Hey readers, have you ever had this question- Is Exercise Necessary For Weight Loss, in your mind? Movement helps burn calories. A calorie is an energy measuring unit. A calorie is released when your body digests or absorbs food.
Is Exercise Necessary For Weight Loss? Health Facts Check!
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When you eat food with calories more than your body requires, it is stored in the body as body fat.
Understanding the ways obesity creates a vicious circle
The body requires energy to do every movement and activity, even sleeping. Weight gain happens when you take in more calories and burn lesser than you take in. This creates a circle wherein you keep taking in more energy in terms of calories, which results in weight gain. It may also lead to obesity.
Giving your body some work to burn calories with certain activities
You may not be able to control every activity in your body to lose weight. However, you can control how many calories you burn with physical activity. Any form of physical exercise helps you lose weight. Some of them are jogging, yoga, cycling weight training, swimming, etc.
Losing and gaining weight with weight training
You can also add lean muscle mass with weight training, over a period of time. Some people in order to gain weight also turn to exercises like squats and lunges. It could be understood that exercise works both ways. That is, in losing and gaining weight.
Seeing if exercise is the only source of weight loss
There are various ways to lose weight that don’t require you to exercise. Even controlling your diet, reducing fatty foods, and drinking lots of water can help in achieving weight loss over time. This means that weight loss is possible without the help of exercise. Exercise is an activity that helps you maintain your weight, and be physically, emotionally, and mentally fit.
Giving exercise the credit it should be for its benefits
Exercise helps in increasing your heart rate and keeping your cardiac health under check. It reduces the risk of diabetes, strokes, and other coronary diseases. Regular workout also increases lifespan.
Studying the overall result of exercise on your mind and thoughts
Mental health helps you process experiences, to put it in lay terms. Your emotional expression is when you express the feelings that you get with each of your experiences. It also includes the information that you process mentally. Having a daily habit of working out helps you maintain your state of wellbeing, both emotionally and mentally.
Exercise makes you feel good and lets you know that you are doing your part
The awareness that you are working out helps you feel better about your health, body, and mind. Working out makes you see that you are doing it to proactively keep yourself free from diseases and health problems. This emotional happiness boosts positivity and makes you feel happy throughout the day. This means that exercise has many positive impacts on the body and mind.
The pitfalls of leading a less active or a sedentary lifestyle
Not exercising may have a negative impact on your body and mind. If you avoid physical activity to a large extent, your metabolism rate may decrease. A lack of exercise also results in the loss of muscles both around the heart and the limbs. This results in feeling breathless or creates hindrances in taking deep breaths.
Knowing how not doing any form of activity or exercise can put you in danger
Problems increase if with the lack of exercise you lead a sedentary lifestyle. Other issues like smoking and drinking, can together have a very negative impact on your body in the absence of exercise. Some studies say that in the absence of exertion or because of no exercise at all, one may experience symptoms of dementia or depression. Apart from obesity, it may also cause critical diseases like cancer.
Having a protein-rich diet to boost metabolism and achieve weight loss
Weight loss can be achieved with a controlled diet as well. Concepts like intermittent fasting, when you fast for a number of hours before you have your first meal also results in weight loss. Having a protein-rich diet helps in losing weight. Because protein makes you feel fuller, even with smaller portions, making you feel satiated while giving you ample energy.
Understanding a hormone called Ghrelin to lose weight
Ghrelin is a hormone produced by the stomach, brain, small intestine, and pancreas. It performs many important functions to do with food. Ghrelin makes you feel hungry, regulates food intake and your body weight along with other important functions. One way to reduce ghrelin, eat fewer calories and encourage weight loss is by increasing healthy foods in your meals.
The role of Ghrelin and Leptin in terms of weight loss
The hormone leptin decreases appetite while the hormone ghrelin increases your appetite. The healthier you eat, the more satisfied your body and mind will feel thereafter. And the longer you can stay before you have your next meal. This also leads to curbing bingeing and achieving weight loss.
Turning to a high fiber diet to lose weight without exercise
Having a high-fiber diet can help reduce weight. Fruits and vegetables are high in fiber. Moreover, fruits and vegetables contain much less fat and carbohydrates. You can eat beans, sprouts, oats, bananas, berries, and many such fruits to have plenty of vitamins and minerals. Drinking a glass or two of water when thirsty instead of sipping aerated drinks can also help reduce sugar levels and lose weight.
Using mindfulness in losing weight and staying fit
You can still lose weight by skipping exercise and inculcating the habit of mindful physical activity. You can do this while doing your regular chores, reading books, cooking, watching movies, etc. If you sit upright, keep your foot on the floor, avoiding bending or folding your legs, you burn calories. As is, doing or even not doing anything requires energy.
Doing seemingly small things to make a long-lasting change
Deep breathing for about 15minutes can pump more oxygen in your body than suppressed or regular breathing for hours. Relaxing your shoulders and not resting your elbow on your legs can help retain a good posture and burn calories. While working at the office, studying, or doing your chores, keeping your posture upright helps work up the body and reap the benefits of the activity done. Likewise, your daily routine can help you avoid gaining weight and losing some calories, slowly but steadily.
Speeding up and increasing your input with the help of music
Keeping your energy level up is instrumental in keeping fit. You can use creative tactics to uplift your mood and maximize your effort without the stress. Turn on music as music is known to rejuvenate the mind and reduce stress while working or working out. Just as slow music calms the mind, upbeat music helps speed up your work and burn more calories quickly.
Making the most of group activities and getting more Sun
Dance, in combination with good meals, and a mindful daily routine can help reduce weight. Group activities like clubbercise, aerobics, or meditation can all boost your readiness to lose more weight. All these work best when you get outdoors in the morning and get some sunlight. Having a protein-rich diet in small portions with some fruits and water can make an immense improvement in fat burning.
Understanding your reason for weight gain and working on it
Knowing what causes you to gain weight quickly can also help pinpoint what needs to be taken care of. For some, it may be snacking like eating lots of wafers and chips, for another, it may be frequent skipping of meals. The reason why you gain weight or cannot lose weight might be what you should consider and thoughtfully work on. If you go by it objectively, you may be able to make efforts to curb your mistakes and make up for them to lose weight.
Being healthy the smart way by taking smaller steps
When you walk to work or avoid taking a ride to go from shop to shop while shopping, you burn calories. It increases heart rate and gives you an opportunity to get some sunshine if it is a sunny day. Morning sun is said to be more healthy as compared to afternoon or evening sunshine which may carry harmful UV rays. Such conscious efforts can help you, one way or another.
Handling weight loss the best way possible, just for you
Take a day off, and sit back to think about what makes you gain weight or feel heavy? List down factors that you know need a change like procrastinating. Then give yourself a week to bring a little change. Move on to every factor on the list to turn your routine around.
Mindfulness can go a long way in curbing binge eating
Mindfulness at home like keeping fatty foods far away, and eating in plates that are a little smaller can increase your willingness to avoid binging. Likewise, drinking ample water especially when thirsty can reduce hunger or the desire to binge, mostly in the middle of the night. This may be the time when the ghrelin production might be at its peak. That’s when not turning to spicy wafers, packaged snacks, or sugary desserts is the best idea.
Keeping aside quick fixes and having wholesome meals
You can lose weight by having frequent, smaller meals at regular intervals. These meals can satiate your hunger and provide the energy required to keep you going for the entire day. They need not be instant mixes that are loaded with scrumptious tastemakers. However, they are everything your taste buds would like and body be thankful for.
Benefiting from the bond or attachment that motivates you to lose weight
Having a healthy bond with family or friends releases endorphins. This “happiness hormone” reduces stress and boosts the sense of wellbeing. A sense of wellbeing can motivate you to make consistent efforts. Be it with maintaining a fat-free diet, being disciplined, or using the stairs instead of the elevator, reaching out to the switches than asking Alexa to do it for you, or cleaning your room yourself than asking a maid to do it for you.
It can be said that exercise is very good for health and it performs essential functions. However, as mentioned in the article- Is Exercise Necessary For Weight Loss? above, in the absence of exercise, regular physical exertion may also keep you healthy. It is not impossible to lose weight without exercise. What is important is that you regularly practice deep breathing, and avoid excessive amounts of food especially when you are not going to burn the calories. Weight loss relies on a group of factors and exercise is a part of it that is replaceable.
Lacey Arlo is a wellness expert and a nutritionist who aims to help members with health and diet queries. Lacey Arlo has worked with junior, national, and Olympic-level athletes by providing them with customizing programmers, supplement strategies, and support during their travel and competition. From weight management, PCOD, thyroid-related weight loss, and nutrition for children to diets for pregnant and diets for senior citizens, She offers nutrition-aided solutions for different age groups with consideration for each person’s unique health demands.