Diet Vs Exercise

anmille8

https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/04/health/diet-exercise-weight-loss/index.html
I read this article and author makes an interesting point that if you are trying to lose weight should focus on diet and not exercising. For example the calories you burn exercising can be easily eaten away and a vigorous workout could just make you more hungry. What do you all do? Focus on diet or diet and exercise?

concordancia

I am focused on health, so diet and exercise. Since I track what I eat, I do not eat more than I exercise away. Also, generally a really intense workout won't make me more hungry until the next day, when I can plan filling foods.

zeejane03

I agree with this. Exercise is great for a lot of things health related, but plays a pretty minimal role in weight loss. I walk for health, I eat at the correct calories intake for my weight management goals (I do not factor in any calories burned from my walks).

TavistockToad

Calorie deficit to lose weight, created 95% by food, sometimes with a little extra help from my exercise.

try2again

I actually started a thread on that article last week... here's the (brief) discussion:

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10716838/article-why-exercise-wont-make-you-lose-weight#latest

For most people, exercise buys them a small amount of buffer calories. The bulk of the calorie deficit needs to come from diet.

If your goals are more fitness-oriented, then of course a person should take that into consideration.

janejellyroll

I don't think of it as an either/or. I make sure the calories I consume match what my body uses. Part of what my body uses comes from exercise, but the important thing is to make sure to hit my overall goal.

zeejane03

try2again wrote: »

I actually started a thread on that article last week... here's the (brief) discussion:

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10716838/article-why-exercise-wont-make-you-lose-weight#latest

For most people, exercise buys them a small amount of buffer calories. The bulk of the calorie deficit needs to come from diet.

If your goals are more fitness-oriented, then of course a person should take that into consideration.

This is how I look at it for me personally-I know I'm burning a few calories by walking (today it was around 75), but I just figure that covers any tracking errors/overestimating with my food intake and over the long term it all evens out (and it does, based on my long term trends).

But yeah, I'm not fitness oriented at all. I walk because my doctor recommended it for cardiovascular health, (and there's a large number of elderly people that walk in my neighborhood and seeing them out there walking and being active and mobile in their 70's and 80s makes me think that they may be onto something ).

edit: clarification

callsitlikeiseeit

losing weight happens in the kitchen.

gaining health, happens through exercise

Combine the two, and the results are magical.

CSARdiver

Well both, but this article is assuming one isn't tracking caloric intake and output and just winging it.

Purely based upon the value of input vs output the food you eat is the primary variable. 1400 kcal/day intake > 300 kcal day output from exercise.

cwolfman13

I've been in maintenance for going on 6 years and exercise regularly. For one thing, if exercise defaulted to losing weight I'd ultimately just wither away. Secondly, even though I exercise regularly, I typically put on about 10 Lbs over the winter and the holidays...point being that you can gain weight even when exercising regularly because ultimately it comes down to what you're eating and your diet.

I am in the process of cutting that winter and holiday weight right now...I haven't changed my exercise, I'm just eating a little less and drinking less.

Weight management in general largely comes down to diet. I exercise for my overall health and well being and fitness. Bottom line is that people don't really burn as much as they think they do with exercise, and unless you're training like an athlete, your calorie expenditure from exercise is dwarfed by your calorie expenditure from just being alive and going about your day to day...it's a nice little added bonus in most cases, but that's about it. Regular exercise does have numerous health benefits though.

azzeazsaleh5429

Its always diet first and then you could exercise. Exercise makes you stronger so you could do such basic activities with no problem. I also find that exercise help form your body shape better too; because you can loose weight in certain areas faster than other parts of your body.

PaigeAnderson1793

I focus on both, but I put more emphasis on my diet.

try2again

CSARdiver wrote: »

Well both, but this article is assuming one isn't tracking caloric intake and output and just winging it.

That's what we often see here though... people focused on their exercise routines and no mention of diet.

kami3006

I exercise regularly but eat all of my exercise calories (the mfp way of tracking) so any of my losing, bulking, maintaining comes from the calories I eat. I like it what way.

estherdragonbat

I find I'm less hungry when I exercise and eat back a portion of the burned calories than when I don't exercise and eat less. (I'm on 1360 to lose 1/2lb per week. Eating back around 50% of my exercise calories, I take in around 1600 most days and I'm good. But on days when I decide not to exercise and just eat the 1360, I tend to have more hunger).

AnnPT77

Personal experience?

I was already very active (workouts 6 days most weeks) for 10 years, while obese. I stayed obese.

Worse yet, my health markers (cholesterol/triglycerides, blood pressure) stayed bad.

I was already vegetarian, and eating lots (too much) of mostly home-cooked whole foods.

So, I used calorie counting to eat at the right level, learned along the way how to stay satiated and happy on that level (and get good nutrition), and lost around 50 pounds. I'm now in year 3 of maintaining a healthy weight.

I put this in a lot of threads. I don't think it's out of place here:

Appropriate calories for weight management + sensible, balanced eating for good nutrition + exercise for fitness = best odds of long term good health.

Long term good health is what I want . . . especially now, at age 63, looking around at my age-mates, plus those just a bit older, and seeing their choices bear fruit (good and bad).

CSARdiver

try2again wrote: »

CSARdiver wrote: »

Well both, but this article is assuming one isn't tracking caloric intake and output and just winging it.

That's what we often see here though... people focused on their exercise routines and no mention of diet.

This was me prior to MFP. I imagine the majority of people believe this. The misinformation campaigns from the diet/fitness industry are massive.

cwolfman13

CSARdiver wrote: »

try2again wrote: »

CSARdiver wrote: »

Well both, but this article is assuming one isn't tracking caloric intake and output and just winging it.

That's what we often see here though... people focused on their exercise routines and no mention of diet.

This was me prior to MFP. I imagine the majority of people believe this. The misinformation campaigns from the diet/fitness industry are massive.

At the gym I go to, most of the people there are working with one of the trainers as it is not an open to the public gym. I know all of the trainers well and personally and they all really emphasize diet...but still, there's people I've been seeing in there for the last 3 years that haven't changed one iota except to get stronger and more fit...they don't listen to the nutrition advice and some of these people are in there 2-3 times per week at $50 a pop.

netitheyeti

Diet is definitely what does it for me, for weight loss (or weight maintenance)... I do like having some extra calories to work with when I work out, but I exercise mainly because I like feeling stronger, having better posture, and just looking and feeling less flabby... I notice a massive difference when I exercise regularly, in my shape/size, even if my weight stays basically the same

anmille8

cwolfman13 wrote: »

CSARdiver wrote: »

try2again wrote: »

CSARdiver wrote: »

Well both, but this article is assuming one isn't tracking caloric intake and output and just winging it.

That's what we often see here though... people focused on their exercise routines and no mention of diet.

This was me prior to MFP. I imagine the majority of people believe this. The misinformation campaigns from the diet/fitness industry are massive.

At the gym I go to, most of the people there are working with one of the trainers as it is not an open to the public gym. I know all of the trainers well and personally and they all really emphasize diet...but still, there's people I've been seeing in there for the last 3 years that haven't changed one iota except to get stronger and more fit...they don't listen to the nutrition advice and some of these people are in there 2-3 times per week at $50 a pop.

yea it's interesting how you can work out so hard and not lose weight. Is there anyway to raise your BMR?