DIET OR EXERCISE: HOW TO GET INTO THE PERFECT SHAPE?

People are impatient when it comes to slimming down, isn’t it? Be it following rigorous crash diets or spending hours at the gym sweating out your calories, you will do almost anything to get into shape. But following a weight loss plan is not just a physiological process. It takes strong determination, courage, and support to be able to adhere to the various restrictions and to overcome the numerous challenges that come along the way. Though the simplest mantra for weight loss is, ‘eat less and move more’, in real life, it is not that easy. So, let’s address the age-old mysterious question of ‘What is more important for weight loss – diet or exercise?’

We are all constrained by various resources, such as time, money, energy, willpower, etc. When following any recommendation, if you do not factor in all these resources you will soon find yourself struggling to meet your weight loss goals. Typically, weight gain and weight loss revolve around caloric consumption and expenditure. You will lose weight when you eat fewer calories than what you expend and conversely, you will gain weight if you consume more calories than what you burn. According to a report published in the journal ‘Systematic Reviews’, people who implemented dietary changes alone lost more weight in comparison to people who increased their physical activity for getting into shape. This is because it is easier to avoid caloric consumption than attempting to burn them off.

Most of the calories in our body are burned during the process of routine movement, digestion, absorption, metabolism, and simply because we are alive. Adding more exercise to this process may not render substantial benefits for meeting your weight loss goals. Which is why relying on exercise-focused weight loss programs alone generally yield lower efficacy in comparison to diet-focused plans. You should thoroughly comprehend the calculations of calorie intake and expenditure to make an informed decision about your weight loss regime.

According to a nutritional biochemist, Shawn M. Talbott, weight loss is conventionally 25% exercise and 75% diet. This does not mean that exercise is not an important aspect of weight loss, but you should not overestimate the calorie expenditure during a workout session. For instance, if you burn 295 calories by jogging or cycling for 30 minutes, you can instead make up this difference by avoiding a samosa or a chocolate or even a cold drink. Alternatively, a rigorous workout session may prove to be counterproductive because you may feel immensely hungry after exercising. In the bargain, you will end up consuming twice the number of calories you just burned off. Which is why choosing the right meal in the right portion and at the right time is a mandate for a successful weight loss journey.

The best weight loss program is the one which incorporates, both diet and exercise, simultaneously. While maintaining a balanced diet is critical for your weight loss, you should not avoid exercising because it plays a pivotal role in ensuring sound health.