Logging Housework as Exercise??

Rubyinthesand2012
Rubyinthesand2012 Posts: 92
edited October 7 in Health and Weight Loss
Im pretty new to this (first week) and i have noticed that some people log housework as Exercise....

Im a stay-at-home-mum and spend a majority of my day doing some sort of housework i put my settings as doing the lowest level of activity some days im flat out doing housework and running round after the children & my partner other days i sit on the computer or watching tv..... so should i be logging the hoovering...bathroom and kitchen floor scrubbing as "exercise" or not.

I dont personally see it as exercise although i know it burns calories.... am a little confused
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Replies

  • teagan911
    teagan911 Posts: 36
    I am intrigued by this too.....Would love to hear the input from others.
  • Natty0506
    Natty0506 Posts: 103 Member
    Basically, if it's something you're already doing in your daily life, it's not exercise. But say, you spend a morning painting your living room. THAT would be considered a workout.
  • BerryH
    BerryH Posts: 4,698 Member
    Change your settings from sedentary to lightly active, then only log activity outside your normal daily routine.
  • MaximalLife
    MaximalLife Posts: 2,447 Member
    Im pretty new to this (first week) and i have noticed that some people log housework as Exercise....

    Im a stay-at-home-mum and spend a majority of my day doing some sort of housework i put my settings as doing the lowest level of activity some days im flat out doing housework and running round after the children & my partner other days i sit on the computer or watching tv..... so should i be logging the hoovering...bathroom and kitchen floor scrubbing as "exercise" or not.

    I dont personally see it as exercise although i know it burns calories.... am a little confused
    It's not exercise.

    People log this in as a handy excuse not to have to do real cardio.

    It's more an activity than a workout. Don't do it!
  • april_beth
    april_beth Posts: 616 Member
    *sigh* who cares what OTHERS are doing....
  • monkeymouse74
    monkeymouse74 Posts: 288
    I dont log incidental exercise.:noway: Only planned exercise.:happy: I think it can become an excuse not to do a proper workout. I've seen all kinds of incidental exercise logged, like "shopping"!!!! What!!!!!:explode: How is this helping people change their lives??? Dont fall into this trap. If it's real change you want, dont look for the easy way out:flowerforyou:
  • fitaliciag
    fitaliciag Posts: 373
    I never log that kind of thing.
  • LoreleiWalks
    LoreleiWalks Posts: 143 Member
    Change your settings from sedentary to lightly active, then only log activity outside your normal daily routine.

    Agreed!
  • engineman312
    engineman312 Posts: 3,450 Member
    Change your settings from sedentary to lightly active, then only log activity outside your normal daily routine.

    this.
  • trud72
    trud72 Posts: 1,912 Member
    ARHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH don't do it...
    the way i see it....
    it is ONLY exersice if you physical go out of your way to do the exersice itself! not dusting and hoovering...comeon cop out :bigsmile:
    let anything eles be a bonus right! :ohwell:
  • trud72
    trud72 Posts: 1,912 Member
    ARHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH don't do it...
    the way i see it....
    it is ONLY exersice if you physical go out of your way to do the exersice itself! not dusting and hoovering...comeon cop out :bigsmile:
    let anything eles be a bonus right! :ohwell:
  • tiedye
    tiedye Posts: 331 Member
    I dont log incidental exercise.:noway: Only planned exercise.:happy: I think it can become an excuse not to do a proper workout. I've seen all kinds of incidental exercise logged, like "shopping"!!!! What!!!!!:explode: How is this helping people change their lives??? Dont fall into this trap. If it's real change you want, dont look for the easy way out:flowerforyou:

    Yes. This exactly.
  • Giraffe33991
    Giraffe33991 Posts: 430 Member
    I personally don't see that as exercise if it is a normal part of your living activites. I consider exercise anything above and beyond.

    This may be harsh, but personally I've deleted many "friends" due to their logging activities such as housework and then *****ing because they are not losing weight. If you are serious about it then move your *kitten* and eat less!!!
  • thetorontokid2
    thetorontokid2 Posts: 231 Member
    If I'm really running around the house, I WILL log it, but I never see it as an "instead of cardio"...I always do something on top of that. I don't do it that often, i never log really light cleaning where I'm picking up little things or doing dishes or whatever. That stuff I do every day, I don't log it.
  • takehimaway
    takehimaway Posts: 499 Member
    *sigh* who cares what OTHERS are doing....

    Seconded.

    OP, why not worry about what /you're/ logging as exercise?

    Some of us log cleaning house or cooking as exercise as that's all we physically can do right now. I just got major surgery, and still have twenty-three more days to go before I can lift anything heavier than a frying pan or gallon of milk. I don't always listen to my doctor or my body, but you beat your *kitten*, I pay for it, every single time.
  • lts42uk
    lts42uk Posts: 162 Member
    I don't log the normal day to day stuff, but every fortnight I really blitz the house so I do log that on top of my normal workout! It's a Saturday so I need all the extra calories I can get!!!
  • Rubyinthesand2012
    Rubyinthesand2012 Posts: 92
    *sigh* who cares what OTHERS are doing....


    i was meerly asking a question as i wondered if i should log as had seen others logging it when it came up on my feed.... it doesnt bother me what other people do or why.

    i WANT to lose weight but i know that if im not eating enough i wont...so if i think ive eaten the 1200 cals that im meant to have for that day but have actually burnt of 2100 my body could go in starvation mode couldnt it.... just going by what ive read on here!

    I thought this forum was about helping each other!
  • EHabel10
    EHabel10 Posts: 6 Member
    I absolutely log housework as exercise, but only when I do something truly active (Vacuuming and kitchen floors etc...) with two toddlers under 3 and a dog and cat, this is nearly every other day, haha. I also work out/run almost daily but cleaning my house definitely burns calories and I feel comfortable logging it! I believe I use- 'Cleaning- Light, Moderate Effort- Good luck!
  • byrnet18
    byrnet18 Posts: 230 Member
    If you were to do this then you would have to change your basal metabolic rate...Because when it figures out your daily calorie intake it is assuming that you're not just laying in bed all day. So like others said just change your activity level. Sedentary means that you don't move around at all, maybe to use the bathroom and to get food, but if you're doing day to day activities then I would say you are lightly active.
  • lesterfaye81
    lesterfaye81 Posts: 20 Member
    I log it because I don't do it everyday. I don't log going to the office, dragging cases of paper to the copier, and jumping up to get more paper, lol, because I do it everyday of the week.

    I say log it if it's unusual. Plus, I've noticed that if I try and shampoo the carpet (it's a heavy machine) on the same day I've done the elliptical, it effectively finishes kicking my *kitten*. Then again, I am really fat right now. :) If I do one, I can't really do another. That's a big part of why I log it.
  • kelsue35
    kelsue35 Posts: 463 Member
    when you clean are you moving? you already know that you burn calories when you clean so why not log it? i am a mom of 4 so i clean my house a few times a day, if i am moving and burning calories i dont really give 2 hoots what it is i am doing i am def logging it. someone said it was ppls way of excusing them from a real workout or real cardio or whatever which is BS, i also do other workingout not just cleaning so that cant be true for all of us!

    if you are burning the calories then LOG THEM!!!!!
  • Reptileszz
    Reptileszz Posts: 47 Member
    I rarely vacuum LOL, so when I do I log it. I figure it is outside my normal activities. Same thing for shoveling snow or raking leaves. Random housework I never log.
  • momma3sweetgirls
    momma3sweetgirls Posts: 743 Member
    Change your settings from sedentary to lightly active, then only log activity outside your normal daily routine.

    My thoughts exactly. As SAHMs, we are NOT sedentary. At the very least we're 'lightly active'. That's what I have my setting as.
  • SassyCalyGirl
    SassyCalyGirl Posts: 1,932 Member
    keep your nose out of other people's business. WTF cares cause it won't show up on YOUR scale...so butt out.

    wow-that was really rude! No reason for that at all.

    I personally do not log housework-I consider it normal everyday activity not "exercise" but to each his own
  • meerkat70
    meerkat70 Posts: 4,605 Member
    I think Berry's suggestion is likely best. Set your activity level as lightly active, and log purposeful activity. I hope that's a bit more helpful than the post above!
  • cherrieruns
    cherrieruns Posts: 342 Member
    here is what I do. I log my cardio (running/circuit training) and then on days when I find I have spent hours doing a major cleaing - moving furniture, washing floors, etc I log that too. I try to under count my hours though so for example, if i do a major 6 hour cleaning I will most likely log 4 hours worth. For me this tends to be my Sat "house cleaning day".

    I don't ever log this as a copout as some have implied.
  • trud72
    trud72 Posts: 1,912 Member
    thank you meercat another "normal" mfp'er not a a*shole like those others!
  • lijparsons
    lijparsons Posts: 258
    Change your settings from sedentary to lightly active, then only log activity outside your normal daily routine.



    ^^^^^Exactly this^^^^
  • vanessaclarkgbr
    vanessaclarkgbr Posts: 731 Member
    When I started out, I used the rule that if I was doing something that I wouldn't have done pre MFP that involved exertion, or, if I was doing something I did previously with more energy, enthusiasm and for longer than pre MFP I'd log it. If you've got weight to lose over a sustained period you'll probably find when you start out it will work ok, but you'll need to be doing more as you progress.

    I have two friends with disabilities on here and I often get frustrated when people jump in with a more opinionated view on this on forums - as on a bad day for them, doing a top to toe clean IS a good workout, and a really good effort!

    It's your journey, if it's working for you and it's healthy - then it's right!
  • bjclaywell
    bjclaywell Posts: 165 Member
    I don't log daily housework, but I do log the occasional hard core spring cleaning type of work. Or when I cleaned out my garage, I was lifting heavy boxes all day. I also log my once every two weeks yard work. If it something out of the ordinary, day to day stuff, I will log it.
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