As usual, TraceyElaine has voiced my thoughts pretty succinctly. It's different for everyone, as we all know. Food is 80% plus for me, but if I don't work out *hard*, I will plateau. I have to do both, but not everyone does.

I read this article (yesterday? The day before?) at work and I couldn't believe what I was reading either. The fact that they are perpetuating that myth is embarrassing and also irresponsible. If it were true I certainly wouldn't have giant bat wings hanging down from my the solid muscle of my biceps.

Well, I don't have any experience or knowledge of exercise actually making people move less for the rest of the day -- has the opposite effect on me -- so I don't completely agree with this piece.

But frankly, I'm actually glad to see this get attention. I have long thought that exercise has been overemphasized as a cure-all.

One woman recently told me that she knows her weight will all come off when she starts doing her "exercises." She is unable to do cardio and was referring to back flexibility stuff that her chiropractor recommended. Just the word "exercise" makes people think they will lose weight. I feel like there is widespread misconception about this.

YES of course I agree that exercise has so many health benefits, etc., and YES, at this point it is actually a not-insignificant part of my caloric deficit.

I think exercise (whether structured or unstructured) is significantly helpful in maintaining health/weight in normal-weight people (as well as some other people, as many of us here will attest). But these facts have somehow translated into everyone thinking that the morbidly obese person should just hit the gym every week or take a walk after dinner every night.

The benefits of a 30 minute walk, for example are promoted all over the place. I think that's great for the shrinking minority who want to help maintain their normal weight, or keep their cardiac health at the level it should be, or stay active at a certain age, or have alone/family time, etc etc.

And that's great, but a 30 minute walk after dinner a few times a week? Is not going to take off 100-200 lbs. So many people think that's what is needed for the person who needs to lose big, including the person who needs to lose. Including, sometimes, the drs of those people. I have known really large people to get discouraged when the after-dinner walk didn't result in weight loss. Because if the ultimate, "common knowledge" panacea didn't work, then what would? And try telling someone that exercise is not the be-all and end-all. They will look at you in horror. "Everyone knows" all you need to do is hit a workout!

Again, don't get me wrong -- I really value my own exercise, just like many of us who are in a serious, thoughtful stage of weight loss/health/maintenance. But for those who are starting out with a lot to lose, or do not have a lot of experience/knowledge in the area, I do think that it might be a good to introduce exercise as a legit helpmate after one has already successfully embarked on food restriction resulting in some loss.

I agree! I almost laughed outloud after reading that in the article. And after reading that part, the rest of the article completely lost its credibility. Fat cannot magically "turn into" muscle... and vice versa. When people stop lifting weights, or being active, and they don't look as fit.. a lot still say their muscle turned to fat!

What I *DO* agree with in this article, is that you must watch what you eat - almost like a hawk (for me) - to lose weight. That's the main factor. However, even though exercise might not play a huge roll in weight loss itself, the benefits far outweigh not doing it - including the energy it provides which in turn is motivating to keep up the weight loss. Even if it just gave you the "feeling" that you are blasting the fat while you are doing it - highly motivational. Not to mention, overall health includes not just your weight, but also your fitness level.

whitepiketfences, here here!

I totally agree with you on this fact. Last year when I was working as a convenience store manager, I worked out at the gym about 3 or 4 days a week for about an hour of cardio. That is more than the experts will say I needed. However, because I was eating loads of junk food while at work my exercise didn't do a darn thing for me. I gained 50 lbs in that year because of excess calories and no amount of exercise was going to fix that problem.

The author does make some (!) good points, and people all too often minimize the importance of diet in weight loss.

Though article's last line is a little unfortunate -- to skip both the workout and the workout reward. How about skipping using food as a reward, and mixing in some "fun" exercise (or physical activity in general) so you don't feel compelled to give yourself a reward just for getting through it?

I find that I'm less inclined to do irresponsible eating when I'm following an exercise plan though. Because now suddenly those calories are something that I put effort into. Even though I try to enjoy myself, I still work hard! I don't want to run out and negate that right afterwards.

I think that WE (the people in the club) don't do the things he said in that article because we are not 'average' we are usually morbidly obese, and if we are going to go through all the trouble of exercising, we are hyper aware that we WILL undo all of our hard work if we go for a muffin at starbucks after our walk.

People our size know far more about nutrition than the 'average' person I think. I ALWAYS find myself shocking my thin friends with nutrition info they had no idea about. They don't have to know, they are thin, they eat, sleep, live, drink, like a 'thin person.' I always say, "Fat people know more about heath, fitness and nutrition than anyone" I don't think this is an exaggeration. I mean, how many of us have spent the better part of our lives learning about health and fitness, trying desperately to stay on the wagon and put all we've learned into practice?

Probably most of us.

WE KNOW these things, it's just putting into action....that is a different story altogether.

So, I think we are the exception, and not the rule, to the people who go out for muffins after exercising!

also, when people ask me how I"m losing weight, I say, "I'm living like a thin person."

If you want to bulk up your muscle mass, you actually will need to eat but not sugar doughnuts-- I know some male body builders who could not even begin to get proper muscle mass without eating a lot more calories than they would normally. Just exersising is going to make you strong and lean, but not necessarily "muscular." If you want to eat after, you should eat something good, or time your exersise so that it is just before a meal that you would eat anyway. anyway, that's what i feel about it.

That's what I Do, I usually eat lunch, then in 30-60 mins I eat, and then 2 hours later I have a small snack. I do this two to three times a day. (cardio, strength training, yoga.)

I actually talked to a personal trainer about this yesterday and he said that I wouldn't lose any weight no matter how much I exercise if I am not keeping track of what I eat. So, the basis of the article is true but the author went about it SO WRONG!

The thing about this article that is so ridiculous is that it is taking away personal responsibility. The article is blaming exercise for people going out and eating junk afterward!

I enjoy exercising, it makes me feel really good! I don't have to reward myself with french fries, my reward is self satisfaction and the ability to go to bed at night and imagine myself a year from now when I'm thin and hot!

I think there was some fairly obvious reasons exercise wasn't helping the writer lose weight -- and if you stop at the blueberry bar, or like others, have a gatorade or muffin after working out, this isn't rocket science you won't lose.

I don't like questioning whether exercise has played a part in the obesity epidemic because that is just ridiculous. Who gets fat from exercising too much?

There may be some valid points in there, but to be honest, they get lost from me in the overall tone about exercise being more harm than good when it comes to weight loss and lifestyle.

Thanks for posting Lottie, that was interesting.

Personally, I do not find that exercise makes more hungry. In fact, when I run I find myself thinking about the other things during the day I can do to get more exercise or eat healthily. I find it helps to keep me focused on a healthful life.

I do think exercise is overrated by many beginning weightloss. If you substantially overeat, there is almost no way for you to exercise it off consistently. One piece of chocolate cake is about 500 calories. Not to mention, it would send me into a tailspin to overeat all day. And the 500 calories of the cake--well, it would take me about an hour of running to get rid of it.

I think movement is important--however you can get it in. If it means walking your dog--then walk your dog. If it means riding a bike to work, ride your bike to work. However you can do it and will do it--DO IT. It is important for overall health regardless of the outcome on weight.

Some simple facts that are most relevant, IMHO:

Weight loss is mostly about diet.

You don't NEED exercise in order to lose weight.

Many people overestimate the calories burned during exercise and overeat as a result -- my DB for example, who eats a powerbar and drinks a gatorade after 20 minutes on the elliptical. Or those who go for chicken wings and eat 2 lbs because "they worked out today extra hard".

Exercise is VITAL for overall health and cardiovascular capability.

Exercise is a VITAL COMPONENT for weight maintenance, mostly IMHO because exercising makes you aware of your body -- it reinforces that mind-body link that many of us need to work on during the weight loss process. IF you are aware of your body and how it moves and what it does for you, you are IMHO more likely to treat it with respect and fuel it properly...

JMHO

Kira

DH & I subscribe to time and were just talking about this article this weekend. I agree with some of the points that it makes, at least as it pertains to the average person. Most people don't understand the process required to lose weight, and a lot of folks really believe that exercise is a cure all.

I agree, exercise alone won't make you lose weight. Several years ago I took kickboxing two nights per week, yoga two nights per week and walked 1-2 hours on another day. The kickboxing sessions were pretty intense, so it wasn't fluff exercise. I didn't lose any weight at all, because I did take the exercise as an excuse to drink more Starbucks. I had to educate myself on the things I was eating and drinking this time around to lose weight. Now, when I exercise I don't think it gives me permission to go out for a 600 calorie coffee beverage. I might eat or drink a little more afterward, but I know the calorie count of what I'm consuming so don't wipe out my exercise effort. I have become educated on what I'm doing. I can't eat the junk I used to eat because I know what is in it, even if I exercised first. I also educated myself about the true impact of exercise - no matter what the stationary bike display says I know I didn't burn 300 cals in ten minutes of slow pedaling.

Not everyone is as educated about the process - we see questions that illustrate that all the time. How many times has someone asked if they really burned 1000 calories in 25 minutes on the treadmill? Or asked about eating back exercise calories like it endorses on The Daily Plate? Or asked how many calories per day they should be eating and then being surprised at the low number they get back?(Or sometimes higher number.) People who don't learn how weight loss works don't seem to have long term success. I still track my calories every day after almost a year of maintenance. I understand that I won't be able to go back to eating higher calories and maintain the loss. I understand that while exercise is important I will still maintain my loss with less exercise, but not with more calories.

I am often starving the day after a run - the challenge I have is picking the right foods to satisfy that. We need to teach people how to make those choices, so they go for the protein not the blueberry muffin.

Like Kira said, exercise is a vital part of the process, but not the main part. People need to learn that, and unfortunately this article doesn't illustrate that in a positive light. I suspect more people will see it as a reinforcement for why they shouldn't bother than for why they need to exercise and eat better.

I know that in my own case, exercising makes me more active because I'm stronger and can do more. When I was at 295 I would procrastinate before bending over to pick up a dropped sock. Now that I'm fitter, I move around more in daily life.

The thing I do agree with is that the effect of daily exercise that is incorporated into daily life-- like walking to work-- can be really important.

The two thinnest times in my adult life were when I lived in NYC and had to walk my kid more than a mile each way to school, and when I served in the Peace Corps. After walking everywhere for 3 years and eating "whatever I wanted" but not having access to any junk food, I weighed 145 lbs-- the lowest weight of my adult life.

I do think that a generally sedentary lifestyle with exercise may not be as good as a generally active lifestyle without a formal exercise program. But most of us don't have that choice.