Key Points at a Glance
- When it comes to losing weight, there's one ironclad rule: You can only lose weight if you burn more calories than you consume.
- It has been proven that exercise burns more calories than any activity we do while lying down, standing, or sitting.
- But who has the time to exercise so much that it alone creates a calorie deficit?
- Evolution, too, is playing tricks on us in this regard.
Our body is a highly complex marvel. Dating back to ancient times, our metabolism continues to function even when food is scarce—which in turn means that the body reduces its energy expenditure wherever possible. Often, blood flow to the extremities is the first to be reduced. For those trying to lose weight through exercise, however, this means that too much exercise is counterproductive, because the body then burns virtually no calories during rest periods.
A mistake that beginners make
People who have never dealt with the topic of losing weight through exercise often tend to overdo it at first: Beginners lift too much weight, jog much too far, or tend to swim excessively. This often causes pain. A gradual increase in intensity is recommended, starting at a low level—in conjunction with a change in diet. But more on that later.
If you want to lose a few extra pounds, you should start off very slowly. A walk is more beneficial than half an hour of jogging, and push-ups are a better way to introduce your body to strength training than lifting weights. Squats are also a good place to start. Ultimately, any kind of exercise helps: biking, playing soccer—and maybe even taking the stairs instead of the elevator every now and then.
The Benefits of Sports
The rule of thumb is: One hour of regular exercise at the gym burns about 500 kilocalories. That sounds like a lot. But even a single plate of pasta with oil and Parmesan is enough to replenish roughly the same amount of energy. And 30 minutes of leisurely jogging burns off the energy equivalent of half a bar of chocolate.
All of this leads to only one conclusion: It is possible to lose weight through exercise, but only if we also adjust our diet and make sure to keep post-workout cravings in check. These cravings arise for two different reasons. On the one hand, the brain demands a reward for the effort we’ve just put in during exercise. On the other hand, the body is crying out to replenish its energy reserves. Both are understandable, and it takes a great deal of discipline not to give in to these cravings.
Ideally, exercise and diet should go hand in hand
The word “diet” makes many people cringe inwardly; it’s still associated with making major sacrifices. Yet it’s often enough simply to switch to a diet higher in protein and lower in sugar, replace gluten-containing foods with fruits and nuts, and keep alcohol consumption to a minimum. If you stick to this and, at the same time, find the right amount of exercise for you, you can prevent consuming too many calories—and we know that this inevitably leads to the formation of love handles.
A gradual introduction to exercise, combined with a healthy diet, is especially advisable for people who are significantly overweight. Too much jogging, for example, can not only hinder weight loss but also damage the joints. Anyone who is carrying too many pounds and is serious about losing weight through exercise should, as a precaution, have their heart function checked by their family doctor before starting.
