The Exercise Paradox: Why Using Workouts Is Not Good For Losing Weight But It Is Helpful For Maintaining A Healthy Body Weight

TThe basic principle of weight loss is straightforward: If you choose fewer calories than heat, you will lose weight. In practice, however, this is not often so simple or easy.

In addition to calories or eating smaller portions, many people add exercise to the equation when trying to lose weight to help ticture. However, research shows that exercise may have only modest effects on weight loss.

But before you hit your workout, it’s important to note that exercise still plays a really important role when it comes to health – perhaps especially in maintaining your weight.

There are several mechanisms that help explain why exercise does not always lead to significant weight loss.

Exercise can stimulate appetite, leading to increased appetite. People may also vary in walking speed throughout the day after exercise, meaning that exercise may have little effect on their overall calorie intake.filecit.

The body is back and effileCIET over time – burning fewer calories while doing the same activity. This process, sometimes called “metabolic adaptation,” reflects the body’s tendency to prevent weight loss.

From an evolutionary point of view, saving energy during intense physical activity may have protected our ancestors from starvation. But in today’s world, metabolic adaptation is one of the many things that can make the body lose weightfilereligion.

The importance of exercise
Although exercise may not be the main driver of weight loss, it appears that it can play a role in maintaining weight loss.

In a study of over 1,100 people, physical activity was shown to have little effect on the amount of weight a person initially lost. However, doing high levels of activity after losing weight is strongly linked to maintaining weight loss.

It’s worth noting that exercise is also associated with measurable health improvements – including better cholesterol, lower inflammation, better insulin regulation, all of which are associated with a lower risk of health problems, such as Heart disease and Type 2 Diabetes.

These many health benefits show how important it is to exercise both while losing weight and maintaining weight loss.

Evidence suggests that combining exercise with weight loss drugs (such as Saxenda), can help people maintain weight loss better than using medication alone.

Why Exercise Works
It may seem confusing that exercise is not very effective in weight loss but it can help prevent obesity. The reasons behind this circular period are not fully understood, but several mechanisms can provide an explanation.

The first has to do with our resting energy expenditure (the number of calories our body burns when doing nothing).

When we lose weight, our resting energy expenditure decreases more than expected given the amount of weight lost. This is thought to contribute to weight loss. But exercise raises total daily expenditure, which can help partially offset this.

The second factor is related to muscle mass.

Weight loss often leads to loss of fat and muscle. Losing muscle mass lowers energy reserves, which contributes to weight gain.

But exercise, especially resistance training (such as Pilates or weightlifting), can help preserve or even rebuild muscle tissue. This can increase our metabolism, which can help in long-term weight maintenance.

Physical activity helps our body to maintain its ability to burn fat. After losing weight, the body is often under EFfileIt is acceptable to use fat for energy.

But intense exercise can improve fat burning flexibility and metabolic flexibility – the ability to switch between burning carbohydrates and fat depending on what’s available. This helps the body to continue burning fat even when calorie intake is low or weight is lost.

Exercise improves insulin sensitivity. This reduces the amount of insulin needed to control blood sugar. This is helpful as higher insulin levels can promote fat storage and reduce fat breakdown.

Physical activity has many indirect effects on us that can help with weight maintenance. For example, exercise can improve sleep, mood, and reduce stress levels. All of these reduce stress levels of cortisol, which can reduce the amount of fat in the body’s stores.

Regular exercise can also help control appetite and blood glucose, which can help reduce cravings and limit overeating.

It is important to accept that everyone is different. This means that we all respond differently to exercise in terms of how many calories we burn or whether exercise makes us feel good about ourselves for the day.

Kind offfThe erent types of use also give their uniquenessfilets when it comes to health and weight management.

Aerobic exercise (such as brisk walking, cycling, or running) burns calories and, at high intensity, may improve the body’s ability to burn fuel.

Training, on the other hand, helps build and maintain muscle mass. This supports the high energy consumption of the rest, helping to maintain the weight for a long time.

Exercise may not be the most powerful tool for weight loss, but it can help support better weight loss. Perhaps most importantly, it offers a number of physical and mental health benefits that top the numbers on the scales.

Interview via Reuters Connect

Rachel Woods is a senior lecturer in physiology at the University of Lincoln.