Do You Need To Exercise To Lose Weight?
We live in a world of fitness challenges where the thinking is that if you are moving your body, then you are losing weight. In fact, many people boil down weight loss to moving more and eating less. And the former seems to take precedence, what with challenges like 30 hard and 75 hard dominating our online spaces. But do you need to exercise to lose weight? This guide dives into this in detail in a bid to help you determine whether you really need to be spending more time in the gym.
If you would like to jump straight to my YouTube video on this topic, you can do so using the link below:
Why Do People Exercise to Lose Weight?
There are many reasons why people link exercise with weight loss. And we can summarize them as follows:
Reason 1: The Math.
People have come to know that weight loss comes down to a calorie deficit. And it is as simple as spending more calories than you consume. Now, given this notion, people start thinking that the more they exercise, the more calories they burn, and this amounts to weight loss. Some people even go as far as thinking that exercise cancels out a calorie surplus, such that if they have a piece of cake or an extra slice of pizza, then they can burn it all off in the gym.
To add to this math conundrum, we have the effect of the after-burn hype. Thanks to smart watches, calorie calculators, and many other sites and apps that help people calculate how many calories they burn through exercise, people have come to overestimate just how many calories they burn from moving. And that is because these trackers often overestimate calorie burn and also include BMR in their estimates, thus overshooting.
For example, when I clean the house wearing my tracker, it gives me an estimate of >1,000 calories, while, in reality, that number is likely much closer to 400. And when people get these significantly high numbers, they get the green light to eat back those calories despite the fact that the figures could be wrong. Or they think that they have burned that many calories and should see weight loss.
Reason 2: The Fitness Industry.
The fitness industry is full of people who benefit from people thinking that they must exercise to lose weight. For example, gyms need subscriptions and will sell the idea that the more people work out, the more they lose weight. And they are not alone. Many other people in this industry follow suit, including:
Fitness influencers who want to sell their workout programs.
Gym equipment manufacturers who want to sell their new products.
And the list goes on. For these people, the idea that people must exercise to lose weight works in their favor. And so, they play a part in spreading this message as it ties to their financial goals.
Reason 3: The Laziness Stigma.
What comes to your mind when you see an overweight or obese person? Do you think that they exercise a lot? Well, the societal consensus seems to be that weight gain is a sign of laziness. When people see people gaining weight or those who have already gained weight, they start thinking that all these people do is sit and eat without doing anything much.
And because people tie weight gain to laziness, they start thinking that if these overweight or obese people were to start moving more, then they would lose weight. After all, fit people tend to have active lifestyles, and it is easy to think that the only thing that differentiates these people is their activity level.
Reason 4: Social Media Transformations.
Social media is a goldmine when it comes to inspirational stories, from business booms to friendships. There is a lot to celebrate online, and people often share how they came to achieve these coveted goals.
The same holds for weight loss transformations. There are many people online who share their before-and-after pictures or videos with their followers. And when people see just how much these individuals have changed, they cannot help but ask them for tips. As you would imagine, many of these creators and influencers tie their weight loss transformations to their workouts and go ahead to share just how much time they spent in the gym.
Eventually, people start thinking that they must exercise to lose weight, as this seems to be the thing that everyone is doing to see results.
Must You Exercise to Lose Weight?
The idea that you have to exercise to lose weight is a myth. And to explain why scientists have come to this conclusion, I have some points that you will appreciate. So, what are the pillars behind this truth?
Pillar 1: How Many Calories Does Exercise Actually Burn?
I mentioned the after-burn calorie hype alongside the simplicity of calories in versus calories out. But if these estimates and notions are wrong, what is correct?
We have to start with the fact that everybody has a total daily energy expenditure, which is abbreviated as the TDEE, and which people often refer to as maintenance calories. This TDEE represents the total number of calories that you burn every day, and it differs for each person based on factors such as weight, height, sex, etc.
While the breakdown of everyone’s TDEE is different, it usually looks like this:
60 to 75% of it goes into daily functions that keep you alive, such as breathing. This percentage is also known as the basal metabolic rate, aka the BMR.
10% goes into digestion, and you may have heard of this as the thermic effect of food.
The rest, which averages 15 to 30% goes to physical activity.
At this point, you may be thinking that this 15 to 30% comes from exercise. But that is not the case at all. When we say physical activity, we mean all kinds of movement, from fidgeting to doing the dishes, walking, and hitting the gym. And while all these contribute to this 15 to 30%, the gym and other kinds of exercise contribute only about 5 to 10% of this percentage.
So, that means that if you rely on exercise to lose weight and still engage in poor eating habits, then your strategy will not work.
For example, my TDEE is anything from 1900 to 2300 calories, and this number varies based on how active I am on a given day. And looking at my stats, it is clear that exercise amounts to only 200 to 300 calories on most days, and I lift weights, dance, go on walks, etc.
Pillar 2: Adaptation.
Have you ever seen people exercise to lose weight and not see any results? Well, this is not by chance. In fact, it would be safe to say that this could likely be a case of adaptation. How so?
>Metabolic Compensation.<
When you start exercising a lot, your body starts conserving its energy by slowing down activities that it does not deem to be essential in light of your changing habits.
And these activities can include processes such as cell repair. And you also find that you start feeling the urge to sit more, take the elevator instead of the stairs, avoid walking more, etc.
For example, if you were the type of person to hit 10k steps per day before joining the gym, you might find that you now do 5k steps after having joined the gym.
And that is because once you are done with your session, you lack enough energy or will to be more active, and you end up being sedentary for the rest of the day.
All these processes and changes take place as your body tries to conserve as much energy as it can, while trying to bring you back to homeostasis.
And while you might think that your body is trying to fight you, it is just doing its job to keep your TDEE within range.
Unfortunately, these changes can result in a weight loss plateau even if you are working out a lot.
>Behavioral Compensation.<
Many people like rewarding themselves after hitting the gym. I even did a YouTube video highlighting how people love going to Starbucks, Crumble Cookie, and the likes after hitting the gym. So, why does this happen?
Again, it comes down to adaptation. The more you put yourself in a calorie deficit, the more your body tries to make up for it, and it can do this by inducing cravings or increasing your hunger hormones. But aside from the body’s efforts to bring you back to your set weight, some people engage in these behaviors because they think that what they did in the gym cancels out these treats, which, as we have seen, is not the case at all.
How to Lose Weight Without Exercise (Or With It).
The point of this guide is not to claim that exercise cannot help you lose weight. Nor is it to state that there is no room for treats on a weight loss journey. However, if you want to lose weight with or without exercise, you need to be strategic to avoid the pitfalls we have covered. But how do you do this?
Fix Your Diet.
As I said, the saying goes ‘eat less and move more,’ yet people tend to focus on the latter. If you want to lose weight, you have to start paying attention to what is on your plate. What’s more, you have to change your diet such that you create a calorie deficit. But how do you know what works for you?
Given how unique we all are when it comes to our TDEEs, the best way to achieve a calorie deficit is to determine your own TDEE and a safe deficit. However, I know that there are people who do not want to track calories or macros for various reasons, including emotional well-being. In such cases, the best approach would be to focus more on whole foods and cut back on the ultraprocessed foods.
Mindful eating also helps a lot, as it helps you get in touch with your fullness and hunger cues, which are often dulled when eating ultraprocessed foods.
Manage Your Sleep and Stress.
Your hormones play a vital role in your weight loss journey. Take stress, for example. Many people who exercise to lose weight end up raising their stress levels (cortisol hormones), which impedes their efforts, no matter how much they hit the gym. And sometimes, this is because the added stress leads them to make poor eating decisions. But the minute they start managing their stress levels better, the weight just falls off, provided they are in a calorie deficit.
The same goes for sleep. If you have ever tracked your weight daily, then you know that those numbers tend to go up on days when you have not slept well. But that is not all. Poor sleep spikes hunger hormones, which puts you at risk of making poor food choices, especially when it comes to high-fat and high-sugar foods. But when you are getting enough sleep, your hunger and fullness cues do not have these spikes.
These changes are not by accident and instead stem from the effects that stress and sleep have on your hormones. As such, if you would like to avoid behavioral compensation and have a smoother weight loss journey, getting on top of your sleep and stress management is a great start.
Look Beyond Weight Loss.
While many people think they must exercise to lose weight, the truth is that most people have a poor relationship with exercise. There are many cases of people using exercise as a form of punishment for what they have eaten or the weight they have gained. And as you would expect, such attitudes do little to help people come up with consistent workout schedules. After all, who wants to keep up with doing something they hate or do not enjoy?
The best way to avoid getting into this space lies in embracing exercise for its other benefits. Exercise is not just a way to lose weight. It also has positive effects on your physical and emotional well-being. For example, women who lift weights build muscle and improve their bone density, which protects them from injuries in the event of a fall. Walking is another great example that helps people regulate their mood and reduce their stress.
By framing exercise in terms of what it adds to your life, you get to see it beyond weight loss, which makes it much easier to stick to your workout plans.
Choose What You Love.
There are many forms of exercise out there. And while they all have amazing benefits, you may not enjoy all the forms that are out there. For example, there are people who hate running but will happily go walking. Others cannot stand walking but are happy swimming. And the list goes on and on.
Despite all the trends we have online where people seem to cling to one exercise before moving to the other, the truth is that there is no one-size-fits-all movement out there. We all respond to various exercises differently, and it is up to you to go through the options, find what you love, and stick to it. Only then can you reap the benefits of exercise, and yes, that also includes weight loss to some extent.
Join the Better in 90 Program.
You do not have to exercise to lose weight. And there are many other things you do not need to do to achieve your weight loss goals. To learn more about how you can embrace practical and sustainable weight loss strategies as you embark on this journey, you can join me and other women who are getting Better in 90. For more on how this works, check out this page.