After 40 which is more important in weight loss...... what you eat? Or how much you work out?

I think diet is the most important thing to be honest. If I had to pick one I'd always go for the good diet.

Course I suck at exercising lol

Diet for weight loss, exercise for fitness. Look good clothed--diet. Look good naked--exercise. And lastly, it's often said around here that the ratio is about 80% diet, 20% exercise--and you cannot out-exercise poor eating habits.

All of the above has been true for me. I love to workout, but when I don't get in as many workouts a week as I'd like, counting my calories still shows me good losses each week in pounds--sometimes more than if I'm doing both. However, my inches go down much more rapidly when I'm exercising regularly, even if my sore muscles are retaining water.

Best of luck!

Since I got my binges under control, I've dropped 15 pounds in a couple months. My exercise routine is still the same. It's actually nice. I can see the muscles under the fat that used to be there. Pretty much all diet, really.

Love it!

I think diet is key, but exercise is good to add to your routine. Right now I'm finding that I enjoy the extra food I get to eat because I'm exercising! And yes, that includes the occasional treat.

The reason for my question is... I spoke to a lady last night at the gym who said "I'm so frustrated I've been working out for three weeks doing Zumba and I haven't lost one lb.". The trainer I was working with said "well how are you eating?". She said probably not as good as I should.
I think when you feel like your working out hard you give yourself permission to eat more. Looks like you can't and still lose

Right. You can't eat whatever you want just because you're exercising. Well, you can, but you really should eat less of it! I just keep thinking about the Twinkie diet, and that professor who lost all that weight eating Twinkies. It seems more about reducing calories.

I think diet first then exercise second.If you don't get what you eat under control it will defeat the purpose of the exercise.

Exercise is the icing on the cake... But know matter what you do... If you don't watch what you eat ... It catches up with you... Hence why I'm here

I think the question itself is misleading (as if choosing only one is ever a good option).

It's a bit like saying, "Which is more important to hygeine, brushing my teeth or bathing?"

For weight loss, I believe more people can lose weight without exercising than without dieting, but I don't think that doing either is ever the best option.

Also, which is more important to one person, is going to be very different than for another (much as the bathing/brushing dilemma might be if you really wanted to push it. If you have inherited weak teeth your answer would be different than the person who inherited a tendency towards skin issues).


Even with exercise, "how long you work out," or even how much effort you put into it (or sweat you get out of it) may not be the best criteria for evaluation.

In terms of evaluating exercise and diet for weight loss, you also have to define success. Do you really mean "which is better for the fastest weight loss," or "which is better for healthiest weight loss?" Because the answers may be different."

Both. A good diet is key, but you still need to do some type of exercise.

It's a combination for sure, I can't pick just one or the other. I feel better when I eat healthy, my body responds by better bowel movements (sorry but it's true!), my stomach isn't upset, I don't feel sluggish, I'm not overstuffed and feeling heavy...when my body feels good from what I'm eating I have more energy to exercise. Now exercise, after I get good sweat on I feel AMAZING! Those endorphines, can be addictive! When I really push myself and accomplish my fitness goals it's such a boost! Not just for my body but more for my mind! I relish in those good feelings after a good workout, especially in a nice hot shower afterwards. There's no words to explain that feeling exercise brings....cause diet doesn't give me that. Plus there are so much benefits exercise gives you that diet can't, like working your cario system, your heart is a muscle too building muscle eleviates stress on my bones, helping with decline in bone density as I age, lowers blood pressure and resting heart rate....remember our BMR decreases as we get older and I've noticed it with my mother. She's super thin, eats healthy (always has) but since she hit her 50's due to lack of exercise her cholesterol levels went up and her blood pressure. The doctor is on her to excercise. So she did and she got off her meds. She stopped, kept eating well, and had to go back on meds. She's now considering exercising again. So it really does go hand in hand. I can't choose!

You can lose weight by restricting your diet and without exercising. But you will be undermining your health -- weight loss drops both fat and muscle, moreso if you aren't exercising -- and that includes important muscles like your heart.

Plus, even if you are only interested in losing weight for the sake of appearance, losing weight without adding definition through exercise only gets you so far. The last time I lost weight without much exercise, I was not happy with how I looked. This time, I have been exercising more (just walking, but a lot of it) and I'm much happier with how I look (plus I've got a healthy waist-to-hip ratio for the first time in many years!).

Well I know that they both have to work - I have been training for a marathon all summer long. Ya think the weight would just drop off after running 20 miles - not so much. I know my fall back is my food consumption more than my exercise.

The odd thing for me is that it took a few months to catch up to me. I was rolling right along and bam I started gaining each and every freaking week. Marathon on Sunday and back to getting my waist line down on Monday!

I agree that it is Diet, But..... Strength training Builds Muscle...and Muscle Burns more calories even at rest....so A few Squats, Lunges and push ups, will help you to not gain when you have a little slip up.