No More Diets

How important is exercise to losing weight?


It’s pretty important because

1. it burns calories
2. it boosts your metabolism - even when you’re not exercising
3. it strengthens and firms your body making you look slimmer
4. it helps maintain skin tone and avoid loose skin problems
5. it makes you feel good - at least once you’ve finished your exercise for the day
6. it keeps you busy and away from the fridge!

and they are only the reasons that help with weight loss. There are of course many other reasons to exercise such as keeping you healthy, helping you sleep, boosting your energy levels etc.

All in all exercise is a GOOD THING.

Having said that it’s not ESSENTIAL in order to lose weight - it just helps. You CAN lose weight by diet alone. I don’t recommend it but you can.

What I will say is that if you are not keen on huffing and puffing away at the gym, vary what you think of as exercise. Find an activity (or activities) you enjoy instead such as dancing or swimming or ice skating and don’t let the dreaded exercise word cross your lips. Have fun instead of “exercising” while burning calories and losing weight

What is the best exercise for losing weight and for firming skin?

The best exercise for losing weight is one that you will actually do. You see I could prescribe a whole fat-burning program but if you hate it you will never do it (or at least you won’t do it more than a couple of weeks).

So just do more of the exercise and sports you love and you won’t go far wrong.

Changing your eating habits is by far more effective in losing weight in any case - you have to run more than a marathon to lose a pound of fat just with exercise!

If you are still at the stages of exploring what you like to do however, here are some pointers.

Losing weight by exercising basically boils down to this:-

• burn as many calories as possible with strenuous aerobic training
• keep burning calories after you finish your workout by using metabolism boosting activities such as interval training as part of your workout
• keep as active as possible during the course of the day outside formal exercise sessions - the more you’re on your feet the better
• include strength training in your routine as muscle burns fat even at rest and it will mean that you lose fat rather than muscle when you are dieting

To keep your skin as taut as possible as you lose, ensure you keep the underlying muscles strong - strength training will help here - and lose weight slowly to give your skin a chance to keep up with your body as it shrinks - especially if you have a lot to lose. For more about keeping skin firm see how to avoid loose skin after weight loss.

By the way, you’ll also find there’s no shortage of information out there on the web about exercising to lose weight.

But take care, some of it is plain misleading. See my article about the fat burning myth for more information on that.

I’m 33 years old, 5.2” inches and weigh 75 kg (165lbs) Over the last 2 years I’ve put on 10 kg. Before that I was going to the gym but can’t go regularly any more. Can you help and guide me with what to do?

You know how easy it is to put on 5kgs (11lb) over a year?

Dead easy!

If you eat just 105 calories a day more than you use then there’s your 5kgs. That’s just a couple of apples or a milky coffee too much. And if you were exercising 3 times a week at the gym and stopped going that could explain your weight gain too.

It’s generally not the odd blow out meal or lack of marathon running which affects our weight so much as the daily cookie too many, the daily walk too few.

I’m not that fond of diets for lasting weight loss but I am very fond of gradually changing your habits so that you are eating healthier food and moving a bit more in your everyday life. That doesn’t need going to the gym. It just means climbing more stairs and taking fewer lifts or escalators. It means taking as many steps as possible rather than sitting down. It means putting more energy into everything you do. It also doesn’t mean eating rabbit food all the time but it does mean going easy on fatty or sugary foods and eating a smaller portions.

There’s such a fine line between weight gain and weight loss that just a few habits changed for the better can swing things back in the direction you want to go.

And if you decide to diet anyway - choose one you could live with (in a modified form) forever so that you are establishing long term good habits.

How can I possibly diet when I only eat breakfast, lunch and dinner. I only have a half hour break for lunch so it is always very rushed most days only a couple pieces of fruit on the go. My job is very active Home Care in which I would be cleaning four or five houses a day plus personal care is also added into my days work. By the time I come home and cook dinner I am too exhausted to exercise further.

Oh dear. It’s no wonder you are exhausted if you are going all day with only a couple of pieces of fruit between breakfast and dinner. This is really too little food to keep anyone going even for a sedentary worker never mind someone with an active job like yours.

The main problem here seems to be that you are eating too little to keep your metabolism going - your body will be conserving fat and calories because it thinks you are starving.

It’s important to spread your calories throughout the day and not eat everything in one dinner at night. Half an hour is still enough to get some good nutrition including some lean protein and I think it would do you good to have a small snack mid morning and after noon as well. Then balance your eating with a smaller dinner than usual.
It sounds like you are probably getting enough exercise already so that may not the way to go for you. (You know you have to run more than a marathon to lose a pound of fat so even for most people exercise is a bonus and a way to keep healthy rather than the main way to lose weight).

Focus on healthy regular eating for a while to get your metabolism back on an even keel before you think about losing weight.

Also if you are on your feet all day and not eating much between meals make sure that you are drinking enough water and not drinking calories - it’s easy to forget that sugar in tea, coffee and soft drinks can add up to an awful lot of calories not to mention those in fruit juice, milky drinks and alcohol.

How can you count the calories you are burning?

Good luck if you are trying to lose weight by counting calories! Most people get this completely wrong by underestimating what they are eating and overestimating how much they are burning. If you can be reasonably accurate then it’s a great way to lose weight - aim for a 500 calorie a day deficit to lose a steady 1lb a week without too much deprivation or trouble.

Here is a calculation tool for finding out how many calories you are burning with a whole list of different activities. You enter your weight in pounds and the duration of your activity in minutes and then get an estimate of the number of calories you used for the list of activities.

Calorie calculator

Remember that these calories are not EXTRA calories you are burning on top of the calories you would use just by sitting around - they are instead of - so you need to subtract the calories you would use just by existing to get an a picture of how much you have helped your weight loss goals.

Remember too that we all burn up calories at a slightly different rate depending on metabolism and body composition so this is an estimate at best.

I believe you can get monitors which measure more accurately how many calories you are burning but I have no personal experience with these as I don’t usually advise the calorie counting method for weight loss. Could anyone else recommend one?

How do I get more motivated to work out…I start for a week and then stop.

The only real answer to this is to find something you love to do so that nothing will stop you doing it.

I think we torture ourselves too much by thinking that nothing less than a full gym program will do when we would do far better to get active with dancing or skating or skiing (or whatever else floats our boat) - something that will not need so much willpower to keep up.

If you insist on trying to do a program which is a chore rather than a pleasure then the only way to motivate yourself is to do it for long enough to feel the benefits before you let yourself stop.

I took up running this year against my better judgement - I knew I didn’t like running at all but it was for a charity race. I simply had to get my running clothes on and get out of the door three times a week. What helped initially was having the race to aim for and a training program to follow. What helped later was the fantastic feeling I got when I came home from a run. (And I did enjoy the race in the end!)

I am a female in her late forties battling weight for the first time, how can I lose it?

Many people start to gain weight in their forties. Its a time when your metabolism tends to slow down by a small amount. And because this is generally coupled with a reduction in daily activity and also a reduction in the amount of lean muscle tissue - also a sign of ageing - the change in weight can be startling.

On the other hand if you experiencing a dramatic weight gain without changing your eating or exercise habits, it may be worth a visit to your doctor (a good idea in any case if you are not sure what is causing a weight gain) to see if your thyroid is working well. Problems with this gland often arise in the forties.

If all is well, then it’s no more different losing weight in your forties than at any other time. It’s not inevitable that you have to be overweight just because you’re over 40. (I’m there myself!)

This is a great time to start to exercise if you aren’t already because it really does make the difference between being healthy and unhealthy in later life. Just make sure you take it gently at first if you’re not used to it and find activities which you love rather than something which bores you so that you enjoy it rather than feel it’s a chore.

And the usual guidelines on eating healthily and modestly apply - you’ll find a number of posts here to help you. Maybe you could start with Lose Weight without calorie counting

Just remember that constant yo-yo dieting is a pretty miserable way to live your life - try getting into good habits now that will stand you in good stead for the rest of your life.

What kind of exercise can a person do when they have foot problems and are grossly overweight?

Excess weight can often take its toll on your back, knees, feet, ankles and hips - it’s one of the very best reasons for losing weight - getting full mobility and freedom back. But if some exercise is difficult just now yet you want to make fitness part of your weight loss plan, there are a few things you can try. Here are some suggestions:-

• If you feel comfortable going to the pool then swimming is a great exercise as your body weight is supported by the water and prevents strain on your joints
• If you are able to pedal without putting too much pressure on your sore feet you may find that a recumbent stationery bike is suitable if you can find one with a seat which allows you to sit on it in comfort otherwise a portable pedlar type machine may be a good starting point
• Yoga is great exercise too which you can do from any starting point - you don’t get aerobic benefit from it but it does burn calories, strengthen your muscles and give you flexibility too.
• Any exercise which tones your muscles is great as muscle tissue burns calories even while at rest and you can shape your body at the same time as you lose the fat - concentrate on exercises which you can do seated and on arm and chest exercises until your feet are better able to take your weight.

If you want a set of 36 exercises which you can do from the comfort of your chair take a look at personal trainer Jeff Ball’s book Get Fit While You Sit - he also includes an exercise at that link that you can do right now for your stomach while still seated.

Of course, once you lose a bit of weight and are able to get back on your feet you’ll probably want to include some aerobic activity (assuming your foot problems are weight related) - at that point walking is a great gentle exercise that you can do anytime, anyplace, anywhere - even round your own home - and gradually build up your aerobic fitness.

Does a certain type of exercise or sport lose its effectiveness re weight control when your body becomes accustomed to it?

I wasn’t sure of the answer to this one so I asked a friend Tracy Griffen for help. Tracy is a top fitness trainer here in Edinburgh and you can see her website at http://www.TracyGriffen.com Here is her response. Thanks Tracy!

In a word, no. You will not burn less calories from becoming accustomed to exercise. In fact it’s the very ‘getting accustomed’ to an specific exercise (e.g. running a 2km distance) that brings on fitness benefits and weight loss.

Imagine this, the first time you run a 2km run, it takes you 13 minutes. With a bit of practise and training, you whittle that down to 10 minutes. You are not taking any less steps to get there, so you are not burning any less calories. In fact you will probably be burning more, as when you become fitter you also boost your metabolism, thereby burning more calories (even at rest). You will also feel like running even further as you’re now fit enough to be able to enjoy it more. Good news all round!

The only way you could burn less calories from doing a set pattern, is if you ‘cheat’ or lose form in an exercise. For instance, becoming bored of an aerobics routine and cutting corners. Which I don’t recommend!

Is there anything to help me lose weight without exercise as I’m in wheelchair?

While not wanting to put anyone off exercise (because it helps with weight issues in many ways both directly and indirectly) I have to say that, in my experience, it is usually eating too much food which is the main problem with weight management rather than the amount of exercise a person takes. And changing food habits which is the main key to losing weight.

I say that because when you gain weight it is not usually the lack of running or going to the gym that is to blame (after all you have to run more than a marathon to lose a single pound of fat). The problem is that it is too easy to swallow a pound of fat’s worth of calories (about 3500) without thinking about it. And even easier to let weight creep on little by little with 200 calories too much here and there.

With exercise many people get discouraged by how much physical effort they have to make to get results, and many others sabotage their exercise efforts too by “rewarding” themselves for all their hard work with more calories than they used up!

With healthy eating, portion control and eating less (small changes to your habits leading to bigger changes if necessary) you can often make a big difference to your weight with a lot less effort.

Of course, it always helps if you are active when you want to lose weight - every calorie you use up helps - but you can still lose weight even if you are not taking exercise. You just have to reduce the amount you eat accordingly.

But why not do what you can in terms of activity?

Think about what you CAN rather than what you can’t do. What range of movement do you have in your upper body for example?

There are some very fit wheelchair athletes around the world so being in a wheelchair does not in itself stop you getting fit and being active.

If it’s not actually that you hate exercise just that you don’t feel that you are able to do any because you are in a wheelchair then there are quite a few sites which might help you see things differently depending on what you are able to do of course (and what your inclination is).

Active wheelchair users enjoy a wide variety of sports including tennis, water-sports and Tae Kwon Do. Take a look at the pictures on this site “A celebration of wheels” and see that your limitations might not be as great as you thought.

Of course it depends on your whole physical picture. You may not be able to do those sports. You may not want to. You might have to build your upper body strength or lose a bit of weight first. It really depends on your circumstances and your preferences. If you decide you’d like to try something, be sure to speak to your doctor first about what is suitable for you.