The 100-Calorie Secret - Never Diet Again!

More often than not, you will hear that weight loss plans that do not include exercise are not serious. This is accentuated by the fact that some of the weight loss scams deliberately advertise that you can lose weight without exercising. The difficulty with most traditional weight loss programs is that they often have confusing goals. They want you to change all of your foods and at the same time ask for your regular physical exercise, sometimes as much as 2 or 3 hours a week in a gym.

Overwhelming you with a complicated, time-consuming exercise plan while eliminating and adding all kinds of new food  at the same time will more then likely lead to failure in achieving both goals. The typical result is a few weeks of diet and work out stress and a few pounds of weight loss. You will miss the gym a few times, for whatever reason and that ends the whole plan. It's often and "all or nothing" attempt that turns into nothing.
After all, exercise is usually the last thing on  everyone’s list of daily tasks. Therefore, it is the first activity to be eliminated during periods of stress, regardless of the cause—family, money, health—and even during bad weather.

Many researchers believe that  sedentary, overweight individuals can be successful with their weight loss plans with a simple and slight increase in the amount of physical activity in their daily lives. Call this life “lifestyle exercises” or as Dr James Levine from the Mayo Clinic,  NEAT.
NEAT stands for non-exercise activity thermogeneis. Thermogeneis is the using fat, protein, and carbs for energy, i.e. metabolism. Non exercise is that component of daily movement not associated with planned activity.

In the figure below you see that even daily movement not even approaching the
level of  "gym workouts"  increases metabolism:

Benefits of Lifestyle Exercises:
Regular lifestyle exercise can actually assist weight loss and, more specifically, help one through plateaus. I’m not talking about two hours in a gym. Instead, the addition of small amounts of physical activity to one’s daily routine can improve many aspects of health. Moreover, such improvements can be experienced by virtually everyone, regardless of age, sex, or physical ability. They will not require great commitments or an enormous amount of will power. Following are some of the additional benefits of  regular lifestyle exercises.

Strengthens your cardiovascular system

The term “cardiovascular system” refers to the heart and blood vessels. Cholesterol buildup in the arteries can cause strokes and heart attacks. Regular physical activities prevent this from happening in three different ways:

· Lower the buildup of bad cholesterol (LDL) in arteries by increasing the concentration of good cholesterol (HDL)

· Prevent the onset of high blood pressure if one is at increased risk of developing this condition

· Lower your blood pressure if already high

Keeps bones and muscles strong

Regular physical activities are one of the best methods to prevent osteoporosis and strengthen muscles. Choose lifestyle exercises that bear your body’s weight, such as walking and jogging.

Can help to break through plateaus

Physical activities will help to increase metabolism again after the normal slowing that accompanies weight loss. In this case, I do recommend working a little harder while doing your lifestyle exercises. Walk a little faster and maybe a little longer to break a sweat. And maybe add one or two more physical activities a day during those periods.

Prevents and manages diabetes

Regular physical activities, coupled with weight loss, are important ways to control blood sugar. Exercise helps insulin work and can lower blood sugar.

Eases depression and manages pain and stress

Regular physical activities can help fight depression by activating the neurotransmitters (chemicals used by your nerve cells to communicate with one another) serotonin and norepinephrine. Exercise also stimulates the production of endorphins, other neurotransmitters that produce feelings of well being.

Reduces your risk of certain types of cancer

Regular physical activities may help lower the risk of cancers of the colon, prostate, uterus, and breasts.

Helps you sleep well

A good night’s sleep helps maintain your physical and mental health. Moderate physical activities at least three hours before bedtime can help one relax and sleep better at night.

Helps prolong your life

In addition to making you feel better, regular physical activities definitely prolong life expectancy.

My Advice to People Starting a Weight Loss Plan:
As you have seen, there are many benefits that can come from regular physical activity. Here are the four things to need to know about the role that exercising plays (or does not play) in a weight loss program:

1. If you are already doing some kind of physical activitiy, walking, going to the gym, doing sports,--then obviously continue to do them.

1. If you are not exercising,  consider  “lifestyle” exercises. The  are equally or more effective than structured aerobic or weight lifting exercise for weight loss.

2. Look at the calories you are doing with any activity. Get a pedometer, look at the calories meters, measure off a mile with you car if you are walking outside. Having an idea about the calories you really burn during exercises permits one to understand the effort it takes to burn off the calories of bad food choices.

3. Exercise plays only a minimal role in short-term weight loss; the obsession with hours of working out in gyms often diverts attention from what is really important—the foods that that one eats.

4. Diet and/or exercise cannot remove genetically determined fat deposits in most individuals.

(Both figures from Dr James Levine, "Nonexercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT): environment and biology"
Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab 286: E675-E685, 2004; doi:10.1152/ajpendo.00562.2003)