Do you log ALL activity as exercise?

julieh391
julieh391 Posts: 683 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
With it being Spring I'm seeing a lot of yard work/mowed lawn/etc. kind of posts. I haven't been logging that stuff at exercise because I don't want to see that I have extra calories. I just factor that stuff into my activity level that I set when I made my profile. Do you log chores/yard work as exercise?
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Replies

  • AmyW4225
    AmyW4225 Posts: 302 Member
    I log lawnmowing. I wear my HRM and my heart rate is up the entire time. I can burn around 400 calories in 50 minutes mowing the lawn. I don't log any other chores, though.
  • tammietifanie
    tammietifanie Posts: 1,496 Member
    I log lawnmowing. I wear my HRM and my heart rate is up the entire time. I can burn around 400 calories in 50 minutes mowing the lawn. I don't log any other chores, though.


    Same here! I will log mowing the lawn, Gardening but things like normal house chores i don't log unless it's something i don't do daily.. 2-3 times a month i wash all my blinds, baseboards and walls so things like that i log..
  • Auspiciousgirl
    Auspiciousgirl Posts: 89
    I just started logging lawn-mowing! It makes sense to me... I'm walking for about an hour straight, pushing a pretty heavy lawn-mower :)
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    With it being Spring I'm seeing a lot of yard work/mowed lawn/etc. kind of posts. I haven't been logging that stuff at exercise because I don't want to see that I have extra calories. I just factor that stuff into my activity level that I set when I made my profile. Do you log chores/yard work as exercise?

    You can do either method.

    You set your activity level to Sedentary, and anything that gets the HR up to 120 or above you log and eat back the calories since that is enough of a workout.

    Or you change your activity level for the season to include regular gardening or lawn stuff, then don't log.

    Problem with the latter, if folks only do it 1 per week, easier to do the former.
    Mowing the lawn and a workout on Saturday allows for nice meal splurge out that night to feed those workouts.

    Better not log riding lawn mower though!
  • runnercheryl
    runnercheryl Posts: 1,314 Member
    I count housework/chores (on the rare occasions I do them) as bonus calories burned, and don't log them. I'm losing at a nice, slow rate, so I can afford on those occasions to burn a little extra.

    I only log designated exercise, or walks that take longer than 15 minutes.
  • SPNLuver83
    SPNLuver83 Posts: 2,050 Member
    I log any hard work, like mowing the lawn (I do it with a weighted vest on), or scrubbing tile grout. Anything you work a sweat doing. Other than that, no.
  • isa75
    isa75 Posts: 156 Member
    I don't usually log most house chores or gardening if it is the easy stuff, but I logged weed wacking and raking this weekend because it definitely felt like a work-out.
  • Louise1247
    Louise1247 Posts: 670 Member
    anything more than what you set as your activity level (active, lightly active etc) should be added :)
  • littlewhittles
    littlewhittles Posts: 402 Member
    I log lawnmowing. I wear my HRM and my heart rate is up the entire time. I can burn around 400 calories in 50 minutes mowing the lawn. I don't log any other chores, though.


    Same here! I will log mowing the lawn, Gardening but things like normal house chores i don't log unless it's something i don't do daily.. 2-3 times a month i wash all my blinds, baseboards and walls so things like that i log..

    Totally agree. Lawn mowing gets my HR up and makes me sweat - plus my lawn is so bumpy it's like off-roading. Other chores I don't log though. But if I were doing raking/snow shoveling I would.
  • NoAdditives
    NoAdditives Posts: 4,251 Member
    I don't log things I do every day like dishes, laundry, etc. But if I were to do some yard work once a week, I'd probably log it because it's outside of my normal daily routine.
  • PuggleLover
    PuggleLover Posts: 261 Member
    My husband likes to spend time in Lowe's like I like to look at shoes. So instead of standing there with him staring at faucets and fasteners, I walk the pereimeter of the store. I tell him I will be back in 10 minutes. If he is still looking, I go for another 5. Usually, it's slow... around 2mph cuz there are other people there. I log that when I do it - happens about once a week.
  • meldaniel
    meldaniel Posts: 111
    I would log mowing...if I mowed. LOL! Other than that...no! I think it is ridiculous when people log a 7 minute dog walk at 30 calories, or cleaning. Those are your regular, everyday activities and should be factored in with your activity level when you set your profile and settings up. Seems kind of desperate to believe someone is exercising when perhaps they actually are not, in my opinion. :)
  • donna_glasgow
    donna_glasgow Posts: 869 Member
    I have my activity set at sedentary ... I log things that I feel are exercise

    Gardening ... I log half the time I work in the garden (as you cant be totally sure how much effort you put in so the extra is a bonus)
    decorating --- I will log that ... I just need to find out how to log it lol
    walking outdoors I will log
    but I dont count housework ---- regardless of how much I do
  • dhakiyya
    dhakiyya Posts: 481 Member
    I use an activity factor to calculate my calories, so I don't log any exercise. It's already accounted for by the activity factor. Plus I know if I skip my scheduled workouts, then my activity factor will be wrong and I won't have so much of a deficit, so that's a good incentive to not skip workouts!
  • amanda3588
    amanda3588 Posts: 422 Member
    I only log structured workouts, or if I'm doing something continuously. For example, my boyfriend and I walked around downtown Madison last night for an hour. My heartrate was definitely up, considering all the hills we had to climb. Things like cleaning I don't count, because chances are I will take a "break" to watch tv.
  • alapoint89
    alapoint89 Posts: 632
    if you are going to log EVERYTHING put your activity down to the lowest that is what i decided to do because it helps me keep track of my activity
  • UpEarly
    UpEarly Posts: 2,555 Member
    Yes... my MFP level is set to sedentary (1730 calories for maintaining my current weight). But, in reality, I am probably FAR from sedentary.

    I wear a BodyMedia Fit, and in the course of the day, I take an average of 14,000 steps and do about 2-4 hours of moderate 'activity' (though not necessarily exercise).

    On a day I don't exercise, but do my normal daily activities my TDEE is around 2350 calories. On a day I do an hour of vigorous exercise in addition to all my normal activities, my TDEE is 2650-2700. On days I'm really busy or go for a long hike, my TDEE is always over 3000.

    If I want to maintain my weight, it would be silly of me NOT to log my activities that aren't necessarily exercise. I would really be shortchanging myself and not meeting my "fuel" requirements.

    I suppose I could just increase my base activity level, but I like the freedom to measure my TDEE more accurately based on what I'm really doing each day.
  • leeleea11
    leeleea11 Posts: 2
    I don't log any yard work - it's just kind of a bonus for me because if I were to log it I'd go "well I don't need to go for my walk tonight because I've already burned a ton of calories weeding the garden or mowing the lawn". I'm that lazy. Haha.
  • poedunk65
    poedunk65 Posts: 1,336 Member
    I log anythng that is not a normal everyday activity. Log cutting. splitting and chopping. I don' tlog things llike gardeining or mowing the lawn though.
  • lmelangley
    lmelangley Posts: 1,039 Member
    I don't. I only log something I wouldn't have done a year and a half ago.
  • enyo123
    enyo123 Posts: 172 Member
    I don't log housework, even though I see others that do it. I'm a SAHM. I do housework every day. I do log things like taking the kids to the park, doing the grocery shopping since it's a three store tour that takes at least an hour and a half (I log them both as slow walking), and such. If I did yard work (which I don't), I'd most certainly log that. It's so darned crappy that I'd feel like I deserve the credit. I hate yardwork with a fiery passion.

    I also have myself set as sedentary, even though I do a lot of chasing after kids and dogs. I don't think I'm truly sedentary, but I didn't want to risk inflating my numbers.
  • StarvingDiva
    StarvingDiva Posts: 1,107 Member
    I do not log housework, gardening, any of that. The only thing I log is workouts.
  • taso42
    taso42 Posts: 8,980 Member
    I don't. My activity level is set to "Active", and that covers me, especially as I sit around most of the day.
  • SwimTheButterfly
    SwimTheButterfly Posts: 265 Member
    No...only if I pull weeds for hours at a time or mop the floors on my hands and knees or clean all the windows. I haven't done that for way too long :P
  • guardian419
    guardian419 Posts: 391 Member
    I only log dedicated work outs, everything else I consider extra. It helps me keep track of how much I work out (not just every day tasks)
  • saragato
    saragato Posts: 1,154
    Unless it's something I don't do regularly or routinely such as once a week or once a month, etc then I wouldn't log it. Even then I may not log it simply because I'm not timing myself on how long it took and I don't want to guesstimate.
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,320 Member
    When I set my activity level at sedentary I did. Now I use a TDEE calculator and include my activity and intended exercise in it. Then I subtract 20% and that is what I eat every day. No eating extra for exercise unless I do some majorly huge workout like cycling for 30 miles or something.
  • ahjenny
    ahjenny Posts: 293 Member
    For me, unless I'm actually at the gym and making a sweat, I don't log exercise. Even if I sweat when doing housework, I don't think it counts (for me).
  • zen_mama
    zen_mama Posts: 51
    I log calories burned during yard work and house cleaning because that is what I do for a living. I usually only log half the time though. If I clean 2 houses at a total of 6 hours, I only log 3 hours worth because scrubbing floors and showers takes much more effort than washing dishes or wiping down counters. I figure it balances out and since my activity level is set to incorporate only 80 minutes of exercise a week, I log my "work calories" whenever I feel I've really expended energy.
  • missikay1970
    missikay1970 Posts: 588 Member
    i only log it if it's something out of the ordinary that i do. i normally sweep, clean, mop, etc. so i don't log that, but if i mowed, i would log that. tennis tonight, logging. :smile:

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