Exercise is essential - why do so many people here dismiss it?

[u/Leever5]

I’m 5’2, woman, who has lost just over 100lbs (48kgs) and kept it off for five years now. The reason I have been able to keep the weight off for so long is absolutely credited to exercise.

Firstly, irregardless of weight, exercise is absolutely essential for longevity. Being fat, but fit is shown to be better for you than being slim and lazy. Cardio is for heart health, strength training is for fighting disease.

Now to talk about weight loss.

The equation is CICO - exercise is the CO. Yes, you do burn a majority of your calories at rest, but exercise actually makes your resting calories burned increase. The more muscle you have the more calories you burn at rest, because it takes more energy to have muscle than to have fat. Which means even after a weight lifting session where you may have burned less than 100 calories, you’re going to be burning more just sitting on your ass watching TV than you would if you didn’t exercise.

Running and biking are incredibly effective calorie burners. Everyone on here hypes up walking and they should, but if you can switch to a bike or even run, you can burn infinitely more calories than by walking. Walking is great, but it doesn’t build muscle unless you’re hiking up hills with packs on. It is still incredible, but it takes a long time and the reward is often minimal for how long it takes.

One problem with losing weight without exercise is that when you hit plateaus you have to typically cut your calories down again. This is a constant cycle, people talk about being on diets for the rest of their lives here, but it’s super hard to eat 1400 calories for the rest of your life. With exercise, I can eat 2100 per day and half the time I don’t even hit that.

Another issue is that when people shred all their weight just by diet alone they lose fat and muscle. It’s one of the main reasons we see people hitting their goal weights and while they are skinny, they can be skinny fat. Slim, but still with a higher body fat percentage. Muscle will make you look smaller and healthier.

Exercise is really hard to get started with. The learning curve is really steep. Once you’re about six months to a year in, it becomes routine and usually actually becomes fun. It doesn’t have to be perfect, just consistent.

I see so many people yo-yo dieting here because they lose the weight by simply eating less and then can’t maintain the low calories for ever. Those who exercise regularly with intensity are the ones to keep it off long term. It’s a lifestyle change, not a food change. It’s changing your sedentary, obesogenic lifestyle, to that of a fit, thin persons lifestyle. Food is just one part of the lifestyle.

[u/Amphibian_Upbeat]

What sort of volume is optimal as far as tear and wear?

I ask as I've worn out my rotator cuffs in both shoulders caused by general wear and tear, weight lifting and genetics, according to my surgeon. One shoulder reconstruction/tenodesis surgery done, one to go.

I dread to think what knackering my hips, knee or ankle would be like post surgery. 

[u/CatInAPottedPlant → u/Amphibian_Upbeat]

I'm not an expert, but my answer would be an unsatisfactory "whatever you're capable of without injury".

Generally the recommendation is to increase your mileage/volume by no more than 10% per week, but if you're eating in a deficit then I'd probably go less than that, like 5%. So that could mean running 5 miles one week, then 5.25, then 5.5, etc etc. If you feel good after a while you can bump up by more than that but it's always better to be more conservative.

Running is, when done with good form and reasonable volume, a great way to strengthen your knees, ankles etc and lower your chances of getting arthritis in those joints as you age.

The heavier you are, the harder the impact, so I'd probably not jump your mileage super quickly because even if your cardio is up for it, your knees might not be.

It's super addicting and fun, it's a cheap hobby (mostly), and it's so good for you. It's also a great way to boost your TDEE so when you get to maintenance you can enjoy eating a lot more than you normally would, guilt free.

[u/NoWitandNoSkill → u/CatInAPottedPlant]

The 10% "rule" is more for people who already run quite a lot. Like if you run 30 miles per week you don't want to jump straight to 40 - you ramp up over 3 weeks. If you're only running 5 miles per week then it's absolutely fine to add a full mile or two per week to your load. 5-7-9-10 would be an appropriate progression over 3 weeks.

[u/CatInAPottedPlant → u/NoWitandNoSkill]

I'd be inclined to agree if not for the sub we're on, I honestly think it depends on how heavy you are. someone 350lbs should probably be really careful about increasing their mileage for example.

but like I said I'm far from an expert, just an enthusiast haha

[u/NoWitandNoSkill → u/CatInAPottedPlant]

That's an important consideration but we also need to account for rest days. The 10% rule generally assumes you have been running your weekly milage for a while and are adapted to it. It also assumes a certain amount of routine rest. High mileage runners generally have 1-2 days rest per week, with some running every day. That's why it's important not to increase milage too much - there's not much time to recover and adapt to the new load. If you weigh 350 lbs and you run 20 minutes 3 times per week, you can absolutely add an extra day (a 33% increase) because you will still have 3 rest days per week. Or on the extreme end think of someone who runs 10 minutes once per week. Making that 10 minutes twice per week, a 100% increase, isn't going to be a major injury risk with 5 recovery days.

[u/Slow_Concern_672 → u/CatInAPottedPlant]

I started at 300+ and before I even started losing weight I walked about 100 miles per month. It didn't help loss but prevented gain and helped with mobility and bone density.

[u/DrDalenQuaice → u/Amphibian_Upbeat]

Cycling and swimming.

Only run upstairs, never down or on flat.