Exercise is important for a healthy lifestyle, but it won't result in weight loss. The amount of calories burned are trivial.
For example:
- 30 minute run burns (150 pound individual) burns just 272 calories.
- 30 minute lap swim (150 pound individual) burns, again, just 272 calories.
A single Milky Way chocolate bar has 240 calories. A Big Mac has 530 calories. A McDonalds Chicken Classic Sandwich 350 calories. And so on. So you can exercise for an hour and then regain the weight in under a minute. That's how few calories exercise burns.
The primary way people lose weight is BMR (basal metabolic rate), this is calories burned just keeping you alive. You literally lose weight while you sleep due to BMR.
People often like to claim "'calories in' need to be lower than 'calories out'" and while that is true to a point, it is an over simplification (i.e. even with identical calories certain things, like sugar, are kept as fat to a greater extent than other things, such as fiber, which are "ejected").
So, yes, please exercise. You'll live longer, feel healthier, and it might even shed one or two pounds if you're already skinny. But if you're obese and need to shed 10+ pounds then your diet is the primary means by which you'll accomplish your goals, in fact you can lose all of your weight while in a coma on a hospital bed, so all you need to do is under-eat for your BMR (but consult your doctor, and try to eat a balanced diet).
I recommend using something like MyFitnessPal. It is free. Just set it up, it will track your BMR and what you eat, and as long as you stay in the "green" (below the BMR) you'll eventually lose some weight.
However please keep in mind "water weight" is a legitimate thing. Your body does gain and lose +-5 pounds "randomly" so you shouldn't weigh yourself excessively, you'll just lose motivation. Once a week MAX, every two weeks is better.
Those are fair points regarding energy expenditure for specific exercises. However, that doesn't take into account the effects of regular exercise on BMR. That normal exercise can elevate your BMR is certainly plausible, and many people have conducted studies that have reached this conclusion.
Metabolism is a complicated thing, and there are conflicting answers on the subject. Results differ under a variety of conditions (human, animal, forced/voluntary, etc.). The abstract in this review summarizes the state of the research nicely: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14692598
> That normal exercise can elevate your BMR is certainly plausible, and many people have conducted studies that have reached this conclusion.
It is true that they have conducted these studies, it is inaccurate to claim that it any great impact on BMR, and the study you linked (which you can read in full [0]) supports that conclusion. The 48 hour improvement is inconsequential, and there are no improvements beyond that.
As I said before, exercise is important for a healthy lifestyle (you'll literally live longer), but for weight loss it is much much less important than diet, in particular for people who aren't looking to shed a small amount of weight.
All you're claiming is that for a 30 minute workout you might lose 300 calories instead of 270 calories due to BMR (and that's being generous looking at the study). Which doesn't change the overall point that without diet changes you won't lose significant amount of weight through exercise alone.
I think you are ignoring the elephant in the room.
Active people have higher BMR because they build up bigger muscles. Not talking about bodybuilders - though that is the extreme of a continuous, but anyone who does regular exercise builds up some lean mass.
Off course, if you ever stop your body will pick up the signal and decide to not sustain the extra muscle anymore. If no change in diet follows immediately, you will pick up body fat pretty quickly.
I'm using MyFitnessPal and for the first time in years I'm losing weight. I've known I need to lose weight, but the number just kept going up instead. I second what you say. Exercise helps, but ultimately restricting calories by eating less and eating more correctly is the only way to "stay in the green".
It is amazing and absurd to me how many calories some things have. I had no idea! For example, ketchup is loaded with calories. Same with cheese. I used to load down all my food with tons of ketchup and snack on cheese slices. Way too "expensive"!
You're correct, those foods that you posted are very caloric dense - however, you don't necessarily need to choose to eat those foods. There are far healthier alternatives that will fill you up, and have way less calories.
E.g. my breakfast is 6 sticks of wheatbix + skim milk, 3 apples, 3 pears. Probably similar calories to a large chocolate bar, and way more satisfying =). My lunch is a wholemeal sandwich with fresh tomatoes, lettuce and some chicken breast, plus fruit. Very tasty, and not as caloric dense.
For me, during my lunchtime run or swim, I usually burn between 300-350 calories (Garmin GPS watch with heart-rate monitor, I'm assuming it has reasonable accuracy).
Then the cycle to work, 100 calories, the cycle back home, another 100 calories.
Then 2-3 nights a week, I go to a kickboxing or weights session, that's probably 400-500 calories (This is very much an estimate - I can't wear my heart rate band during those sessions).
Then weekends, you can go for a longer run/swim. It's fun! Ultimately though, you need to find activities you enjoy, otherwise you won't do them.
You just need to find the healthy food you like eating, and the exercises that you like doing.
Exercise is important for a healthy lifestyle, but it won't result in weight loss. The amount of calories burned are trivial.
For example:
- 30 minute run burns (150 pound individual) burns just 272 calories.
- 30 minute lap swim (150 pound individual) burns, again, just 272 calories.
A single Milky Way chocolate bar has 240 calories. A Big Mac has 530 calories. A McDonalds Chicken Classic Sandwich 350 calories. And so on. So you can exercise for an hour and then regain the weight in under a minute. That's how few calories exercise burns.
The primary way people lose weight is BMR (basal metabolic rate), this is calories burned just keeping you alive. You literally lose weight while you sleep due to BMR.
People often like to claim "'calories in' need to be lower than 'calories out'" and while that is true to a point, it is an over simplification (i.e. even with identical calories certain things, like sugar, are kept as fat to a greater extent than other things, such as fiber, which are "ejected").
So, yes, please exercise. You'll live longer, feel healthier, and it might even shed one or two pounds if you're already skinny. But if you're obese and need to shed 10+ pounds then your diet is the primary means by which you'll accomplish your goals, in fact you can lose all of your weight while in a coma on a hospital bed, so all you need to do is under-eat for your BMR (but consult your doctor, and try to eat a balanced diet).
I recommend using something like MyFitnessPal. It is free. Just set it up, it will track your BMR and what you eat, and as long as you stay in the "green" (below the BMR) you'll eventually lose some weight.
However please keep in mind "water weight" is a legitimate thing. Your body does gain and lose +-5 pounds "randomly" so you shouldn't weigh yourself excessively, you'll just lose motivation. Once a week MAX, every two weeks is better.