Anyone losing without exercise?

Just curious if anyone is consistently losing even though not exercising more than usual daily stuff (sedentary).

Hi drchap,

I'm averaging about half a pound a week with just sticking with my recommended calorie amount and doing no exercise - I'm in a cast right now so not able to do anything so that's about as sedentary as you can get!

Julie

Hey!  I am sticking to a 1250 calorie diet and I have lost six pounds in two weeks.. my husband has lost seven doing the same thing.. we ordered a treadmill that should arrive around the 17th so hopefully I can do even better!

Laurie

There are different stages of being ready to actively change life style behaviors that result in outcomes that are important, e.g., lose weight, get lipid and glucose values into healthy ranges, etc.

I thought I was beyond the contemplation and preparation stages: but, I'm not. I'm still trying to figure out how to successfully address and get around my barriers to actively change eating and exercise patterns that are not helpful or healthful.

I applaud those of you who have moved into the active stage and peruse the site to gain more motivation and ideas that will spur me into action.

If knowledge alone enabled one to be of normal weight and physically fit, I'd have it made...but, the head isn't where it's at -- it's the heart -- and the hand/elbow! (not to say, it's also the feet and legs...and mouth!!)

drchap, exercise alone will not enable weight loss to progress very quickly -- it would take too much time: you still need to take in fewer kcals...However, exercise will help keep the lean muscle, while decreasing the fat as you lose weight. More importantly, it will also tone you and make you more physically fit to KEEP the weight you lose off -- and will be motivational and make you feel better.

One of the more motivating ways to increase physical activity, is to purchase a good pedometer (will cost $10 to $25) and just keep track of your steps every day. Make sure the pedometer works -- and it should have a cover so you don't accidentally zero it out! (NOT motivating!)

Then, if you record whatever you put into your mouth, you'll help motivate yourself into action at some point, as well.

Right now I'm at a symposium for the weekend, but I plan to purchase a good pedometer in the next day or two...there's a Dick's sporting goods store near the motel.

I guess I could also start tracking my intake, too. Hmmm....should follow my own advice!

www.mypyramid.gov has great plans, even menu planners, as well as food and exercise trackers...I highly recommend it.

So, that's as much as I can commit to at this point... 

Thanks for the replies!

Like taggersgal, I started out losing fast.  As of today I have lost 20 lbs, but I have 25 lbs to go.   But lately I've had a couple of plateaus that are pretty frustrating -- lasting 2 wks each.  So far my weight loss has been with only watching my food intake and occasionally taking a fast walk .

I understand what you're talking about Sandrako.... and for the life of me I don't know why I finally took action this time!  Maybe since I'm so near the computer most of the time, it was finally easy enough to log my food with this site.  That has been THE DIFFERENCE for opening my eyes to what I was putting in my body.  I've tried before by writing things down and calculating calories manually but it was too much work!

I guess I have to exercise to get anywhere because I can only eat 1200 calories because of being 51 and female and sedentary.  Supposedly I still have a 500 cal. deficit without exercising, but the weight loss has definitely slowed down.

So yesterday I borrowed some dumbbells from a friend, and spent a bunch of time this morning reading about beginning strength training on CC.  I am pretty ignorant on this subject.  I printed out the various exercise instructions and put them in a binder.  So we'll see if I can finally get my rear in gear and do something about the exercise part. 

Good luck to everyone else -- esp to primrosejm in the cast!

I hate exercise. So initially I lost a lot of weight with just watching the calories. But I realized I still had a fat middle....and was out of breath walking, etc. So I started a formal "brisk" walking routine 4-6 times a week for 2-3 miles and started toning up with situps, etc. I feel even better today and the "loose" parts of this 55yo body are starting to tighten up. It seems I'm less hungery as well. So I'm convinced it is worth the extra work.

Congratulations to all of us for our efforts to lose weight and become more healthy!

I used to hate exercise too - absolutely HATED it.  I say that so y'all will understand what a transformation I've gone through.  My top weight two years ago was 283 (female, 5'9", 51), and I started CC in September at 245.  Currently I'm at 215.  I generally maintain my calories around 1500-1700 but the big difference for me has been aerobic exercise (treadmill, walking as fast as I can to the beat of the music in my iPod).

For me, the benefits go way beyond weight loss.  Although of course that's a big one too, because I still have to lose 20-30 pounds to get to the bmi recommended by my dietician.  At my age, I am concerned about bone density, blood sugar, cardio-vascular health, and exercise is the key to all that.

So last week I added upper body weights to my work out.  It definitely takes commitment, I spend 1.5 hours at the gym on my days off, and two other 1/2 hour treadmill sessions on two work days.  It's worth it - the weight is coming off, I'm seeing improvements in stamina, I'm looking forward to firming up the "wings" that flap under my arms.  I have more energy and my mood is stable.

So now I can say, I LOVE exercise.  The goal for me is to still be saying this 1-2-3 years from now, when I am no longer a starry-eyed newcomer.

Thanks for all the inspirational goings on...you all are doing so marvelously.

Drchap, be sure to add some aerobic exercise...that's where the weight loss will kick up again.

Not much to add...it's been a very busy week!

drchap -- probably need to up the exercise to get the kcals coming off again. If you're able, you might get your RMR done: resting metabolism rate. If it's slow, you may need fewer calorie intake and/or more exercise to keep losing. Do NOT go below 1,000 kcal...actually, 1,200 kcals lowest you "should" go...and RMR would give at least a little more info...it costs about $75-$120, depending on where you live.

Eating early in the day, exercising in am instead of pm also will help: RMR lower at night...exercise done in the am can bump RMR over the whole day.

Hope this is helpful.

I don't know about drchap, sandrako, but your information was very helpful for me!  I exercise in the morning because I am a lark and not a night owl - if I wait until after work I absolutely will NOT maintain an exercise program.  What you said about about morning exercise bumping up RMR throughout the day, and allowing your RMR to be lower before bed, makes perfect sense.

Do you know who you talk to about getting the RMR done?  Primary care provider?

You can ask your PCP to see if s/he knows. A registered dietitian (RD) might have a reference if s/he doesn't do it. Bariatric clinics use them pretty frequently...you might check there.

a caveat: Use this info carefully. We are who we are: most of us are not going to be skinny minnies...

What is to be strived for is health and fitness. A lifestyle that includes food that is grown as locally as possible with as little "pre-processing"/packaging as possible.

Eat slowly and mindfully (try chewing each bits 32 times!). Nothing in moderation is forbidden.

Then, walk and move...use the beautiful body you've been given, no matter its shape. Be thankful!

The info you get from an RMR is most helpful when you are already eating a pretty limited diet and remain stalled for over a month. Before putting out the money, write down what you're eating to see if there are "holes" in your memory.

Moreover, it's also important to review your lifestyle for tenacity: can you eat what you're eating for a life time. This is the biggest drawback of most "diets" that are based on a narrow range of "acceptable" foods.

Keep it real.

Hope this helps!

Sorry for the double post, but there's another point to keep in mind:

Exercise at ANY time is GOOD!!! If the evening is the only time you have to do it, go for it...the suggestions about am exercise was to point out some advantages; but they are slight: exercising at night should not impede your progress...but, remember, that progress should be measured in terms of fitness, not just weight loss.

In general, exercise assists weight loss, but does not determine it. HOWEVER, you NEED to exercise to KEEP weight off! The fact is, once you've lost the weight, it's harder to keep off...your body doesn't need as many kcals and will fight to put weight back on without the output...Exercise during weight loss enables you to become fit enough to maintain an active enough  lifestyle to stay at a lighter weight for life.

If this sounds like chicken-egg arguing (which cam first!), you're right...

It's all connected.

Have a great day!

Hey sandrako -- Thanks for all the "food for thought" !  I've been real busy and haven't been on here.  Thanks for all the info and encouragement.  Will read it again when I have time to think. :)

Hope everyone's doing well !

drchap...I'm so busy, too. House renovation gone wild! Maybe I'll be out of my barn by '09!

I ramble on and on anyway.

Hi Folks

I am new to this, just started my umpteenth diet last week, I just happened on this site when the pack of cashews didn't have any calorie info, glad it happened.

When I googled cashews found the calorie counter and put my info and here I am.

Cashews were part of a fad diet.  it sort of worked but too constricting and I couldn't stick to it. 

I have recently had a sacroilliac injury plus I have other joint problems so exercise is out for the time being.  glad to hear that people are losing weight without by sticking to the calories.

on ward and upward (downward i mean)

Good luck to all

Hey, there, ymclynn...

Erase "diet" from your vocabulary:...."die...it" needs to be "live...it!"

The idea is to eat healthier, move (when you can!) and create a life style that you can live. Diets do not let you live: they constrain and constrict...

Since you're a bit bum-bound, find some ideas for creating healthy food choices at www.mypyramid.gov. Easy site to peruse and LOTS of good stuff to use.

I'm in a period of just "watching" ...hard to explain. But, circumstances at the moment make it difficult for me to do more. I'm just trying to at least maintain. Which I'm doing successfully...

Have a good day! Stary warm (it's 19 here!)

Me (shyly waves hand).  I've lost pretty steadily on 1300 cals/day without doing any exercise.  Usually (like many people, my weight has gone up and down), at this point in a diet I've been exercising for the past 20 pounds (roughly 3 or 4 months).  This time--it's just different.  For one thing, I started out just wanting to eat more healthy (having come to the conclusion that it was ridiculous for a 57-year-old woman to eat like a 20-year-old college student); the weight loss was, originally, a happy side effect.  For another, I'm older, and my knees hurt, and so does my shoulder.  So I decided to not worry about it for the time being.  I'm not saying I'll never exercise again--among other things, I want to stay flexible and rebuild some muscle--I just think I'll take this changing-life-style thing one step at a time.

I like some exercise but have had aches and pains and cramps that have kept me from doing my favorite: running/jogging. So, I just went stupid and gave up and gained a bunch of weight. I am now, thanks to that stupidity, 20 lbs over what I have been most of my adult life (5'2", ~140). I pooh-poohed the importance of calories and was that crazy! Now I know calories are IT! They are the key. When I can I will add exercise but I am encouraged to see you guys are losing on calories alone. I do intend to add exercise to the mix when I am feeling better. At least at this point in my life I do not make bad eating choices. I am not stuck on the junk i liked when I was a teenager.

Original Post by sandrako:

Hey, there, ymclynn...

Erase "diet" from your vocabulary:...."die...it" needs to be "live...it!"

The idea is to eat healthier, move (when you can!) and create a life style that you can live. Diets do not let you live: they constrain and constrict...

 

Hi Sandrako,

wonderful advice. One reason diets so often fail is that they are intended to be temporary. Then we go back to the same mindless eating that got us all here. Why are we so surprised when the pounds return?

For me, what works is to eat mindfully with creative foods w/high level of spice and flavor. Nothing is "forbidden" - mainly because once it's forbidden, I want it, no I NEED it now.

For this Way of Eating (sounds so Zen like), I look at the options and purposefully choose the tastiest low calorie stuff available. Sometimes I look at the choices and nothing else will do except a specific high calorie food. If I choose it, the choice hasn't wrecked my "diet" cuz I'm not on one! I've simply chosen a higher calorie item to eat that time. Anyway, it works for me. Foods that I used to crave all the time are now simply tasty every now and thens.

I learned to eat this way from a book called Picture Perfect Weight Loss - anyone else try that? A number of years ago I experienced my first major weight gain and eating with this frame of mind made the pounds melt (very little exercise, just yoga) and they stayed away for about 4 years. Now, a series of crisis events combined with a few years of mindless eating, and I have my Friendly 45 back. I hope it works as well this time and that next time I can chill and think a bit when those stressors hit.

thanks for everyone who posts at CC. What a very encouraging group!

You really can't lose weight, without exercise.  Lowering your caloric intake is the best first step,but I've found that when you do both, exercise and lower your intake, you lose weight, and you feel better about yourself.  I'm 57 and have used a Nordic Track Ski Machine for the last 15 yrs religiously, but could not lose weight.

When I combined reduced caloric intake and excercise, I've lost 22 lbs in 7 weeks and am still losing.  Stay positive and force yourself to exercise.  If you're walking, it's going to take at least an hour each day to make any difference.  Elliptical machines are great also with no impact (and you can watch TV).

Best of luck,

Greg

Hi drchap,

I think it's great to exercise. However, I manage to put it off daily. I procrastinate. It is very bad that at 55 years old I still can't make myself exercise regularly. But my way around it is going shopping. I get in a lot of exercise looking for bargains. I have been very successfully losing weight once my bp medication was changed. The other one slowed down my metabolism and I watched my weight go up without the ability to control it. Now just keeping my calorie intake low and doing the usual housework I'm losing weight. I just can't get excited about going to a sweaty gym.

So the answer is yes! You can lose weight without exercising. I weighed 137 when I began with CC in Sep. I weigh 112.8 now. I'm not quite 5' tall so I really can't carry the extra unhealthy weight. I look and feel better than I have in years. Both are important to me.