will dieting ever get me anywhere??

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kobrie17
kobrie17 Posts: 106 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
i've been dieting all my life it seems, and while it was never (up unti about a year ago) as consistent and regulated as it is now..i've been dieting pretty consistenly for about a month now!!

but i havent been up on my working out AT ALL
i know that working out is part of a healthy lifestyle...but lately i cant seem to fit in more than one workout a week :( i plan on getting back on a 'regular' workout schedule, when my schedule becomes more fixed when im back at school...
but c'mon! i eat what i think is near perfect and i havent lost a pound!!!!


so im wondering... what are everyone else's experiences with dieting without excercize?

Replies

  • LJCannon
    LJCannon Posts: 3,636 Member
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    :grumble:

    I have dieted off and on all my life. Occasionally I'd throw in some exercise, but it was not consistant. Last April, I joined Curves and started the "CurvesSmart" program. Since then I have been losing weight steadily and I feel better than I have in YEARS.

    I'm not exactly happy about it because I still don't LOVE exercising.... But I DO LOVE the results.:laugh:

    I'm convinced by my experiance that dieting without exercising is pretty much a waste of your time and energy. I had been dieting since February and only succeeded in GAINING about 10 pounds:explode:

    That is just my opinion, of course. Someone elses experiance might be different.
  • sakesan
    sakesan Posts: 8
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    Dieting without exercise will work, albeit slower. If you think of food as fuel, you have to burn more than you take in to lose weight. That is a very simplistic way of looking at it, there are many different factors that may come into play. If you do exercise, you will see faster results if you combine both cardio and strength training. The cardio will burn the calories, but the strength training will add lean muscle which uses more caloried throughout the day. The more muscle you have the more calories your body will burn daily.

    Try watching your sodium intake. You will be amazed at how much extra sodium you take in even if you never pick up a salt shaker. That has been an eye opener for me in the last month. Excess sodium will cause your body to retain water and can result in slower weight loss. People who are put on sodium restricted diets tend to see the weight start to fall off. It's tough to do, but add the sodium column to your food diary and start watching. Depending how you eat and where, you can hit your RDA by lunch!

    Losing weight is hard, if it was easy, every body would be at their goal weight! Keep in mind that the only way to keep off the weight that you work so hard to lose is to institute a lifestyle change. If you do not permanently change your eating habits in some way, you will eventually gain the weight back after you stop dieting.

    Instead of dieting, try adopting healthier eating habits, permanently. That combined with exercise should show you some lon lasting results.

    Good luck.
  • kankan213
    kankan213 Posts: 105
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    Maybe the reason that you have never seen any life-long results is that you have the mindset that this lifestyle is a "diet."

    A "diet" has a beginning and an end. You should try to start thinking of healthy eating, regular exercise, self-control etc... as part of your life. Try to eat well and fit in activity EVERDAY for the REST of your life. Not just until you meet your goal weight.

    Losing weight is more about what you put into your body rather than the calories you burn through exercise. So you definitely can lose weight without working out, although you should want to exercise for other reasons. Cardiovascular health, strong bones, strong muscles, lowering your risk of diseases and heart-attack, etc... Not to mention building muscle helps you burn more calories when your body is at rest- ultimately leading to being able to eat more without gaining weight. I love food! So who doesn't want that to happen!?
  • astridfeline
    astridfeline Posts: 1,200 Member
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    Hi,
    I looked at your food diary for the last few days, and it seemed like there was fast food and/or processed foods on every day. These types of foods have a great deal of added sodium and sugar, you may see more progress if you eat more "clean" foods, in addition to the tips posted by the others. I think there are several threads on MFP about eating clean that could help with better food decisions.
    cheers to the lifestyle change! :flowerforyou:

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