Exercise doesn't help you lose weight (!?!?!?)

mlcdz
mlcdz Posts: 43 Member
edited September 22 in Fitness and Exercise
I was talking with a friend tonight and she has lost 15 lbs. since August using MFP. Now, she had been working out faithfully 5 days a week doing a combo of aerobics, strength and watercise for 45 - 60 minutes a day for over a year and didn't lose a pound. NOW, she's not working out as much 'cause she had to get a second job and her doctor told her "exercise doesn't matter for weight loss, it's calories in". OF COURSE, exercise is good for a million other things like feeling better, maintaining weight loss and building strength, but her doctor has her convinced that if she doesn't exercise, it's OK as long as she watches her calories.

I find this very confusing and want to know what others think. All the successful loser stories I've ever read focus big on exercise - does it really not make a difference????? thanks for your opinions.

Replies

  • Iluvchopsticks
    Iluvchopsticks Posts: 130 Member
    It amazes me how many doctors give out bad information. Ok technically, exercise is not necessary for weight loss. But, it definitely helps out. Losing weight is about 80% diet, 20% activity but that doesn't mean you shouldn't workout. Have you ever heard the term "skinny fat." There are a lot of thin people out there who are out of shape and who carry too much fat for their frames. This often comes from only watching diet and not exercising. Also, have you ever seen someone who works out versus someone their same size who doesn't? You can tell the difference by looking at how they carry the weight and also muscle tone. Exercise is still very important and not just for aesthetic reasons but because it is good for your heart, body, and mind. It can also help you reach your goals faster because you burn extra calories during the day.
  • HealthyChanges2010
    HealthyChanges2010 Posts: 5,831 Member
    It sure matters to me, eating healthy food and working out has never failed me. My body needs to move to get in shape and stay healthy as I age. Eating proper foods and portions is also part of that. Never heard of doc that would tell someone excercise doesn't matter. Glad I have a an awesome doc that believes it takes both plus a healthy mindset to make lasting changes.

    Lots of crazy docs out there, lots of goods ones as well, thank goodness!:drinker:
  • bsexton3
    bsexton3 Posts: 472 Member
    I was exercising a lot all spring and summer and didn't lose a pound. Then, I joined here, watched my calories, and the weight is coming off. Realized I was eating too many calories on not riding days, so wasn't losing weight. Now, I am. So, the doctor has some logic.

    But, according to other things I have heard and read, muscle burns more calories than fat. So, if there is more lean muscle, you are burning more calories. I have a friend that actually started losing more weight when he started using a bowflex.

    I now look and say, I don't want to lose weight. I want to have a healthy lifestyle. That includes exercise, good eating, and taking some weight off. It's a lifestyle, not a diet. If it is a diet, it is too much work to gain back later. If it is a lifestyle, it really isn't work. This is what I want for my life.

    Finally, I bike to have some of the calories I wouldn't have if I didn't. I still like a piece of pie once in a while.
  • eannes
    eannes Posts: 11
    I've heard that successful weight loss is 80% what you eat and 20% exercise.
    Exercise is important to be healthy.
    Someone can be at their goal weight but have poor muscle to fat ratio.
    People who exercise tend to do a better job of maintaining their goal weight as well.
  • SophieBodin
    SophieBodin Posts: 10
    I don't know what doctor your friend goes to but she needs to switch. I have seen plenty of dietician and doctors about doing whats right for me to loose weight and stay away from fad diets and pills and let me know tell.. they all said the same thing...
    Losing weight is 20% exercise and 80% diet. It cannot be one of the other it needs to be combined in order to work and stay off. Exercise increases your metabolic rate and burns calories which allows you to intake more calories to a point. To loose weight you have to exercise to burn more calories while restricting your calories to a certain number at the same time.
  • 4lafz
    4lafz Posts: 1,078 Member
    Dr. forgot te other half of the statement - Calories in - Calories out (meaning exercise). If you want to eat more than the 1200 (that's what mine is set as) then you exercise to have a somewhat normal diet. It's a lifestyle change. If you want to eat minimally for the rest of your life - don't exercise. For me - I exercise to EAT more!
  • mandyc1108
    mandyc1108 Posts: 57 Member
    Exercise builds muscle. Sure you can lose weight without exercising by watching what you eat. However, in order to be healthy you need both.

    I have a heart irregularity that I have to see a cardiologist twice a year about. He told me that exercise is the best way to build up the heart muscle (have to watch over doing it of couse). Point being there is more than just losing weight to being healthy. You can't build stamina by just watching your caloric intake.
  • maletac
    maletac Posts: 767 Member
    im taking nutrition right now and im going to school to be a nurse.. ill tell you that the dr should never say those kinda words.... ever... its not a matter of working out just for weight control... i mean yeah most of it is calories.. but cardiovascular health is so important.. and the amount of good even 30 min a day does for your general well being is amazing..

    btw thats like saying all skinny people are healthy.... ha ha ha... skinny people get clogged arteries and high cholersteral just like everyone else lol...
  • karissastephens
    karissastephens Posts: 324 Member
    Exercise is excellent for weight loss....IF you have fat to lose......if not it is excellent for building muscle and staying fit in general.

    I think what he meant was that if your at a healthy weight and have a good amount of calories you consume (not overeating or under eating), then exercise is not DEMANDED for weight loss....

    Exercise builds muscle and cardiovascular strength...it burns fat as well, when done right. BUT if you eat very healthy and do not exercise in the gym or run but are active (like walking, working a lot, etc) then you are fine and can still continue to lose weight. You just won't be as tone or build muscle for further fat loss.

    Make sense at all?? I am not well at explaining things
  • Lyadeia
    Lyadeia Posts: 4,603 Member
    The doctor probably had a good thought in his head, but he didn't actually articulate it the way that he should have...

    It is very true that you do not "need" to exercise to lose weight, as the other replies have stated. However, exercise is necessary for overall health, not just pounds lost...here's a quick and short version---

    When we lose weight just by dieting, we are not adding lean muscle mass to our bodies. Without a good amount of lean mass (NOT bulk, but stronger lean muscle) the process of catabolism occurs. In a nutshell, catabolism is the process of breaking down molecules in our body used for fueling the cells. When we are adding lean mass to the body, the catabolism of our muscles is low...but when we neglect exercise, we are aiding the catabolism of what muscle we have left. Meaning, yes, we are losing pounds off the scale, but we are also losing lean muscle mass in addition to body fat. One of the above posters mentioned a skinny fat person, and that is exactly what skinny fat means: a thin person without much muscle who still has body fat covering their major organs. They are the kinds of people with health problems even though they wear a size 4 jeans. They also get winded going up a staircase, can't pick up a 14 pound bowling ball let alone throw it down the lane, etc.

    Exercise adds lean muscle mass to your body, even aerobic exercise (it's not just weight lifting I am talking about, even though that is massively important). Lean muscle does burn more calories at rest than adipose tissue, so you can actually eat more when you have muscle...and this means that your calorie deficit grows and you can actually lose weight faster than just dieting alone. And you will be burning pure fat rather than catabolizing your muscle. (And you know what else? Oftentimes dieters have decreased organ function because catabolism affects organs other than just muscles!)

    And then there's the obvious. I mean, calories in/calories out...you increase your calories out with exercise therefore losing weight faster.

    What people should be doing is feeding their muscles with the proper fuel so that muscles can work more efficiently during exercise. Then exercise is used to burn calories and thus reducing body fat. People who exercise religiously and don't lose weight are the same people who are not eating as they should. Others have already mentioned that they didn't lose anything until they came to MFP...that does not mean that diet is the only way to lose weight. It means that exercise and diet must be done in conjunction to get results. Keeping with that thought as I already talked about, diet alone might make the scale number go down, but exercise accelerates this process and also keeps you healthy by strengthening your muscles (the fat burners), your heart and lungs, and keeps other organs functioning properly due to increased blood flow and oxygen transport (since your cardiovascular health is increased). You also get stronger bones. This is why women are told to do exercise including weight training to avoid osteoporosis later in life.

    Moral of the story? Diet without exercise makes your body thin but fatty. Exercise without diet makes your cardiovascular system a little more efficient without changing your body composition. Diet and exercise together makes your whole body healthy and gets you to lose weight at a proper rate. Both are important, gotta do both! :flowerforyou:
  • Eava57
    Eava57 Posts: 1,297 Member
    Exercise sure makes a difference in how I feel and how I lose weight. Your friend will be in for a rude awakening when she hits her 50's (if she hasn't already). :love:
  • mangorabbit
    mangorabbit Posts: 219 Member
    Mathematically - the doctor's statement is correct. You eat less calories than your body burns, you will lose weight. Is it fat? Is it muscle? Is it some combination of the two? Who knows!

    To sum up all the above very useful posties...

    You dont HAVE to exercise to lose weight, BUT that also means you are not really increasing your fitness and health, merely changing the numbers seen on a scale.

    As a side note - as a not very tall person my caloric intake is set pretty low (for weight loss I am at 1200/day) - with work and whatnot, I need the exercise to make what I eat fit in with my goals. So...some of us are exercising because we like food! And there is not a thing wrong with that as far as I am concerned. I find it much easier to maintain a lifestyle wherein I can have a tasty tasty treat from time to time as a reward for busting my butt doing some form of exercise, than to be constantly stressed out about my precise caloric intake. To each their own though.

    If for some reason you cannot currently workout (injury, etc) then caloric intake is a BIG focus, but if you are interested in a healthy lifestyle, take the time to sweat a little with us, it is not so bad, and the muscle tone is always an attractive bonus!

    ^_^
  • newnarelle
    newnarelle Posts: 40 Member
    If she was working out and not losing any weight, perhaps her calorie intake was too high? It is calories in vs calories out, so if you are working out but still exceeding your calorie intake you aren't going to lose weight. I have tried many ways, and it is mostly diet. however exercise also plays its part. It took me almost 5 months to lose 10kg last year when I was working out 3 days a week, although my food wasn't really reviewed and what I was assuming was pretty healthy, in hindsight was still pretty high in calories. I lost the same amount of weight combining eating right and exercise in about 6 weeks. Joining MFP has allowed me to be aware of what I am eating, but I am loving exercise so much that even if it didnt have any extra benefit to lose weight (which it does) I would still do it. Combining healthy eating and exercising is the best way to do it. Your friend might be losing weight just with MFP and thats great, but you will speed the process up with some exercise, and also toning and a general feeling of health and fitness. Plus I feel less inclined to eat rubbish days I exercise, because A) I feel so damn good and B) I know exactly what I am in for if I go on a binge. I can proudly say I no longer feel like I am piggy backing a small child!! Wooooo
  • mlcdz
    mlcdz Posts: 43 Member
    Thanks for all your thoughtful, insightful posts. I am glad I agree with you! I do wish our healthcare system had a consistent, correct message. I think as a society, we have to start emphasizing the mind/body/spirit benefits of regular exercise so our kids won't have a love/hate relationship with it and not make it part of their daily life.

    Congrats to all of you for your successes and healthy changes, you inspire me!
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