I haven't had much computer time lately, been exploring this strange outside world place! Most blog updates are going to have to happen when I take a break from work. I can't believe I wasted so much time behind the computer over the last 3 years, missed out on alot of living...but that is a story for another blog!
Exercise, losing weight, keeping it off, all things I know alot about...or I thought I did. I recently learned some new things which I would like to share.
The journal Obesity Research by a Columbia University reports that a pound of fat burns 2 calories a day, and a pound of muscle burns a whopping 6 calories a day! Yes, you read the right...6 calories a day for a pound of muscle. That means if you replace 10 pounds of fat with muscle you get to eat 40 calories more a day and not gain weight...40 calories...thats well...not much!
The common wisdom has always been muscle burns alot more than fat at rest, and it does, 3x as much...but both are so low, that just having muscle doesnt really change what you can eat.
Even exercise doesnt burn alot of calories, if you run for 30min, then drink 1 Gatorade you are at a complete wash calorie-wise. Of course exercise has other important benefits besides weight loss, so I am certainly not arguing that its a waste of time. Unless you are doing 90min of exercise every single day, you probably wont lose much weight from exercising is what the latest research shows. The best and most effective way to lose weight is all about the calorie input!
For maximum overall health, a combination of exercise and diet is still the best, but if its just about losing weight, well, you need to do alot more than just exercise. Seriously, 6 calories a day...I almost fell off my chair when I read that.
1 comment:
I've discovered the same thing. Cutting calories in food is way more effective for losing weight quickly than increasing exercise. Exercise is great, but for weight LOSS, you have to eat less. I found temporarily cutting my diet to 1600 cals a day (using a food scale and all that) wasn't too hard to do, and it does work. burning a extra 400cals a day is pretty hard work compared to eating a bit less.
...but you should muliply any daily amounts that muscle burns by 365 to get a better picture. 50 cals a day is still 5 pounds a year, which is considerable imo.
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