7 wks of cardio and nothing? Why?

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  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    joowelz wrote: »
    I’ve resumed my workout routine since my gym reopened seven weeks ago. I run on the treadmill for 30 minutes at 5.5-6.0 m/ph speed. That’s very intense for me. I have NOT been tracking my daily caloric intake and assume i am getting 1800-2200 calories per day. My target for a deficit is 1700.

    But no results whatsoever???! That seems harsh given how invasive the running routine is in my life. My feet, legs etc ache and i’m physically tired. Nothing? Not even one pound?

    Does exercise even matter then????

    Diet is going to have a much more pronounced impact on losing weight than exercise ever will. I assume you've heard the phrase, "you can't outrun your diet." It's a whole lot easier to create a calorie deficit through diet than through exercise. Exercise does expend more energy (calories), but in reality doesn't burn as much as people think. 30 minutes of running isn't going to burn a huge number of calories, however, it is very good for your overall health.

    In regards to "does exercise even matter then?"...regular exercise is extremely beneficial to your overall health and well-being and your physical fitness. In my experience, regular exercise has a more beneficial impact on your actual health markers than the composition of your diet does...but yeah, regular exercise doesn't default to weight loss...if it did, people who exercised regularly would just wither away to nothing. Your calorie intake has to be less than your overall expenditure to lose weight. If you exercise and eat maintenance calories, you're going to maintain weight...if you exercise regularly and consume more calories than your body needs overall, you're going to gain weight.
  • Silentpadna
    Silentpadna Posts: 1,306 Member
    edited September 2020
    GazelleLady wrote: »
    psuLemon wrote: »
    GazelleLady wrote: »
    There is also a possibility that you gained muscle and lost fat, which might not make you lose weight. Muscle weighs more than fat.

    With only doing cardio, quite unlikely

    Why would it be unlikely? I am not disagreeing with you, but I am just curious.

    In general I look at all of this as a three-legged stool - in the context that most of us have a couple of reasons for wanting to lose weight. It's usually a combination of wanting to be healthier and to look better. Also, "losing weight" is not usually what we mean. What we (usually) mean is losing fat.

    Anyway, the three legs are:

    1. Calorie deficit for fat loss.
    2. Cardio for overall endurance/fitness - and perhaps a minor help toward your deficit.
    3. Progressive overload strength training for shape.

    Keep in mind that some of these things can actually oppose each other. Cardio and deficit can release a stress hormone (cortisol) that makes your body retain water. It can also help cause you to slow down in other times during the day by less unconscious movement.

    When it comes to actually building muscle, unless you are completely new at it (newbie gains), building muscle is a looooong process and requires a caloric surplus, not a deficit. Lifting/strength training is always beneficial. In a surplus you build muscle. In a deficit, you preserve a lot (not all) of it by strength training. Without strength training, and with a deficit, you will lose both fat and muscle.

    This was a long trail to basically say, strength training should be an integral part of whatever you do. For those afraid of "bulking up", it won't happen in a deficit. Further, most people want to lose weight not just to be thinner, but for shape. And for that, well, you know where I'm going....
  • briscogun
    briscogun Posts: 1,138 Member
    joowelz wrote: »
    I have NOT been tracking my daily caloric intake and assume...

    You answered your own question. You know what happens when you assume? If it's been 7 weeks you have proved that you are eating at maintenance including all of your exercise, which means without the exercise you would be gaining weight.
    joowelz wrote: »
    Does exercise even matter then????

    No. You exercise for health benefits and eat less to lose weight.

    You need to weigh and track your food to get a handle on your true intake, otherwise your just winging it and you've been doing that for 7 weeks with no results. Try tracking for a few weeks and see where that gets you. Good luck!
  • GazelleLady
    GazelleLady Posts: 131 Member
    @Silentpadna That was very informative, thank you! It explains a lot. I have literally lost muscle at times that I was running more than ever.
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