Why Dieting is the Worst Way to Lose Weight

SoLongAndThanksForAllTheFish

Yeah, that's fine, but they're still getting exercise. Clearly it's not enough to offset the other issues, and as everyone knows, you don't get fat because you don't exercise, you get fat because you eat more calories than you expend through all activity—metabolism, brain function and physical activity (a.k.a. EXERCISE).

You are right here, and ANY moderately vigorous physical activity 150 minutes per week (like just plain walking) has been shown to significantly reduce serious health risks. However you always come off as poo-pooing exercise as the takeaway in your posts. Looks like from your posts about being "toned" from your activities, the fact of the matter is you essentially DO this advice for exercise, but you dont do it for the purpose of "exercise", and you dont like to be told you should exercise. But that's no reason to tell newbies not to exercise, especially when it sounds like you actually DO exercise. It sounds as though its your personal bias and resistance to being told to exercise that's speaking.

K.

Point is, exercise isn't the magic bullet for WEIGHT LOSS that people make it out to be. I've never gainsaid the fact that exercise has health benefits. Duh. But for WEIGHT LOSS it is NOT essential. People need to understand that, because if they can only do one thing, and one thing only, to lose weight, it should NOT be exercise. Because if they don't have a calorie deficit, they won't lose weight. And if they lose weight, the health benefit from not being obese is way more significant than just a slight cardiovascular/toning benefit to a person who is STILL OBESE. Capisce? :huh:

The first thing someone usually thinks is dieting (restricting calories) can cause you to lose weight. You are beating a dead horse to tell them you don't need to exercise to lose weight. So its kind of "Obvious(wo)man to the rescue!", but gives the impression exercise isn't important. Whereas advice that exercise can help them is not as well established. Its also very rare that someone will go "OK so I'll either watch my calories or exercise", and if they do, of course that's obviously wrong for weight loss.

I don't see people saying exercise is the "magic bullet" for weight loss and you don't need to look at calories, but that its an additional help, which it is. There is even a group of people who can be kind of "fit fat", people who can be overweight significantly but exercise regularly and have similar reduced chances of disease and diabetes as people who are not overweight. So yes, if your argument is that hypothetical scenario that someone does only one, which is extremely unlikely, just getting fit could definitely help them, though it may not be the overall goal, the benefit is not slight (unless the exercise is slight), and they look down at the scale and come back to ask more questions (I bet you've never seen a "why am I not losing weight" topic....). Yeah, I get that you don't like exercise. Just as nobody needs to tell you to have to exercise, you don't need to always tell everyone to dismiss exercise, but you do.

penrbrown

My opinion, not exercise. I am entitled to it just as those of you who feel that cleaning the house, raking leaves, shoveling snow, etc., are entitled to yours.

Are those things better than nothing at all, absolutely. Do you want to yell at me for not calling every kid who simply participates in a sport a "winner" too? Sometimes your efforts just are not good enough. Deal with it, that is life.

You've never really shoveled snow before, have you?

I live in a desert, sweet pea. What gave you that idea?

Saying shoveling snow isn't exercise was a tip off....

>.< Holy crap. I wore my HRM while shoverling once. I burned more in twenty minutes of shoveling then I ever did running. LOL. That *kitten* is hard work.

DamePiglet

Again, exercise is a physical activity that is done in order to become stronger and/or healthier. Walking to the freezer to get another pint of ice cream or shoveling snow, while physically demanding for some, still not exercise. One is done done because ice cream is fantastic and the other is done because they can't afford to winter in a warmer climate.

This is also what works for me. I am an active person with a desk job but I don't track the 8 minutes from the car to work, and vice versa, or vacuuming, or when I walk the block down to the mall during lunch, or when I decide to take a break and walk the office mail to the mailbox two blocks away. All those things, including housework and washing the car, are generally part of my daily activity.

I log the activities that I specifically do for exercise--which by the way was never introduced for weight loss but for the other health benefits, including keeping my body pain and stiffness under control--such as strength training, running, elliptical, spinning/stationary bike, brisk walking, and hiking. Al of these activities include getting my heartbeat up and sweating.

if shoveling snow, digging holes and push mowing a lawn are as easy to you as washing a car or walking down the block, my hats off to you, honey. You're a better broad than I.

stryder2807

need to read this for later

Siansonea

Ah, more gymrat/"nutrition" evangelism. Fail. :huh:

I lost weight through a calorie deficit, eating "dirty" food, with ZERO exercise, and I look amazing. So this author can take a flying leap. :smokin:

Okay, so you went on a 1,200 calorie diet. Now how will you maintain?

By being on a 1600 calorie limit. That's my TDEE at my age/height/weight. It's all just math. :drinker:

Here come the diet police. "Freeze! Drop the 1600 calorie diet! Gimme 50 squats and a pec-flexed selfie! Just trying to protect you from yourself, ma'am."

:laugh:

egrusy

In because there are so many responses to a thread from just this morning. I'm sure it will be interesting! Once I actually have time to read through it all...

Mr_Knight

I don't see people saying exercise is the "magic bullet" for weight loss and you don't need to look at calories, but that its an additional help, which it is.

That's correct in theory, but not in practice. As the dozens of daily "help!" threads on MFP demonstrate, way to many people are in fact treating exercise as a "magic bullet" by significantly over-estimating their burns so they can eat more food.

I agree with the poster you are responding to - the best advice for most people struggling with weight loss is to ignore everything and focus on logging/eating at a caloric deficit. Forget exercise, forget everything else.

As context, I say this as someone who runs, cycles, swims and strength trains. I *love* exercise, and I love how it makes my body feel. But it's just undeniable that for many many people it ends up being a negative distraction and complication in the pursuit of weight loss.

127ismygoal

Oh, alarming, is it? Well, not as alarming as telling someone who is not losing weight to just eat more calories until they start losing (hint: if you're not losing weight, the problem isn't that you're eating too few calories, it's that you're not counting input and output properly, but whatever, details, right?).

Here's the thing. Not everyone who sets out to lose weight is a chipper, perky little dynamo with willpower to spare, who is eager to make a suite of drastic lifestyle changes all at once. Some of us have really demanding jobs and social lives that don't really make a lot of room for a complete diet overhaul, a stringent workout regimen, and oh, by the way, if you can spare a few moments to track your calories and eat at a deficit it might help. The calorie deficit is pooh-poohed, downplayed, marginalized and dismissed around here, but it is literally the ONLY thing you HAVE to do in order to LOSE WEIGHT. I know this, because it's the ONLY thing I did. And I'm a half pound away from my goal weight.

Yeah, exercise is fine for health or whatever. Fitness, strength, all that jazz. But that's really not about losing weight. I mean, I seem to have lost weight as rapidly as any gymrat around here, and I feel perfectly fine. If I wanted to, now that I'm close to maintenance, I could start to introduce a little exercise into my life, and I might try yoga or something. But that's a separate goal from losing weight, and I figured that it would be better to accomplish one feat before tackling another. And honestly, I don't think I need a whole heck of a lot of toning, I'm pretty fortunate that my everyday activity keeps me at least somewhat toned.

So yeah, judge us lazy calorie counters all you want. We're laughing all the way to the scale. :drinker:

I love this woman. I started losing weight (again) abooout 2 weeks ago, and I'm half way to my goal already. Didn't lift a finger. That's a lie, I lifted my arm for my pint. Shock horror I drank on my diet.

Amitysk

This is almost as fun as the junk food thread from the other day!!

Keep it coming as I am stuck at work all evening prepping for Black Friday...

Oh and to add, I don't think weight loss is about exercise...

grandpoobah12

Every one knows everything. Till the next study comes along telling you what you want to hear.

SoDamnHungry

Bump to watch the fisticuffs later.

Siansonea

Yeah, that's fine, but they're still getting exercise. Clearly it's not enough to offset the other issues, and as everyone knows, you don't get fat because you don't exercise, you get fat because you eat more calories than you expend through all activity—metabolism, brain function and physical activity (a.k.a. EXERCISE).

You are right here, and ANY moderately vigorous physical activity 150 minutes per week (like just plain walking) has been shown to significantly reduce serious health risks. However you always come off as poo-pooing exercise as the takeaway in your posts. Looks like from your posts about being "toned" from your activities, the fact of the matter is you essentially DO this advice for exercise, but you dont do it for the purpose of "exercise", and you dont like to be told you should exercise. But that's no reason to tell newbies not to exercise, especially when it sounds like you actually DO exercise. It sounds as though its your personal bias and resistance to being told to exercise that's speaking.

K.

Point is, exercise isn't the magic bullet for WEIGHT LOSS that people make it out to be. I've never gainsaid the fact that exercise has health benefits. Duh. But for WEIGHT LOSS it is NOT essential. People need to understand that, because if they can only do one thing, and one thing only, to lose weight, it should NOT be exercise. Because if they don't have a calorie deficit, they won't lose weight. And if they lose weight, the health benefit from not being obese is way more significant than just a slight cardiovascular/toning benefit to a person who is STILL OBESE. Capisce? :huh:

The first thing someone usually thinks is dieting (restricting calories) can cause you to lose weight. You are beating a dead horse to tell them you don't need to exercise to lose weight. So its kind of "Obvious(wo)man to the rescue!", but gives the impression exercise isn't important. Whereas advice that exercise can help them is not as well established. Its also very rare that someone will go "OK so I'll either watch my calories or exercise", and if they do, of course that's obviously wrong for weight loss.

I don't see people saying exercise is the "magic bullet" for weight loss and you don't need to look at calories, but that its an additional help, which it is. There is even a group of people who can be kind of "fit fat", people who can be overweight significantly but exercise regularly and have similar reduced chances of disease and diabetes as people who are not overweight. So yes, if your argument is that hypothetical scenario that someone does only one, which is extremely unlikely, just getting fit could definitely help them, though it may not be the overall goal, the benefit is not slight (unless the exercise is slight), and they look down at the scale and come back to ask more questions (I bet you've never seen a "why am I not losing weight" topic....). Yeah, I get that you don't like exercise. Just as nobody needs to tell you to have to exercise, you don't need to always tell everyone to dismiss exercise, but you do.

Gosh, come to think of it, I DO see a lot of "why am I not losing weight" topics. :huh:

And it's funny how they usually go. A litany of exercises. A laundry list of all the "healthy" foods they're eating. And there might be a mention of a calorie limit, but it's usually just a throwaway line. The fact is, people seem to be under a gross misapprehension that the calorie limit is just one piece of the puzzle. If they didn't think that, there would BE no "why am I not losing weight" topics. Because they'd be losing weight, you see. Whenever we peel back the layers, we find that they're running themselves ragged trying to earn as many calories as they can so they can eat as many calories as they can, but because they still have to eat at a deficit, they're exhausted AND miserable. And that's IF they're not actually eating at maintenance. When it comes to estimating calories burned through exercise, it is a crapshoot, from what I can tell, and people being people I know they unconsciously fudge their numbers in both directions with diet and exercise. Well, guess what that does to a calorie deficit that was already razor-thin to begin with? :huh:

The reason I always stress the calorie deficit is because it is the most important thing, the sine qua non of weight loss. If you master that, you've got it licked. THEN, if you've still got some willpower left over, by all means, throw in some exercise and nutrition. But just losing weight will yield the most dividends, both physically and mentally—which, who knows, might motivate a person to make other positive lifestyle changes. But stacking a giant pile of lifestyle changes on their plate all at once? Well, it's not for everyone, to say the least.

127ismygoal

The reason I always stress the calorie deficit is because it is the most important thing, the sine qua non of weight loss.

She made a true true. If you believe in science, like me, the golden rule of physics is 'energy is not created nor destroyed it is transferred'. Therefore if you eat the same energy as you use you don't lose weight. If you eat more energy than you use, you gain weight. If you eat less energy than you use you lose weight Simples.

I love science.

Siansonea

thanks for sharing.
don't slip now.
bless your heart.

Thanks for your heartfelt concern. One of the dogs is over 130lbs and his movements, well... you get the idea. Plus I have to watch out for snakes, scorpions, black widows, worry about coyotes jumping the fence... if it's dark enough there is a bat in the neighborhood. Yup, definitely going to log that as cardiovascular exercise. How many calories do you think it burns? I've got a big yard, usually takes me an hour to pick up all of it.

You don't have to worry about black widows. I'm staying in tonight. :drinker:

Siansonea

The reason I always stress the calorie deficit is because it is the most important thing, the sine qua non of weight loss.

She made a true true. If you believe in science, like me, the golden rule of physics is 'energy is not created nor destroyed it is transferred'. Therefore if you eat the same energy as you use you don't lose weight. If you eat more energy than you use, you gain weight. If you eat less energy than you use you lose weight Simples.

I love science.

I luvz science too. :bigsmile:

WalkingAlong

- the best advice for most people struggling with weight loss is to ignore everything and focus on logging/eating at a caloric deficit. Forget exercise, forget everything else.

Most published diet plans, including WW (unless they've changed since I 'graduated'), even advocate NOT adding an exercise component for the first several weeks or months. The experts know that people get overwhelmed, people over-compensate for their exercise burn based on their perception of what it's 'worth' food-wise, and most of all-- people gain weight from a new exercise plan. I'm not saying they pack on the muscles but a lot of us, especially women, can hoard a lot of water in our cells and it makes the scale a ****ty indicator of progress, sometimes for a long time.

DamePiglet

thanks for sharing.
don't slip now.
bless your heart.

Thanks for your heartfelt concern. One of the dogs is over 130lbs and his movements, well... you get the idea. Plus I have to watch out for snakes, scorpions, black widows, worry about coyotes jumping the fence... if it's dark enough there is a bat in the neighborhood. Yup, definitely going to log that as cardiovascular exercise. How many calories do you think it burns? I've got a big yard, usually takes me an hour to pick up all of it.

What are you asking me for? You know everything!

TheSlorax

lol this thread. you keep doing you, mfp. never change.