Time Magazine: Why Exercise Won't Make You Thin

L

Lastchance09

Cathlete
So the article basically says exercising more makes you eat more and then leads to no weight loss or weight gain. Ergo, exercise won't make you thin.

Can't they just say watch your calories if you are going to exercise more often? It's an informative article, but I think the people who need exercise the most will use this as an excuse not to workout.

Read (I mean it, no skimming - :D). Discuss. Stay Informed.

http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1914857,00.html
 
Last edited:
Well, it's actually a fallacy. Intense cardiovascular exercise actually depresses the appetite and helps to control it. When I run, I am not hungry after, just incredibly thirsty. I get a lot hungrier when I weight train, as do a lot of people on these forums.

What leads a lot of people to not lose weight when following an exercise program lies not with the exercise program but with the mind and emotions: that sense of "I'm allowed to eat more and eat crap because I just worked out and I earned it" is a huge stumbling block.

Seems to me this article is another exercise in "giving people more excuses not to work out and take responsibility for their own health." The article also presupposes that the only benefit to exercise is weight loss. Huh?!?!?!?!?!? People who exercise for weight loss only, with that as their only objective, are the ones most likely to give up on exercise. Those whose goals lie in improving health, having more energy, looking and feeling better, reducing blood pressure, relieving stress, improving mental health, etc, stay with the program and reap multiple rewards.

This article is an enabler for the former group.

Clare
 
I suppose if I exercised only to be thin, I would be worried. But since I exercise to feel good, to be strong, especially as I age, to keep cardiovascular disease at bay, and along with other health problems. I exercise so I don't stiffen with age, and so people can say to my daughter, wow, I cannot believe your Mom can do the splits! :)

So many more reasons to exercise than being thin.
 
I don't exercise to be thin either. I exercise to keep weight on (and for my health of course).

So, in that respect, I have to agree with the Time magazine article.

I know it's different with everyone, but in my particular case when I exercise I eat better and have more muscle, which leads to me being able to keep my weight at a healthy level. If I don't exercise, I eat less and tend to lose pounds pretty quickly.

There is a possibility though, that some people will take this statement at face value and decide it means they don't need to exercise. That isn't a good thing at all!
 
I'm one of the unfortunate ones who does get famished after exercise (both cardio and weights). After a 20-mile run--or a marathon, for that matter--I feel as though I could eat anything that isn't nailed down. Must be why I gain weight when I am marathon training LOL. I haven't been able to lose the 7 or so pounds I gained after training for my first marathon last year, and it's so frustrating.

I feel as though I'm CONSTANTLY hungry. I do my best to stick to healthy/clean foods, but the frequency with which I eat is so out of whack that I am constantly going over my calorie budget. Sparkpeople has me at 1750 calories a day to lose 1/2 pound a week, and I can easily go 1850-2000 calories in a day and still be hungry. Crazy!
 
One thing that really pisses me off about this article, though I haven't had a chance to read the whole thing - I was getting too mad!, is I have lost 40 lbs so far doing cardio and strength training (thank you Cathe!) in conjunction with clean eating! And I eat a lot, between 1800 - 2100 calories per day, depending on the day - I am constantly hungry, though less so on my rest day. If they are going to do studies about effects/benefits or lack thereof, of exercise, they need to also include the importance of the quality of the food that is consumed. When I was of the mind that, "I worked out really hard today/this week, I'm going to have ________." (Insert fast food, junk of your choice.) And guess what, I either didn't lose any weight, or I gained! BIG Freakin' Surprise! Like one of the other posters said, this is just going to give a bunch of people yet another excuse (like they need anymore) to not workout. Though at least the author does concede that there are other health benefits to working out. But maybe if he stopped eating his fries and donuts he would lose the gut around his middle that he writes of not being able to lose.

Sorry for my rant, but I am getting sick and tired of people saying that exercise doesn't help you lose weight or is a waste of time (no pun intended)!;)
 
JeanneMarie! :mad::mad::mad::mad::mad:

This Cloud guy was interviewed on CNN this morning. He did point out that the 3 groups studied were intentionally NOT regular exercisers. They talked about calorie deficits & the importance of building muscle for metabolism. Also about how important it is to keep moving, esp if you sit at a desk all day.

I hope people don't use this article as an excuse not to exercise, b/c I don't think it was the intent.

BTW, I am ALWAYS hungry. Starving after cardio, starving after lifting.
 
Where's the article? Has anyone found it? The link to youtube doesn't go there.

Without having read the article at all, I sincerely doubt that the article, or anything or anyone else, has ever said that exercise is a waste of time. Obviously, you can't be healthy, or even live, without exercise. At least not for very long.

Having said that, I am always more hungry when I'm exercising. It's a "good" hunger, and I crave healthy foods, but still, it is much easier for me to overeat when I'm exercising more rather than less. And, like Jeanne Marie, I always lose weight when I'm exercising less or not at all (although, unlike Jeanne Marie, I have yet to be called "too thin" by anyone other than my mother, and NEVER by my doctor).

I think the article may be instructive, in particular, for many on these forums who exercise for, say, more than an hour per day, 6 times per week. I believe that you really can exercise too much. And if you're looking to lose weight, and you think more is better, consider that less may be more.
 
JeanneMarie said:
I don't exercise to be thin either. I exercise to keep weight on

I know it's different with everyone, but in my particular case when I exercise I eat better and have more muscle, which leads to me being able to keep my weight at a healthy level. If I don't exercise, I eat less and tend to lose pounds pretty quickly.
Click to expand...

I'd heard that people like you exist, but I've never met one...:D
 
I just read a book that said that all women should be eating at least 2500 calories a day - more if exercising a lot. She said that starvation level according to the WHO was 2100 calories a day. She personally eats about 3000 calories a day, but she didn't say how much exercise she does. She recommends moderate exercise. I'm honestly not sure what to make of this.
 
I exercise for 2 reasons...........
a) I'm weird and I like it
b) It helps me look and feel better

I don't think EVERYONE can be thin because of different body types and genetics etc. But you can certainly be healthier and eat right. Some of what THIN is now is what we in the medical profession used to call Cachectic.!!!!

And that calories count at my height and weight would certainly make me gain weight. Exercise or no exercise!!!

ellie
 
macska7 said:
Here you go:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/time/20090806/hl_time/08599191485700
Click to expand...

Thank you for the link! That article goes along with everything I've observed about myself and others over my many decades of adulthood. Yet, tomorrow someone here will post "I'm getting discouraged. I work out 8 hours per week and I can't lose weight". Because these myths persist and will always persist. The longer a myth has been around, the less the majority of people will listen to factual information that differs from the myth.

Excellent article. Thanks for sharing it.
 
nancy324 said:
Thank you for the link! That article goes along with everything I've observed about myself and others over my many decades of adulthood. Yet, tomorrow someone here will post "I'm getting discouraged. I work out 8 hours per week and I can't lose weight". Because these myths persist and will always persist. The longer a myth has been around, the less the majority of people will listen to factual information that differs from the myth.

Excellent article. Thanks for sharing it.
Click to expand...

ITA. As much as I love my high-intensity exercise, I was at my thinnest when all I did was yoga and a daily walk with my dogs. I ate when I was hungry, which was not as often as it is now, and maintaining felt effortless. Hmmm.

Maybe I'll experiment with myself and see what happens.
 
Afreet said:
ITA. As much as I love my high-intensity exercise, I was at my thinnest when all I did was yoga and a daily walk with my dogs. I ate when I was hungry, which was not as often as it is now, and maintaining felt effortless. Hmmm.

Maybe I'll experiment with myself and see what happens.
Click to expand...

Well remember, as Dorothyrd stated so well, there are lots of reasons to continue your high intensity exercise, not the least of which is just plain feeling more relaxed and happier. :)
 
I agree maddiesmum, when i do my cardio workouts I eat a lot less and dont feel as hungry. But on my weight training days I dont eat much either and that is because I usually get a bit tired and want to sleep not eat. I have the hardest time on my days off and that is mainly because i eat less good food and eat junk which leads to more junk.

jennifermaria try adding more protein to your diet I know exactly how you feel i used to feel the same way all the time and almost quit exercising cause i though it was the problem. I finally asked my doctor what i should do and she told me to include more lean protein to give me a full feeling that last a long time. It worked for me really good and I haven't had a problem since I added more protein. I set my protein goal to be one portion for every meal I eat so I'm not only eating carbs during a meal. I dont like red meat though so I eat lots of fish, shell fish, beans, egg whites, chicken breast, turkey breast, and Boca veggies patties.
try a roasted chicken breast south western salad all you need is
1yellow bell pepper
1green bell pepper
1red bell pepper
1purple onion
1can of black beans
1can of corn
3 chicken breast
3 Avocado
1 light sour cream
1lemon

When I make mine i make it for the whole family of 5 and we always have lots of left overs so you can adjust the amounts of ingredients to one serving if you need
OK so first chop all your veggies set them aside. next chop you chicken in to strips
make sure you have a hot pan and a small amount of oil to cook the chicken in. season you chicken the way you like I like to use the grill mates montreal chicken seasoning.
Once the chicken is cooked add the veggies. I only cook the veggies for a small amount of time cause I like then crunchy still. During this process open you cans of beans and corn and drain. in a separate hot pan with out oil warn the corn and beans mixed together. Now your all done cooking. Next get your lettuce out I use dole packaged sweet baby lettuce. Set up your salad with the lettuce, chicken w/veggies, and corn w/bean mix. Oh I forgot use the sour cream, avocado, and lemon to make avocado dressing so you dont have to use salad dressing. Put a bit of avocado dressing on top of the salad and your done. It is really good and with the left overs you have a great quick meal. This version will cost you 200 calories, My husband doesn't like the salad version so I take his and wrap it up in a Mission brand garden spinach herb wrap this version cost 410 calories becasue of the wrap. Also keep lots of grab able fruits and veggies so your not tempted to grab something else. I get all my groceries at super Target and it's pretty cheap to make this meal so I wont hit your pockets hard at all.
 
Yum, thanks so much for the recipe! Can't wait to try it :).

I do try to eat protein with every meal (I love meat--a little too much, I think :p), so I don't think that's the issue in this particular case. If anything, I may be getting too much protein, so I'm trying to be more conscious of how much I'm eating. I find that what I crave most after a workout are carbs. And not just fruits and veggies, but carbs in the form of breads, rice, pasta, and yes, cakes and cookies. You name it, if it's got carbs, I want to inhale it.

Today we did a 12 mile run for our marathon training and I barely finished lunch (frittata with veggies and crab and seasoned home fries, mmmm!!!), before I immediately started fantasizing about dinner. Oh but wait, before I could even get to dinner, I had to have some sort of snack, so I had two types of chocolate truffles (telling myself I just burned 1200+ calories and I could afford the splurge), then later on a cup of cherries, then later on half a slice of wheat bread with gouda. Then came dinner at my parents'. Then my mom made a Filipino dessert of candied saba bananas, so I had to have some of that, too.

And guess what? If you put food in front of me right now, I'd probably eat that as well. I'm kinda thinking about the leftover steel cut oatmeal I made in a crock pot over night and imagining how good that would be right now, but I finally decided to call upon some willpower and told myself I'd have it in the morning.

My stomach rumbled in protest ;).
 
Lastchance09 said:
So the article basically says exercising more makes you eat more and then leads to no weight loss or weight gain. Ergo, exercise won't make you thin....
Click to expand...

Huh. I've lost 6 pounds in the past month by working out, and eating like I normally do. I never dropped an ounce with diet alone.

Well, I better listen to the experts and stop that silly exercising since it obviously won't work!! :p:p:p
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Our Newsletter

Get awesome content delivered straight to your inbox.

Top