Walking as a normal part of your day recorded?

Audji84
Audji84 Posts: 3
in Fitness and Exercise
Hi,

I was just wondering if anyone here includes walking(any pace) that occurs throughout your day in your excercise diary? I have a desk job, but when I do get up from my desk to go somewhere I walk at a pretty brisk pace. Also, if you are shopping and walking around a store at a moderate pace could that also be included? I am unsure if this is really excercise or not?

Thanks a lot!

Audrey:flowerforyou:

Replies

  • Timshel_
    Timshel_ Posts: 22,834 Member
    I only included things beyond everyday stuff. I do 2 power walks each day (15 minutes, 1 mile) They are additional "workouts" I do beyond normal walking.
  • blondemom1979
    blondemom1979 Posts: 64 Member
    I'm a waitress and I don't include any of my at work on my feet time. I do include when I walk to work because its about a half hour walk. I also included housework in my log today because it was heavy duty cleaning and someone else on my list had logged it a few days ago so I thought what the heck lol.
  • lsjd2000
    lsjd2000 Posts: 287 Member
    In a way I do - I wear a Fitbit so it counts all my steps - though if my diary says I have calories from my fitbit I acknowledge them but I don't count them as exercise calories just extra that I may have burned - my days vary whether I am at work, home, or school so the amount I walk each day can vary from 2,000 to 12,000 steps (with the high end being at work)
  • jehavin
    jehavin Posts: 316 Member
    In my opinion, if an exercise is not heart-raising (above 65% of your max heart rate, measured by a hrm not just by "being out breath,") for at least 15-20 consecutive minutes, then it is not something I would log. UNLESS I was doing it to track a "movement goal" (aka a certain number of steps I wanted to try and reach,).

    Logging exercise is a good tool to gauge your calorie needs. If a person is doing a half hour of intense exercise (about 250-400 cals) or an hour of light sustained (about the same) then they need to consume more calories. Not doing so will mean that their body won't have enough calories to keep up that activity level or halt their weight loss. Walking in short spurts without sustained heartraise is going to burn under 30 cal (max!) and so it won't add up to enough to do anything but trick you into eating more calories. And, if your estimate is off, an extra 100-150 calories a day can really impede/halt your weight loss.

    So, in my opinion, move/walk more, feel proud, but don't include it in your calorie tally. Good luck in all you do!
  • tedinger4given
    tedinger4given Posts: 12 Member
    I work on my feet 6 to 10 hours a day, I do add 120 minutes per day at a slow pace 2.0 as excercise, it is counted on my pedometer. I also add my walking for my normal excercise walk at home vidoes. There is a selection for shopping and cleaning as part of your calories burned. I figure if you are doing it you might as well use it as a small portion of your daily exercise, it may not raise your heart rate but you are moving.
  • BigAndTallSection
    BigAndTallSection Posts: 46 Member
    In a way I do - I wear a Fitbit so it counts all my steps - though if my diary says I have calories from my fitbit I acknowledge them but I don't count them as exercise calories just extra that I may have burned - my days vary whether I am at work, home, or school so the amount I walk each day can vary from 2,000 to 12,000 steps (with the high end being at work)
    Kind of the same boat for me. I have Body Media that does the same thing but it does count moderate activity. Now I never see it count things like walking to or from the car to go into the bank or something like that but if I walk around the mall or something like that it does count it.

    It actually amazes me at what it seems to know sometimes.
  • Warchortle
    Warchortle Posts: 2,197 Member
    If it's a normal part of your day, it's not added exercise because it's been adjusted into your BMR. Through homeostasis the body will become accustomed to a certain routine which is why dynamic training and changing programs every once in a while can help keep your workouts effective. If you however only walk 3-4 days extensively I could consider that exercise if you set your BMR to sedentary and you actually are sedentary like in an office job or at home the rest of the time.
  • runfatmanrun
    runfatmanrun Posts: 1,090 Member
    I walk a mile plus every day to and from work. I just counted that as part of my daily activity level and don't add that as exercise. Still gives you a calorie boost that way too.
  • slimnicola01
    slimnicola01 Posts: 38
    I did today as a first because I really want that Friday glass of wine, but please note I did actually get up from my desk and walk for 30 minutes didnt guess, also my legs are way too sore from run yesterday to do more........mmm Friday's :wink:

    Usually no - I just walk while shinning halo :smile:
  • lausa22
    lausa22 Posts: 467 Member
    I don't include the half an hour walk to University, nor the half an hour back. I don't include any walking I do, because it's part of my every day routine, like going the shop or the train station.
    Probably the only time I'd record walking was if I went on an extremely long walk, like 2+ hours.
  • avababy05
    avababy05 Posts: 930 Member
    I record the time allot for an actual workout.

    A few times a day I'll burst into spontanious exercise,jumping jacks here and there,running in place,running up and down stairs for a few minutes.I don't record that either but it probably adds up to another 100-200 calories a day.
  • Okapi42
    Okapi42 Posts: 495 Member
    I wear a pedometer and count the steps as exercise - though I use the calories the pedometer gives me, not MFP's, they're too high.

    I have myself set to "sedentary", but that's not true at all. I spend most of the day walking at work (I'm a ranger). Today, it was raining, so I only did 13.5km, but it can be loads more some days...

    I find it more accurate than just saying I'm "active", this way, I have to put in more effort on my days off, too.
  • pinkraynedropjacki
    pinkraynedropjacki Posts: 3,027 Member
    Yeah walking is extra....it's what I do every day but it's counted as extra because I walk so damn much. But if you are just getting up to go to the toilet or something like that, then no.
  • freelancejouster
    freelancejouster Posts: 478 Member
    I only record things that go outside of what I would do on a normal day. I walk every day to class, at least two miles over the day, but I don't count it because I would have to do that anyway. But today my boyfriend was teaching me skateboarding for an hour, so I counted the portion of it I spent not falling off, hahah. And earlier this week, I had to go to the bank, which is at least a 5 min walk off campus, so I counted that.
  • matt_durell
    matt_durell Posts: 3 Member
    I too use a FitBit and use whatever calories it reports. My experience when compared with a HRM is that the FitBit does a really good job at determining calories burned and activity level for most day-to-day movement. Using the HRM when elevating the heart rate has proven to be more accurate but the FitBit does a respectable job when mixing brisk walking with stairs. I'd say it's maybe 15% under what the HRM calculates. They report almost identical numbers when walking on reasonably flat terrain.

    I would highly recommend a FitBit (or any pedometer really but the Fitbit really has some nice value add for the extra cash). I'm more about changing long-term habits rather than simply "going to the gym more." I found that I was GROSSLY overestimating my activity level before the FitBit. Wearing one is easy and it syncs automatically so you don't have to think about it at all. I keep an eye on mine throughout the day and if I'm lower then where I should be I take a brisk walk.

    If I didn't have the FitBit I'm sure I wouldn't bother with counting calories from a few steps here or there. But I also wouldn't care without the data to show me how sedentary I really am to even keep track of anything at all.
  • rockerbabyy
    rockerbabyy Posts: 2,258 Member
    i dont, because i did those things before i started losing weight and they didnt make a bit of difference.
    when my kids first started school and i walked them, i would log it (1.5 miles round trip in about 25 minutes) but after it became part of my routine, i just upped my activity level to include it and stopping logging it as exercise. i do log walking if we decide to walk around the lake, but not just walking the kids to the park or shopping or taking the stairs at the doctors office.
  • hedwardsb
    hedwardsb Posts: 201 Member
    Since I got my fitbit, I don't log any exercise. I eat as many of my fitbit calories as I want, and when I've gone over, it's inspired me to walk or run up & down the stairs until I'm back in the green.
  • sleepyotter
    sleepyotter Posts: 76 Member
    I usually do record it, yeah. I'm on my feet a lot, so I usually guess how long I spent walking around all day. I just put it in as a very slow-paced walk.
  • NikoM5
    NikoM5 Posts: 488 Member
    No. If it's part of work, shopping, cleaning, or anything like that then it's not counted. You account for this in when you setup your daily activity level in your profile.
  • hedwardsb
    hedwardsb Posts: 201 Member
    Since I got my fitbit, I don't log any exercise. I eat as many of my fitbit calories as I want, and when I've gone over, it's inspired me to walk or run up & down the stairs until I'm back in the green.

    I want to add that before the fitbit, I only logged gym exercises or walks I would not usually take. At that time, I had my daily activity level set as lightly active because I'm a teacher. Once I began using the fitbit, I changed my activity level to sedentary, so the steps I take aren't included in my lifestyle settings.
  • gracielynn1011
    gracielynn1011 Posts: 726 Member
    I only count it if it is not part of my normal routine. For example, I do not eat my exercise calories back on a daily basis, because I am counting food intake according to my TDEE at a lightly active level. But a few days per month I spend 2-3 hours cooking and serving a large meal at my kids school. I do log that and I eat back those calories as needed if I am hungry.

    Another example, at work I am mostly at a desk with occational trips around the office. Some times though, I am called on to help clean, so I spend 5-6 hours that day doing vigorous cleaning. I log it as 2 hours, and eat those back as needed also.

    These are examples of what I do, others may do things differently. You have to try it and decide what works for you.
  • lithezebra
    lithezebra Posts: 3,670 Member
    It depends on whether you count your daily walking toward your activity level or not. If you call yourself "sedentary," you could count the walking you do. If you call yourself "active," you should probably assume that your daily walking is just part of that increased caloric need.
  • Hbazzell
    Hbazzell Posts: 899 Member
    I set my activity level to sedentary and I log all the walks I go on to make up for that. I don't log walking from desk to desk or at the grocery store. Just walking the dog and stuff like that. I think it depends on what activity level you choose.

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