Most people consider exercise an important part of losing weight but might they be expecting too much?
There is now mounting evidence that slimmers won’t necessarily derive much benefit from pounding the treadmill and a compilation of over 60 studies confirms this view.
The main shortcomings of exercising for weight loss are:
- Starting from scratch it will take a long while, months or even years, to build up to a meaningful contribution.
- Exercise is often followed up by a recovery period and resting obviously negates some or all of that extra energy expenditure. Can you be sure that more calories have been used up going to the gym, compared to a normal busy day?
- Burning more calories : consuming less calories, are just opposite sides of the same coin. Both involve going hungry and succumbing to a single snack bar after a workout may be all it takes to nullify all of the previous hour’s efforts. Naturally, in terms of fitness, body toning and general well being, exercise is paramount, probably even more important for health than weight reduction but if you want to start losing weight tomorrow…….it has to be the diet.