Using only excercise to create deficit

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  • asellitti6523
    asellitti6523 Posts: 37 Member
    keepmelean wrote: »
    Not sure if this has been mentioned or asked (didn't see it).

    But... if you are finding the only way to create a calorie deficit to lose weight is to exercise - then what happens what you decide to back off on the exercise and eat the same as you currently do?

    Thinking long-term...

    In theory they are using additional exercise and maintenance calories to lose a couple lbs. Assuming the OP recalculates maintenance at their new weight and consistently eats at maintenance they should maintain their weight even if they cut out the exercise.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    asellitti6523 wrote: »
    keepmelean wrote: »
    Not sure if this has been mentioned or asked (didn't see it).

    But... if you are finding the only way to create a calorie deficit to lose weight is to exercise - then what happens what you decide to back off on the exercise and eat the same as you currently do?

    Thinking long-term...

    In theory they are using additional exercise and maintenance calories to lose a couple lbs. Assuming the OP recalculates maintenance at their new weight and consistently eats at maintenance they should maintain their weight even if they cut out the exercise.

    This is why understanding CICO is such a valuable thing. It's very easy, once you understand your energy needs, to adjust when you become more or less active.

    Example: For most of the year, I commute to work by walking. In the winter, I take the bus. Using a rigid approach would mean gaining weight in the winter, but since I understand my energy needs, I'm able to eat less in the winter and avoid weight gain.
  • keepmelean
    keepmelean Posts: 28 Member
    Theoldguy1 wrote: »
    keepmelean wrote: »
    Not sure if this has been mentioned or asked (didn't see it).

    But... if you are finding the only way to create a calorie deficit to lose weight is to exercise - then what happens what you decide to back off on the exercise and eat the same as you currently do?

    Thinking long-term...

    Thinking long term, exercise is vital for health. No reason (outside of a catastrophic illness or injury) to back off.

    Not suggesting it is, but at some point, people do.
  • Theoldguy1
    Theoldguy1 Posts: 2,498 Member
    keepmelean wrote: »
    Theoldguy1 wrote: »
    keepmelean wrote: »
    Not sure if this has been mentioned or asked (didn't see it).

    But... if you are finding the only way to create a calorie deficit to lose weight is to exercise - then what happens what you decide to back off on the exercise and eat the same as you currently do?

    Thinking long-term...

    Thinking long term, exercise is vital for health. No reason (outside of a catastrophic illness or injury) to back off.

    Not suggesting it is, but at some point, people do.

    No reason to.
  • HoneyBadger302
    HoneyBadger302 Posts: 2,085 Member
    I don't have a ton to lose either (well within a healthy weight range), and have found that adjusting my food choices makes maintaining a deficit almost easy, compared to feeling like I was ready to gnaw my arm off - at the same number of calories.

    For me it was lower carbs (below 100g/day most of the time), high protein, and higher fats. Took about a week to adjust, but after that I found it SO much easier to stay in my deficit.

    Some people do better on more carbs, some on fewer, higher fat or protein - that can all adjust a bit to help your body feel more satiated.

    I workout, fairly hard, most of the time, but that just tends to increase my hunger - for me, it doesn't help me in the weight loss department a whole lot - a little, but also gives me more reason and need for higher protein than I otherwise might consume.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    keepmelean wrote: »
    Not sure if this has been mentioned or asked (didn't see it).

    But... if you are finding the only way to create a calorie deficit to lose weight is to exercise - then what happens what you decide to back off on the exercise and eat the same as you currently do?

    Thinking long-term...
    Theoldguy1 wrote: »
    Thinking long term, exercise is vital for health. No reason (outside of a catastrophic illness or injury) to back off.

    Yes, I'm active every day, but my mom, who is 82, gets more exercise than I do.

    If she ends up in a nursing home, it won't be because she is unable to go to the bathroom unassisted, but because she fell off a ladder while cleaning gutters >.<
  • cheryldumais
    cheryldumais Posts: 1,907 Member
    HoneyBadger155 wrote: »
    I don't have a ton to lose either (well within a healthy weight range), and have found that adjusting my food choices makes maintaining a deficit almost easy, compared to feeling like I was ready to gnaw my arm off - at the same number of calories.

    For me it was lower carbs (below 100g/day most of the time), high protein, and higher fats. Took about a week to adjust, but after that I found it SO much easier to stay in my deficit.

    Some people do better on more carbs, some on fewer, higher fat or protein - that can all adjust a bit to help your body feel more satiated.

    I workout, fairly hard, most of the time, but that just tends to increase my hunger - for me, it doesn't help me in the weight loss department a whole lot - a little, but also gives me more reason and need for higher protein than I otherwise might consume.

    This totally is working for me. I was eating a balanced diet but ravenous in the evening. Cutting carbs and raising protein made a huge difference for me. Not saying your plan won't work just saying if you continue to feel hungry this might help.

  • idabest777
    idabest777 Posts: 97 Member
    That's what I've been doing lately, although I only have about 5lbs to lose now so I have a fairly small deficit. My maintenance is around 1600 and I was struggling to get more than 100cal deficit a day until I added in a 20min run in the mornings. I don't find that it changes my hunger levels at all but it's giving me an extra 200cals a day for my deficit which makes it so much easier.
  • RGv2
    RGv2 Posts: 5,789 Member
    Kittyy1994 wrote: »
    Hi all, has anyone tried using exercise only to create their deficit - I am far too hungry on a calorie deficit so I was thinking about eating at maintenance then not logging excerise and see how it goes. I do some form of exercise every day. Has anyone tried this?

    When I flipped though the thread here I didn't notice your calorie goals. When you "eat in a deficit", what is your goal intake? 1200, 1500, 2000?
  • Kittyy1994
    Kittyy1994 Posts: 108 Member
    janejellyroll wrote: »
    Buttermello wrote: »
    janejellyroll wrote: »
    Buttermello wrote: »
    Of course it CAN be done... it just turns losing weight into a guessing game instead of a clear/linear process.

    You get to guess that you exercised enough and guess that your portions were small enough.

    How so? OP is just using another way to create a calorie deficit. However you decide to do it, you have the same options to estimate your exercise calorie burn and measuring your food accurately to understand how much you're eating.

    OP won't be "guessing" any more than someone who is using MFP in the typical way (creating a calorie deficit through planning to eat less, logging food to ensure they're meeting that goal, and adding back the calories burnt through additional exercise).

    There is a lot less guessing when I weigh and log EVERYTHING (assuming I use reputable sources for the calorie counts). Yes, it's not an exact science - but it's as close as the average person can get.

    I'm not seeing that OP is planning to not log her food or measure it accurately. Her plan is to eat the number of calories she needs to maintain and then use exercise to create a deficit. Implied in that is that she is planning to log her food, she will need a way to ensure she's eating what she plans to.

    Hi all, thanks for the info

    Just to clarify - I never said I wasn’t going to log!! Just have my goals set at maintenance, am still logging everything to ensure I am not over eating... my maintenance calories are 1960 and the smallest deficit option (0.2kg per week) is around 1600 (which I can never stick to as I feel as though I need those extra snacks to have enough energy. My question was if I eat at LOGGED maintenance calories and don’t log exercise will I still be creating a big enough deficit to lose?

  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    Kittyy1994 wrote: »
    janejellyroll wrote: »
    Buttermello wrote: »
    janejellyroll wrote: »
    Buttermello wrote: »
    Of course it CAN be done... it just turns losing weight into a guessing game instead of a clear/linear process.

    You get to guess that you exercised enough and guess that your portions were small enough.

    How so? OP is just using another way to create a calorie deficit. However you decide to do it, you have the same options to estimate your exercise calorie burn and measuring your food accurately to understand how much you're eating.

    OP won't be "guessing" any more than someone who is using MFP in the typical way (creating a calorie deficit through planning to eat less, logging food to ensure they're meeting that goal, and adding back the calories burnt through additional exercise).

    There is a lot less guessing when I weigh and log EVERYTHING (assuming I use reputable sources for the calorie counts). Yes, it's not an exact science - but it's as close as the average person can get.

    I'm not seeing that OP is planning to not log her food or measure it accurately. Her plan is to eat the number of calories she needs to maintain and then use exercise to create a deficit. Implied in that is that she is planning to log her food, she will need a way to ensure she's eating what she plans to.

    Hi all, thanks for the info

    Just to clarify - I never said I wasn’t going to log!! Just have my goals set at maintenance, am still logging everything to ensure I am not over eating... my maintenance calories are 1960 and the smallest deficit option (0.2kg per week) is around 1600 (which I can never stick to as I feel as though I need those extra snacks to have enough energy. My question was if I eat at LOGGED maintenance calories and don’t log exercise will I still be creating a big enough deficit to lose?

    ANY number under your true maintenance calories is a big enough number to lose - just the speed of loss varies.

    By the way you can also manually set a calorie goal, you aren't limited to just setting a deficit by choosing a particular rate of loss.
    Which means you could experiment with 1700, 1800 or any other number between maintenance and the number you have found unsustainable.
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