Wednesday, 19 August 2009
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What?! Exercising Won't Make You Thin??
Few weeks ago, I read an interesting article from Time Magazine that talked about “Why exercise won’t make you thin.” (Click here to read the article). Wow! To a health nut like me, that was a total shocker. The article stated that vigorous exercise stimulates hunger, leading you to eat more. It also said that you tend to reward yourself with a muffin, or other “unhealthy high-calorie treats” since you think you “burned off so much.”
I think this is somewhat true. Most of you may already know that it IS crucial to both exercise and watch what you eat if your goal is to lose weight or maintain your health. You can’t just exercise and eat whatever you want, or just skip your daily exercise, and solely watch what you eat. It may work, but definitely not in the long run.
Although I do agree with this article, I don’t think this applies to me. On the days when I workout rigorously, such as running more than I normally do, or taking a spinning class, I get more exhausted and tend to lose my appetite and can’t really eat anything.
What about you guys? Do you tend to eat more or less after a rigorous workout?
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About the Author
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- From: kimjh125
- Name: Joo
- About Me: I'm a runner and a health fanatic. I currently live in NYC.
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Comments (111)
If I work out realy hard, then yeah I can't eat anything else either cause I'll feel sick!
I tend to eat less directly after a hard workout (long run)
but overall I probably eat a bit more - which is understandable
I am such a waste, I pay race fees yet I can't seem to eat my money worth at the "refuel stations" after races...
I do find that I've gained some weight since starting to run semi-comp but it's all muscle so it's good.
I actually tend to eat less after I work out. I'd rather have something refreshing to drink like ice water. Also, knowing I'm going to be working out hard makes me watch what I eat since fatty foods, alcohol and heavy foods slow me down.
It's the days when I don't work out that I feel like shit and feel the need to eat more. What a concept!
Good post!
When I workout I don't feel hungry for a while after
I think it depends on what time of day I have a hard work out. If its early morning and I don't eat anything before the gym I feel weak and hungry after. Usually eating just 1 over easy egg will boost my energy completely back and satisfy my hunger. If it's in the middle of the day and I already had a meal I wont be hungry after.
But that article (which I did not read in its entirety) seems like a generalization. When I work out I feel better about my body and its calorie burning capabilities and I don't want to ruin it by eating a 400cal muffin or w/e so I eat healthy food. It's when I DONT work out that I'm like sure I'll take a cookie!
I read this article when I got the magazine, and it makes sense to an extent. I do tend to feel hungrier after a rigorous workout, but rarely do I overeat as a result. It's just finding that balance between food and exercise that some people have trouble with I suppose.
God, Time has gone down the crapper.
i think that's due to, like the article says, the fact that people choose to eat unhealthy foods after exercising. not due to the exercise.
exercise stimulates hunger, and there are appropriate foods to consume after certain workouts (lean protein after strength training, carbs after cardio...) so i disagree, exercise will still make you thinner. but i guess "fitter" is the better term.
I am starving after I work out; but I wouldn't go wasting it on a muffin. Excercise alone will not make you lose weight; you also have to eat foods that are nutritionally good for you. It goes hand in hand. So, no I don't agree with this article. Exercise is a necessity. It's just that people often choose the wrong things to eat after working out.
exercise isn't the problem, and paired with healthy and restricted eating, it WILL make you thin. it's when people believe that they exercised so hard that they get to treat themselves to unhealthy food, is when exercise is a negative thing. i haven't read this article, but from the way you describe it, it sounds like next time time magazine decides to write an article about this they should clear it up that not everyone pigs out after they exercise.
it's true :)
I don't tend to eat anything after a work out cuz I'm tired and I take a nap or something. Even when I wake up I don't eat more then I regularly do. I think it's just another scare tactic and myth to take more weight loss pills or surgery instead of doing the good old fashion exercise.
excercise does make u lose weight, who are these liars? Secondly, why would anybody on earth think its a good idea to pig out on cupcakes, chips and pies and expect good results wether they work out or not? Come on, get real.
Exercise makes you lose weight even if you don't *change* your eating habits. Like if you were like me before: eating what I wanted, around 2000 calories a day. I haven't changed my eating habits much, still around 1800-2000 calories a day (which maintained my body weight at my previous level of movement), but I also work out more.The addition of movement causes me to burn more, therefore a net loss of calories and a net loss of fat. I've been gaining muscle, but my pant size has been going down!
If I work out a lot, ex. doing my 500-calorie burn work out tape, I usually reward myself with something small, like *a* cookie or a piece of dark chocolate...that doesn't come close to adding all the calories back, so I'm still burning 400-500 calories.
well then the article lied. exercising DOES make you thin, it's what you do in response to exercising that makes you fat.
i hate it when things like this are written, trying to make exercising seem not worth it or something.
If I work out enough, I get too exhausted to eat anything and end up falling asleep. But it's true, if I only do a small workout, I tend to indulge in more high-calorie food because I think I deserve a treat for burning off those calories. Pretty much defeats the purpose in the end.
i know huh..i know someone that tries to do extreme exercise..buh goes and eat something so unhealthy..that she's back to just maintaining the same weight..if you're gonna exercise, i guess you have to eat healthy all the way too..to keep losing that weight.
I read this article on a different forum and I've been mad ever since. Personally, I eat less when I exercise and the ONLY time I loose weight and keep it off is when I'm exercising.
I think the author of this article is doing the wrong exercise. If you read it, it's clear he's not enjoying his exercise. Maybe that can make a big difference b/c once I get started, I can't wait to go swimming or to a pilates class. It's fun.
America has so many over weight and obesse people (myself included) that it offends me that Time would publish and article like this. We need to encourage people to exercise, not the other way around.
If people are too stupid not to eat a donut after they work out, it's not exercise's fault, it the individual's bad judgement. That's why it's DIET AND EXERCISE!
I think I tend to crave more food and I have to really watch what I'm doing. When I was younger, I had trouble doing that. Especially when I got to the 7th grade and we started to have PE every day. On the days we did more in PE class, I would end up going home and eating an entire bag of Dorito's I was so hungry.
As I got older, I learned to watch what the heck I was putting into my mouth, though. Still, my weight climbed pretty high and I really did have to manage it with only watching what I ate at first, because my body couldn't handle much exercise at that point. Once I got down to a weight that I could start to do more exercise, I learned to do it right.
I still have a little ways to go yet, but I'm steadily moving toward my ideal weight. And I'm quite proud of myself, no matter what anyone thinks, lol!
But, yes, that is definitely true. If you are going to exercise, you need to also watch what you eat. And that means little snack rewards aren't always the best idea. Although, I'm sure there are healthy snack alternatives. I just tend not to reward myself with food at all. I think it gives me bad ideas about cheating with something a lot less good for me. :/
Exactly! I don't agree with this article, either. Wouldn't you just wanna watch what you eat especially after all that hard workout you did??
That cat is sooo cute, btw. :)
All i can really say is that the way the body functions is an exact science; the way your muscles function, blood flows, filters waste, produces energy, etc. Every single body is slightly unique, but the blood pumps through the heart and calories are burned to produce energy the same way in everyone. The only exceptions are those people who's body functions are altered or disrupted due to diseases or abnormalities. The difference between those who exercise regularly and do lose weight vs. those who don't lose weight is attitude!! Nobody is making people go stuff their faces after a workout, or any other time for that matter. Its not that hard to eat right, so don't cry about it when you don't lose weight but you still have double servings at meals and never miss desert cuz you think the 20 minutes of cardio you did today was enough!!
I wonder if the person who wrote the article actually works out and/or eats healthy. Or are they a lazy fat journalist who probably didn't want to GO OUT and find a real story??
@C_UNIT42@xanga - hey great way of putting it! It is the ATTITUDE!
I'm so tired of "health experts" contradicting themselves. If you excercise and pay attention to the calories burned off, and eat healthily ALWAYS and know how many calories you're taking in, you shouldn't have an issue with weight loss. Period.
If I excercise, I'm not about to go stuff my face with cookies to celebrate, that's effing dumb. If you think you're "rewarding" yourself, you've got it backwards. The reward is the weightloss, the punishment is the fatty-foods you eat that put it back on.