessing most people only spend as much time "prepping food" as it takes to make one meal. In other words, they probably don't get much out of logging it, because it's a small burn. All the same, if it bothers you that much, delete the people who do that.

You burned approximately 5 calories typing this message. Assuming it took you around 5 minutes to type this, that is.

you should probably log that.

:laugh:

You burned approximately 5 calories typing this message. Assuming it took you around 5 minutes to type this, that is.

you should probably log that.

:laugh:

Madam, you just burned 1.3 calories per a minute of laughter right there.

Add that to your writing and that response and we are looking at a whole 2.3 calories!!! Way to go!!!

Am I 'allowed' to log shoveling 8" of snow off two driveways?*














*Just kidding. I'm not really asking. I'll log whatever the hell I please.

OK, I understand, but say someone weighs 300+ pounds, and really normally does NOTHING, all day. ANYTHING that they start doing, ie food prep, house work, is a plus to them. You can't judge someone else because you don't live their lives. And like someone else said...IF they are cheating anyone, its themselves....not you.
Its ok to rant...lol...I do it all the time :bigsmile:

Exactly...Maybe it's a big deal for someone very heavy and inactive. Every movement counts for them! More power to them!!

^^This

Up until last November, I was in an office job, sitting on my *kitten* for 8-10 hours a day. ANY activity would be more than I did then. Now, I am a homemaker, doing things I didn't do normally. (Sorry folks, but housecleaning was done by my hubby until he went back to work - not me...)

If I'm hurting myself, so be it... But, down 27 pounds in the short period of time is no small feat... AND that's with logging the "silly" things like housecleaning and food prep (where it is a lot of chopping, mixing, blah blah blah...) Oh, and I don't log to eat the calories back... That, to me, would be counterproductive.

There are some on here who will have their activity set to sedentary because of disability, so walking up the stairs for example could be a workout in itself for some.

But you can giggle at this one, I've logged grating fresh horseradish before because it was massive and it took my 20 mins on a micro grater!! I burned something like 70 cals as I was wearing my heartrate monitor!!

I burn a lot of calories peeling an orange. You guys must be doing something wrong!

I can't even explain it other than they are trying to make themselves feel better!! I mean those burned calories should have been calculated in the BMR... I could understand if you over did something in a day ... like did stairs at the Empire State Building... but not the two minutes you spent going up and down steps... Wow - so I can log in my running around office to give the phone to someone? NO - I will log in when I work in shipping area or do heavier cleaning or the cleaning at work, more so I know I did it... burning more calories then I do in a "normal" work day, or did beyond daily cleaning I did - like scrub floors on hands and knees...

I can't make you laugh other than remember they are special people! Just like the ones who eat "fish and chips" and McDonald's and whatever other things those of us who are serious about our efforts... so sit back and read it and say - wow - glad you brushed your teeth today because they must not do it every day!

I usually log whenever I clean the house or something, but what you mentioned is just too much. You burn calories throughout the day in everything you do.

Haven't seen that - pretty funny...

Maybe it was something super intense, like butchering a camel.

Or grinding sausage meat by hand.

Or squeezing a tonne of oranges by hand.

Or pulping grapes for wine by stamping on them.

Or kneading a massive amount of dough for one hour.

Or...ok, I'm just getting carried away now. I don't actually think it was any of those things, but it was fun to think about what would be worth logging.

you eat camel?

BWAHHHAhahahahhaha


Though kneading dough for only TEN MINUTES a day these past couple weeks has actually made a noticeable difference in my arms. But that says more about my wet-noodle arms than it does about kneading dough. ANd I'm certainly not going to log it as exercise, or I'd have an excuse to eat loaves and loaves of warm bread instead of normal pieces ;p

Just wow.

I wouldn't think to log it personally but like some people have said here, the people logging might be 90% immobile so any activity is good.

However.... If we are talking someone under 200lbs as a woman then they need to get a grip.