"...and was under her calorie goal" irks me. You too?

"Now what irks me is the WTGs & awesome comments on peoples workouts that burn less than 500 calories. Things like walking the dog, cleaning the house, washing the car and even more so when I see its a younger person."

I have to disagree with this. For some people, this may be the most exercise of any kind they have done. This needs to be recognized and encouraged. Not everyone can burn 1000-2000 cal when they first start. Any cal burned are a victory.

Too, I am usually under my calories by about 200-300, but not always. I have a LOT of weight to lose and have set my goal for 1 1/2 lb per week. The 200-300 cal I don't eat is around my calorie goal for 2 lb/week loss. I did this deliberately so if i eat more some days and go over my 2 lb/week loss cal amt, I don't feel guilty and start the tapes rolling in my head.

Off topic, but i love your lady bug! How did u do that?

I am guilty of being one of those who is ALWAYS under my calorie goal. Consider the factors, my calories are set at 1400 per day. I workout 6 days a week and burn between 1000-2000+ calories per workout. There is no way that I am going to eat my 1400 per day plus my workout calories so I will always be under my goal.

Now what irks me is the WTGs & awesome comments on peoples workouts that burn less than 500 calories. Things like walking the dog, cleaning the house, washing the car and even more so when I see its a younger person.

^^ This, exactly. My biggest pet peeve is people who log "doing laundry" or "vacuuming" - if it didn't help you lose weight before changing to a healthy lifestyle, why would it help you now? I don't even bother logging anything that lasts less than 30 minutes or doesn't cause me to work up a sweat - those are just bonus calories burned.

While I agree that general chores aren't a workout ( and I would NEVER log them), just because you didn't burn 500 or more calories doesn't mean you didn't accomplish something. To someone just starting out, and especially if that someone is very obese and is brand new to exercise, burning even 100 calories is a big deal and very difficult.

Have some compassion and understanding. Not everyone is on the same level here.

I get up every morning and my exercises last about 30 mins (Im currently doing JM 30 DS). Am I burning a ka-zillion calories doing that? Around 220...do I feel like a failure because I didn't burn over 500? NO!!! Sometimes those 30 mins is all I get because once my kids are up, Im lucky if I get more than that in. I do try, but sometimes I don't succeed!

I don't log cleaning, but Im burning something when Im up and down (steep) stairs more times than I can count and lugging laundry baskets full of clothes. I purposely use the u/s bathroom so Im going up the stairs...yet one more time. I even jog from room to room as I do my chores. And I enjoy taking my dog for walks. We are gone for at least 40 mins...hills and all and I get a pretty darn good work out with that as well.

Who cares what people are doing (whether or not you consider it exercise) and what they are burning....as long as they are doing something! I guess that's what irks me. When people make others feel inferior!

As far as being under calories..Im that person. Sometimes barely under, other times 2-300 calories under. I don't go out of my way to do that and I don't do it on purpose. More often and then not, Im just not hungry any more and no longer have an appetite, so the journal is closed and Im done for the night.

I am guilty of being one of those who is ALWAYS under my calorie goal. Consider the factors, my calories are set at 1400 per day. I workout 6 days a week and burn between 1000-2000+ calories per workout. There is no way that I am going to eat my 1400 per day plus my workout calories so I will always be under my goal.

Now what irks me is the WTGs & awesome comments on peoples workouts that burn less than 500 calories. Things like walking the dog, cleaning the house, washing the car and even more so when I see its a younger person.

^^ This, exactly. My biggest pet peeve is people who log "doing laundry" or "vacuuming" - if it didn't help you lose weight before changing to a healthy lifestyle, why would it help you now? I don't even bother logging anything that lasts less than 30 minutes or doesn't cause me to work up a sweat - those are just bonus calories burned.

While I agree that general chores aren't a workout ( and I would NEVER log them), just because you didn't burn 500 or more calories doesn't mean you didn't accomplish something. To someone just starting out, and especially if that someone is very obese and is brand new to exercise, burning even 100 calories is a big deal and very difficult.

Have some compassion and understanding. Not everyone is on the same level here.

I get up every morning and my exercises last about 30 mins (Im currently doing JM 30 DS). Am I burning a ka-zillion calories doing that? Around 220...do I feel like a failure because I didn't burn over 500? NO!!! Sometimes those 30 mins is all I get because once my kids are up, Im lucky if I get more than that in. I do try, but sometimes I don't succeed!

I don't log cleaning, but Im burning something when Im up and down (steep) stairs more times than I can count and lugging laundry baskets full of clothes. I purposely use the u/s bathroom so Im going up the stairs...yet one more time. I even jog from room to room as I do my chores. And I enjoy taking my dog for walks. We are gone for at least 40 mins...hills and all and I get a pretty darn good work out with that as well.

Who cares what people are doing (whether or not you consider it exercise) and what they are burning....as long as they are doing something! I guess that's what irks me. When people make others feel inferior!

As far as being under calories..Im that person. Sometimes barely under, other times 2-300 calories under. I don't go out of my way to do that and I don't do it on purpose. More often and then not, Im just not hungry any more and no longer have an appetite, so the journal is closed and Im done for the night.

Okay first of all, I never in any way was "looking down" on anyone, nor did I say people who logged chores weren't doing something valuable with their time. What I meant (and said, although I guess that's up to interpretation) is that logging everyday chores leads to a slippery slope of misjudging what you ACTUALLY eat/burn throughout the day. I admire people who have the courage to start a new lifestyle and get healthy and in no way look down on them at all - I think it's awesome. The reason I know logging chores is dangerous is because I'm guilty of doing the same thing! It can be very tempting to try and fluff up my "calories burned" total.

And for what it's worth, I'm also a petite female with very little time for exercise, so it's a rare day if I burn more than 500 calories in one session. Sheesh people, we're all on the same team here - working towards a healthy lifestyle. This is a rant thread, after all.

I would definitely like to see the message changed to reflect being within 5% of your goal.

For 1200 calories, you would have a range of 1140-1260. Gives you a little wiggle room for the "WTGs" to happen.
For 1500: 1425-1575
For 2000: 1900-2100

It's not a huge window. You can't eat a whole pizza and get under, but some days you go over by just a few. The 5% window would give the WTG message when you get close to your calorie goal for the day. You would no longer see WTGs for people who eat less than half their calories. We shouldn't be encouraging that at all.

^ This is an excellent idea!

I do think a better system would congratulate you if you were within a certain percentage of your goal either way (say 5 to 10% up or down) since it is impossible to ever hit your goal exactly.

I have been thinking the same thing!! within 5-10% is a reasonable accomplishment. I make a habit of NOT commenting on anyone's food diary unless they've specifically asked for suggestions. I do my best to encourage each and every friend as they post their exercise as I feel that is a huge accomplishment (this is a personal feeling because I know it's hard for ME to get motivated so i presume it is for others as well and want them to feel the support).

Sure I can see how it "irks" people who have been on here awhile. But for me as a newbie I love it!. It's a friendly reminder that you did good today. You logged your food and are within your means. Better than what you were doing when you weren't accountable for your food intake. Also the " if everyday was like today" part is great! I get excited to know that yes if I stick with this then I will weigh less in 5 weeks and approx how much (ie 10lbs less). And on a day when I go over, it also is a reminder that hey don't eat like this everyday if you want to lose that 10lbs in 5 weeks. On a different note, I wonder how much being "under" is bad for me? At what point does my body know when to "burn" and when to "store". I try to only be under calories the same amount I did for exercise. Unless I want to give into a craving without feeling guilty, then I "use" those exercise calories.