Do you track your shopping expeditions?

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hmhill17
hmhill17 Posts: 283 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I'm sedentary, so pretty much anything past 2k steps is extra. I've been up 6 hours and have 1k steps, which included going to the grocery store for a few things and watering the school garden. Weekly grocery shopping takes about an hour and, I', guessing 2k steps. The calorie calculators I've seen that even mention it put it at the same METS as walking 2mph.

So would you track it or leave it?

Replies

  • NorthCascades
    NorthCascades Posts: 10,970 Member
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    You mention step counts, which implies you're using a tracker of some sort. If it's linked to MFP the systems will reconcile and adjust your calories appropriately.

    I personally wouldn't track this (beyond wearing my watch, which I always do anyway) because in Garmin Land, tracked activities go on your calendar, and I don't want to clutter it.
  • hmhill17
    hmhill17 Posts: 283 Member
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    Tracker not attached to MFP, it’s just the Heath app on my phone. I had it linked, but then it kept adding step counts as additional calories even after I logged exercise so I turned it off.
    I’ve seen sedentary defined as anything under 1k steps a day to anything under 5k.

    I don’t consider grocery shopping a routine/daily activity, so it would be outside sedentary step count.
  • Annie_01
    Annie_01 Posts: 3,096 Member
    edited September 2019
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    I mostly apply my steps toward my activity level. This is the chart that I base it off of.

    Sedentary is less than 5,000 steps per day
    Low active is 5,000 to 7,499 steps per day
    Somewhat active is 7,500 to 9,999 steps per day
    Active is more than 10,000 steps per day
    Highly active is more than 12,500

    You will find other charts that vary but this is the one that I have always used.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,811 Member
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    I would consider shopping as just part of my activity setting - that seting is an average which includes regular but not everyday movement.
    Most people have an irregular actity day to day (work, school, weekends, gardening, shopping....) - I wouldn't log it.

    I would work at increasing your regular activity though. Less car use, less sitting, more walking, more being on your feet.
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
    edited September 2019
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    hmhill17 wrote: »
    Tracker not attached to MFP, it’s just the Heath app on my phone. I had it linked, but then it kept adding step counts as additional calories even after I logged exercise so I turned it off.
    I’ve seen sedentary defined as anything under 1k steps a day to anything under 5k.

    I don’t consider grocery shopping a routine/daily activity, so it would be outside sedentary step count.


    The website below has a different definition. It's better to underestimate (for weight loss):
    http://www.fitnessforweightloss.com/rate-your-activity-level-based-on-steps-per-day/
  • apullum
    apullum Posts: 4,838 Member
    edited September 2019
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    hmhill17 wrote: »
    Tracker not attached to MFP, it’s just the Heath app on my phone. I had it linked, but then it kept adding step counts as additional calories even after I logged exercise so I turned it off.
    I’ve seen sedentary defined as anything under 1k steps a day to anything under 5k.

    I don’t consider grocery shopping a routine/daily activity, so it would be outside sedentary step count.

    MFP’s definition of “sedentary” doesn’t have anything to do with your personal definition of “sedentary.” 2000 steps in one day is well within the definition of sedentary, and you’re really not burning very many calories in 2000 steps.
  • spiriteagle99
    spiriteagle99 Posts: 3,675 Member
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    I wouldn't count it. Things like shopping and housework are considered part of your normal daily activity. No you don't necessarily do it every day, but it is part of everyday life. It also doesn't really burn enough to be worth tracking. Just look at it as bonus burn.
  • seltzermint555
    seltzermint555 Posts: 10,742 Member
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    Yes and no.

    If I walk around a large mall and shop for 2 hours and then go to the supermarket after, I may log 30 min of walking 2.0 mph

    If I spend the entire day going in & out of thrift stores and flea markets, let's say the better part of 6+ hours, I may log 90 min of walking 2.0 mph

    Just grabbing groceries after work, no. Going to 2 stores in the mall and back out, no.
    Normal daily house cleaning, no. Deep-cleaning the whole house for 2 hours, I'll log some exercise. But not 2 hours.

    This works for me. I have used this site for years, lost & maintained a lot (over 100). But I don't know a single thing about step counters, I've never used one. I am set to "sedentary" as I have a standard office job. Generally the exercise I log is definite exercise like a hike, outdoor fast paced walks, etc. With those, I log much closer to my actual time (i.e., 90 minute hike I'll log as such, 60 minute fast walking with headphones on is logged as 60 min at 3.0 mph).

  • koalathebear
    koalathebear Posts: 236 Member
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    I track my shopping expeditions simply because I'm a leisurely walker, so when I walk the dogs, I'm pretty much walking at a similar pace to my shopping expeditions - plus I am pushing a trolley etc. So I usually log around 30-40 minutes at a slow walk. I wouldn't use it as my only exercise in a day but I certainly include it in my activity level on top of the other exercise I do.
  • hmhill17
    hmhill17 Posts: 283 Member
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    I linked MFP to my health app as a test and it gives me about 1.5 calories per 100 steps. So either sedentary is basically bedridden, or there’s something wrong with step counts.

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