Exercising More Does Not Equal Long-Term Fat Loss

 

“My grandmother, she started walking five miles a day when she was sixty. She’s ninety-seven today and we don’t know where the hell she is.” – Ellen DeGeneres

In the same way that people drink more fluids when they exercise more, they also eat more when they exercise more. Researcher Hugo R. Rony found: “Consistently high or low energy expenditures result in consistently high or low levels of appetite. Thus men doing heavy physical work spontaneously eat more than men engaged in sedentary occupations.” J.M. Friedman at Rockefeller University makes a similar point: “Exercise by itself has not been shown to be highly effective in treating obesity because the increased energy use from exercise is generally offset by increased caloric intake.”

Compounding the problem, many people who exercise more do not eat high-quality food. The majority of people get most of their calories from low-quality starches and sweeteners.Therefore, exercising more triggers the consumption of more low-quality food. More low-quality food means less need to burn body fat, more clogging, and a higher set-point. Far from burning body fat, we burn time and build-up clogs.

Learn the exact foods you must eat if you want to finally lose weight permanently. Click here to download your free Weight Loss Food List, the “Eat More, Lose More” Weight Loss Plan, and the “Slim in 6” Cheat Sheet…CLICK HERE FOR FREE “HOW TO” WEIGHT LOSS GUIDES

Here is one scenario for exercising more: Michelle goes for a 30-minute jog and burns 170 more calories than she would have burned by sitting at home and reading this book. She is trying hard to cut calories, so she does not drink any sugary sports drinks and fights through the hunger pangs after her jog. At dinner Michelle unconsciously drinks an extra glass of reduced-fat milk thanks to her increased thirst and hunger. The net result of her jog is thirteen more calories than if she had not exercised.

30 min. jog….….. -170 calories
12 oz. milk……… +183 calories
__________________________
Net………….….… +13 calories

Much more commonly, people will have sweetened “power juice” while pounding it out on the treadmill. Afterward, they overeat low-quality food. The net result is more low-quality food and more clogging.

30 min. jog………………………………………………………….…….-170 calories
24 oz. sports drink………………………………………..…………….+189 calories
Extra half serving of Fettuccine Alfredo………….…………………..+390 calories
_____________________________________________________________
Net…………………………………………………………………..……+409 calories

The food industry is very well aware that exercising more encourages eating more low-quality food. That’s why the following corporations serve on the executive board of the American Council on Fitness and Nutrition:

  • Coca-Cola Company
  • PepsiCo
  • Hershey Foods Corporation
  • Sara Lee Corporation
  • Kellogg Company
  • Kraft Foods
  • General Mills
  • Campbell Soup Company
  • ConAgra Foods
  • Del Monte Foods
  • Grocery Manufacturers Association
  • H.J. Heinz Company
  • Masterfoods USA
  • National Restaurant Association
  • Unilever United States
  • American Association of Advertising Agencies
  • American Beverage Association
  • Association of National Advertisers

Are we told to exercise more because it is good for fat loss or because it is good for business? The National Soft Drink Association advises us to “consume at least eight glasses of fluids daily, even more when you exercise. A variety of beverages, including soft drinks, can contribute to proper hydration.”

But wait. If you exercise less, won’t you gain body fat? As you’ll see in future posts that depends on the type of exercise you do. In the next two posts we’ll cover how exercising less doesnot cause long-term fat gain and eating more doesnot cause long-term fat gain.

Note: Being active is good for your health. We definitely should not sit around all day. Studies consistently show that physical activity boosts life expectancy. However, they do not show that traditional cardiovascular exercise effectively burns body fat long term.


  1. Cordain, Loren, and Joe Friel. The Paleo Diet for Athletes: A Nutritional Formula for Peak Athletic Performance. Emmaus, Pa.: Rodale Books, 2005. Print.
  2. Donnelly JE, Smith BK. Is exercise effective for weight loss with ad libitum diet? Energy balance, compensation, and gender differences. Exerc Sport Sci Rev. 2005 Oct;33(4):169-74. Review. PubMed PMID: 16239833.
  3. Friedman JM. Modern science versus the stigma of obesity. Nat Med. 2004 Jun;10(6):563-9. Review. PubMed PMID: 15170194.
  4. Koopmans HS. Internal signals cause large changes in food intake in one-way crossed intestines rats. Brain Res Bull. 1985 Jun;14(6):595-603. PubMed PMID: 3875383.
  5. Marion Nestle, quoted in : J.M. Hirsch, “Food Industry a Targe in Obesity Fight,” March 19, 2006. www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2006/03/18/ap2605096.html.
  6. National Soft Drink Association. Soft Drinks: Balance, Variety, Moderation.
  7. Rony, Hugo R.. Obesity and Leanness. London, Great Britian : Lea & Febiger, 1940. Print.
  8. Simon, Michele. Appetite for Profit: How the food industry undermines our health and how to fight back. New York City, New York: Nation Books, 2006. Print.
  9. Feinstein AR. The treatment of obesity: an analysis of methods, results, and factors which influence success. J Chronic Dis. 1960 Apr;11:349-93. PubMed PMID: 13821960.
  10. Hu FB, Sigal RJ, Rich-Edwards JW, Colditz GA, Solomon CG, Willett WC, Speizer FE, Manson JE. Walking compared with vigorous physical activity and risk of type 2 diabetes in women: a prospective study. JAMA 1999;282:1433-1439.
  11. Hu FB, Willett WC, Li T, Stampfer MJ, Colditz GA, Manson JE. Adiposity as compared with physical activity in predicting mortality among women. N Engl J Med 2004;351:2694-2703.
  12. Johnson JL, Slentz CA, Houmard JA, Samsa GP, Duscha BD, Aiken LB, McCartney JS, Tanner CJ, Kraus WE. Exercise training amount and intensity effects on metabolic syndrome (from Studies of a Targeted Risk Reduction Intervention through Defined Exercise). Am J Cardiol. 2007 Dec 15;100(12):1759-66. Epub 2007 Oct 29. PubMed PMID: 18082522; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC2190779.
  13. Kannel WB, Wilson P, Blair SN. Epidemiological assessment of the role of physical activity and fitness in development of cardiovascular disease. Am Heart J 1985;109:876-885.
  14. Kesaniemi YK, Danforth E Jr, Jensen MD, Kopelman PG, Lefèbvre P, Reeder BA. Dose-response issues concerning physical activity and health: an evidence-based symposium. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2001 Jun;33(6 Suppl):S351-8. PubMed PMID:11427759.
  15. Löllgen H, Böckenhoff A, Knapp G. Physical activity and all-cause mortality: an updated meta-analysis with different intensity categories. Int J Sports Med. 2009 Mar;30(3):213-24. Epub 2009 Feb 6. PubMed PMID: 19199202.
  16. Manson JE, Greenland P, LaCroix AZ, Stefanick ML, Mouton CP, Oberman A, Perri MG, Sheps DS, Pettinger MB, Siscovick DS. Walking compared with vigorous exercise for the prevention of cardiovascular events in women. N Engl J Med 2002;347:716-725.
  17. Manson JE, Hu FB, Rich-Edwards JW, Colditz GA, Stampfer MJ, Willett WC, Speizer FE, Hennekens CH.  A prospective study of walking as compared with vigorous exercise in the prevention of coronary heart disease in women. N Engl J Med 1999;341:650-658.
  18. Morris JN, Heady JA, Raffle PA, Roberts CG, Parks JW. Coronary heart-disease and physical activity of work. Lancet 1953;265:1111-1120.
  19. Oguma Y, Sesso HD, Paffenbarger RS Jr, Lee IM. Physical activity and all cause mortality in women: a review of the evidence. Br J Sports Med. 2002 Jun;36(3):162-72. Review. PubMed PMID: 12055109; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC1724493.
  20. Paffenbarger RS, Hale WE. Work activity and coronary heart mortality. N Engl J Med 1975;292:545-550.
  21. Prentice AM, Black AE, Coward WA, Cole TJ. Energy expenditure in overweight and obese adults in affluent societies: an analysis of 319 doubly-labelled water measurements. Eur J Clin Nutr. 1996 Feb;50(2):93-7. PubMed PMID: 8641251.
  22. Stofan JR, DiPietro L, Davis D, Kohl HW III, Blair SN. Physical activity patterns associated with cardiorespiratory fitness and reduced mortality: The Aerobics Center Longitudinal Study. Am J Public Health 1998;88:1807-1813.
  23. Wei M, Gibbons LW, Mitchell TL, Kampert JB, Lee CD, Blair SN. The association between cardiorespiratory fitness and impaired fasting glucose and type 2 diabetes mellitus in men. Ann Intern Med 1999;130:89-96.
  24. Wei M, Kampert JB, Barlow CE, Nichaman MZ, Gibbons LW, Paffenbarger RS Jr, Blair SN. Relationship between low cardiorespiratory fitness and mortality in normal-weight, overweight, and obese men. JAMA 1999;282:1547-1553.
  25. Blair SN, Kohl HW 3rd, Paffenbarger RS Jr, Clark DG, Cooper KH, Gibbons LW. Physical fitness and all-cause mortality. A prospective study of healthy men and women. JAMA. 1989 Nov 3;262(17):2395-401. PubMed PMID: 2795824.
Learn the exact foods you must eat if you want to finally lose weight permanently. Click here to download your free Weight Loss Food List, the “Eat More, Lose More” Weight Loss Plan, and the “Slim in 6” Cheat Sheet…CLICK HERE FOR FREE “HOW TO” WEIGHT LOSS GUIDES
Facebook Comments
0 replies

Leave a Reply

Want to join the discussion?
Feel free to contribute!

Leave a Reply