You know it makes sense to exercise if you want to lose weight. Every diet book tells you that. But what if you don't have time or you just don't want to. Can you lose weight anyway?
Yes, you can!
Now, I don't want to put you off exercise if you are willing to give it a go - it's great for your health, your fitness and your energy levels as well as using up calories that might otherwise end up on your thighs. The benefits are huge for your whole system.
But if you're just not going to get around to it in the near future then don't make it an excuse for not being able to lose weight because you can lose weight anyway.
In my experience, it is eating too much food which is the main culprit in any weight problem. And changing food habits which is the main key to losing weight.
When you gain weight it is not usually the lack of running or going to the gym that is to blame (after all you have to run more than a marathon to lose a single pound of fat). The problem is that it is too easy to swallow a pound of fat's worth of calories (about 3500) without thinking about it. And even easier to let weight creep on little by little with 200 calories too much here and 300 there.
And it follows that to lose weight it is easier for some people (especially those who have an aversion to exercise) to reduce weight by becoming aware of their eating habits and to gradually modify them than by taking up a strenuous routine at the gym. They simply get discouraged by how much physical effort they have to make to get results.
Now I have to emphasize that if you take some form of exercise it IS easier to lose weight because then you can eat slightly more and still lose weight. But many people who visit the gym end up rewarding themselves afterwards with a snack, a coke or a beer and end up consuming more calories than they've used. So it can be counter-productive.
If formal exercise is not for you, you can still learn to be more active as you go about your day and use up as many calories as those who go to the gym without feeling the need for recovery and reward afterwards. You can
- take the stairs instead of the elevator
- get up and move around every half hour
- stand up when you answer the phone
- take the time to stretch every 10 minutes
- use the bathroom on another floor at home or at work
- put more effort into housework and gardening etc, etc
None of these could be seen as truly exercising but they do use calories. Become movement aware as you go about your day. In fact do this even if you take formal exercise anyway.
So it's really up to you if you don't want to exercise. Though I'm not an avid exerciser I like to do a bit for the sake of health and fitness and I do keep as generally active as possible though I work at my desk most of the day.
You just have to make up your mind what you're prepared to do and stick with it - bearing in mind your personal circumstances and what you're trying to achieve. And be more vigilant about what you eat if you are not burning calories with exercise.
Copyright 2007, Janice Elizabeth Small
