Argument: Exercise is Bad for Losing Weight

The argument: Exercise does not help with losing weight. To the contrary, it actively hurts the effort. Exercising makes you hungry, and it burns so little energy that you end up eating more than you burned.

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The response: This argument is used to tell people trying to lose weight not to bother to exercise. This is very problematic. Even though exercise alone does not usually lead to meaningful weight loss, in combination with diet-induced weight loss, it has significant beneficial effects, and does contribute to weight loss as well.

Exercise Alone Is Rarely Sufficient For Weight Loss

Even though some studies have shown that exercise without dietary changes can lead to modest[1]Summerbell Cd, Garrow Js (1995-01). Meta-analysis: effect of exercise, with or without dieting, on the body composition of overweight subjects.. European journal of clinical nutrition 49 (1): 1-10. ISSN 0954-3007. Retrieved 2013-07-21. or even substantial[2]Damon Dagnone, Peter J.H. Jones, Heidi Smith, Anne Paddags, Robert Hudson, Ian Janssen, Robert Ross (2000-07-18). Reduction in Obesity and Related Comorbid Conditions after Diet-Induced Weight Loss or Exercise-Induced Weight Loss in MenA Randomized, Controlled Trial. Annals of Internal Medicine 133 (2): 92-103. doi:10.7326/0003-4819-133-2-200007180-00008, ISSN 0003-4819. Retrieved 2013-07-21. weight loss, quite regularly exercise-induced weight loss is minimal and not statistically significant[3]Suresh Chode, Nehu Parimi, David R. Sinacore, Tiffany Hilton, Reina Armamento-Villareal, Nicola Napoli, Clifford Qualls, Krupa Shah, Dennis T. Villareal (2011). Weight Loss, Exercise, or Both and Physical Function in Obese Older Adults. New England Journal of Medicine 364 (13): 1218-1229. doi:10.1056/NEJMoa1008234, ISSN 0028-4793. Retrieved 2013-07-21..

This is not surprising. The amount of exercise needed to reduce weight for obese people is often beyond what most people are willing to do.[4]Simona Calugi, Elena Centis, Marwan El Ghoch, Giulio Marchesini, Riccardo Dalle Grave (2010-10-28). Cognitive-Behavioral Strategies to Increase the Adherence to Exercise in the Management of Obesity. Journal of Obesity 2011. doi:10.1155/2011/348293, ISSN 2090-0708. Retrieved 2013-07-21. Half an hour on a treadmill might lose you 400–500 kcal. Doing that even three times a week means less than 250 kcal burned per day on average. That’s two glasses of coke or a bigger sandwich.

So exercise alone is unlikely to result in meaningful weight loss.

Exercise Helps With Weight Loss

There is a plethora of research on the beneficial effects of exercise for weight loss and maintenance.[4]Simona Calugi, Elena Centis, Marwan El Ghoch, Giulio Marchesini, Riccardo Dalle Grave (2010-10-28). Cognitive-Behavioral Strategies to Increase the Adherence to Exercise in the Management of Obesity. Journal of Obesity 2011. doi:10.1155/2011/348293, ISSN 2090-0708. Retrieved 2013-07-21.[5]ric, Neil King, James A. Levine, Robert Ross, &#201 Doucet (2011-12-18). Update on Exercise and Weight Control. Journal of Obesity 2011. doi:10.1155/2011/358205, ISSN 2090-0708. Retrieved 2013-07-21.

Diet and exercise together work much better for weight loss, even in the long term, than diet alone.[6]X. Gao, M. Chen, R. M. Van Dam, T. Wu (2009). Long-term effectiveness of diet-plus-exercise interventions vs. diet-only interventions for weight loss: a meta-analysis. Obesity Reviews 10 (3): 313–323. doi:10.1111/j.1467-789X.2008.00547.x, ISSN 1467-789X. Retrieved 2013-07-21. Once weight is lost, exercise helps keeping it down.[7]Marcus BH, Lang W, Janney C, Jakicic JM (2008-07-28). EFfect of exercise on 24-month weight loss maintenance in overweight women. Archives of Internal Medicine 168 (14): 1550-1559. doi:10.1001/archinte.168.14.1550, ISSN 0003-9926. Retrieved 2013-07-21. Also, losing weight through a changed diet always means losing both fat and fat-free mass (like muscle mass), even though the problem is only fat mass. Exercise helps reducing the loss of fat-free mass.[8]John J. Dubé, Francesca Amati, Maja Stefanovic-Racic, Shanjian Zhu, Frederico G. S. Toledo, Bret H. Goodpaster, Peter Chomentowski (2009-05-01). Moderate Exercise Attenuates the Loss of Skeletal Muscle Mass That Occurs With Intentional Caloric Restriction–Induced Weight Loss in Older, Overweight to Obese Adults. The Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences 64A (5): 575-580. doi:10.1093/gerona/glp007, ISSN 1079-5006, 1758-535X. Retrieved 2013-07-21.[5]ric, Neil King, James A. Levine, Robert Ross, &#201 Doucet (2011-12-18). Update on Exercise and Weight Control. Journal of Obesity 2011. doi:10.1155/2011/358205, ISSN 2090-0708. Retrieved 2013-07-21.

And even if no or very little weight is lost, exercise provides significant and meaningful health benefits,[9]M Hopkins, P Caudwell, R J Stubbs, J E Blundell, N A King (2009-12). Beneficial effects of exercise: shifting the focus from body weight to other markers of health. British journal of sports medicine 43 (12): 924-927. doi:10.1136/bjsm.2009.065557, ISSN 1473-0480. and also prevents further weight gain.[2]Damon Dagnone, Peter J.H. Jones, Heidi Smith, Anne Paddags, Robert Hudson, Ian Janssen, Robert Ross (2000-07-18). Reduction in Obesity and Related Comorbid Conditions after Diet-Induced Weight Loss or Exercise-Induced Weight Loss in MenA Randomized, Controlled Trial. Annals of Internal Medicine 133 (2): 92-103. doi:10.7326/0003-4819-133-2-200007180-00008, ISSN 0003-4819. Retrieved 2013-07-21.

So the argument is simply wrong. We have evidence beyond evidence that exercise does help with weight loss, in a multitude of ways, even if exercise alone does not facilitate weight loss particularly well. But the argument is even more wrong than that. Even the premise is not generally true.

Exercise Does Not Make You Hungry

Even though it might make intuitive sense, scientific evidence does not support the idea that exercise would generally cause a larger energy intake.[10]Gul Tiryaki-Sonmez, Guler Bugdayci, Guclu Ozen, Serife Vatanasever-Ozen (2011). The Effects of Exercise on Food Intake and Hunger: Relationship With Acylated Ghrelin and Leptin. Journal of Sports Science and Medicine 10: 283 – 291. Indeed, repeated experiments show that exercise does not regularly lead to compensatory responses in appetite or energy intake.[11]Masashi Miyashita, Lucy K Wasse, David J Stensel, James A King (2010-06). Influence of prolonged treadmill running on appetite, energy intake and circulating concentrations of acylated ghrelin. Appetite 54 (3): 492-498. doi:10.1016/j.appet.2010.02.002, ISSN 1095-8304.[12]Megan Yamashiro, Jake Hinkel-Lipsker, Katherine Streder, Nero Evero, Terry Hackney, Todd Alan Hagobian (2012-11-01). Effects of acute exercise on appetite hormones and ad libitum energy intake in men and women. Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism 38 (1): 66-72. doi:10.1139/apnm-2012-0104, ISSN 1715-5312. Retrieved 2013-07-21.

To give an example for how this was measured, in one study, subjects used a treadmill for 60 minutes before or after a controlled breakfast. They then got to eat ad libitum (i.e. as much as they liked) from a buffet for lunch and for dinner. This resulted in a total negative energy balance for the subjects, and the researchers actually found that exercise actively suppressed appetite.[13]Jessica C Zahra, David J Stensel, Kevin Deighton (2012-06). Appetite, energy intake and resting metabolic responses to 60 min treadmill running performed in a fasted versus a postprandial state. Appetite 58 (3): 946-954. doi:10.1016/j.appet.2012.02.041, ISSN 1095-8304.

But even though the appetite suppression is found in various studies, it is not universal. Humans vary a lot, and it seems for some, exercise does indeed cause elevated appetite. But even when a study finds such an increase in appetite, it “did not alter energy intake and produced a decrease in […] ‘relative’ energy intake.”[14]F Tsofliou, Y P Pitsiladis, D Malkova, N Mutrie, S Higgins, M Maraki (2005-12). Acute effects of a single exercise class on appetite, energy intake and mood. Is there a time of day effect?. Appetite 45 (3): 272-278. doi:10.1016/j.appet.2005.07.005, ISSN 0195-6663.

One version of the original argument tries to evade these insights by claiming that, while exercise might not result in increased energy intake right away, it eventually would.

A review of the available literature found that, in the specific context of exercise-induced weight loss, “[f]or some people, long-term exercise stimulates compensatory increases in energy intake that attenuate weight loss. However, favourable changes in body composition and health markers still exist in the absence of weight loss.”[15]Neil A King, John E Blundell, Mark Hopkins (2010-11). Acute and long-term effects of exercise on appetite control: is there any benefit for weight control?. Current Opinion in Clinical Nutrition and Metabolic Care 13 (6): 635-640. doi:10.1097/MCO.0b013e32833e343b, ISSN 1363-1950. Retrieved 2013-07-21. So even if you are among the group of people for who exercise increases appetite, and you are using exercise alone in an attempt to lose weight, and that fails, the fact that you were exercising alone provides beneficial effects.

The same study also noted that “for some this is offset by improved postprandial satiety signalling,” that is, the same meals were more satiating when regularly exercising. This is an interesting effect which has been observed by others as well. Individuals who exercise regularly have an easier time distinguishing between high-energy and low-energy food intake, and can more easily adjust subsequent energy intake.[16]Lars Klingenberg, Mads Rosenkilde, Jo-Anne Gilbert, Angelo Tremblay, Anders Sjodin, Jean-Philippe Chaput (2011). Physical Activity Plays an Important Role in Body Weight Regulation. Journal of Obesity 2011. doi:10.1155/2011/360257, ISSN 2090-0708. Retrieved 2013-07-21.

So, even though this varies from person to person, exercise has a good chance of reducing appetite and helping a person to control their energy intake. This is the exact opposite of what the original argument claims. And even in those cases where the premise of the original argument holds, exercise still has beneficial effects.

Conclusion

The argument that exercise would not help with weight loss is based on the observation that exercise alone does not easily lead to weight loss. But it completely ignores the tremendous benefits exercise provides when it is combined with diet-induced weight loss.

As such, the argument serves primarily to confuse overweight people who wish to lose weight by telling them that the efforts they put in are wasted anyhow, making it even more difficult for them to lose weight.

Bibliography

1. ^ Summerbell Cd, Garrow Js (1995-01). Meta-analysis: effect of exercise, with or without dieting, on the body composition of overweight subjects.. European journal of clinical nutrition 49 (1): 1-10. ISSN 0954-3007. Retrieved 2013-07-21.
2. ^ a b Damon Dagnone, Peter J.H. Jones, Heidi Smith, Anne Paddags, Robert Hudson, Ian Janssen, Robert Ross (2000-07-18). Reduction in Obesity and Related Comorbid Conditions after Diet-Induced Weight Loss or Exercise-Induced Weight Loss in MenA Randomized, Controlled Trial. Annals of Internal Medicine 133 (2): 92-103. doi:10.7326/0003-4819-133-2-200007180-00008, ISSN 0003-4819. Retrieved 2013-07-21.
3. ^ Suresh Chode, Nehu Parimi, David R. Sinacore, Tiffany Hilton, Reina Armamento-Villareal, Nicola Napoli, Clifford Qualls, Krupa Shah, Dennis T. Villareal (2011). Weight Loss, Exercise, or Both and Physical Function in Obese Older Adults. New England Journal of Medicine 364 (13): 1218-1229. doi:10.1056/NEJMoa1008234, ISSN 0028-4793. Retrieved 2013-07-21.
4. ^ a b Simona Calugi, Elena Centis, Marwan El Ghoch, Giulio Marchesini, Riccardo Dalle Grave (2010-10-28). Cognitive-Behavioral Strategies to Increase the Adherence to Exercise in the Management of Obesity. Journal of Obesity 2011. doi:10.1155/2011/348293, ISSN 2090-0708. Retrieved 2013-07-21.
5. ^ a b ric, Neil King, James A. Levine, Robert Ross, &#201 Doucet (2011-12-18). Update on Exercise and Weight Control. Journal of Obesity 2011. doi:10.1155/2011/358205, ISSN 2090-0708. Retrieved 2013-07-21.
6. ^ X. Gao, M. Chen, R. M. Van Dam, T. Wu (2009). Long-term effectiveness of diet-plus-exercise interventions vs. diet-only interventions for weight loss: a meta-analysis. Obesity Reviews 10 (3): 313–323. doi:10.1111/j.1467-789X.2008.00547.x, ISSN 1467-789X. Retrieved 2013-07-21.
7. ^ Marcus BH, Lang W, Janney C, Jakicic JM (2008-07-28). EFfect of exercise on 24-month weight loss maintenance in overweight women. Archives of Internal Medicine 168 (14): 1550-1559. doi:10.1001/archinte.168.14.1550, ISSN 0003-9926. Retrieved 2013-07-21.
8. ^ John J. Dubé, Francesca Amati, Maja Stefanovic-Racic, Shanjian Zhu, Frederico G. S. Toledo, Bret H. Goodpaster, Peter Chomentowski (2009-05-01). Moderate Exercise Attenuates the Loss of Skeletal Muscle Mass That Occurs With Intentional Caloric Restriction–Induced Weight Loss in Older, Overweight to Obese Adults. The Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences 64A (5): 575-580. doi:10.1093/gerona/glp007, ISSN 1079-5006, 1758-535X. Retrieved 2013-07-21.
9. ^ M Hopkins, P Caudwell, R J Stubbs, J E Blundell, N A King (2009-12). Beneficial effects of exercise: shifting the focus from body weight to other markers of health. British journal of sports medicine 43 (12): 924-927. doi:10.1136/bjsm.2009.065557, ISSN 1473-0480.
10. ^ Gul Tiryaki-Sonmez, Guler Bugdayci, Guclu Ozen, Serife Vatanasever-Ozen (2011). The Effects of Exercise on Food Intake and Hunger: Relationship With Acylated Ghrelin and Leptin. Journal of Sports Science and Medicine 10: 283 – 291.
11. ^ Masashi Miyashita, Lucy K Wasse, David J Stensel, James A King (2010-06). Influence of prolonged treadmill running on appetite, energy intake and circulating concentrations of acylated ghrelin. Appetite 54 (3): 492-498. doi:10.1016/j.appet.2010.02.002, ISSN 1095-8304.
12. ^ Megan Yamashiro, Jake Hinkel-Lipsker, Katherine Streder, Nero Evero, Terry Hackney, Todd Alan Hagobian (2012-11-01). Effects of acute exercise on appetite hormones and ad libitum energy intake in men and women. Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism 38 (1): 66-72. doi:10.1139/apnm-2012-0104, ISSN 1715-5312. Retrieved 2013-07-21.
13. ^ Jessica C Zahra, David J Stensel, Kevin Deighton (2012-06). Appetite, energy intake and resting metabolic responses to 60 min treadmill running performed in a fasted versus a postprandial state. Appetite 58 (3): 946-954. doi:10.1016/j.appet.2012.02.041, ISSN 1095-8304.
14. ^ F Tsofliou, Y P Pitsiladis, D Malkova, N Mutrie, S Higgins, M Maraki (2005-12). Acute effects of a single exercise class on appetite, energy intake and mood. Is there a time of day effect?. Appetite 45 (3): 272-278. doi:10.1016/j.appet.2005.07.005, ISSN 0195-6663.
15. ^ Neil A King, John E Blundell, Mark Hopkins (2010-11). Acute and long-term effects of exercise on appetite control: is there any benefit for weight control?. Current Opinion in Clinical Nutrition and Metabolic Care 13 (6): 635-640. doi:10.1097/MCO.0b013e32833e343b, ISSN 1363-1950. Retrieved 2013-07-21.
16. ^ Lars Klingenberg, Mads Rosenkilde, Jo-Anne Gilbert, Angelo Tremblay, Anders Sjodin, Jean-Philippe Chaput (2011). Physical Activity Plays an Important Role in Body Weight Regulation. Journal of Obesity 2011. doi:10.1155/2011/360257, ISSN 2090-0708. Retrieved 2013-07-21.