Why Eating Less and Exercising More Doesn’t Work

April 8, 2019

Last week I mentioned that, if you want to lose weight, you can't just eat less and exercise more -- that strategy, although it may work in the short term, has been proven to be ineffective.  But why is that?  And what can you do instead?

It comes down to 2 things:

1.  Metabolism - when you eat less, your body thinks food is scarce and that it needs to conserve energy.  So, it holds on to fat and slows your metabolism down accordingly.  It's one of your body's ingenious ways of keeping you alive.  But a body with a slowed metabolism that is holding on to fat is not going to lose any weight, whether or not you're exercising more.

2.  Fat Storage - fat storage is governed by the hormone insulin.  If we secrete too much insulin or our insulin levels are elevated for too long, the body will hang onto fat.  Carbohydrates, particularly easily-digestible ones that are found in bread, pasta, baked goods, soda, beer, etc., stimulate insulin secretion and lead to fat storage.  If we minimize these junky carbohydrates, we will lose weight, whether we exercise or not. 

None of this is to say that exercise isn't a part of a healthy lifestyle.  Exercise can help reduce heart disease, diabetes, depression, anxiety and a host of other things...but probably not your weight.

This article by Gary Taubes explains all of this in more detail if you're interested.