Benefits of Exercise: Myth or Magic?

Did you see the Time magazine article “Why Exercise Won’t Make You Thin”? I have had several students ask me about this article, so let’s take a look at it. The article is bound to confuse and mislead, it is full of half truths and exaggerations, and can lead to a mistaken conclusion about the role of exercise in weight loss. It is true that exercise alone will not result in weight loss for most people. You would have to exercise at the volume and intensity of an Olympic class athlete to burn off the 3500 calories required to reduce body weight by a pound.

However, every reputable study on successful weight loss techniques concludes that exercise is an important part of weight reduction, along with reducing calories consumed, increasing or maintaining muscle mass and learning mental techniques to deal with life’s everyday difficulties. Exercise by itself will not guarantee a slim silhouette, but it goes a long way towards helping to swing the pendulum to the side of calories burned, and away from calories consumed.

To reduce weight you must reduce the amount of calories consumed along with increasing the number of calories burned. It can mean that you keep busy with walking, gardening, cleaning and grandchildren chasing all day. You do not have to join a gym and stand beside the author of that article as he sweats on the Stairmaster.

The article states that exercise increases appetite, leading people to eat more than they would otherwise consume. There are many studies that show that exercise does not make you hungrier, or lead you to indulge in a sugary, fat laden fast food. There is no evidence of either physiological or psychological increased hunger from exercise.

Studies show that many people experience a loss of appetite from a vigorous workout. The important issue is what you choose to eat after the exercise when you feel hungry. If you, like the author of that article, choose to reward yourself by eating an inappropriately fatty, sugary calorie laden treat, you will not tip the balance in favor of weight loss. Exercise, as it burns off calories, leaves a deficit in the nutrition department which can be filled by either healthy, nutritious calories, or by an unhealthy choice. You don’t have to serve yourself a slice of cheesecake, or a jelly filled doughnut. Consuming protein has a satiety-inducing effect, so your snack after activity can be a cup of tuna salad, a slice of chicken or low fat yogurt. Add a fiber food to a lean protein serving to fill you up but not out, and you will gain full benefits from your physical activities. You know what good food choices are, fruits, vegetables, whole grains and low fat proteins, and you can make a healthy, choice when you sit down to fill your fuel tank.

This article leaves out tons of scientific evidence and studies showing that a combination of exercise and healthy nutrition results in maximum fitness levels, and that to lose weight, those who succeed in reducing body mass and weight use a calorie restricted sensible diet together with their daily regular exercise routines to take off the extra pounds. If you, like the author of this article, use exercise to pay for overindulgence, you are setting yourself up for failure. Exercise works to burn off a limited amount of calories, but what you eat has to be under your control as well.

If you want to reward yourself, choose something other than food for your prize. You can’t exercise it off, and you can’t eat high calorie foods just because you went to the gym. A sensible adult attitude, combining the two aspects of healthy calorie intake and consistent moderate activity level will result in your ultimate success in the battle of the bulge.

It is furthermore not true that self control, is a limited resource, and that you’ll use it up when you talk yourself into your workout. It is actually similar to a muscle, which becomes stronger after consistent use. So practice exercising self-control, such as making good positive eating choices until you have turned these healthy practices into a habit. So what’s the bottom line? Exercise, along with self-control over your calorie consumption will result in you feeling, looking and being in the best shape of your life.