Exercise is good for you, but does it really affect weight loss?


  
  Always working does not mean shedding extra pounds.

    Many studies show that exercising alone does not help you shed extra pounds, but some studies show that it works for some people.

  Losing weight is one of the top resolutions for the new year for 2019.

  Many people turn to exercise to help them achieve their goal - which is why you see a spike in gym memberships in January.

  But can you lose weight just by exercising more?

  Research on the case is mixed.

  If you want to focus on diet or exercise, here is a quick overview to help you shed some extra pounds.

  Expect weight loss from exercise

  A July 2018 review published in The Progress of Heart Disease describes what you may initially lose with a variety of exercises:

  Resistance training only: 0 to 1 percent weight loss

  Aerobic exercise only: 0 to 3 percent weight loss

  Aerobic and resistance training: 0 to 3 percent weight loss

  Diet (aka calorie restriction) combined with aerobic exercise: 5 to 15 percent weight loss

  For a person of 160 pounds, a 3 percent weight loss is about 4.8 pounds.

  It is better than nothing.  But clinical guidelines recommend that people who are overweight or obese lose at least 5 percent to see improvements in risk factors such as lipid levels and insulin sensitivity.

  In most studies, exercising on its own reduces this.  But it can work with "high-volume aerobic exercise training", the paper's authors write.

  Intensive exercise can promote weight loss

  Joseph E.  Donnelly, ADD, professor of medicine and director of the Physical Activity and Weight Management Center at the University of Kansas Medical Center, is the author of several studies in the 2018 review.  He is also a big proponent of exercise for weight loss.

  "If you can get people to exercise at a certain level, you can lose 5 to 7 percent of the weight in almost anyone, and that's clinically important," Donley said.

  In one of their studies, young adults did five aerobic workouts per week for 10 months.

  They were divided into two groups: burning either 400 kilocalories or 600 kilocalories per workout.  There was also a control group of people who were not assigned exercise.

  By the end of the study, people in the 400 kilocalories group lost an average of 4.3 percent of their weight, and people in the 600 kilocalories group lost an average of 5.7 percent.

  Women and men lost equal amounts of weight.  However, some people lost more weight and some lost less.

  To put this in perspective, to burn 400 kilocalories, a person of 160 pounds would have to do one hour of water aerobics.  To burn 600 kilocalories, they would have to run at 5 mph for an hour.

  The average daily intake source given is 1,600 to 2,400 kilocalories for adult women and 2,000 to 3,000 calories for adult men.

  It is amazing that people in the Donley study lost their weight - they were burning an additional 2,000 to 3,000 kilocalories per week.

  This amount of exercise is essentially worth eating all day each week.

  
    Exercise does not always cause weight loss

  The study of weight loss in the lab is not the same as in the real world, however, there is no guarantee that you will lose weight without exercise.

  Other factors are also given sources that may affect your weight loss, such as sex, body size, exercise type, and metabolic changes.

  To convert exercise into weight loss, you have to live with it - which is also true of dietary changes.

  In the modern world this is not always easy.

  "When it comes to physical activity and nutrition, people do what they have to do."  "When you don't need to be physically active, the environment is completely ready for weight gain."

  Throughout our day, we have easy access to high-calorie foods, as well as cars, lifts and televisions, so that we stay relaxed.

  To lose weight with exercise, you have to work continuously at a moderate or vigorous intensity.

  In the lab, researchers use high-tech devices to ensure that people burn a certain number of kilocalories.

  Outside the lab - and the sources given in the physical activity guidelines - we usually use hours to track exercise because it is easy.

  But people often estimate how hard they are exercising - so your hour-long workout may only involve 30 to 40 minutes of actual effort, if so.

  There is also the danger that you will do all your hard work after your workout by putting in a high-calorie treatment - such as drinking a handful of chocolate chip cookies or sugar-laden coffee.

  However, such a diet has been compensated.

  In Donley's study, people in the 400-kilocalorie group did not eat more than people in the control group.  The 600-kilocalorie group ate slightly more, but not enough to reduce weight.

  "If you exercise in high amounts, you are going to start eating more, but will not eat much of the energy you spend," Donald said.  "And that's why you can lose weight when you exercise."

  

  It is not surprising that a combination of exercise and dietary restriction leads to excess weight loss - you are burning more calories and reducing your intake at the same time.

  So should you focus on diet or exercise ... or both?

  One study found that people who initially focused on both did a better job of meeting their physical activity and dietary goals in the long run.

  However, only those beginning with the diet had trouble meeting their physical activity goals.

  The real goal of any program is to keep the weight off for a long time.

  For this, exercise can play an important role, at least for some people.

  A weight loss study found that 38.8 percent of people who maintained their weight after 4 years were still doing at least 150 minutes per week of moderate to vigorous exercise.

  Of course, this means that some people were able to keep the weight off even with less exercise.

  Not everyone will be able to do five 600-kilocalorie workouts per week.  Some people may have physical limitations such as arthritis or a super busy work or home schedule.

  So you have to find out what works for you - and who you'll be with.

  Right now, there is no "magic" formula to focus on exercise vs. diet.

  But an online tool provided by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) can help.  It lets people customize their exercise and diet to reach their desired weight loss goals.

  Before choosing a diet before exercise, keep in mind that regular physical activity has many health benefits in addition to losing weight - including improving mood, boosting energy and reducing the risk of stroke, type 2 diabetes, depression and other  Diseases are included.

  "If you exercise and don't lose weight, just keep going," Donley said, "because you get all kinds of health benefits regardless of weight."