Missy We locked down on March 17th. I had stopped seeing clients the week earlier. It was a new normal. One thing I strived to stay consistent in my workouts. I ran four days a week for 30-50 minutes, resistance-trained, did core work, and little yoga. It was one of the few things that made me feel in control during this pandemic. So I was slightly concerned when some of my pieces of clothing were starting to become snug around my middle. Hmmm. Then I got on the scale. I was a bit shocked by the number. Why had I gained weight when I was so consistent with my workouts these past few weeks?
Easy. Once I started to take a long look at all those comforting moments on the couch, eating Ruffles, enjoying Trader Joe’s ube ice cream, and my favorite…. cocktails! Spicy pineapple margarita to be precise. What did I do? I refocused my workouts. YES … I know. I just finished explaining that with my consistent workouts, my weight had fluctuated because I was not mindful of what I was eating.
This is how pervasive the notion is. I am a certified nutrition coach, personal trainer, and behavior specialist but still let myself believe this myth. If you work out, you can eat what you want.
It is simply not true!
Please know, I truly believe movement is the elixir of life. The more you move, the better you will feel, the healthier you are. There is a long list of the benefits of exercise. Don’t think this is a pass to stop moving.
But simply put, exercise doesn’t help in weight loss.
Here is what you need to understand.
We eat. We consume calories, which is energy. Energy is what our body needs to function~ breathing, digesting food, keep the heart beating, etc. We use energy to get out of bed, walk to our cars, go shopping, and most importantly for our brain to function. We also use the energy to get us through our workouts. If we have too much energy and don’t use it, we store it. If we use more energy than what we consume, it uses our stored energy.
If you don’t change your eating habits and eat the same as you did before you started your new workout program, you will be in an energy deficit. If you do change your eating habits and “reward” yourself with food. Then you are not in an energy deficit. Then you will either maintain your weight or in my case gain weight because of an energy surplus.
Now there are all different diets out there. A lot of fitness guru may say, stop counting calories. Fair enough. For many of us, counting calories may be a trigger disorder eating. Thats not healthy and you should steer clear. For others a diet philosophy seems like the better approach. Keto, paleo, and of course, plant-based are common diets people follow. If you can stick to these plans long term, then great! If you want to enjoy food, but have an understanding of what you are eating and how it affects you. You may want to consider this type approach.
We are all unique; only you can find out what works for you long term.
Here is how you can take action today.
Walk, run, jump rope, hike, lift weights, play tennis, do yoga. Keep moving.
Do this because it will help you feel better. Don’t exercise as a tool for weight loss.
Let’s be clear, nutrition is the most important key to lose weight for most of us.
You can start by writing down everything you eat. Bits, nibbles, swigs as well. You can do it on your phone or care a small notebook. There is no need for calorie counting just yet. This is a chance to acknowledge how much you are eating.
Awareness facilities change. If you don’t know what you are doing, you can’t change it. If you don’t change, then there is no change.
I will leave you with this example from a Vox article, “Why you shouldn’t exercise to lose weight, explained with 60+ studies”. By Julia Belluz and Javier Zarracina
“If a hypothetical 200-pound man added 60 minutes of medium-intensity running four days per week while keeping his calorie intake the same, and he did this for 30 days, he’d lose five pounds. “If this person decided to increase food intake or relax more to recover from the added exercise, then even less weight would be lost”.
