How does exercise lead to weight loss?

Two parts of the story of changing or maintaining weight are the intake and use of calories. Most people remain at the same weight for most of their lives, without everyday effort and focus on how many calories they consume and spend.

Calories are consumed through food and drinks, while they are spent or used through physical activity and exercise. In this context, physical activity refers to all movements of the body that require the use of calories or energy, while exercise means a planned structured physical activity.

Taking care of your diet as well as physical activity and exercise are both incorporated into any serious weight loss program.

Research suggests that exercise promotes cardiovascular health, insulin sensitivity, glycemic control of type 2 diabetes, blood pressure regulation and prevents depression symptoms.

Because of the numerous health benefits of exercise, and everyday physical activity, it is difficult to measure exactly how much exercise, independent of diet, affects weight loss.

Most, but not all, studies suggest that exercise itself has an almost insignificant effect on weight loss. The amount of exercise needed for a significant loss in weight is simply too great for the average person and isn’t in accord with the previously recommended amounts of exercise for health benefits, 60 minutes a day for example, if you are only using exercise and not paying attention to diet.

The theory that might explain these unexpectedly low effects of exercise on weight loss might suggest that individuals who exercise more “make up for it” by lowering physical activity levels during the day or eating more.

Still, other studies show that one of the best predictors of long-term weight loss is developing and maintaining a good exercise routine.

When strength and endurance training is combined with aerobic exercise, the long-term results will be better than in only aerobic exercise. Strength exercises promote muscle mass gain, the loss of muscle is minimized and the amount of fat that is being lost is increased.  Another benefit is the effects that strength training can have on metabolism, you can read more about this here (link).

Aerobic exercises burn more calories than strength training, but strength training helps build muscle mass which promotes burning more calories when resting.

One should bear in mind that it is impossible to spot reduce fat and lose weight in a specific part of the body. Certain parts of the body are more prone to storing fat than others, and when losing weight progress will be seen in some spots faster than in others.

Weight loss using exercise and physical activity is dependent on many factors, like specific goals and training methods. Still, the effects of any kind of physical activity on weight loss will be most felt when combined with proper dieting.

Studies show that a combination of exercise and regulating diet, or rather lesser caloric intake, has by far the most effect when it comes to both short-term and long-term weight loss. The re-gaining of the lost weight is significantly less probable if exercise is included in the program, and it represents one of the more important issues in long-term weight loss.

A healthy diet and exercise together provide significantly better results than either of them on their own.

*This text is intended for informational purposes only. If you experience any symptoms, it is recommended that you seek advice from your doctor or a qualified healthcare professional.*

*Image taken from : https://unsplash.com/photos/a-man-on-a-treadmill-with-a-laptop-8uzJGgJ1_3w*

Cox, C. E. (2017). Role of physical activity for weight loss and weight maintenance. Diabetes Spectrum, 30(3), 157–160. https://doi.org/10.2337/ds17-0013

National Academies Press (US). (2004). Weight-Loss and maintenance strategies. Weight Management - NCBI Bookshelf. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK221839/

Willis, L. H., Slentz, C. A., Bateman, L. A., Shields, A. T., Piner, L. W., Bales, C. W., Houmard, J. A., & Kraus, W. E. (2012). Effects of aerobic and/or resistance training on body mass and fat mass in overweight or obese adults. Journal of Applied Physiology, 113(12), 1831–1837. https://doi.org/10.1152/japplphysiol.01370.2011