Waiting tables...exercise?

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SenoraMacias
SenoraMacias Posts: 305 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Is waiting tables considered exercise? In a busy restaurant, you are on your feet for hours, carrying things, and sweating! Is that exercise? If so, how would you log it?

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  • MB_Positif
    MB_Positif Posts: 8,897 Member
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    I would only log it if your activity level is set to sedentary. If it's you job and you have your activity level set as active, then it's already being accounted for in your goals given by MFP. If I were going to log it I would probably just log it as walking maybe 3 mph, because when I used to waitress I moved fast!
  • haeden
    haeden Posts: 183 Member
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    i work twelve hour shifts at a hospital so im running and sweating for about 11 of those so what i do is log that i walked fast paced for about an hr.is kind of an understatement but i do get some extra calories because i get hungry!
  • beccarockslife
    beccarockslife Posts: 816 Member
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    I would only log it if your activity level is set to sedentary. If it's you job and you have your activity level set as active, then it's already being accounted for in your goals given by MFP. If I were going to log it I would probably just log it as walking maybe 3 mph, because when I used to waitress I moved fast!

    WSS ^
  • Schraudt814
    Schraudt814 Posts: 496 Member
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    I work in an office most of the time, but I do wait tables occasionally. I log it as walking at a slow pace like 3 mph and usually for half the time that I worked. So if I worked 3 hours, I log it as 90 minutes to account for time not moving and such
  • triski73
    triski73 Posts: 50 Member
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    coming to this really late. What about listing it as cleaning, light effort? I bartend and I sure do a lot of cleaning during the night in addition to waiting tables.
  • callsitlikeiseeit
    callsitlikeiseeit Posts: 8,627 Member
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    if its your JOB it should be counted in your daily activity level, not as exercise.
  • shadowfax_c11
    shadowfax_c11 Posts: 1,942 Member
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    Your job is part of your daily activity. Same sas cleaning house and going grocery shopping. Set your activity level to active or highly active and MFP will count it into your TDEE. Wearing a fitness tracker will give you a more accurate estimate of your daily burn. I used to work in restaurants and currently have a job that has me on my feet moving all day.
  • RosieRose7673
    RosieRose7673 Posts: 438 Member
    edited April 2016
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    I was a server for 8 years. When it's busy, you work your butt off! It just seems too tedious to try to calculate calories burned by entering it into MFP (unless you have a Fitbit, Apple Watch, etc).

    I would just enter your activity level as active and add any above and beyond intentional exercise that you do!
  • Larissa_NY
    Larissa_NY Posts: 495 Member
    edited April 2016
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    Did you get overweight doing it? Then you won't lose by deciding it's exercise now and you should get more food as a reward.

    Edit: my god, I just noticed the original post was five years ago. I'm pretty sure the OP has made up their mind one way or another by now. Sorry for my contribution to keeping a particularly stinky necro thread going.
  • JackieMarie1989jgw
    JackieMarie1989jgw Posts: 230 Member
    edited April 2016
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    I'm an ER nurse and spend 12 hours on my feet running around, different job but similar level of activity, probably. I dont log it as exercise. I just have my activity level set to "lightly active" so it is already giving me extra calories for it. I have it as "lightly active" instead of "active" because I am mostly sedentary on my days off. This has worked for me, I feel like I am eating enough but have been able to lose weight.
  • JackieMarie1989jgw
    JackieMarie1989jgw Posts: 230 Member
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    Just realized this is a zombie thread.oops.
  • singingflutelady
    singingflutelady Posts: 8,736 Member
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    Yup a necro thread.. 5 years old
  • booksandchocolate12
    booksandchocolate12 Posts: 1,741 Member
    edited April 2016
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    callsitlikeiseeit wrote: »
    if its your JOB it should be counted in your daily activity level, not as exercise.

    ^^This. Set your activity level to "active" and don't count it as exercise.

    ETA: Damn. Didn't read the whole thread and just now see that it's a zombie.

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