Logging Everything or only Intentional Workouts?

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  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
    I have a Fitbit so I get credit for the steps I take when I do things like grocery shopping, cleaning house, etc. I do not log these or any intentional walking workouts. Three times a week I go to the pool and swim laps for an hour, then take a water aerobics class for another hour. These I do log.

    I eat back about 1/2 of my Fitbit calories earned and about 1/4 of my logged exercises.
  • SUSIQ25679
    SUSIQ25679 Posts: 4 Member
    For me, purposeful exercise only tracked with a heart rate monitor. I feel the baseline for my activity level covers things like basic daily tasks.
  • Mariachicat
    Mariachicat Posts: 311 Member
    I went roller skating for about 2 hrs yesterday and I logged it. I'm a teacher and on my feet all day, so I feel that that's just my baseline BMR, I don't (usually) log for things like walking my dog or walking around my work building or classroom. I always log gym classes/at home workouts and treadmill/outdoor runs. When I was actively trying to lose weight, I logged less and always gave conservative estimates of calorie burns.
  • Timorous_Beastie
    Timorous_Beastie Posts: 595 Member
    edited January 2015
    When I first started, many years ago, I logged everything. It was motivation to make me be more active, plus I was only at 1200 calories because I listed myself as sedentary and foolishly aimed for two pounds a week (which only happened when I had a stomach flu that week). After a short time, I changed my setting to "lightly active" and only logged actual exercise, or anything above and beyond normal activity. So walking the dog around the block, no. Going for a 4 mile hike with the dog, yes. Cleaning, no. Rearranging furniture, yes. Planting tulip bulbs, no. Digging up the yard and laying patio pavers, yes.

    I had good results with a TDEE approach, too, but right now I'm rehabbing from an injury and it's easier for me to go with a base + exercise calories approach.
  • Khukhullatus
    Khukhullatus Posts: 361 Member
    I don't think it matters so long as you don't end up logging things twice. I have a waitress friend who logs herself as very active at work (which she is), but then also logs her miles walked at work as exercise. I'm male and a head taller than her, and my calorie allotment is often less than hers. Needless to say, she's having trouble losing.
  • lovematthewchristopher
    lovematthewchristopher Posts: 147 Member
    I log my workouts, but i will usually only log my cooking if i am (cooking up a storm). Which means i spend 2 hours or more standing cutting up vegetables and running around the kitchen cooking up soup for the week, etc. I will log extra walking if it is more time then i would usually spend doing it. For example , if i go shopping, and spend hours and hours going around the store or from one store to another, because this is not normal for me.
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