80% diet....20%exercise, wish the balance was different!!!

anasf139

OK so I read somewhere that losing weight is 80% diet and 20% exercise, which I find quite annoying. I've started enjoying working out but still have ups and downs with food! Realy wish the balance was a bit more towards the exercise! Anyone else feel the same?

occupyme

My "ups and downs" with food level out when I am consistent with exercise.

SeanPulitzer

I agree! I'm a gym rat but I've never had the best diet. I just joined this site so hopefully it helps me keep track of what I'm eating.

CarolynB38

Yep! It would be so much easier if it was the other way round. Doing exercise is DOING something towards losing weight. Not eating too much or not eating unhealthy foods is a NOT DOING kind of thing which I find way harder. I'm a positive kind of person so DOING is much easier than NOT DOING for me. I hope that didn't confuse the heck out of too many people, lol! :bigsmile:

Thinking of the food side of it as DOING healthy eating helps a little :happy:

deadstarsunburn

I feel the same lol. I exercise 6 days a week and it would be 7 if I didn't have a night class. I'm not terrible with food I just love pizza!!!

thcri

That is the correct balance. I found that out the hard way. I lost doing it mostly on exercise but it catches up with you and you end up gaining it back. However I will tell you if you are eating right your exercises will be a lot funner and more productive. Get the diet down first. jmo

Elizabeth_M

Nope, I'm liking having control over the food and it's working for me. I'm eating well, feeling great.

For me, it's a lot easier working on the food intake than the exercise, but that's just me!!

IronSmasher

The difference in difficulty between eating a packet of biscuits, and burning them off again is phenominal.

becky2967

that didnt work for me weirdly! mines more 50/50 ive had my biggest losses on my high exercise weeks though

kimtpa1417

I also found out the hard why that losing weight is more of what you eat than how much you exercise. Once I got the eating part down then and exercise the weight came flying off....the hard part is learning to love more healthier foods.

CarolynB38

The difference in difficulty between eating a packet of biscuits, and burning them off again is phenominal.

And for me the difference in difficulty of NOT eating the biscuits in the first place and burning them off is fairly comparable! Bloody hard work! But I endeavour not to eat those biscuits in the first place because I don't think my knees will take that amount of exercise in one go!

ablykins

Diet is so important- but never discount exercise. It is both working together that get your optimal results! You may be only able to fit in an hour of exercise a day, so what becomes critical is what you do with those other 23 hours in the day! I guess it goes without saying- you simply can't out-train a bad diet! Even when you get victories on the scale- a poor diet can be trashing your insides and will eventually catch up with you. Kudos to everyone on this site though for at least making an effort- that is the first step! :flowerforyou:

Articeluvsmemphis

well doesn't matter how annoying it is, just do it

you'll be in such a better place not worrying about something you can't control, having a good diet is great for weight loss and overall health, and so is exercise.

dad106

As the saying goes, You can't out exercise a bad diet... You can exercise till you are blue in the face, but if the diet sucks, then you are sol.

I find that when I don't exercise, I watch my food choices more.. so I know that I won't gain.

sandy2006

I agree with OP. If exercise made me lose weight I would be skinny! I am consistant with exercise it is the food that I cant keep in check!

Shaz_74

That is the correct balance. I found that out the hard way. I lost doing it mostly on exercise but it catches up with you and you end up gaining it back. However I will tell you if you are eating right your exercises will be a lot funner and more productive. Get the diet down first. jmo

This has been my experience as well. I previously lost about 20+ lbs by exercising like a maniac - basically 80% exercise and only 20% (minor) changes in diet .... of course I couldn't keep it up - as I became more fit, I had to do longer more intense exercise sessions - I burned out and the weight came back with a vengeance :devil:
This time around, with my focus on eating healthier, I'm not killing myself with exercise ... so like you said, it's a lot more fun and productive.

Cuddy73

So true, can't exercise out a bad diet. For me exercise will help me maintain weight, but getting the diet right will get the pounds off.

Although I'll never forget the time I saw two women wearing literally the same dress (one borrowed the other's) - one was just slim, the other one had a gym honed, fantastic body, well toned...a jaw dropping difference!

TabbyKatzzz

Yes, I agree. The thing is, for me , the fact that exercise is connected to how much I can eat in a day (eating my exercise calories), really keeps me motivated to exercise. I like that!

Banannafish512

I'm struggling to keep my diet under control too...it seems no matter how much I exercise, I sabotage myself by eating really sugary things. I just need to ax my thought that exercising gives me a right to eat whatever I want.