Why do people say weight loss is all about diet?

What's going to happen to me as I'm eating 3500 cals a day ? Will I explode?,saying no one should eat 3000 cals is abit short sighted as you don't know what everyone's goals/targets are

For me, it was way easier to cut back on portion sizes and go for nutritional-value-per-calorie than to exercise. I bet I lost five pounds just from cutting out the daily cream in my coffee. It was easier to adjust something I did daily (meals) than to add a new activity into my day. I've been adjusting that as I go because it's easier to not be lazy about exercise as the weight comes off. It's not hard for a person to eat more calories in one minute than s/he can burn in half an hour.

Lets say you are fat and eat 3000 calories a day. Then say you start doing exercise everyday and burn 500 cals a day. You will eventually start losing weight right?

Depends on your Total Daily Energy Expenditure. If it's below 2500 and you're eating 3000, then no, burning 500 calories per day through exercise won't help you lose weight. That's why weight-loss depends mostly on diet. Exercise can increase your TDEE and allow you to eat more, but there is still a calorie threshold. Eat above it, you gain. Eat below it, you lose.

Plus you can start by cutting out sugar in your diet (which can be very hard) or working out and still eating that sugar. They both will have a similar affect on sugar in your body, but one will be easier to do from the beginning.

i w ont lose weight eating 3000 calories ........ and burning 500 um no...........
everyone is different
noone should be eating 3000 calories

3000 calories is under my TDEE. Thanks for letting me know I'm doing it wrong

Lets say you are fat and eat 3000 calories a day. Then say you start doing exercise everyday and burn 500 cals a day. You will eventually start losing weight right? So there you go, exercise equals weight loss. And you still eat the same 3000 cal diet. Some people might get hungrier because of the exercise and eat back the cals but I think its a hell of a lot easier than doing no exercise and trying to eliminate calories every which way. Thats where people break down mentally.
Just a thought I had

so you think finding a way to fit 45 mins of working out, plus showering and getting redressed is a hell of a lot easier than not eating a donut? or having 2 slices of pizza instead of 4? doesn't compute.

yes, exercise will get you there but it's much, much easier to lose weight when your diet is under control. Plus what to do during breaks from working out because of injuries/time/vacation/life?

Because diet is the CORE of weight loss. Master the diet, do nothing else and it works. It's the first step.

Then you can get into everything else. I think most of us that got into this on our own had to realize this part first.

I agree, diet is the core of weightloss. You CAN eat 3,000 calories if you work out enough daily, but if you eat complete garbage what do you think will happen? You won't be healthy.. and that SHOULD be a reason to lose weight.

I just think, for most people, it's easier to not eat those 500 calories, than it is to burn them. I know it is for me.

Me too. It's a lot easier for me to say no to a donut and latte than it is to do intense cardio for two hours.

Exercise is important for my overall health, but for weight loss, it's easier to eat smaller portions than it is to burn off larger portions.

I agree, diet is the core of weightloss. You CAN eat 3,000 calories if you work out enough daily, but if you eat complete garbage what do you think will happen? You won't be healthy.. and that SHOULD be a reason to lose weight.

false

weight loss is all about lifestyle change. Diet denotes a temporary state in which you are deprived of certain foods, carbs, etc.

Watch the movie forks over knives.

why would i want to watch that propaganda?

Lets say you are fat and eat 3000 calories a day. Then say you start doing exercise everyday and burn 500 cals a day. You will eventually start losing weight right?

Depends on your Total Daily Energy Expenditure. If it's below 2500 and you're eating 3000, then no, burning 500 calories per day through exercise won't help you lose weight. That's why weight-loss depends mostly on diet. Exercise can increase your TDEE and allow you to eat more, but there is still a calorie threshold. Eat above it, you gain. Eat below it, you lose.

But if you burned 750 calories per day, you WILL lose weight.

so will you continue this math until someone has to burn 2000 calories per day to lose weight? or they could stop killing themselves on the elliptical and just not order fries with the burger

i w ont lose weight eating 3000 calories ........ and burning 500 um no...........
everyone is different
noone should be eating 3000 calories

I'm eating 3200 calories so i guess this doesn't concern me =D. You can't exercise yourself out of a bad diet.

eat less, move more.

i'll let everyone else do the science.

i w ont lose weight eating 3000 calories ........ and burning 500 um no...........
everyone is different
noone should be eating 3000 calories

3,000 is right around my maintenance number...

OP...you can build a deficit into your diet with exercise alone...problem is that it is not necessarily all that efficient...it's much more efficient to build it into your diet. People who try to go with just the exercise route tend to over-train, don't take rest day, and often end up injured. If you're injured...good luck burning your 500 calories per day.

I don't workout for calorie burn...I exercise for fitness. Because of this, I don't necessarily burn 500 calories or whatever per day...it varies day to day...some days are high intensity and I burn a ton...others aren't much more than a bunch of walking around...and I have my one rest day per week. Exercising for the sake of calorie burn is ****in' boring.