Has anyone been able to lose weight without exercise?

stayathomezookeepa

Ok so I am not going to be able to do much exercise other than maybe walking 30 mins a day at a moderate pace. Do you think that this will be sufficient enough for me to still be able to lose weight? Should I decrease my calories or carbs or something? HELP!!!

hhayes06

In my opinion, the majority of weight loss comes from your diet, exercise is just an added bonus to help. When I first started I only watched my diet and did not extra exercise outside of my normal daily activity and I lost 8 pounds. I have heard (can't remember where but it wasn't a medical journal or anything like that) that weight loss is 80% diet and 20% exercise. So there you have it, my non-expert answer to your question is yes, you can lose weight without exercise. Good luck!

eksproductions

Healthy eating & exercise, there is no easy way out.

Koldnomore

I have lost 26 lbs in the past @4 months by doing nothing more than walking at a brisk pace for 30 minutes a day - I eat about 1800 cal. I started at 220lbs I'm 5'6 so your answer is YES. You don't have to starve. Make sure you run your numbers on your own and don't just go by MFP settings - That was my big mistake and cost me about a month of no losses at all. PM me if you want help - I'll do what I can

tstigers68

Yes, I think this can be accomplished. I think you have to be more vigulent with your diet to accomplish serious loss but it is possible. As a side note, I think a good 30 minute walk everyday is good and maybe as time passes you'll be able to do more.

Rowan813

I have done it several times. I do find that it is easier to maintain if I exercise.

c8linmarie

I honestly don't know what the answer is and can only speak from personal experience.

When I started MFP back in Feb of this year, I focused on cleaning up my diet. I went to the gym regularly and even started weight lifting shortly thereafter. I am 5'3" and my SW was 148. I have lost 19 pounds and have about 10 "vanity" pounds to go.

My husband, on the other hand, is a very busy man. He works so much, that he literally has no time for exercise, outside of a short walk here and there occasionally. Since I cook for our entire family, he basically eats what I eat, only in larger portions because he is a bigger person (SW 278 at 5'9"). As a "side effect" of our overall improved eating habits, he has so far, lost 42 pounds and that is with basically NO exercise.

Personal OPINION: If you have 50 or more pounds to lose, you can probably get away with little exercise for a while, but once you start getting into a healthy range and losing weight becomes more difficult through diet, you may need to start hitting the gym to get you the rest of the way.

mabelbabel1

Losing weight is all about creating a calorie deficit....so long as you do that you will lose weight.

Exercise has, of course, many health benefits, but don't beat yourself up if you can't do too much right now....maybe as time goes on you'll be able to fit more in.

Right now I'm mainly relying on counting calories and healthy eating as I can hardly do anything because of knee problems, but as that improves I hope to crank my exercise leve right up.....small steps and all that!

julieh391

Yep. Cutting calories is all it takes to lose, but obviously your health will improve more with exercise. I was in an air cast for a foot condition for a month and still lost 10lbs with just diet. If you have time to walk for 30 minutes how about doing a more balanced exercise like 30 Day Shred, so you don't lose a lot of muscle?

MarkC1963

Yes, I emphathize as I have changed my lifestyle, diet and exercise to lose 89 lbs so far but I am 49 years old and am finding recently that my achilles tendon and knees are now more prone to injury than ever which really impacts my high calorie burning cardio exercising. To maintain/lose weight, I now am just burning about 200 calories a day doing resistance band exercises and another 100 calories walking a little. I save my legs for playing weekly tennis sessions now. I have found with this reduced exercise profile, I have had to find a way to eat only about 1,300 calories a day. I have found a maintainable way to do it but it takes more discipline without the cardio exercise. Getting older sucks but that is life.

bennslora

Hey, I just saw your post and wanted to reply. When I was pregnant with my 1st baby I got gestational diabetes and had to take insulin and was suppose to follow the diabetic diet. I didn't quite understand the diet and did not stick with it after my baby was born. With my 3rd baby I got it again. My doctor gave me a swift kick in the butt, not literally, and told me that I needed to stick with the diet or I would end up on insulin again. I got myself educated on the diet and lost 6 pounds the first week I was on it during my pregnancy and after I had the baby I lost almost 40 pounds. The 6 pounds during my pregnancy where without exercise and after I had the baby it was just moderate exercise. The diet gave me my life back. I would still sometimes feel hungry after I ate, but I knew in another 2 hours I could eat again. It helped me enjoy the one cookie incredibly, instead of scarfing down 6 at one time, lol. The diabetic diet just needs to be understood. YOu can still eat sugar, you can still have candy, soda, dessert, bread, just in smaller portions. Good luck! If you have any questions, please feel free to ask! Lora

dvukmiro

As we get older, keeping exercise in the mix is critical to helping our bodies metabolize. Jump starting the burn process, not to mention all the other benefits is key. Like people have posted, the calorie deficit is what you're looking for. Anywhere from 500-1000 calorie deficit per day will lose you between 1-2lbs per week. Tracking using MFP can easily get you there. Exercise allows you to eat a little more so that you might feel a little more energetic while still getting a daily deficit. Hope this helps!

sandobr1

Everyone is different, I have a lot to lose so changing my eating habits was first order of business, and adding to that lots of water. For me portion control is the biggest factor, so began working on that first. I am adding walking as my most used excercise and doing this at leat 2 x a week and working up to daily. I would say of my 22 pounds lost, 15 of it was really with no excercise, I think I would still be losing at this stage as I have a lot to lose and my eating habits are about 110% better then 8-10 weeks ago. I have no interest in joining a gym but did by Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred (10.00 at Target) and dowloaded a few workout apps on my ipad as well as some Yoga. One of the workout has a 5 minute cardio option, I know this is not much, but for me this is better then nothing, which was my former life. If all I can do is the 5 minute workout at least I am building up for the time I can do more. There are also lots of videos on Youtube that are short in duration that need no special equipment. My main motivation for walking at this point is an upcoming vacation to Disney, but long term I am working on a plan that is reasonable for me and hopefully I will get better along the way.

IrishAmericanPrincess

Bumping as I am unable to exercise at this time for medical reasons. I love the responses thus far.

TeaBea

I have done it several times. I do find that it is easier to maintain if I exercise.

^This!

I've done it several times too. Make a commitment to walk regularly & keep on doing it. Lifestyle changes are what helps kee the weight off.

Alternative to walking ... (night time, bad weather, sick of treadmill, etc) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WjduJjO1pLg&feature=related These come in DVD form also. I like to mix it up.

LuckyLeprechaun

I lost the first 50 lbs by only sticking to my exercise calories and walking. I did NO other exercise during that time. At all.


Sticking to your calorie goals alone WILL cause you to lose weight.


BUT

At some point along the way, you'll notice what so many of us have noticed, that it's easier to stick to your calories when you earn more of them through exercise. Now, I exercise so I can eat the way I want to.

Bob314159

I lost weight once around 30 pounds at 5+ pounds a week- with zero exercise

I also lost a lot of weight once, unintentionly, just from working renovating a house. I was on my feet and moving all day for weeks and weeks as opposed to my sit-down job.Since I wasn't trying to lose weight I had not intentionaly changed my diet,but I might have eaten less since I was too busy to snack

avir8

bump

duckfloats

I lost 30 pounds this year with NO exercise. Just less calories, just like MFP says.

I have since started exercising, as it is better for my overall health.

gingerjen7

I lost my first 9 lbs almost entirely on diet alone. But I wasn't any happier with the shape and appearance of my body, so I started working out (Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred)

chatterbox3110

I had surgery a few weeks back which kept me off my feet for a while, therefore unable to exercise. By watching what I ate a bit more carefully, I still managed to lose weight!

The main part of my lifestyle change is diet - I do walk a lot more, and I do aqua classes twice a week, but I'm not a 24/7 gym addict, far from it!

I found the walking has helped with my stamina, which in turn has given me the energy to concentrate on the changes I needed to make.

SoDamnHungry

I have done so before. I could do so now, because the only reason I exercise is to get more calories that I can eat.

gwenette

I think everyone is different. I havent been able to exercise lately due to the hours i work, house work, and being a mom and wife. And before anyone says it I am not making excuses there is literally not enough hours in the day to do what has to be done!! With that said i have been losing the last week even though i haven't been exercising. Maybe not as fast but anything is better than nothing. Good luck

VanessaHeartsMasr

I haven't, but my brother just lost 25 pounds in 2 months with no exercise! I'm jealous. Lol.

ardisia32

I just finished reading Timothy Caulfield's The Cure for Everything...an excellent book, i highly recommend it. The science he presents shows that while exercise is great for fitness and overall health, it doesn't really contribute to weight-loss. Reducing calories is the key thing that seems to contribute to weight loss.

Rhia55

Yes, you can lose by diet alone.. but I am afraid that will result in sagging and looking even worse. I don't just want to lose weight, i want to tone up and become strong, and exercise is the only thing that will do that.

And the rush I get from exercise is becoming quite addicting...

HeatherSanto

In my case, I tried it both ways. In the beginning of the year I tried to just limit calories and not exercise. Ended up with the scale moving, but my body wasn't changing and the numbers weren't going very fast. Then I tried exercising and not logging my food, just relying on having a rough guess. That didn't work either.

When I logged on MFP and started working out 6 days a week the weight starts flying off. I think its good overall to get active. Walking is still an exercise and you are moving and that is the most important part.

Trechechus

Moderate exercise for 30 minutes a day is excellent! Nothing to scoff at.

You can lose weight by simply creating a larger deficit without working out, but you will see a significant decrease in muscle mass as well as fat loss. The idea of exercise it to keep yourself fit, maintain muscle, maintain heart health and tell your body where to put what nutrients that you consume.

Do your 30 minutes. Keep truckin' and best of luck.

TisMeEggin

Yes. And that is a VERY cute little critter pictured there BTW! Enjoy your time at the zoo. :flowerforyou:

hiker359

They say you can't out run a bad diet and I'm inclined to agree that 80% of your success depends on how you eat. Thirty minutes a day is a good amount of time to work out, so it's not like you're doing nothing. Anything more than what you did while you were gaining the weight is a step in the right direction. Look at your priorities, make adjustments where you can, and I'm sure you can find the time to work out more if you decide you need it.

lamilli09

Yes - you can lose weight without exercise. You simply need to eat fewer calories than what your body is burning in a day.
From personal experience, when I was overweight, simply eating appropriately was a great start - I was losing pounds like nobody's business.

I would strongly encourage exercise at all points in your weight loss journey. But at a bare minimum, you'll want to start more exercise as you get close to approaching your goal weight --- unless you don't mind being flabby at your goal weight.

Just my personal opinion!