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I also want to comment about weight "gain". Is it truly gain? Our body weight fluctuates daily. It is far more accurate to use "weight range" over the course of a week. Water retention seemingly makes you "gain weight", but what it is also the easiest to shed. Fat is what people should be concerned about, barring a medical problem. Fat gain can't happen overnight from eating cookies or one bad meal (unless you are really trying to pack it in, then that's another story). If you are eating within your appropriate caloric range, you aren't going to gain fat. I'm sure there's tons of insulin trigger foods that people eat, but if you're not pre-diabetic, it's really not something to be overly concerned with. I stay within my caloric range, so naturally things are in balance. Any weight I gain is due to water or whatever and is usually resolved within the week. As long as I stay in my weight range over time, then I'm golden.
Finally, exercise (particularly strength training) helps build muscle so that you appear leaner. Who doesn't want that? And if you burn more than you eat, then you will lose. Exercise helps you to "burn". I lost eight pounds, at least half of it fat, when I did four days of backbreaking hard physical labor. I never regained. Simply cutting wouldn't achieve that.
... and then there's that point where we think if I eat even less...
and that's when our body thinks "uh-oh!! I'm starving. Stop losing weight and survive".
Are you saying the body can choose to stop losing weight even when calorie deficient?
Are you saying the body can choose to stop losing weight even when calorie deficient?
In a sense, yes.
Your body is incredibly efficient and it will find ways to slow metabolism in times it's sensing food shortage.
It doesn't know you're on a diet. It just knows that food is not readily available. And it does its job.
You'll still lose weight (bc math), but it will become harder and harder and smaller and smaller.
Well, it's a revelation. I'm not a scientist or a wonk.Sorry that I am not as brilliant as you.
Sorry OP, but this has been public knowledge for quite some time. Weight loss is 80%-90% about the food or rather reduction of calories. Exercise only accounts for 10%-20% of weight loss.
I reiterate - to lose weight and achieve the best results - you must reduce calories AND work out. One or the other will not achieve optimum results. This post is directed towards the people who think they can simply "stop eating" and not bother to work out. Eventually you'll have to reduce calories to the point of being unsustainable/unpalatable in order to achieve anything. Working out not only assisted with the loss, it helped with my body composition. Frankly I look much better because I exercise(d).
I reiterate - to lose weight and achieve the best results - you must reduce calories AND work out. One or the other will not achieve optimum results. This post is directed towards the people who think they can simply "stop eating" and not bother to work out. Eventually you'll have to reduce calories to the point of being unsustainable/unpalatable in order to achieve anything. Working out not only assisted with the loss, it helped with my body composition. Frankly I look much better because I exercise(d).
So true! Losing weight without building lean muscle mass can turn you into a bowl of jello: flabby, once you're reached your goal weight (depends on how much you need to lose). Building muscle mass not only speeds weight loss and restores insulin sensitivity for those who have developed insulin resistance, it trims you down and firms you up.
So true! Losing weight without building lean muscle mass can turn you into a bowl of jello: flabby, once you're reached your goal weight (depends on how much you need to lose). Building muscle mass not only speeds weight loss and restores insulin sensitivity for those who have developed insulin resistance, it trims you down and firms you up.
Indeed. In fact, I probably would have given up had it not been for exercise. I started to see results within a couple of weeks. Definition within a month. All of this before the scale even started to show significant loss. I don't have that gaunt look and lots of loose skin either, all courtesy of exercise. When I work out, I feel like a beast. I can move mountains even if I physically can't. I feel good about myself and proud. So many reasons why only dieting is a fail.
Exercise is not a license to overeat. Nothing is. Exercise is complementary to a sensible diet. It allows you some wiggle room to enjoy indulgences. But overdoing anything is a recipe for disaster.
When I work out, I feel like a beast. I can move mountains even if I physically can't. I feel good about myself and proud.
Best feeling in the world! I get that just from walking in the door at my gym, before I even do anything.
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