What's more important - eating less or working out more?

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  • Buff2022
    Buff2022 Posts: 373 Member
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    My motto: You can't work off a bad diet! So eat well and then work out. Remember it all starts in the kitchen.
  • suncluster
    suncluster Posts: 539 Member
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    But to be more specific, a good rule of thumb to go by is:

    Look good in clothes: food intake

    Look good naked: exercise

    Oooh...she is very wise and probably looks hot naked.
  • loriemn
    loriemn Posts: 292 Member
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    For me, exercise is more important. I like food.
    this is me,,but I actually REALLY LIKE CARDIO! so both are important to me.
  • Hornsby
    Hornsby Posts: 10,322 Member
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    For me, exercise is more important. I like food.
    this is me,,but I actually REALLY LIKE CARDIO! so both are important to me.

    Me too (cycling) and of course, weights. This allows me to maintain at 32-3400 calories a day. I get to eat all the food I want because of exercise...that's why exercise is more important :)
  • harphy
    harphy Posts: 290 Member
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    Caloric deficit will make you smaller version, cardio exercise will burn some fat (muscles as well unfortunately), weight lifting will burn fat, grow lean mass and sculpt your body. Deficit is the most important.
  • pink_and_shiny
    pink_and_shiny Posts: 1,036 Member
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    But to be more specific, a good rule of thumb to go by is:

    Look good in clothes: food intake

    Look good naked: exercise

    I'd never heard of this before, but I :love: it!

    For me, I think eating healthy foods is more important than just meeting a certain calorie number. Eating 100 cals of banana vs. 100 cals of candy is very different. Yes, the calorie numbers are the same, but the nutrients in them are quite different. Yes, lower your caloric intake, but don't eat junky stuff and think that just because you're below a certain number that you're good. Just my two cents. :)
  • Trixsterfan
    Trixsterfan Posts: 54 Member
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    That's exactly what advise I was given
  • copabutt
    copabutt Posts: 2
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    definitely eating less. you can work on your abs till the cows come home but youre only gonna see that 6pack when you strip off the excess fat. Losing weight is pretty basic...you need to take less calories in each day than your body expends each day...going to the gym and working out means you expend more energy but your body also craves more food to compensate. Also theres a misconception that aerobic activity equals more weight loss...not true...check out female bodybuilders...the amount of aerobic activity compared to the amount of weight training is minimal. Weight training burns up fat even when youre not training as the muscles burn up your energy rebuilding themselves. anyway long answer to a short question. First focus in losing weight is eating less. anything else you do re training is a bonus :)
  • ALNoog
    ALNoog Posts: 413 Member
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    About 4 years ago I lose 89 pounds doing Atkins and never working out... I only went from a size 22 to and 18 even though I was 189 pounds back then... Now I've lost 35 pounds only and I've been working out and gone from a 24 to a 20 and my body shape is majorly changing... So I guess it depends on what you are trying to accomplish.... I lost weight not working out but didn't get much smaller.....
  • ValGogo
    ValGogo Posts: 2,168 Member
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    I heard this question on fitnessblender and their answer? It's 100% of both.

    You will get the best results doing both. I said "best results" because you can get results with one or the other but do both and you are getting more bang for your buck.

    If you lose it without working out, you will lose weight and be flabby and not strong. If you only work out, you can be strong as hell, but the fat may stay on and you can't see it even if you have strong muscles. OK, I'm exaggerating a bit. You can lose by just exercise but your body will work better with better fuel.
  • Jruzer
    Jruzer Posts: 3,501 Member
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    The goal is never to see how little you can eat a day. It's instead to be able to eat as much as possible while still being able to get desirable results (i.e drop body fat or add muscle -- not that either of these can be done simultaneously either)

    Fist bump. And ditto to many others who also echoed this.

    So many people seem to think that it's a virtue to eat as little as possible. I exercise a lot because I love to eat. Calories "earned" through exercise are equivalent to calories "earned" by not eating.
  • FaileAybara
    FaileAybara Posts: 21 Member
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    My Dr said that exercise was the more important of the two when I discussed it with her. I started just exercising and realized that I would probably do better if I watched my food intake as well.

    Its only been a short time but I know that historically, I do much better if I burn that candle at both ends.
  • ChaplainHeavin
    ChaplainHeavin Posts: 426 Member
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    I'm not really sure.
    Honestly, I lost over 100 lbs. without even setting foot in a gym.
    But now that I exercise, I notice more of a difference. And of course, I feel more accomplished

    That is just incredible. 100 pounds! Just remarkable!
  • deksgrl
    deksgrl Posts: 7,237 Member
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    My Dr said that exercise was the more important of the two when I discussed it with her. I started just exercising and realized that I would probably do better if I watched my food intake as well.

    Its only been a short time but I know that historically, I do much better if I burn that candle at both ends.

    Uhm, you can exercise every day, but if you overeat you WILL NOT lose any weight. It is easy to eat more when you exercise too. So I can't say that doctor sounds very smart with that advice.
  • ChaplainHeavin
    ChaplainHeavin Posts: 426 Member
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    eating healthy is the most important, even more important than calorie intake. It only take a few minutes to eat a 1000 Calories and it takes hours of exercise to burn it off. Don't let yourself feel deprived, it seems like the biggest threat to anyone's success.

    You make an excellent point and it is quite factual but for some reason most folks in my experience believe you can out exercise bad eating habits.
  • slimfitnessmoms
    slimfitnessmoms Posts: 206 Member
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    What's more important - keeping total food consumption at the calorie goal or working out more (and eating more) to obtain a net calorie goal? I find that if I stick with consuming the number of calories I am allotted (1350), I tend to feel deprived. I feel much happier and satiated if I work out and then eat back some of those exercise calories. Some days I feel like I'm eating an awful lot for someone trying to lose weight, even though my net is around goal. Is one method "better" than the other? Or does it truly not matter so long as I am netting around my goal?

    Eating Healthy definitely!!!
  • Staniel_2013
    Staniel_2013 Posts: 120 Member
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    But to be more specific, a good rule of thumb to go by is:

    Look good in clothes: food intake

    Look good naked: exercise

    That is awesome....:bigsmile: Definitely going to remember that.

    Just like everyone else says, IMHO too:

    1. Watch what you are eating. This alone can change HOW you feel for the better (more energy and probably won't get sick as much)

    2. How much you are eating (This will start making any extra weight you want to get rid of to go away)

    3. Work out that body so you look good naked. :love:
  • TheBadToe
    TheBadToe Posts: 246 Member
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    I go by this; 50% balanced diet, 30% strength training, 20% cardio (getting the HR up and keeping it there for a bit). Its 100% getting off your *kitten* and making it happen tho.
  • lmanasero
    lmanasero Posts: 19 Member
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    To maintain a healthy weight, your energy IN and OUT don't have to balance exactly every day. It's the balance over time that helps you maintain a healthy weight.
    •The same amount of energy IN and energy OUT over time = weight stays the same
    •More energy IN than energy OUT over time = weight gain
    •More energy OUT than energy IN over time = weight loss
  • Rocbola
    Rocbola Posts: 1,998 Member
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    Neither! Eating RIGHT is what's most important.

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