Is Weight Loss Exercise Enough?
Breaking Down Weight Loss Exercise
Here at Dr. Weight Loss of Atlanta, we know that you want to do everything that you can to lose weight. That being said, we’re all pretty busy these days. Do you really need to take the time to stick to a diet plan AND a fitness plan? Or can just one of them help you reach your weight loss goals?
One common question we get is “is weight loss exercise enough?” If you just make sure that you’re getting to the gym a few times a week, that has to count for something, right? Naturally, exercise can help, but the actual answer is a bit more complicated. Let’s take a closer look at the relationship between working out and losing weight.
How Much Exercise Do I Need?
According to the American College of Sports Medicine, people who want to lose weight need to get 150 to 250 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise each week. If you’re trying to lose more weight or you’re looking to lose weight quicker, you may want to lean towards the higher end of that spectrum. You can even try to do even more than 250 minutes of exercise per week.
Naturally, knocking all of that out in one day is tough. Splitting this up over the course of the week can make that 250 minutes a bit less daunting. If you can spare twenty to thirty-five minutes per day for exercise, you’re well on your way to forming a healthy habit that can help with your weight loss goals.
To see if weight loss exercise was enough to shed the pounds, a recent study split thirty-one participants into two different groups. One group tried to burn 300 calories per day through exercise, while the other doubled the duration of this group’s activity and tried to burn around 600 calories. The latter group lost more body fat. There’s something important to keep in mind though. The more successful group also cut calories.
Is Exercise Enough to Lose Weight?
Unfortunately, although exercise is great for you it may not be enough to help you lose that weight. It can help you keep weight off in some cases, but it can’t help you drop the extra pounds for a simple reason. Your calorie intake is extremely important, and you can’t exercise your way out of a problem with overeating.
Instead, you need to exercise and have a diet plan that works for you. You need to have a calorie deficit that helps the body burn off more than it takes in during a given day. For most people, that’s easier to do with a diet plan. To create the same kind of calorie deficit with a fitness plan, you need to participate in high-intensity exercises that burn more calories than the typical walking or running activities would. That’s not possible for all people though, whether due to time constraints or physical activity levels.
That being said, exercise is still important and it can help with maintenance after you’ve lost weight. Contact us today for a free consultation and we’ll determine a diet plan and fitness regimen that works for you.
