Losing Weight is 80% Diet- BS

pcastagner

I find it extremely difficult to eat less than maintenance if I don't exercise, so I would not do well just with cutting intake. For me, it's about the exercise allowing me the room to do a 20 percent cut to maintenance calories.

I'd say it's about 60 percent exercise for me, 30 percent diet (and everything that goes with that: willpower, making sure I shop for nutritious, filling foods rather than eat at high-cal places) and 10 percent miscellaneous such as rest.

The food part of the diet is there for health reasons--sources of macro and micro-nutrients my body needs for proper function. I don't eat or avoid particular foods under the assumption they will make me lose/gain weight (though someone who is insulin resistant obviously needs to control sugar intake to lose weight).

Sooo... It's actually 100% diet and your exercise helps you stick to the diet, and improves the quality of it?

Granville_Cocteau

I find it extremely difficult to eat less than maintenance if I don't exercise, so I would not do well just with cutting intake. For me, it's about the exercise allowing me the room to do a 20 percent cut to maintenance calories.

I'd say it's about 60 percent exercise for me, 30 percent diet (and everything that goes with that: willpower, making sure I shop for nutritious, filling foods rather than eat at high-cal places) and 10 percent miscellaneous such as rest.

The food part of the diet is there for health reasons--sources of macro and micro-nutrients my body needs for proper function. I don't eat or avoid particular foods under the assumption they will make me lose/gain weight (though someone who is insulin resistant obviously needs to control sugar intake to lose weight).

Sooo... It's actually 100% diet and your exercise helps you stick to the diet, and improves the quality of it?

No. If I don't exercise, it is difficult for me to hit below maintenance calories and thus lose weight.

Which is to say--in a universe where I just cut calorie intake 80 percent of days and exercised 20 percent of days, I would not lose weight--or my progress would be negligible.

pcastagner

I find it extremely difficult to eat less than maintenance if I don't exercise, so I would not do well just with cutting intake. For me, it's about the exercise allowing me the room to do a 20 percent cut to maintenance calories.

I'd say it's about 60 percent exercise for me, 30 percent diet (and everything that goes with that: willpower, making sure I shop for nutritious, filling foods rather than eat at high-cal places) and 10 percent miscellaneous such as rest.

The food part of the diet is there for health reasons--sources of macro and micro-nutrients my body needs for proper function. I don't eat or avoid particular foods under the assumption they will make me lose/gain weight (though someone who is insulin resistant obviously needs to control sugar intake to lose weight).

Sooo... It's actually 100% diet and your exercise helps you stick to the diet, and improves the quality of it?

No. If I don't exercise, it is difficult for me to hit below maintenance calories and thus lose weight.

Which is to say--in a universe where I just cut calorie intake 80 percent of days and exercised 20 percent of days, I would not lose weight--or my progress would be negligible.

But in that same universe, if your food intake were controlled by a robot, and not up to you, you would lose weight.

So again, exercise makes this feasible for you, but it's still your calorie deficit creating the weight loss.

I very much agree with you in a sense. Doing this without the exercise isn't really living and for me it isn't sustainable. Actually eating only 1650 sucks *kitten*. I could never pull this off without the workouts. Not alone anyway, but if you take people prisoner, and give them rations that are below their tdee, it's a simple fact they will lose weight.

One_Last_Time

It's about diet for me. Exercise makes me hungrier and I tend to binge more. Yes binge like 2,000 calories at once, not a snicker and single serving bad of chips. Just eating healthy and light exercise (walking, body weight exercise) = weight loss.

crissi725

I feel like there are two different definitions of "diet" in this feed. Some people are taking "diet" as solely what kind/types of food you eat and others are taking it as solely how much you eat.

For me, diet means how much I'm eating. Sure, I feel much better when I eat as cleanly as possible but there have been some weeks when I've eaten whatever I wanted but stayed within my caloric goals and still lost weight because of I'm still working myself to a deficit. So I think that if you aren't keeping your caloric goals in check, and you aren't working out enough to be in a deficit then, no, you won't lose anything.

I would say that "diet" by definition of HOW MUCH you eat is a large part of your weight loss success. And while I believe people should eat as cleanly as possible for long term health-- I certainly don't think that you can only lose weight by only eating cleanly. An apple is good for you but if you eat 3000 calories worth of apples and you only burn 2000 calories a day....you ain't losin' nothin'.

MargaretSobers

In my opinion Diet and Exercise both are equally important. This will be more clear to you by reading 3 P’s for weight loss.
There are 3 P's that are important to understand for weight loss.
First P is for Psychology- You must have a definite, measureable, realistic, and time bound weight loss goal.
Second P is for Physiology- Begin by eating 500 less calories/day, walking 10,000 steps/day, sleeping 8 eight hours/night, and taking a multi-vitamin.
And last third P is for Physical- Once you have your mind right and your calories under control, now begin an exercise plan to "get fit". Be patient and Be persistent.

snazzyjazzy21

If I gained weight eating 1200 I would see a doctor...

crissi725

Oh good, another "special snowflake" thread.

You are soooo much cooler and better than us. 100%.

KingofWisdom

I'm in the exercise to lose camp. If you have the willpower to eat less and don't need exercise, more power to you. But I can never stay in a calorie deficit otherwise. I feel like I'm hungry all the time.

snazzyjazzy21

Also impressed with the thread revival, goin' strong!

SuperC_85

OP.. oh OP... if anything, it's 100% about the diet.

Kinda have to agree with you here.
Exercise gives me more calories to munch, but there's no way I can lose with exercise without watching my calories.

shor0814

Calories in < calories out = weight reduction. If you eat less than BMR you will lose weight. If you gain weight either you miscalculated your calories in our your metabolism slowed. If your metabolism slowed then your BMR is reduced as well and you ate more than you burned. Nothing wrong with the equation you just assumed BMR is a constant. Did you have your BMR measured or did you use a calculator? Both are wrong but one is less wrong than the other.