Are all exercises created equal!?
Bruja924
Posts: 51 Member
So my goal is to lose 2lbs per week. I'm eating 1400 calories a day plus 50% of what I earn from working out, IF I'm still hungry.
My question is, do I really have to go to the gym 5x a week or will taking a walk daily be just as good??
My question is, do I really have to go to the gym 5x a week or will taking a walk daily be just as good??
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Replies
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All forms of exercise are good for your body in some fashion - cardiovascular health, mental health, etc. but no exercise is required to lose weight - that only takes a caloric deficit. That being said, depending on what you are doing at the gym, taking a walk is great exercise but it will not burn the calories that the gym workout could burn (unless you are walking for several hours or doing some serious power-walking).
I guess that it all depends on what your goals are... are you working out at the gym to retain muscle tone or are you doing mainly cardio? What do you want to look like when you reach your goal weight?
Bottom line, calorie deficit for weight loss and exercise for fitness (not mutually exclusive goals either).1 -
I wanna look like Beyonce! Lol. I actually want to look in shape. When I go to the gym I do 30 mins cardio, 20 mins weights and 50 mins looking at the clock to see if its time to leave. Lol.
I guess I feel that I need to do some form of exercise in order to lose weight, but to be honest I really don't like going to the gym.0 -
I didn't either, at first, but now it's a habit and that's how I start my day Monday thru Friday. I think it gets easier as time goes by and it's also easier if you are enjoying what you do at the gym... it doesn't sound like you are doing anything that gets you fired up, so try some different things (classes, etc) to see if any of them are more to your liking. You could also get a bike and use that as your exercise along with walking if that sounds like a better idea than going to the gym 5 days a week.1
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So my goal is to lose 2lbs per week. I'm eating 1400 calories a day plus 50% of what I earn from working out, IF I'm still hungry.
My question is, do I really have to go to the gym 5x a week or will taking a walk daily be just as good??
You don't have to exercise at all if you don't want!
Do whatever you enjoy doing1 -
So what's the big hype about? I guess it's always seemed like you have to go to the gym in order to lose weight.0
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Health, strength, vitality, cardiovascular system, musculature, energy1
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exercise will give you a toned body, but again, the only thing required for weight loss is to consume fewer calories than you burn (yes, it really is that simple).1
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@ccrdragon
I like simple!0 -
If you are losing 2 pounds a week I assume (I hope) you have a lot to lose since that is a very aggressive weight loss.
If you are considerably overweight then walking is all you really need to do. Walking is great exercise for fat loss and its much more likely you can get into a sustainable routinue of regular walking than long-term commit to a total lifestyle change of making it to a gym everyday.
Lose the weight with walking first, then you can decide if you want to build overall strength with workouts in a gym.
All I'd say to this is you might want to do a little something for your upper body so you don't lose muscle mass up top. At 2 pounds loss per week you probably are going to be losing muscle as well so best to try to stave that off with some exercise.2 -
So what's the big hype about? I guess it's always seemed like you have to go to the gym in order to lose weight.
You need a calorie deficit to lose weight. That's all, you just need to burn more than you eat. Exercise obviously burns a lot of calories so it allows you to eat more while still losing weight. That's easier for a lot of people. Really, that's what the connection between exercise and weight loss is.
Not all exercise happens in a gym. Especially cardio! I don't understand why people pay to go to a gym for cardio, personally. I'd rather go for a run for free. Or do something that's actually fun like riding a bike, or rewarding, like going on a scenic hike. I even do my strength training at home.1 -
if you want to preserve muscle mass and have body composition goals then I would suggest incorporating a progressive lifting regimen where you are utilizing the big compound movements...something like strong lifts, all pro beginner routine, etc.
but as others have said if you just want to lose weight, then all you need is a straight calorie deficit.3 -
If you lift weights or do some form of resistance training you'll lose mostly fat, instead of fat and muscle like you do if you only diet. So exercise can help with your weight loss goals if your weight loss goals are to lose fat.1 -
Well in a roundabout way it does
Cardio will give you a greater calorie burn
Progressive resistance will increase musculature, under the right conditions, which will increase marginally your BMR ..even if defecit it will help preserve muscle loss and maximise fat loss
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All exercises are not created equal, but all exercise calories are. What I mean is that if I take leisurely walk around the neighborhood vs doing a hard run on a treadmill, the run will burn more calories (if done for the same amount of time). However, burning 100 calories running vs burning 100 calories walking is equal in terms of calories. In terms of cardiovascular health and things like that, different exercises have different benefits, but if you mean just in terms of calories, they are the same as long as it is equal calories.2
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Honestly taking a walk daily is as good if not better for you. Turns out when we move enough (let's say 10,000ish steps) our blood sugar stabilizes and we don't get the common sugar spiking in our blood with our meals even with carbs. I don't really worry about official cardio anyway. The author (Dr Ken Cooper) who wrote the book "aerobics" found a number of women who WERE aerobically fit and did no formal exercise. Very busy "housewives" who somehow got enough activity even if it was a lower cardiac level.
My take is that you should do what you like. I have fun riding a bike and yes I am increasing my heart rate climbing hills but do it because I like it. I like my morning walk too . I belong to a gym to do upper body weights but alas don't go as much as I could. I just don't like having weights at home.1 -
Aaron_K123 wrote: »If you are losing 2 pounds a week I assume (I hope) you have a lot to lose since that is a very aggressive weight loss.
If you are considerably overweight then walking is all you really need to do. Walking is great exercise for fat loss and its much more likely you can get into a sustainable routinue of regular walking than long-term commit to a total lifestyle change of making it to a gym everyday.
Lose the weight with walking first, then you can decide if you want to build overall strength with workouts in a gym.
All I'd say to this is you might want to do a little something for your upper body so you don't lose muscle mass up top. At 2 pounds loss per week you probably are going to be losing muscle as well so best to try to stave that off with some exercise.
I am currently 5'8 and 261lbs. So yes, I have a wayyys to go!0 -
It depends on how you want to look. You said you wanted to look "in shape", but that's subjective. If being thin is what you think is a healthy look then you just need to be in a caloric deficit and don't really need exercise (this is what people call skinny fat, although the term bothers me). If the more athletic/toned look is what you think is in shape, then yes, you should be lifting weights.1
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I started out at 250, with a goal to lose 1lb a week. After 3 1/2 months, I've lost 38 lbs. with walking my main source of exercise. I intend to add more and different exercise as I get closer to my goal, mostly to tighten up. As long as you are losing weight, it's all good!1
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Weight loss is dictated by having a calorie deficit, that's all. However, I will say that by including strength training in your weight loss, it really helps you not have lots of jiggly, squishy, wobbly bits once you get to goal weight. Helps everything stay shaped, sculted, and shapely, lol. And for me, personally, I enjoy cardio, because of the gratification I get from seeing my fitness/strength/endurance progress and achievements.
But it really does come down to what your goals are.0 -
Put another way:
The easiest way to lose weight is just to eat less of the types of things you normally eat and exercise a bit more, and yes walking is exercise. The downside here is when you lose fat you will likely also lose muscle (at least upperbody if all you are doing is walking for exercise)
The "best" way is to include full-body weight lifting exercises to maintain (not increase) your current muscle mass. This, however, can be hard for many people to commit to and if trying to do this makes them quit then really the "best" way is the easiest way.1
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