cottagegirl71 wrote: »

Hello! Curious about how many of you are losing without actually going to the gym/doing a "workout"? Reluctant to renew my membership (time and money issues) but can manage a 45 minute walk with the dog 4 days/week + one 90 minute yoga session......I was doing LC all summer and it was flying off but was also pretty active. Thoughts?

Forget the hard exercise. Walking and other mild exercise is ok, lose the membership, save yourself some money. I can think of a few reasons:

1) Hard exercise will increase your hunger. The whole point of the Keto/Fat eating is to decrease your hunger as you eat less calories. LOW fat diets make you hungry.

2) Hard exercising is a powerful psychological reason to eat extra, because after-all, you either burned it off or can burn it off, either way it justifies over-eating.

3) Hard exercise inflames the body, any type of inflammation will cause your body to absorb water. It will hold onto the water for days. You will be depressed when you do that hard workout, and show no/or small amount of a loss.

4) I lost over 100 lbs on a Keto diet without any hard exercise (and other than a few instances, I didn't do any walking either.) I added water fasting to my routine, to break stalls.

I hope this helps,
Dan the Man from Michigan
Keto / The Recipe Water Fasting / E.A.S.Y. Exercise Program

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DittoDan wrote: »

1) Hard exercise will increase your hunger. The whole point of the Keto/Fat eating is to decrease your hunger as you eat less calories. LOW fat diets make you hungry.

Not always. Hard exercise suppresses my hunger most times. But even so, there's nothing wrong with eating a little extra. The hunger modulation still happens (I've actually got logs that show it at work for myself).

2) Hard exercising is a powerful psychological reason to eat extra, because after-all, you either burned it off or can burn it off, either way it justifies over-eating.

Psychological reasons to overeat are arguably something that need to be addressed outside of avoidance of the physical activity in question. I've personally found that the appetite modulating effects of low carb overpower the psychological component, by and large.

3) Hard exercise inflames the body, any type of inflammation will cause your body to absorb water. It will hold onto the water for days. You will be depressed when you do that hard workout, and show no/or small amount of a loss.

Reason number 367543 why the scale on any given day is a poor indicator of progress.

4) I lost over 100 lbs on a Keto diet without any hard exercise (and other than a few instances, I didn't do any walking either.) I added water fasting to my routine, to break stalls.

This is a fantastic example of my assertion earlier that exercise is not required for weight loss. However, I disagree with the blanket discouragement of hard exercise (and while I do agree that the OP need not waste money on a gym membership, one does not need a gym to participate in hard exercise).

milandy1969 wrote: »

for the mental clarity it brings and to enjoy the outdoors.

That seems to be the secret to staying motivated -- do it because you enjoy it and look forward to it.

Not for weight loss. Not for health. Not because you think you "should."

It's true, Dan -- I do think you've got the secret sauce.

When I first started exercise, my philosophy was that it should also be useful work, but I just couldn't do that consistently enough.

Running is something that's easier to do consistently, and there's a very low barrier (just put on shoes and go), but it's not very useful work. It becomes a habit. And it can become a social thing -- meet your buddies at a 5K. And you can either decide to challenge yourself, or just do a slow meditative run, or a mix.

Similar with bodyweight exercises and yoga. Low barrier, sustainable, relaxing, challenging as you want it to be, potentially even a social outlet. A friend of mine ended up marrying his yoga teacher.

Edit: I should add that in terms of useful work, I try to walk and bike to destinations when possible, as well as doing stuff like yard work.

Smoked33 wrote: »

For the the achievement lies in the workout itself, the feeling I have completing it...the blood pumping and all those macho emotions that make me think of great athletes in history lol Seriously very seldom are my workouts utilitarian in nature...they are always selfish quests to feel good and better myself and it's become a habit that I miss when i'm not doing it.

That's how I am, too. Even when they're utilitarian in nature, that most satisfying part is the physical feeling of having done the physical exertion. It's a very empowered feeling, especially in strength-based stuff.

Personally, the gym is worth it in my opinion but I think it's all a personal choice. Of course being active is not necessarily a bad thing, but it's hard to fit into a busy life. Plus, gym fees can be expensive. I joined a gym through my health insurance and it's half the cost of a normal gym fee with the added benefit that I can go to any gym that participates (including the YMCA's in my area) and take any classes they offer. One day I can go to the Y, the next I can go to LA Fitness, Anytime Fitness, SNAP Fitness, etc...

My best fit was a 24 hour gym that totally fits with my hectic schedule. I allot an hour at the gym and I go anywhere from 4-7 days a week. I did research and planned out a 4 day strength training program so I don't "overdo" it and walk 30 minutes on a treadmill. That being said, you could do all of this from your own home and save the cost. I just like the hour of "me" time. I don't get distracted and the gym is usually empty when I go so I don't feel self conscious.

Make a list of pros and cons of exercise and see if it's worth it for you personally. Good luck!