Has anyone lost weight without working out?

I am 23 years old, 5'5 and currently about 150 pounds. The thinnest I've ever been was 127 and this is where I am trying to get.

I am totally aware about all the benefits of working out, like building muscles, speeding up metabolism, feeling better etc etc etc. But I hate it. Always hated it. And I don't think I can change. I am ok with the idea that it will take me a lot longer to lose weight by restricting alone.

I am curretly eating 1200 calories a day and I am very strict about that, I document everything including single sugar free cough drop. I do not feel hungry at all and even allow myself to indulge in pizza sometimes (making sure I do not go over 1200 cals). Oh, I also steer cleared of sugar and this has been the best thing I have ever done for my body and mood.

So my question is: will I lose weight? Has anyone of you lost weight without working out?

YES!  I started out dieting by just changing what I ate.  After several months, I'd lost almost 10 pounds but, more importantly, had more energy and realized I WANTED to workout to speed up the weight loss process and tone my body. The important thing is to have a 500-1000 calorie deficit each day.  Depending on how much walking/standing you do during the day, you could probably up  your calories to 1400 or 1500 and still lose.  Before I started working out, I also found it was crucial for me to get 25-30g of fiber/day and drink about 120 oz. of water.

I'm not guaranteeing what worked for me will work for you but I think you can have success.

i have been counting for a month today and have lost 7.8 lbs and really dont "exercise" at all. I dont drive so if i want to go somewhere i walk but other than that nothing really and i have always walked everywhere so its nothing new to my body. now im 5'10 and i now weigh 238 lbs so i have more to loose than you and it may come off me a bit faster at first but yeah drink lots'o'water and keep counting, just make sure you are getting enough calories i eat about 2100 a day i usually dont get to 2100 but thats my goal each day. i burn around 2600 a day so i have a 500 defecit. I love to exercise but i have found that my back and neck hurt more when i do so i wanted to loose some weight first then start getting into it (i have had back problems my whole life, even being thin).

You could totally do it.

I have lost weight without exercise, but always gained it back.  Have you ever thought about trying to incorporate non-structured excercise into your routine?  Walking at lunch breaks at work, or parking your car farther away from the grocery store entrance?  Swimming at the local Y?  Is there any form of physical activity that you enjoy?  Dancing, jumprope?  I know this may seem random, but physical exercise in ANY form is not only good for your body, but for your mentality as well.  Take it from someone who used to hate getting off of the couch to change the channel.  It can really be a blessing.  Even a little change in your routine can yield results.  It doesn't have to be in the gym.  Let us know how it goes for you!

Sure, just plan on eating low calorie, everyday, for the rest of your life.

Will you be able to do that?  I've known many, many people restrict calories and lose to a goal weight and every single one gained it all back.  Not only gained it all but actually gained extra above that. 

One example (and only one of all that I've seen):  My friend did this to lose 40 lbs.  She did so by calorie restriction and lost it.  She maintained her goal weight for about a year.  Now, 4 years later, she has gained back 80 lbs from her original goal weight.

You will not maintain your weight loss unless you make a serious lifestyle change.   The only effective way to lose weight and keep it off is to eat healthy food (notice I did not say low calorie or restrictive, but healthy) and do some form of exercise.  We can all "diet" and lose it but what are the long term goals here---------to maintain the weight loss and stay at a healthy weight.

You can lose weight and be totally sedentary but I'd also encourage you to find your own way to be more active ...  I've lost weight before with just calorie-control and, like oicclouds' friend, it didn't last.   I like food too much to condemn myself to a lifetime of eating not very much....     Like you, I'm not a 'sporty type' and feel like a complete fish out of water in a gym environment.   However, there are other ways to be mobile rather than immobile and they'll benefit you not only in terms of weight-loss and toning up but also in terms of general health... reducing cholesterol levels, lowering blood-pressure etc.  Plus, if you find the right activities and make friends in the process, it's a lot of fun.  

Excellent advice gi-jane!  Finding the right activity is so important.  You don't have to use the gym or jog.  You may find you like to go walk for an hour with a friend.  Or play softball.  Or heck, even help coach a youth sports team (trust me, that is a workout).  Or go to the beach and walk the beach and swim.  Or ski, etc......

A childhood friend has discovered he loves geo-caching and has lost a lot of weight hunting down cache's and he doesn't even consider it exercise but a hobby.  LOL!

I lost my first 8 pounds or so with exercise and then I was at a stand still for a month.  I tried everything, switched up my exercise routine, increased my calories, etc.  Nothing worked. 

I stopped exercising and I've lost another 12 pounds.  Today I'm weighing in at 157.6 from my starting weight of 178. 

I agree that it is important to be active...I love walking outside and taking hikes but I don't do that daily and I'm not going to the gym.  I decided for myself that I want to get with 10 or so pounds of my goal and go back to the gym to tone up when the pounds aren't as important.

I will tell you that my weight has not been flying off so you shouldn't expect miracles (it shouldn't come off to fast in any case).  I've lost 20.4 pounds since day after christmas I would say...stricter diet for the rest of december and calorie counting starting in January.  This is a losing pace that I am fine with...I think almost 21 pounds this year is quite amazing for me and I am due to reach my goal of 48 pounds lost by late october/early november. 

Good luck!!

Last year I lost about 15 pounds with rigorous (obsessive but within CC's recommended calorie goals) dieting and lots and LOTS of exercise--a combo of steady state cardio, HIIT and weight lifting.  It took FOREVER, it seemed like, to see results.  I had almost NO change in my weight or shape for over a month.

I gained most of it back for various reasons, mainly because I have a really unhealthy relationship with food that I'm trying to sort out, and the workouts I was doing weren't enough to offset that.

ANYWAY, I started counting calories again two weeks ago, and though I LOVE to work out, I am in the middle of a crazy time at work (lots of sitting and typing and driving and overtime) and haven't been able to carve out any workout time.  And just by keeping myself in the 1300-1450 calorie range (I'm 5'1" and currently 129-ish) with no exercise I lost 5 pounds in less than two weeks, and am fitting into my clothes a lot better. 

I don't understand how I'm losing so much so fast this time, since when I did it the "right" way (with exercise) last year it took so long to see any results.  But okay, I'll take it.  And I kind of wonder how it's going to be in a week or two when I can finally get my workout time back again.

Its defenatly possible although it will obviously be slower than exersizing.

I'm pretty sedatory and Just after christmas i lost 13lb in 3 weeks by dieting in a BAD way, but now im eating well and on 1200cal im still losing weight (2.6lb this week ).

If you want to lose weight without exersize though you will defenatly have to take the plunge and change your eating habbits for good, because if your not exercising and you go back to your previous eating habbits it will just pile back on.

Its really down to wether you can sacrifise the eating habbits instead of exercising off the extra calories.

I've lost over 40 lbs. in 6 months just by reducing my intake.  I get all the exercise I need at work, so I don't do any dedicated "working out."  So yes, it's very possible. 

For long term health benefits, you'll do well to change your apprehension to exercise. Not only will your heart live longer, but you'll be a great role model for your kids/future kids (assuming you plan to have them someday.) I think you should stop thinking of exercise as a chore to lose weight and start thinking about it as if it is an essential part of life--like eating and sleeping. 

Perhaps you're trying too hard of workouts. I always hated exercise when it was really painful and hard to do. Try something low impact and easy going. You can't possible hate walking, can you? Go for a morning or evening walk. Walking is a form of exercise. You'll be surprised at how well it starts/ends your day.

I would say, just focus on eating well for right now. I  could not manage to eat well, count calories, and exercising in the beginning.  I started by learning to eat well.  After several months, I started counting calories.  Then, a couple months (and after about 10 pounds of weight loss), I started to exercise regularly.  The exercise would be great for you but don't let anyone pressure you into it before you're ready.  This is about making lifestyle changes you can commit to.

That said, what forms of exercise have you tried/not tried?  Sign up for a dance class with a friend, buy a pool pass (summer is coming up!), go for a walk, throw a frisbee for your dog or borrow a dog from a friend/neighbor if you don't have one, plant a garden and maintain it.  There's lots of ways you can incorporate regular exercise without getting your heart rate up (though the benefits of cardio for long-term health are remarkable) and just trying to be a healthier, more active person.

I lost the first 30 pounds of the 62 I've lost so far without exercise. If you think you hate exercising, you've never met me, and I've had an extra 17 years in which to nurture a hatred of it.

You can lose the weight without exercise. You might look better for having a bit of tone under your skin, but that is your personal decision.

Interesting replies everyone. I hate exercise too. Number one reason is I have dizzy attacks when i get on treadmill I guess because of my ear. So I tried to stay on light walking or standing instead of sitting whenever I can. I make sure I get about 1000 cal deficit in my calories most of the days if I exclude days that I give into cravings. So far I have lost 10 lbs @2lbs/wk. Losing weight is by no means easy without exercise but so far light work did seem to help me. Hope this helps you. Good luck.

Original Post by oicclouds:

Sure, just plan on eating low calorie, everyday, for the rest of your life.

Will you be able to do that?  I've known many, many people restrict calories and lose to a goal weight and every single one gained it all back.  Not only gained it all but actually gained extra above that. 

One example (and only one of all that I've seen):  My friend did this to lose 40 lbs.  She did so by calorie restriction and lost it.  She maintained her goal weight for about a year.  Now, 4 years later, she has gained back 80 lbs from her original goal weight.

You will not maintain your weight loss unless you make a serious lifestyle change.   The only effective way to lose weight and keep it off is to eat healthy food (notice I did not say low calorie or restrictive, but healthy) and do some form of exercise.  We can all "diet" and lose it but what are the long term goals here---------to maintain the weight loss and stay at a healthy weight.

I think you will have negative responses to your post.  I plan on eating healthy for the rest of my life.  I plan on eating maintenance meals and I don't plan on getting exercise just for the sake of exercising.  You can not tell me that your friends were eating properly and gained weight.

Yes, I did.  To be honest - I find it much harder to lose wieght since I started t work out!  I started my 'diet' on November 27th last year when I weighed 180 pounds and now I am 144 pounds.  By the way I am 5ft 11" so although my current weight sounds above average, my BMI is in the healthy zone.  I joined a gym and I do a 45 min spin class 4 times per week over the past 2 months but I have only lost 4 pounds out of the total 36 that I have lost.  I lost more by sticking to 1200 per day - sure it was hard but the results speak for themselves.  I do not think I lose that much now because my body is comfortable at my weight but my goal is 10 stone.  I do need to get out of this goal mindset though - for I amlosing inches but not weight now and that's teh main thing, right?  Also my calories deficit can be high on spin days  and bodies dont tend to give out fat when the deficit is too high :(

All that said, I love getting fit - it's such a good feeling that I can keep up with the spin instructor and I can use the stairs in work without getting out of breath!  I would not give up spin now - it's sociable and invogorating and such a great way to tone up and improve my heart's health.

I also documented EVERYTHING that I ate and I still do - it's the only way to go.  I dont see the point of the attitude of "oh it's just one piece of chocolate and 30 cals wont make a difference".  Sure they wont but the saturated fat will and if you say that 3 times a day then you're looking at nearly 100 cals that you dont log!  Unlogged cals soon build up!

Good luck x

for me, exercise came first.  i wanted to lose weight, but instead of focusing on the scale, i started a run/walk program.  i cut out most junk food and alcohol, but didn't count calories at all.  i've lost almost 30 pounds without dieting, only counting occasionally to check myself.

the thing is, exercise doesn't have to happen in a stinky gym or on a machine.  i never go to the gym; i just try to get outside every day, lift a little, etc.  i have a manual reel lawn mower that i push up and down the hill in my back yard in summer and i shovel my own driveway in winter.

losing weight feels great, but it can't touch the way i feel when i have a great run or notice the definition in my arms and how much firmer my legs and ass are now.

oh yeah - and subsisting on 1200 calories a day?  definitely not for me.

pgeorgian... you live in California?  I live in Bootle, Liverpool which is the the very dreary and very rainy city in the north west of England.  Your weather is glorious all the time for those 'non-gym' workouts and you probably have a lawn and all sorts to do said exercise on this lawn.  I do have a back yard but my yard is exactly that - in the UK a yard is just a few square metres of paved/cemented space outside the back of a terraced house (terraced is a house with another house joined on either side).  There is no park nearby and the traffic is congested.  So I personally need to go to those stinky gyms to get a workout- plus when I pay £25 English pounds per month, it motivates me to get off my bum (English version of ass) and go.  My world sounds so far removed from your world...

Different people enjoy different things and it would be a pretty boring world if we were all the same.  1200 cals/day and counting works for lots of people too, it did for me and it will do for many others.  It's great that you're lucky enough to be able to just mow a lawn and shovel a driveway in all year round sunshine and you lose weight but for those that dont have a driveway or even a lawn then cal counting works just fine.

Righto, I'm off the gym...

Hey nelly, I live in the Midlands and I don't even have an outside area to my flat and i still get all my exercise running around town like a delinquent! I view the city as my front garden 

Different things work for different people is all (I am also too poor for the gym...)

Original Post by nelly1880:

pgeorgian... you live in California? 

ha - no.  CAnada.  53rd parallel, actually; winter arrives in october and lasts until april.  i still have snow in my yard.

year round sunshine.  that's amusing.