With everyone starting their new fitness regimes & gym memberships, trying to lose the Winter fat, the guys at ASAPScience thought it was a good time to check in with the studies on Exercise Vs. Nutrition.
Which is actually more important?:
Anyone whose ever worked out, or resisted the urge to eat Just. One. More. can relate & will probably find the discussion worthwhile.
While the guys don’t really get into details of nutrition like what types of food or diet, as-in the “normal” western diet, low-carb, or paleo are best for weight-loss, they do cite some info based on calories alone.
Easy To Gain, Hard To Lose; -Thanks a lot, Mother Nature!:
And a good note to start out on is since we have a body built to survive famines, it’s SUPER easy to overeat & put on fat.
And as you know, it’s also pretty hard to eventually burn off that excess fat. For example, it would take about 30 minutes of Running, or a whole hour of Walking just to erase a 200+ calorie KitKat Bar. Here are a few more examples of 200 calories to help you visualize
Which Strategy Is Easiest For You?:
Which is why in many cases, it’s just easier wiser & healthier to try to avoid the snack in the first place.
And what you have to eventually ask yourself if you don’t want to get fat is, which choice is easier for you? -Skipping the snack or doing more exercise?
Especially because for many of us, like apartment-dwellers, gyms may not be something you can get to by simply going to another room of your house. There is all the hassle, overhead, and logistical maneuvering involved in getting there, too; -which may discourage some people from following-up on those weight-loss goals.
Undeniable Benefits, But Find A Way To Manage The Costs, Too:
-But of course, when you turn that argument around, there are so many different benefits to regular exercise that although you could potentially lose weight through nutrition alone, it would probably turn out much healthier to do a mix of the 2.
That way you also get to be Human, and have the odd well-deserved snack here and there as a treat.
Ninja Calories Kill! Kill!:
One important note to remember here that AS briefly mentions: Liquid Calories.
There is something about a food not being solid or involving chewing that makes us think it’s somehow magically non-caloric.
When many times, that sweetened-drink is going to have at-least 1/2 the Number of calories of the candy-bar, and also have the Type of calories that are most easily turned into bodyfat! (Fast Carbs)
And just like the findings of our pals at the Karolinska Institute, a 2011 meta-analysis they mention says that children’s weight was not related to exercise alone. They don’t give a link, but we can probably assume the studies are similar to this and this.
A Possible End To The Exercise-Only Hypothesis:
Another really neat point is that the average activity level of people in the industrialized world vs. the rest is allegedly about the same.
If that’s true then it makes the case for nutrition even stronger, because you can basically factor out that activity altogether. -Interesting.
And so, because of all those factors, it turns out that yet again, for losing weight, Nutrition is king! (unless you are Christian Bale, or a triathlete.)
And while you’re at-it, try to eat at home more. It’s healthier.
Photo/Video Credits:
Video & ScreenShot, “Exercise vs. Diet”, by ASAPScience
Links:
• Source: YT-AS-Exercise vs Diet
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