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I now look forward to mowing the lawn

Murph1908
Murph1908 Posts: 125 Member
edited February 21 in Health and Weight Loss
Last night, I got home from work and noticed the lawn was a little shaggy, so I strapped on my HRM and went at it. Banking the 380 the HRM said I burned for tonight's special dinner.

Likely this summer my lawn will be the best kept in the neighborhood. No more, "neighbors haven't mowed yet, I can wait another day" procrastination. I'll be setting the pace. =)

Replies

  • _HeartsOnFire_
    _HeartsOnFire_ Posts: 5,304 Member
    Want to come mow my yard? :laugh: Seriously, I hate doing it...Dang allergies.
  • aribugg
    aribugg Posts: 164 Member
    this is how i look at it! mow the lawn, means thats a day i get to skip the hard part of the workout and just enjoy the yoga.
  • weird_me2
    weird_me2 Posts: 716 Member
    I mowed my lawn this weekend and my DH thanked me. I said don't thank me, I just did it because we are going out to eat, lol! It takes about an hour and a half with a push mower to mow mine and half of my neighbors. It's nice for something different to do and I like how it looks when I'm done. I think we'll have a pretty well kept yard this year, too!
  • Jestinia
    Jestinia Posts: 1,153 Member
    Want to come mow my yard? :laugh: Seriously, I hate doing it...Dang allergies.

    Me too! Come mow my lawn, OP! I won't even charge you anything. It will be like a free gym.
  • parkscs
    parkscs Posts: 1,639 Member
    I find my zero-turn mower helps me enjoy mowing the lawn a lot more than my HRM does. To each their own though. :wink:
  • FlaxMilk
    FlaxMilk Posts: 3,452 Member
    I love mowing the lawn too! :happy:
  • Murph1908
    Murph1908 Posts: 125 Member

    Me too! Come mow my lawn, OP! I won't even charge you anything. It will be like a free gym.

    LOL
  • evileen99
    evileen99 Posts: 1,564 Member
    My husband wants to "help" me by getting a self-propelled mower. I told him if he does that, he's cutting the grass because I love the calorie burn the push mower gives me.
  • jkestens63
    jkestens63 Posts: 1,164 Member
    I love yard work, its something I always enjoyed but as I got heavier, couldn't do it. Now I spend hours just puttering around the yard, mowing a couple times a week, trimming. Love doing it and the fact that I can1
  • thavoice
    thavoice Posts: 1,326 Member
    Not sure if I am the only one who is thinking this....but 380 seems like alot of calories to burn mowing the yard. Maybe a pushmower on a full acre of grass, but seems high.
  • BeauKSU
    BeauKSU Posts: 1 Member
    I feel the same way! I used to HATE doing yard work, and now I just see it as a great way to burn calories...all while doing something productive. I'm sure my opinion might change a bit once the 100 degree weather rolls in, but until then, I'm enjoying it :)
  • thavoice
    thavoice Posts: 1,326 Member
    Question to you all....

    DO you record yard work/work around the house as workouts/calories burned?

    Personally, I dont. To me they are just bonus calories burned on top of any regular workout.

    Seems like what happens to many people who do this seem to get a false reading of what they actually burned, and then eat that back and next thing to know they are at a surplus.
  • lisaabenjamin
    lisaabenjamin Posts: 665 Member
    Question to you all....

    DO you record yard work/work around the house as workouts/calories burned?

    Personally, I dont. To me they are just bonus calories burned on top of any regular workout.

    Seems like what happens to many people who do this seem to get a false reading of what they actually burned, and then eat that back and next thing to know they are at a surplus.

    I tend to record anything that isn't "normal" activity. e.g. my car gets a hand wash once in a blue moon so I will definitely log it!! You don't mow the lawn every day, so unless you are a gardener for a living I don't see the harm in logging it (especially if you are using a HRM).

    Unfortunately my lawn is approximately the size of a postage stamp, so I doubt I would burn too many calories!!
  • jlapey
    jlapey Posts: 1,850 Member
    If you want to burn some serious calories, rake leaves. I have three oak trees. Lots of exercise.
  • Murph1908
    Murph1908 Posts: 125 Member
    Not sure if I am the only one who is thinking this....but 380 seems like alot of calories to burn mowing the yard. Maybe a pushmower on a full acre of grass, but seems high.

    Push mower, not self-propelled. Hilly yard, so it includes quite a bit of up and down. Bagging the clippings, which needs to be done 3 times. Currently 240 pounds.

    MFP's estimate for me mowing for 38 minutes is 380. Took me about 45.

    If I just walk for 45 minutes at 3 miles an hour, that's walking 2.25 miles. A treadmill put me at 135 calories for walking a mile at that pace. That's 303 calories on a level surface and not pushing anything.
  • evileen99
    evileen99 Posts: 1,564 Member
    Question to you all....

    DO you record yard work/work around the house as workouts/calories burned?

    Personally, I dont. To me they are just bonus calories burned on top of any regular workout.

    Seems like what happens to many people who do this seem to get a false reading of what they actually burned, and then eat that back and next thing to know they are at a surplus.

    You bet. I wear a BodyMedia Fit, and I can easily burn 350 calories an hour gardening, mowing, etc. Do that for a couple of hours and THEN tell me you don't think it counts as a workout.
  • Murph1908
    Murph1908 Posts: 125 Member
    If you want to burn some serious calories, rake leaves. I have three oak trees. Lots of exercise.

    We get a ton of leaves too. So many, that I just mow them up and bag them.

    Regarding the question above about actually logging such things, for me it really depends. Anything that's 100 or so, I'll tend to just leave there as buffer for bad food estimates. A quick shoveling of the walk that takes 10 minutes, for example.

    But significant items, like mowing the lawn or a big driveway snow clearing that takes me an hour, I'll log and factor in. But usually (even with the HRM now) I won't eat all of it back. Of that 380, I'll probably eat 250 of it tonight.
  • thavoice
    thavoice Posts: 1,326 Member
    Question to you all....

    DO you record yard work/work around the house as workouts/calories burned?

    Personally, I dont. To me they are just bonus calories burned on top of any regular workout.

    Seems like what happens to many people who do this seem to get a false reading of what they actually burned, and then eat that back and next thing to know they are at a surplus.

    You bet. I wear a BodyMedia Fit, and I can easily burn 350 calories an hour gardening, mowing, etc. Do that for a couple of hours and THEN tell me you don't think it counts as a workout.
    I never said it doesnt burn anything. Heck I just did alot of work out in the yard, loading two trailers of mulch, and then spreading it around teh house and trees.

    I dont log it as exercise or eat them back as I look at that as bonus calories burned on top of regular workouts.

    Doesnt matter though...some do, and some dont. I just look at it as an added, built in bonus.
This discussion has been closed.

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