Someone told me you won't lose fat with excercise.

neanderthin

Exercise is important, nutrition is critical.

Flip that around and your gold. Humans have been consuming a diverse diet, but staying active and exercising adds to longevity and quality of life, unless you bought in a magical dieting format, like paleo, vegan, raw...then it's all about diet. imo

obeserat

I think you'd have to burn off 3500 calories to lose 1lb of fat , I don't burn off that many in a week cycling 10 miles per day , 5 days per week

You need to cycle faster then. I use 1400 calories a day cycling 8mile to work and back.

Do you weigh more than 300lb ?

poscagirl

At uni (exercise physiology) we went through this. Exercise alone for 12 months, 30-45min/day, 55-75% VO2max averaged ~3.2kg weight loss and in the short term (3 months) only ~1.5kg (0.5kg for walking based programs). If we incorporate dietary restriction into this there was ~3-13kg lost (over 3-12months) and with a combination of diet and exercise ~4-17kg (over 3-12months) Exercise in this situation found to be more important for maintaining lean mass and the resting metabolic rate.

However, exercise contributes to the food intake as when we exercise we are able to better regulate our appetite, exercise also acts as an acute appetite suppressant, and through an unclear mechanism it can even increase the thermic effect of a meal. So even if it doesn't assist with weight loss so much it will assist with the dietary changes!

Thats my rant.

shariTN

working out will help you lose weight. It burns calories and you lose weight burning calories. I always do better on weight loss when I work out.

ironanimal

they are right

calorie defict = weight loss

you dont have to exercise to eat at a calorie deficit

also, you can exercise until you are blue in the face, but if you eat at a calorie surplus, you will still gain body fat

To elaborate, if you are eating significantly higher calories than your TDEE, you'll gain. If you aren't eating enough, you'll stall out or not lose at all. They were right though, the bulk of weight loss happens in the kitchen. Make those quality calories count!

Agreed, What you do in the kitchen will dictate your weight loss... The exercise is going to improve your overall cardiovascular conditioning and If you weight train, it will help maintain your over lean muscle mass.. Exercise while you lose weight has it benefits but has long as you eat at a sustainable deficit (not to large) then you will lose the weight... Best of Luck.....

This man has lost over 300lbs. I would listen to him

HauteP1nk

Abs are made in the kitchen. 80% of what we look like stems from what we eat.

However, exercise does play a part in that and aids in your ability to lose weight. It is also good for your joints, muscles and organs (most importantly your heart!)

Natty0506

It's different for everyone because everyone's body responds differently. For me, I have to eat well AND workout consistently in order to lose weight. It's just how my body works. Eating well alone helps me maintain, not lose.

SARgirl

Unfortunately this is true (to some extent)! I joined my current gym about 2 years ago and the first year I went I exercised 4-5 days a week and over the course of that year lost 10 pounds eating how I've always eaten. I finally decided to try to lose more weight and was told about MFP and signed up this past October and have lost 30 pounds with diet and exercise.

ThriceBlessed

They are sort of right. As everyone else said you lose weight from eating fewer calories than you burn. Or burning more calories than you eat. Exercise burns more calories, so as long as you don't "cancel out" the calorie burn by also eating more calories, it will help you lose weight. Exercise also builds muscle, which burns more calories at rest than other body tissue.

However, if you just exercise, and don't watch what you eat, the chances of you losing weight are not slim (no pun intended). Its very hard to exercise enough to compensate for a McDonald's value meal, or a piece of cake, let alone the rest of the food eaten during the day.

Your best bet is to watch the diet and to exercise regularly. Also, I try not to increase my calories just because I work out, I know that myfitnesspal adjusts how many calories you are allowed because of your exercise, but I try to stick to my original limit, unless I work out an insane amount, and then I try to only increase the calories a little. It just seems to me that eating extra calories because I've exercised will cancel my calorie deficit, and hinder my weight loss.

I also find that exercise helps me stay motivated in the area of diet.

Diet is 70%-80% of the battle, exercise is the rest, but is still vital.

tadpole242

249lb why? My average speed over the 8.2 miles (one way) is 20mph top speed ranges from 27 to 32

Cambrendle

I was just confused because on this site, if you're under the amount it gives you, it tells you you need to meet the amount, you know?

That's because when you set up your account and decide how many lbs per week you want to lose - MFP creates a deficit for you by building it into your daily calorie allotment. Because of this - when you exercise you create an even larger deficit... which is not always good for you. If you eat too little calories it can slow your metabolism.

I have a question about this... MFP has me set for 1350 calories, and my doctor said I can go as low as 1200 and MOVE my body, but not to go under 1200 because my body will store instead of burn. If I eat 1200 cals and then exercise, I"m extra hungry, so I get confused on the eat back calories because that puts me over even the 1350... If I stayed at the 1200 with exercising is that too much deficit? Anybody have any clarification?

yarwell

I was just confused because on this site, if you're under the amount it gives you, it tells you you need to meet the amount, you know?

Indeed. If you follow the "eat back your exercise calories" mantra then it does nothing for your calorie deficit so even the "a calorie is a calorie" people wouldn't expect a weight loss from the exercise component.

BlueDahlia77

They told me working out will not cause you to lose weight, and that it is 99% diet; eating fewer calories than you burn regularly. Which seems like it goes against what this website says, to me? If it were all diet, my lazy vegitarian butt would be skinny by now.

Who ever told you this is wrong.

Yes, it's very important to eat less than you consume every day to help lose or maintain weight, but exercise will help you lose excess weight as well. Fat is just stored energy in your body. When you work out, you build muscle, which helps your body burn the excess fat your body is storing. Even with a lot of excess weight, though, it's still important to increase your daily calorie limit when you exercise because the food you're eating for today is now only your energy for today.

LexyDB

They told me working out will not cause you to lose weight, and that it is 99% diet; eating fewer calories than you burn regularly. Which seems like it goes against what this website says, to me? If it were all diet, my lazy vegitarian butt would be skinny by now.

So besides Carbohydrates and protein to a lesser extent, what does the human body tap into for fuel? Magic beans? Kittens and sparkly moon dust?

Absolute nonsense, you should find new friends.

BlueDahlia77

It is not just as simple as calories in and calories out. Metabolism has a lot to do with weight loss. If a vehicle uses different kinds of fuel it will run more or less efficiently, depending on the fuel used. The human body is very much the same... If someone eats calories in the form or simple carbohydrates (processed food) then their body will need to expend very little energy metabolising what you eat. If someone eats calories in the form of complex carbohydrates (whole foods) or protein the body has to expend energy metabolising what is eaten to turn it into useable energy (glucose). You might want to read my blog post about metabolism: http://davidjfisher.wordpress.com/2012/01/31/metabolism-you-are-what-you-eat/

Another factor is the after-burn effect of strenuous exercise. When someone exercises in zone 2-3 (Zone 2- 65-85%, zone 3 85%+ of a person's Max Hear Rate - MHR) their body uses stored glycogen in the muscles and liver as they exercise. The body will replace this 'lost' glycogen later. Body fat or food will be used to replace the used glycogen for a number of hours after having stopped exercising (that means using even more calories).

When talking about losing weight what is really meant is reducing the percentage of fat in the body, right? Not trying to lose water, or muscle or bowel contents. From personal experience my scale weight can vary as much as 6 lbs in a 24-hour period depending on what exercise I do and what I eat, drink and bowel motions. [I weigh daily, before and after toilet and exercise]. I personally look at my average weight on a monthly basis now rather than daily or even weekly changes.

Someone will lose weight using a calories in-calories-out mentality and whilst maintaining a calorie deficit. Although, without a well planned diet and exercise plan it is easy to quickly gain weight once the 'diet' stops. What is needed is a sustainable diet and exercise regime rather than a lose weight quick 'fad'. I would highly recommend doing exercise which, makes your heart beat fast (65% MHR or above). Also making general lifestyle changes to burn more calories as part of a daily routine. Cycling / walking instead of driving, stairs instead of lifts/elevators, standing instead of sitting etc...

BUT more than anything else enjoy the process ... it's about being alive, not punishing yourself (diet & exercise) so you have a 'body' that impresses a bunch of people who don't even care about you!

This!

Tourney3p0

I think everyone is going to have their own opinion on this one, but for me, diet is about 70% and exercise is about 30% of the equation. If you eat 3,500 calories a day, but exercise hard for an hour, it's not going to help out all that much.

However, if you eat just enough calories, and don't exercise, you'll lose weight, albeit at a much slower pace than if you worked out regularly.

So.. it's 100% diet then?

Tourney3p0

It is not just as simple as calories in and calories out. Metabolism has a lot to do with weight loss.

Metabolism is wholly encompassed by "calories out". It's really just as simple as calories in and calories out.

islandnutshel

More muscle in your body = faster metabolism even when doing nothing.

But what do you want in the end? There are plenty of skinny fat people out there. (soft and puffy, but little is not my goal, I would rather be a larger size but toned and healthy.)

angieleighbyrd

Exercise alone won't make you lose weight no.

thelovelyLIZ

At the end of the day, it's still calories. You can't out exercise a bad diet.