Weight loss - The Role of Diet and Exercise

The Best Method of Losing Weight

Sep 3, 2009

A recently published weight-loss study concludes that to lose weight, you don't have to increase your activity or exercise level; you only need to change your diet.

A scientific study published in 2009 concludes that weight loss is related to how much you eat and not how much you exercise, so dieting is the best method of weight loss. But is this really a new discovery? Robert Bray, author of The Metabolic Syndrome and Obesity, observed that, "exercise alone is not very effective for inducing weight loss" in 2007 (p. 185).

Bray based his conclusion on several earlier studies. The idea that an individual cannot lose weight by exercising is not a new one, but publicized results of the most recent study have generated controversy. This article explores the role of exercise in weight loss and examines several different methods and types of diets for weight loss.

What is a Diet?

A diet is described in Tabers Cyclopedic Medical Dictionary as “liquid and solid food substances regularly consumed in the course of normal living.” Accordingly, any food consumption constitutes a diet. Although the usual connotation of diet is a calorie-restricted regimen of eating, your diet could consist solely of unrestricted amounts of chocolate cake and hotdogs and still be called a diet.

In developing a weight-loss diet you must restrict intake of calories to a predetermined level, but in order to be successful you must structure a weight-loss regimen that you can maintain for a lifetime. You should include your favorite foods, devise a regimen that accommodates your personal preferences, and make a lifetime commitment. This article examines several weight-loss strategies for accomplishing your goal.

Higher Metabolism - Several Small Meals

The rationale behind diets that require the consumption of several small meals throughout the day is the theory that the body will develop a higher metabolism to continuously burn calories and accommodate the dieter's constant eating. The process of digestion requires calories because chewing, swallowing, and propelling food from the beginning of the digestive system to the end requires energy. If an individual is continuously eating, proponents of this type of diet believe that the individual will constantly burn calories while digesting food, resulting in increased metabolism.

Zero Calories Total – Negative Calorie Meals

The concept of negative calorie consumption is also related to the amount of energy required for digestion. Cabbage is one of the foods that purportedly requires more energy for the body to chew and digest than the food itself actually provides.

But if negative calorie foods actually existed, how long could one subsist on Cabbage leaves? Hunger is a powerful force; wars have been won and lost when one armed force cut off supplies and starved an opposing force into submission. The dieter has to adopt a diet that he or she can maintain for a lifetime.

Skipping Meals – Eat Every Other Day

The principle of the “eat every other day” types of diets is to eliminate half of calories normally consumed. By consuming meals every other day instead of everyday, one entire day of food consumption is eliminated. According to proponents of this type of diet, the dieter's metabolism doesn’t slow down because he/she eats regular meals the next day. The dieter will burn the same amount of calories, but because he/she is skipping one day between meals, weight is lost. Few individuals could adopt such a regimen for a lifetime.

Eliminating Meals – Fasting or Colon Cleansing

The principle underlying fasting diets and colon cleansing diets is rather simple; you will lose weight if you don’t eat. However, fasting and imposing severe caloric restrictions for weight loss usually leads to rebound weight gain. Also colon cleansing (and fasting) is not always conducted strictly for weight loss. Proponents of colon cleansing believe the process gives the colon a reprieve from digestive activity and provides needed cleansing. Fasting and colon cleansing are by design implemented at intervals and not intended as lifetime diets.

Weight-loss Method – Exercise

One can theoretically lose weight with exercise alone, but a recent study conducted within an Amish population indicated that an increase of 900 calories is required to elicit an appreciable affect on weight. The study compared individuals with genetic similarities (who should have had similar bodyweight) and determined that the more active individuals had a lower weight. “The people who successfully overrode their genes were burning a stunning 900 kilocalories more per day than their less active counterparts..."

(Parker, 2009, para. 3). Thus, if exercise is your weight-loss method of choice, you must undertake an exercise routine that burns upwards of 900 additional calories per day.

Best Weight-loss Method – Combination of Exercise and Diet

Weight loss that is accomplished solely through exercise is difficult, but if exercise is combined with a weight-loss diet, the dieter benefits from better weight-loss maintenance. According to the text of The Metabolic Syndrome and Obesity, "Jakicic et al. showed that after losing weight, 200 minutes of exercise per week maintained the lost weight over 18 months, but that 150 and 100 minutes of activity per week did not" (Bray, p.185). Exercise is important to dieting and helps the dieter to avoid regaining weight following weight loss.

Principles of developing a Personalized Weight-Loss Plan

Bray, G. (2007). The metabolic syndrome and obesity. Humana Press. Totowa, N.J.

Hofmelker, O. (2003). Maximum muscle, minimum fat. North Atlantic Books. Berkley,CA.

The copyright of the article Weight loss - The Role of Diet and Exercise in Weight Loss Methods is owned by Marian Henderson. Permission to republish Weight loss - The Role of Diet and Exercise in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.