Thoughts about burning calories by cleaning?

I don't think many of the activities MFP lists burn anywhere near the calories they claim, but I just lower the time to whatever I feel I was actually putting significant effort into it, rounded down a bit.

For example, in the garden yesterday, I was digging up rows. That's 15 minutes of intense labor followed by 5-10 minutes of standing in the shade sweating and drinking water. I spent 3 hours, I logged an hour and a half. I really think I burned MORE calories than I came up with using that method, but the entry was "gardening - general" and I know I wouldn't have spent nearly as much effort running strings for the peas to grow on, or planting seeds (which I didn't count at all).

I think guesstimating it the way I do works pretty well. I'm losing weight at the pace I set, so something's gotta be working right.

If it's routine cleaning, then I don't log it. But if I'm getting down and dirty with major cleaning, the I will put it in. If I'm sweating from cleaning, then it's worth logging lol

I'm of the opinion that MFP consistently and drastically overestimates calorie burn. I never count activities as "exercise" unless they are actually exercise. I consider everything else...well....life.....

Note, I'm sure you burn plenty of calories stripping your floor varnish or re-grouting your tub...I just personally don't consider it "exercise".

i agree with ATLMel

it is better to underestimate the amount of calories you are burning. overestimation will just cause you to lose confidence in your routine (when you don't lose as much weight as MFP is suggesting you'll lose).

I do if I wear my HRM.

I don't put in housecleaning, not even when I scrub the floors. The only time I'd be tempted would be if I were moving furniture around, and for long enough amount of time for it to count. Ditto gardening. When I am loading mulch in the trailer, unloading to the wheelbarrow and pushing, dumping and spreading it in the flower beds, that's exercise. Otherwise, it's part of my ordinary, everyday life.

i agree completely.

I don't mean to bash the stay-at-home moms who have a hard time establishing an official workout time, but sometimes when I see how many calories some people burn by putting "cleaning, moderate effort" into their diary it makes me feel like all the sweat pouring off of me when I jog at night is for nothing.
I have also heard from numerous people that myfitnesspal tends to overestimate calories burned on many exercises.
So, how do you feel about having "cleaning" as an exercise? Do you think it really burns that many calories?

Just curious, and I really don't mean this in a mean way, but why do you care what other people list on their diary? You show you have lost 28 lbs. I say congrats to you and don't worry abou t those other people.

I will list cleaning only when I am doing something out of the norm. When I clean at work or when I clean my kids rooms, I log it.

I'm a part time housekeeper at the Atlantic Club and I work 12 hour shifts. So when I have to "detail" for those 12 hours, yes, I put in the calories burned because I'm constantly on my hands and needs scrubing.

My rule for logging ANY exercise: IF it makes you breathe heavy and sweat, then log it!

Then again, I have a desk job, if I were doing this for a living I wouldn't have my profile set on sedentary.

While I think that MFP over estimates the calories burned, when I clean my house the heaviest (which is Monday because I do not clean during the weekends lol) I am on my feet, sweeping, wiping, scrubbing, mopping, picking up moving boxes trash and vacuuming... No offense to the people who do go out for a jog etc but I just don't have that since my husband is gone sometimes weeks at a time. I go for walks etc, but moving constantly throughout my house is def a workout, (I.E it raises my heart rate and I sweat) I just really don't think that it burns as much as MFP says. so I tend to lower my time to what seems normal and if that is the only exercise I do that day I only eat back half the cals.

I don't mean to bash the stay-at-home moms who have a hard time establishing an official workout time, but sometimes when I see how many calories some people burn by putting "cleaning, moderate effort" into their diary it makes me feel like all the sweat pouring off of me when I jog at night is for nothing.
I have also heard from numerous people that myfitnesspal tends to overestimate calories burned on many exercises.
So, how do you feel about having "cleaning" as an exercise? Do you think it really burns that many calories?

It works it really does I have two sets of stairs in my house and from running things from the dining room to the bedrooms and doing dishes, to laundry,taking the stuff upstairs and taking what belongs downstairs from upstairs is alot of work, and taking out the trash and the recycling bins and trash to the curb is a chore and making lunch, and dinner is a job done everyday.:happy:

Sometimes I will spend several hours in a morning cleaning the house, but I never add that as exercise as it's just part of my every day life whether I'm trying to lose weight or not. I only log "exercise" as things that I'm doing SPECIFICALLY to exercise rather than things I'd be doing anyway.. if that makes sense.