Why exercise produces less weight loss than you might expect
05-16-24, 12:13 PM
#51
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It's not that I think doctors don't care, or aren't qualified but they are restrained by certain regulations that make them the last to be able use a different treatment than what has become the standard of care. In our world the standard of care has been engineered to be prescription drugs. A doctor would be operating outside standards to treat with diet and lifestyle changes, though the better ones may very well discuss those issues. Just as a FYI, I never have had a doctor suggest diet or lifestyle changes even when I was pushing 400 lbs and on pain pills and injections.to keep going. That's why I am a bit vocal about looking at multiple sources for health information.
05-16-24, 02:26 PM
#52
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This is something that has been touched on many times in T&N, though I don't see a particular thread on it.
Lots of folks have pointed out that exercise (or rather, exercise alone) doesn't lead to weight loss. More specific would be that if your data tracking (power meter, etc.) tells you that you are burning x calories/week, over the long term, you aren't going to lose x/3500 pounds week (where 1 lb. = 3500 calories, usually).
A lot of this is commonly ascribed to greater food intake - exercise makes you hungrier, or you give yourself license to eat more b/c you had a long ride, or you consume calories as fuel before and during your ride.
The interesting and relatively new dimension (last 10 years or so) is metabolic compensation. The idea is that if you tire yourself out with a ride, you do less during the day. E.g., from calories you burn Saturday morning, you must subtract the calories you aren't burning Saturday afternoon because you're sitting on the couch, rather than doing household chores. Or because of your pre-work workout, you are tired and therefore are fidgeting less in your chair at work. From my understanding, some metabolic compensation isn't even voluntary - i.e., it's an evolutionary mechanism to conserve energy that kicks in, regardless of your level of non-workout activity.
There have been some good articles on this.
Here's one in the NYT (behind a paywall). https://www.nytimes.com/2021/09/22/w...-calories.html
Another, from Vox. https://www.vox.com/2018/1/3/1684543...-burn-calories
For me, the take home message isn't that you can't lose weight from exercise. From my own experience, I know that I can. Rather, it is that exercise is a rather limited weight loss tool, with net results likely to be smaller than one might hope.
Lots of folks have pointed out that exercise (or rather, exercise alone) doesn't lead to weight loss. More specific would be that if your data tracking (power meter, etc.) tells you that you are burning x calories/week, over the long term, you aren't going to lose x/3500 pounds week (where 1 lb. = 3500 calories, usually).
A lot of this is commonly ascribed to greater food intake - exercise makes you hungrier, or you give yourself license to eat more b/c you had a long ride, or you consume calories as fuel before and during your ride.
The interesting and relatively new dimension (last 10 years or so) is metabolic compensation. The idea is that if you tire yourself out with a ride, you do less during the day. E.g., from calories you burn Saturday morning, you must subtract the calories you aren't burning Saturday afternoon because you're sitting on the couch, rather than doing household chores. Or because of your pre-work workout, you are tired and therefore are fidgeting less in your chair at work. From my understanding, some metabolic compensation isn't even voluntary - i.e., it's an evolutionary mechanism to conserve energy that kicks in, regardless of your level of non-workout activity.
There have been some good articles on this.
Here's one in the NYT (behind a paywall). https://www.nytimes.com/2021/09/22/w...-calories.html
Another, from Vox. https://www.vox.com/2018/1/3/1684543...-burn-calories
For me, the take home message isn't that you can't lose weight from exercise. From my own experience, I know that I can. Rather, it is that exercise is a rather limited weight loss tool, with net results likely to be smaller than one might hope.
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"Don't take life so serious-it ain't nohow permanent."
"Everybody's gotta be somewhere." - Eccles
"Don't take life so serious-it ain't nohow permanent."
"Everybody's gotta be somewhere." - Eccles
