'Exercise doesn't matter for weight loss'

I always felt that if you look at the actual time needed to burn 3500 cals....I would never do it. You mentioned being on an elliptical for 3 hours a week to lose 1/2 lb....that for me just doesn't sound like an easy way to lose weight. I workout and exercise for other reasons (burning calories is a bonus)

I just googled a site that said (for my age/height/weight) I would have to walk for 380 minutes to lose 1 lb. So it comes down to six hours of walking vs eating 500 cals less a day. For me.....it is just easier to eat less (since I was eating way too much anyway). People that are desperately needing to lose weight, and are not in great shape to begin with would have a very difficult time exercising 3 hours a week.

If you like using the elliptical, keep doing it. It works. Be in deficit, no matter how it's accomplished, will get you where you need to go. Sounds like you are doing both, which is fantastic. You will see results. I would recommend adding some weight training and you will have all three components working for you which really turbo charges your results.

Good luck

Between May 1, 2006 and May 1, 2007 I lost 50lbs by following Weight Watchers. I NEVER exercised. Not even a brisk walk. So with that being said, would I recommend it? No. If I could go back and tell my younger self to exercise or something, I would. I'd rather be fit. But yeah, exercise isn't required to lose weight.

Exercising can speed up your weight loss by creating a bigger calorie deficit. If your body needs 2000 cals a day to maintain its weight and you eat 1500 cals per day and exercise burns 500 cals per day you will lose twice as much weight than you would had you not exercised.

This is approximate obviously depending on a number of factors including health and metabolism swings.

Good Luck!
Mark

I exercise so i can eat more and lose weight comfortably. Also I feel like I am "living maintenance" because of this attitude.

On the other hand:

"you can't out run poor dietary choices on a consistent basis"

I must admit to exercising in order to eat more, but have to admit that by trying to be more aware of what I am eating and trying to be in deficit (I do have my off days and weeks) I am now starting to see the weight coming off and my clothes fitting me better.

I lost my first 25lbs without exercise...you don't need to exercise to lose weight...

For me exercise isn't about weight loss anyway..I eat the same amount of calories everyday regardless of if I exercise or not.

I exercise because I want to be fit....I want to be healthy.

you can exercise all you want but if you are eating in a surplus you won't lose weight...hence the "claim" exercise isn't for weight loss...

I see a lot of people saying that diet is more important than exercise for weight loss, but why? If I'm on a stationary bike for 30 minutes I burn between 250-300 calories, so over 7 days that's between 1750-2100 calories burned by exercise, which combined with a calorie controlled diet, wouldn't that mean I would be losing an extra 1/2lb a week? (Theoretically)

people say this because it's easier to put down that krispy kreme donut rather than to ride that stationary bike. That said, the approach that will get you the fastest result is to exercise and moderate your caloric intake.

The key is to find something that you can sustain for the rest of your life OP. What happens is that (I will say 'some') people will use the lack of ability to exercise as an excuse to gain weight or for not losing weight. Especially if they are used to eating at a deficit created by exercising a lot. All the things about exercising more to eat more? What happens when you injure yourself or for whatever reason can no longer exercise. I see this far too often and it even happened to me. I used to be one of the people who ate more because I exercised more. When I got an injury that sidelined me for almost a year I gained a bunch of weight, because I did not adjust well. Now I eat at a moderate deficit (sometimes less than 250 calories/day) and workout for fitness, not to create a bigger deficit, The weight comes off slowly, but the scale is steadily moving downward so it is all good. It is better for you to keep the two separate. Eat at a sustainable deficit, take your time losing weight and exercise at a level that is also sustainable to you.

It isn't that exercise isn't important but if a person isn't eating within a calorie deficiency then there will not be any weight loss. For example, many people posted that they haven't loss any weight despite exercising several days a week. The reason is they have consumed too much food which erased their calorie deficiency, even with exercise. The calories in the diet must be controlled in order for exercise to contribute to weight loss.

They are both important, but you don't NEED to exercise to lose weight. The common misconception is that people think you can eat all kinds of crap as long as you exercise. You can't out-exercise a poor diet!

You know, I hear this all the time, but I don't know if it's true either.
In high school I joined the swim team and swam maybe 1.5 hours 5-6 days/week. I didn't change what I ate, in fact, I ate MORE, pasta, pizza, burgers, anything I wanted. I lost over 20 lbs without even thinking about it. So yeah, actually, you can lose weight just by increasing your exercise, in some cases.