I've seen this mantra on several posts. But here's my question: if I burn an additional 500 calories at the gym Nd don't eat any more to compensate, won't I have a larger calorie deficit? Won't that cause more rapid weight loss?
So, let's say I went to the gym twice per day, once in the morning and once at night, and create a 1000 calorie deficit. Then, wouldn't that help with weight loss?
There is no doubt working out more will burn more calories, but the question is can you maintain that lifestyle?
The ideal situation we want to get to is a good balance of eating well and some exercise. Those who want to have elite fitness will exercise more, but it's also natural for your body to want more food for fuel too.
If your exercising a lot to lose weight, and not having a balanced diet, once the exercise stops you'll be in danger of putting weight on.
Getting the diet right means you only need little exercise.
I think in general it is true. Unless you count your calories there is no way you could know and you would probably overeat. For me, exercise is everything though. I stick to 2000 calories per day plus on average 2 hours of exercise per day doing things like swimming laps, rock climbing, weight lifting, and hiking. This is easy for me to maintain, but the important thing is I still count calories.
krampus! Yes Being physically active is a privilege and pleasure, not punishment...
i totally agree! i feel blessed to be able to move my body in such a way...i have dealt with back problems and pain since i was a teenager, due to a bad fall then...several years ago i went through alot of chiropractic treatments that ultimately worked but also left me in alot of pain, unable to move very far, difficulty walking and i actually used a cane to help me out for about 6 months...
i am SO grateful to be able to get on a treadmill...or walk or run or bike...and push my body to its limits as much as i want to do so
and i'll be dam*ned if i get to be 60 years old and in a wheelchair because i failed to strengthen my body when i was younger and had the opportunities
i totally agree! i feel blessed to be able to move my body in such a way...i have dealt with back problems and pain since i was a teenager, due to a bad fall then...several years ago i went through alot of chiropractic treatments that ultimately worked but also left me in alot of pain, unable to move very far, difficulty walking and i actually used a cane to help me out for about 6 months...
i am SO grateful to be able to get on a treadmill...or walk or run or bike...and push my body to its limits as much as i want to do so
and i'll be dam*ned if i get to be 60 years old and in a wheelchair because i failed to strengthen my body when i was younger and had the opportunities
I really love this post - and also the quote by Exhale15! I also feel very fortunate to be able to do a brisk walk for 60 minutes without plotzing on the ground, whereas at my high weight, I could only walk for about 5 minutes without my joints screaming at me. We can take control of our own health! It's pretty powerful stuff.
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and i'll be dam*ned if i get to be 60 years old and in a wheelchair because i failed to strengthen my body when i was younger and had the opportunities
alaskanlaughter, I'm so glad you said that. I know a lot of women who start talking about '...at my age..I can't...', when actually it's not their age but how they've taken care of themselves.
alaskanlaughter, I'm so glad you said that. I know a lot of women who start talking about '...at my age..I can't...', when actually it's not their age but how they've taken care of themselves.
My mom is about to turn 50, and I am about to turn 30. She lives about 12 hours from me, but we are both training to run our first 5k together to celebrate our birthdays. We decided we can either freak out about the big 5-0 and the big 3-0 or we can celebrate.
I want to add a comment about the food and exercise. I understand the concept behind the mantra.
But the science of weight loss is simple. 3500 calories=1pound. If you burn more calories than you eat, you WILL lose weight, pure and simple. The key to making this work in the real world is, as many have said, to count calories.
I have an I-phone app, and I count calories in and calories out. Of course, there are over-estimations, etc. but for the most part, if you carefully count the calories you eat and the calories you burn in cardio, you will lose weight.
My daily calorie budget is 1200. Today I did an intense elliptical workout and burned 350 calories.
I will eat somewhere between 1200 and 1550 calories today. If I stick to 1200, I will lose more. If I stick to 1550, I can still lose weight, because I am in a calorie deficit. At this time in my life, I cannot spend hours exercising. Some days I cannot get a workout in at all. So my diet is where the action is. But two years ago, I was preparing for my wedding, losing 10-15 lbs. I wanted to lose weight, but I also wanted to look hot in my dress. SO I worked out like crazy! I bought a temporary gym pass and used the elliptical 1.5-2 hours a day. I also did calisthenics and hula hooping at home. I was eating maybe 1600-1800 cals a day, but I was busting my tail and sculpting my body. 142lbs (my wedding weight) looks a lot different when it's primarily muscle than when it's mostly fat.
Bottom line to the original poster:
If all of this is making your head spin, eat 1500 calories a day and do 30-40 minutes of cardio a day. Do this for two weeks. Then check your weight. I will bet you have lost several pounds.
My mom is about to turn 50, and I am about to turn 30. She lives about 12 hours from me, but we are both training to run our first 5k together to celebrate our birthdays. We decided we can either freak out about the big 5-0 and the big 3-0 or we can celebrate.
But here's my question: if I burn an additional 500 calories at the gym Nd don't eat any more to compensate, won't I have a larger calorie deficit? Won't that cause more rapid weight loss?
Theoretically, yes. But there's intriguing new research showing that people naturally compensate for formal exercise by moving less during the rest of the day. So in your example, when all is said and done, you might only be burning an extra 200 calories per day.
Also, it takes A LOT of exercise to burn two doughnuts' worth of calories. It's a lot easier not to eat the doughnuts than to build in the extra exercise into your day.
The times when I excercised an hour a day I didn't lose weight. This time I am focusing on calories and not eating much gluten. I am a teacher of the elementary age and I move all the time. I don't spend a lot of time sitting down from August-beg of June. During the summer I will probably need to do some swimming or other excercise, but for right now it's not a priority. I am thinking I will possibly I've shown myself in the past that I can waste a gym membership like no other- and I feel a total guilt when I don't show at the gym...its all I can think about when I am "scheduled" to go. I had a personal trainer for a year and that was the only time I was committed. Now I don't want to spend that much money on personal training and I work too much.
So in short- I believe this is true. Right now instead of gym time I am enjoying my lighter body being able to function better in daily movement and outdoors.
I lose weight quickly if I eat low cal and don't move. But I look and feel ill.
I train hard, now, and eat only whole nourishing foods. The scale is moving slowly but my body looks a kajillion times better. It's totally worth the trade-off, for me. I'm strong and fit and feel like a kajillion bucks.
There are a hundred better ways to measure 'health' than the number on the scale.
I love exercise, and it makes me want to eat better. But I don't necessarily believe the mantra. exercise does so many things to your body positively that i believe that you should make it a priority not above dieting but above other things in your life
I tend to think people overestimate the number of calories they burn from exercise. Burning 500 calories via exercise would have me working out for a LONG time.
If reaching your goal weight is still a long road ahead for you, diet *is* much more important. However, the less weight you have to lose, the more important exercise is.
For myself, exercise is the single most important thing for me to maintain my weight. I find that I eat to ensure that I can exercise and exercise well. If I don't exercise, I am much more likely to eat more and eat poorly.
Being physically active is a privilege and pleasure, not punishment...
