do you count walking?

17746991
17746991 Posts: 35
in Fitness and Exercise
hi
I was wondering if I should count walking in my exercise for the day
I walk about an hour a day to and from uni and I log this
yet I don't count the 8hrs I spend walking around at work other days
i think i log the hour because it is purposeful and the walking at work is just incidental to the job
so which should i count if any? or do you not count walking at all
and i do other exercise too.
thanks

Replies

  • Shelgirl001
    Shelgirl001 Posts: 477 Member
    Do you wear a heart rate monitor? It will let you know what you burn for calories, then you can be more aware of what you do that helps you to burn calories. I have worn one at work and when I am walking otherwise, also. It is a more accurate representation of your own personal journey.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 49,021 Member
    If it's not "everyday" walking like at work or at home. Intentional walking for exercise should be counted.

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  • Timshel_
    Timshel_ Posts: 22,834 Member
    If you set your caloric intake based on sedentary, walking extra like that could be counted. If you set it as active it is already accounted for.

    I only count things that raise my heart rate and that I do for more than 30 minute continuously. Others do it differently.
  • besaro
    besaro Posts: 1,858 Member
    i have my base set at sedentary so yes I log my walks to and from work. When I first started one of my biggest forms of exercise was walking. You will have to decide what makes sense for you.
  • 2essie
    2essie Posts: 2,853 Member
    I count walking if it is as you say 'purposeful'.

    I have two dogs that I have to walk each day but I don't log that because it is all stop and start with them sniffing. I know you can log an exercise that says '3 miles per hour walking dog'. Some dogs may walk at 3 miles per hour but mine don't. I just count the miles I walk on my own and then eat about half back. Seems to work for me.


    url=http://www.myfitnesspal.com/weight-loss-ticker]25436425.png[/url]
  • mustgetmuscles1
    mustgetmuscles1 Posts: 3,346 Member
    I agree with ninerbuff.

    You could count it in your activity level if it is something you do everyday though. Wont make a huge difference unless you stop doing it or only do it a few times per week.
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    You spend 8 hrs walking at work other days?

    Then if you selected Sedentary as your non-exercise daily activity, doesn't sound right.

    Select Lightly Active, then don't count the walking at Uni, because that'll perhaps get close to the walking at work other 8 hr days.

    You can either include the normal regular stuff in your daily activity level, or add it in later - same result.
    You burn more each day than sedentary, and acknowledge that fact by your option.
  • ingehooper
    ingehooper Posts: 37 Member
    Iv chosen lightly active for myself. Im a stay at home mum to two boy 3 and 2 yrs old and am quite active during the day. I only log workouts though but days I walk alot more then usual I will eat a little more if I need to. If you are quite active during the day go with lightly active as a level x
  • KANGOOJUMPS
    KANGOOJUMPS Posts: 6,474 Member
    HELL YES,,, race walking is WONDERFUL!
  • elliej
    elliej Posts: 466 Member
    My rule is that I only count stuff that I didn't do while I was fatter.

    Did I walk around the supermarket? Yes, I don't count it. Did I go on 3 hour walks in the countryside? No, so I'll count that. Nothing under an hour though.
  • WelshPhil1975
    WelshPhil1975 Posts: 138 Member
    I wear my fitbit 24/7 and that counts the steps & gives a calorie adjustment. The only drawback is that it obviously counts "normal" walking that could be, say, from bed to bathroom, etc, but overall I do 4-5 miles per day so I just erly on it to give me the overall count/calories. I try to eat as little calores back though, I just use them as a buffer.
  • astronomicals
    astronomicals Posts: 1,537 Member
    log consistently; adjust accordingly

  • silburnl
    silburnl Posts: 2 Member
    I suggest that you use a pedometer to figure out how much 'non-purposeful' walking around you do as part of your everyday routine and use that figure to set your activity level in MyFitnessPal - then record any 'purposeful' walking you do beyond that as exercise.

    The mapping between steps-per-day and activity level is:

    <5000 = sedentary
    5000-7500 = low active
    7500-10000 = somewhat active
    10000-12500 = active
    >12500 = highly active

    Regards
    Luke
  • yoovie
    yoovie Posts: 17,121 Member
    I count it because of 3 reasons

    #1) I do at least 6 miles a day - except on days that are really bad where I only do 3. But since I tend to do about 9 on Saturday, I don't sweat it too much.

    #2) It lends itself to my training. I need to maintain steady state cardio and build my muscular endurance, so I go for an hour and a half - it's a bit different than logging a 10 minute clip around my block or something.

    #3) 10K a day means I need more fuel than if I ignored that burn. So I log it to remind myself that I did expend an extra few hundred calories and should therefore, eat them all.
  • yoovie
    yoovie Posts: 17,121 Member
    lol i wonder if I got a pedometer if it would quit when it found out i dont have a car.
  • stonegirldancing42
    stonegirldancing42 Posts: 76 Member
    I also eat half back from my walks. I also walk 3mph, but log 2mph. But, I also know my heart rate doesn't go up that high because I'm so used to walking.
  • berz82
    berz82 Posts: 100 Member
    i wouldnt count walking,youre always walking that should be part of your lifestyle.
  • shadowofender
    shadowofender Posts: 786 Member
    I work a desk job, and I walk across the street to CVS sometimes. If it's a walk to that building, or around my job, or at home, no because that's normal activity level.

    If I decide on one of my breaks to walk the mile loop around my building, I count it because it's not part of my norm.
  • 50sFit
    50sFit Posts: 712 Member
    edited October 2014
    Kate17746991 wrote: »
    hi
    I was wondering if I should count walking in my exercise for the day
    Yes for sustained walking, but call it "hiking"... :)
    That just has a better ring to it. As for daily activity, either use a pedometer, or just set your MFP activity level: sedentary - low active - somewhat active - active - highly active
    - It's here:
    - http://www.myfitnesspal.com/account/change_goals_guided
    Good Luck!
    <3
  • k8blujay2
    k8blujay2 Posts: 4,941 Member
    My fitbit counts my walking for me.
  • jennifer_417
    jennifer_417 Posts: 12,344 Member
    Yep, I count it.
  • davert123
    davert123 Posts: 1,568 Member
    I would use a pedometer and see how much you are doing. I try and keep a constant calorie deficit so I want to know how much I burn. I use a pedometer on my phone and work out how many calories I burn from walking. I put my activity to sedentary and remove the first 150 calories I measure on the pedometer as I am assuming that this should go towards the activity included in the sedentary level on MFP
  • jaggerjia
    jaggerjia Posts: 51
    One of the best ideas i've heard on here is not to count things that you did before you started watching/tracking, i.e... grocery shopping, mowing the lawn, walking for work, things that are not a change. i thought that was a great way to think about it.
  • squishycatmew
    squishycatmew Posts: 151 Member
    My Fitbit counts the walking for me, but quite frankly I almost never eat back exercise calories (I'm functioning more like I'm doing TDEE, though I haven't made any specific calculations). I'm set at "lightly active" but can easily hit more than 10,000 steps per day. If you're specifically walking and you have the option not to, I would count that *or* calibrate you MFP settings to account for the fact that you are that active.
  • ILiftHeavyAcrylics
    ILiftHeavyAcrylics Posts: 27,732 Member
    I have a fitbit now so it counts steps and adjusts my calorie goal.

    But before that I set my activity level to lightly active and then I only logged walking that I did above and beyond normal daily activity. I always ate back the calories and it worked well.

    If you're going to wear a device all day, it needs to be a device that's intended to be worn all day. Most heart rate monitors are only accurate for steady state cardio, so wearing them for 24 hours isn't going to give you an accurate reading. There are devices that are intended to be worn all day though so if you want something like that I believe fitbit, Body Media Fit, and maybe Body Bugg (is that one still around?) would be some available choices.
  • tinapi96
    tinapi96 Posts: 112 Member
    I do not count ordinary walking, only, like others said, walking as purposeful exercise. To me, if you are walking to exercise you are walking at the high end of your speed and ability. Now, if you are hoofing it quickly and purposefully from university to home, then it should be counted.
  • claraoswold
    claraoswold Posts: 89 Member
    The mfp app has a pedometer that links with your phone. I just keep my phone in my pocket and it adjusts my steps and activity level accordingly.

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