Losing weight is simple for some people. I know that when I have a few extra pounds to lose, maybe 15 or 20, it will take me a few weeks. If I watch what I eat and exercise three times a week it goes away. That isn’t the way it is for most people I know. There is no quick fix, even though 90 days sounds quick, it is still a pretty good commitment. It takes watching what you eat, trying your best in this fast food world to eat healthy foods, and it takes commitment to exercise. 5 or 6 days a week for several months. You can’t quit because it will make a difference. It takes discipline and commitment and a desire for change. If you don’t really want it, it will never happen. And if you don’t track it, it won’t happen.
<p>Welcome, Jenthames.</p>
<p>The role of exercise in fat loss and/or weight control is fascinating. It seems to a be a part of nearly all successful fat loss programs (although I have once lost a significant amount of weight without exercising one iota). On the other hand, studies tend to show that exercise doesn’t make much of a difference in weight loss, with diet being the overwhelming contributor.</p>
<p>Personally, I have found it to be hugely valuable as a way to focus on becoming a fit person, which, in turn, makes the diet part come a lot easier.</p>
<p>There might be some relationship in the discipline required for nutrition and exercise.</p>
<p>I’ve always exercised quite a bit but weight could be quite independent of the amount of exercise.</p>
<p>good luck jenthames!</p>
<p>my blood pressure today is 118/66</p>
<p>woot woot!</p>
<p>pulse is 83</p>
<p>Worked out so hard for an hour today that sweat was running and dripping off my nose and burning my eyes. But it was awesome.</p>
<p>Tomorrow is the weigh in after my first week at weight watchers. Hoping for a number that reflects all the hard work I have been doing. I know 1 or 2 pounds a week are healthy, but this is my first week and I have been exercising so hard. Would love to see at least 3 lbs gone!!</p>
Note the difference. Weight loss without exercise is likely to involve considerable muscle loss; exercise will likely preserve muscle and cause more of the weight loss to be fat loss.
Most people talk about weight and weight loss, but it is really fat loss that is desirable for obese people or those whose mild obesity is misnamed “overweight”.
<p>^ Exercise motivates me to eat well. I know it makes my cardiovascular system happy and it makes my butt look really nice in tight jeans.</p>
<p>When I am running I get chills/goosebumps almost every single time. It is definitely a “high” of some sort.</p>
<p>I agree diet plays a major role in weight loss but for me, exercise is what gets me going.</p>
UCB:
You are so right. There is a distinction between weight loss and fat loss. The study that everyone cites on how exercise relates dieting was this one from 1999:
[Influence</a> of exercise training on physi… [Med Sci Sports Exerc. 1999] - PubMed - NCBI](<a href=“http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10487375]Influence”>Influence of exercise training on physiological and performance changes with weight loss in men - PubMed)
In his new book, Volek describes the experiment which took small groups of overweight men and put them on a standard calorie-restricted low fat diet for 12 weeks. One group did diet only. One group did diet plus three sessions per week of aerobic endurance exercise (treadmill or bike) increasing to 50 min per session by the end. A third group did the diet plus the aerobic exercise plus three more sessions of standard weight training (30 to 40 minutes per session) increasing weight as they got stronger.
All three groups lost the same amount of weight in 12 weeks:
DIET ONLY: 9.6kg / 21.2 lbs
DIET + AEROBIC: 9.0kg / 19.8 lbs
DIET + AEROBIC + STRENGTH: 9.9kg / 21.8 lbs
But the difference in fat loss as a percentage of the total weight loss was striking:
DIET ONLY: 69% (6.6kg / 14.6 lbs)
DIET + AEROBIC: 79% (7.0kg / 15.4 lbs)
DIET + AEROBIC + STRENGTH: 97% (9.6kg / 21.2 lbs)
The diet only group lost weight, but also lost a significant amount of lean muscle mass, especially compared to the DIET + AEROBIC + STRENGTH TRAINING group whose similar weight loss consisted almost entirely of fat. Whatever lean body mass they were losing was offset by increases in muscle mass from exercise.
Not only does having lean muscle mass look better (to a point :)), but other studies have apparently shown that exercise is really important in maintaining weight loss and it’s easy to see why. Having more lean muscle mass burns more calories than blubber. This is particularly important for us geezers who are steadily losing muscle as we age.
There are other studies that suggest high intensity intervals and resistance strength training may decrease insulin resistance.
<p>
</p>
<p>Goose bumps or chills during high intensity exercise are actually signs that the body is no longer able to cool itself (largely by sweating). That should be a strong signal to end that exercise session. Also, it may mean that you need to drink more fluids before and during exercise as dehydration prevents sweating and cooling.</p>
<p>Take the long view. Exercise as hard as you can, but only within the limits you can handle today without hurting yourself. Going to the point of chills every day is probably a little too much. 
A daily dose of heat exhaustion isn’t gong to make you healthier!</p>
<p>Hello all. I’ve never posted on this thread, but try to keep up on a daily basis. As someone who has become very lackadaisical about diet and exercise, I really appreciate all the support and encouragement on this thread. </p>
<p>interesteddad, you’ve just summarized so nicely what I’ve suspected all along…DIET + AEROBIC + STRENGTH are all required to get the maximum benefit. I thank you for doing all the research and sharing your findings so that people like me can be motivated to get moving.</p>
<p>Welcome aboard, bogibogi. We all use these threads as ongoing motivation.</p>
<p>I do think that a mix is the best approach to exercise and fitness, especially for geezers like me. Stretching/flexibility, core stability, resistance strength training, and some kind of cardio. That can be done with a mix within each workout or with a variety of workouts over the course of a week. I also don’t think it takes a ridiculous amount of exercise for general fitness, certainly not to maintain.</p>
<p>5.25 miles, 9:05 pace. It was a struggle but better than the last two days. There’s a cold going around - I can tell because there is coughing in the office. I had to cough a few times during the run and had a fair amount of nasal congestion. My previous cold had tapered off to almost nothing recently.</p>
<p>I have 44 miles to go to do 500 this year. It is possible to do but I would have to execute well on my schedule. I don’t think that I can do the running thing every day. Four days a week is pretty good for me with one day for tennis and one or two for heavy weights (outside of light weights during the week). I’m pretty sure that I can do 20 miles each for the next two weeks unless my schedule goes haywire.</p>
<p>Also spent a little time on the Smith Machine and didn’t do very well on reps. I think that I need to relax for a while after a run before doing weights.</p>
<p>And last; the scale smiled on me today. First time in a while.</p>
<p>Edit: just realized that I’ve lost eight pounds in the last month.</p>
<p>Edit 2: the improvement roughly corresponds to when I increased my speed from about 6 MPH to 6.3 to 6.5 MPH. I think that I fixed the carb issues around then but I’m not completely sure.</p>
<p>Edit 3: I’m no longer overweight, BMI dropped below 25.</p>
<p>Yay, BC.</p>
<p>Sounds like party time. Getting out of the BMI overweight category is a major accomplishment! Those charts are brutal.</p>
<p>Looks like we are back. No workout for me again. I think I’ve got this cold licked, but still had a little congestion this afternoon and I really want to get over it.</p>
<hr>
<p>Found another good health and fitness podcast. I enjoy listening to these while working out or just as background when doing chores. This podcast, Underground Wellness, has quite a library of interviews with some of the top guys, including Gary Taubes (twice), Robert Lustig, and many others. I listed to the interview with Mike Boyle tonight, which was excellent. I see at least a couple dozen that I want to check out:</p>
<p>[Health</a> Podcast | UW Radio | Health Expert Interviews | Underground Wellness](<a href=“http://undergroundwellness.com/radio/]Health”>Underground Wellness Radio | Health Podcast | Underground Wellness)</p>
<p>Or in iTunes:</p>
<p>[iTunes</a> - Podcasts - Underground Wellness | Blog Talk Radio Feed by Underground Wellness](<a href=“http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/underground-wellness-blog/id296766401]iTunes”>Underground Wellness Radio on Apple Podcasts)</p>
<p>I’m baaaaack! Yay! No, wait. I should not be celebrating the end of my micro-vacation. It was quite a challenge to squeeze it in between DH’s business. We swam, we walked, we sat in the sun (but not too much). Good times. DH took a few pictures of me on the beach and commented that I looked better than a “trophy wife”, LOL.</p>
<p>Back at work today. My coworkers got into a discussion of pushups, planks, Pilates, etc. - I ended up demonstrating planks and pushups in my pencil skirt and blouse on the floor in front of our cubes! LOL.</p>
<p>idad, I hope your cold goes away quickly.</p>
<p>MOfWC - CONGRATS!</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>In a previous post, didn’t you say that your waist was only 44% of your height? Seems like you were already in the good zone. BMI is not necessarily an accurate measure of obesity in people who exercise and therefore have muscle.</p>
<p>BB - I wish we had a youtube of your demo!</p>
<p>^^I should be very, VERY tall.</p>
<p>First week back to working out after being sidelined with my ankle injury for almost six months (six months where I didn’t do much in the way of fitness, except for some walking). It felt very good to be back “in the saddle” (so to speak). I was surprised that I could still handle some fairly heavy weights. I started out with 5 lb weights and realized I could do more–ended up working with 10 lbs. Before my injury, I’d use 12 lbs. I can’t do quite as much as I did before–not as many squats, shorter workout times, and I was definitely feeling sore the next day, etc. I also noticed that I was burning more calories than before my injury for the same activity. For example, before the injury, I’d do an hour workout with my trainer and I’d usually burn about 200 calories. This week, I did 30 minute workouts and burned 180 calories. Is this difference because I’m not as fit as I was 6 months ago? (Hope I’m making myself clear??)</p>
<p>I don’t think I’m ready for kettle bell workouts yet or spinning. Those are tough; I want to be careful and not jump back in too early and hurt myself. Also, I’m not working with a trainer. Doing workouts on my own–with the except of the classes. Right now, I’m thinking I’ll sign-up for TRX classes before the kettle bell class.</p>
<p>interesteddad: I only get chills when I am running and a good song comes on my ipod. lol. I have never gotten “chills” any other time during exercising. But I will keep what you said in mind! Thanks. :)</p>
<br>
<br>
<p>Chills for me mean inadequate electrolytes, hydration or calories and
I usually only see chills in tennis because it can go two to three
hours in hot and humid weather. It has not been a problem in a long
time. A couple of 1-liter Nalgene bottles takes care of hydration. In
general, I get sufficient electrolytes from food but sometimes I need
a supplement pack or an energy bar. Calories haven’t been that much of
a problem since I started recording everything.</p>
<br>
<br>
<p>Always a good idea to take it easy on the comeback trail. I usually
drop the weights by twenty to thirty percent if I haven’t done them
in a long time unless it’s a very light-weight exercise.</p>
<br>
<br>
<p>It’s just another milestone and it’s still the high-end of normal. I
told my daughter about it yesterday and she told me that her BMI is
18. Another student in one of her classes did a presentation on
obesity and she calculated hers on paper.</p>
<br>
<br>
<p>Compliments from a spouse are always welcome.</p>
<br>
<br>
<p>A lady where I worked when I was in my 20s challenged me to do a bunch
of pushups one day - she was in a BTK dress. She got down on the floor
in the office and did ten or fifteen of them. I was working out 20
hours a week back then - mostly tennis and some weightlifting. I
didn’t have any trouble doing pushups as I was very light (about 150)
and did exercises that worked the same muscles. This was back in the
1980s and I think that it was unusual for women her age (she was in
her late 40s) to be doing a lot of exercise. I was only aware of one
other lady that worked out a lot and she was a lot younger. Today in
the office, I’d say that at least 1/2 (men and women) work out
regularly at my office. It helps to have three fitness rooms in the
office.</p>
<p>Snuck in a 50% weights workout this morning before coming into the
office. I need to get back to weights - running has been pushing
everything else out of the way.</p>