Weight loss without exercise... opinions/thoughts/experiences?

Has anyone here lost the weight from strictly watching their calories and not done any exercise?  Are you happy about that?  Did you see the results you wanted?

Is not exercising an awful option.... I mean I realize getting some exercise is good (and I do walk for about 20-30mins a day... and I have a 3 year old  I chase after) but am I being detrimental to my health by not doing more?

I'm seeing great results from watching my calories... makes it even harder to get motivated to do more exercise when I sorta don't  feel like I need to? 

Looking for some interesting opinions/responses.

Stats:  
Female, 31 years old. 5'7"
SW:   185  07.01.08
CW:   166  08.28.08
GW:   145

Thanks!

My mum has lost 87lbs without exercise, through diet alone. The most she does is the amount of working on her feet she goes through most days a week (working for a busy Post Office branch) and some walking.

I would still try to do exercise. The reason she avoids it is thanks to sciatica - only lately has she decided to start doing some yoga/pilates and aqua areobics as she wants low impact exercise to help her tone up, now.

Hi Niccimax, I'm certain losing weight through diet manipulation alone is possible, although I couldn't imagine doing it myself.  The problem with it is that you won't be getting healthier, just smaller.  If that's your goal, then you will have achieved it.  Exercise will do a lot more than just make you smaller, though: it will increase your energy levels, your endurance, your cardiovascular efficiency...I could go on and on.  There are many studies that link higher exercise levels with lower risk of depression and other mental disorders.  The benefits are too many to list here!

Chasing after a 3-year-old is great, but 30 min of sustained aerobic exercise at least every other day will work wonders for your well-being.  Another major factor to keep in mind is that losing weight through diet manipulation alone will not tone you up at all: you'll still be jiggly, just jiggly and smaller.  Strength training will make you toned; it will make you look like the healthier person you'll become.

Slow eight loss is why I have to go into "crazy workout" mode, If I don't see the scale move like I want it to I lose my motivation to diet. By combining diet and exercise you usually see quicker results because it's easier to max out the calorie deficit (1000 being the healthy Max).

Most usually end up turning to exercise by the end of their weight loss journey because they want to "tighten up"

Hi guys, to be completely honest my weight loss has resulted from pretty much only diet and watching my calorie intake/deficit.
I have to date lost 15kg... now I'm at my goal weight I have started pole dancing for fitness and only now beginning to tone up and get the body shape i want because of the strength training involved.. just from dieting alone I became 'skinny fat' because I lost muscle tissue...I believe if you combine both diet and strength training/cardio you will see the best possible results and be more successful in attaining and keeping your goals...
..but in a nutshell I am so happy with the results I have got from just watching my calories (the easy stuff) and Im even happier with the results I am getting now from exercise (the tough stuff).

I hope this helps and good luck! any questions feel free to msg me!

SammyXx

It is so interesting that for you  watching calories is the easy part and exercising is the tough part.  It is the exact opposite for me.  i love to exercise and have struggled for years to control what I eat.

You can definitely lose weight from diet alone. But it is slower. Also if you are trying to lose those last few pounds (like 10-15) then I am not sure it is possible to do because those are the most stubborn!

My mom has lost 60 pounds on diet alone but she has about 10 pounds to go and has not been able to lose them. She is not excercising.

exercise contributes greatly to health and quality of life.  i know you know this, but honestly, feeling strong is so much better than feeling thin. 

it will also make maintaining a whole lot easier, when you reach your goal.  having to count calories indefinitely and worry about every little indulgence is no fun.  exercise keeps you metabolism up and gives you lee-way to treat yourself.

it's good that you're walking, and a toddler definitely takes energy, but the fact is, our bodies adapt pretty quickly to that level of exercise and the benefits diminish.  walking 30 minutes is great if you've been sedentary, but if you've been walking at the same intensity for months or years, the benefit has levelled out and probably isn't contributing much to your weight loss (though it's good for preventing osteoporosis).

the good new is your kid is old enough to get involved in recreational sports (kick-and-run soccer, gymnastics, swimming, skating, etc) and you can get in on that by volunteering ;)

I started out by eating about 1200-1500 calories per day with about 25-30 mins of cardio everyday, but February-May I had some surgeries done and was unable to exercise, and oddly enough, I lost more weight, my eating was about the same though, it might have been because of tghe surgery though, but now that I've lost a lot of weight, I'm getting kind of lazy, healthy eating isn't really a problem for me, just the exercise, but I find I still lose weight just fine without exercise.

Great question and I can absolutely relate to where you're coming from regarding exercising because you feel you have to.  I have lost weight (20 pounds so far in 8 weeks) using CCC without changing my exercise routine.

I'm not a fan of jogging or weight training simply for exercise.  I prefer to do fun activities on weekends and occasionally throughout the week, which keep me active. 

Examples:

- Hiking for 4 to 6 hours in mountains, rafting down the river while rowing the entire time, canoeing, biking through the city, etc.

I find it easier to get exercise if I feel there is a purpose other than simply to exercise; I like to have a destination.  Perhaps if you take your three year old in a stroller of somekind to the zoo, or other areas around your neighbourhood you'll feel more motivated.  Just some ideas for you.

Good Luck!!

Hey

I have in the past lost a lot of weight through diet alone. I have a knee condition that I need surgery for, so most exercise (even swimming) isn't really an option for me as bending and straightening my knees is really painful. In spite of this I've so far lost 21lbs, and in the past whilst in plaster cast I managed to lose 40lbs to get to my goal weight, though over the years I've gradually put it on.

You'll be firmer and look more toned if you exercise too, but it is difficult to exercise when you are very overweight and easily tired, lots of people say they found it easier to lose weight through diet first, then to keep it off and tone up with exercise. Thats kind of my plan - lose the weight through diet now, and after I've had knee surgery start exercising properly, though I try to stay as active as I can and not to avoid stairs etc.

edited because I wrote exercise instead of diet in the first sentence, so it mean't the opposite of what I intended!!!

i think u can lose weight on just watching ur cals.. if ur strict about it... at the moment im just focusing on the eating... and ive lost 9 lbs... but i know eventually ill have to add the exercise to it...... its not realistic for me to say that i will drop 115 lbs without exercise.. i need to tone up.. and i know that some days i do go over my cals for the day and ill end to burn those cals through exercising...  i have a free gym membership but i dont use it.. right now i just walk and i use my hand weights at home

tough way to go...if you ask me...

niccimax,

my mom has fibromyalgia and cant really exercise without causing herself immense physical discomfort.  she has successfully lost over 100 lbs just by using this website and watching her calories.  she has now maintained this weight loss for just over a year. 

the recommended daily exercise is about 30 minutes, so i'd say you're fine with your walking and chasing : ).  exercise helps to tone your body, which will help you drop sizes and be happier in your new weight, but weight loss is actually just calories in versus calories burnt. 

good luck.

To lose weight you need to burn more calories than you put in your body. Simple. Using this logic, it is very possible to lose weight without exercise. That said, I do agree with the people who say that you will still look and feel better with activity. Good luck to you!

I have lost 34lbs so far just by watching what I eat alone. I also have a somewhat physically demanding job, so that helps at least a little bit in the way of activity level. I did not add additional exercise minus the occasional moments of cardio I got through playing DDR.

I have three goal weights: I'm two pounds away from the first (199), the second one is 165, and the third one is somewhere around 130. By losing the first 36lbs through diet alone, and losing about 1.5lbs a week, diet alone is definite a viable way to lose weight, and it has taught me new eating habits. I do, however, want to continue eating the amount of food I eat a day (around 1700-1900 calories a day). Once I'm at 199, I plan to start adding some exercise in, and readjust my calorie intake so that I continue to lose roughly 1.5lbs in a week. This may mean upping my calorie in take. Once I hit 165, I'll probably be eating closer to maintenance for my activity level, and will be creating my deficit through exercise alone. Once I hit 165, I plan to lose about .5-1lb a week.

I think adding in exercise when you feel most comfortable with doing so is a great idea--after all, exercise is the only way you will really manage to tone up your body while you lose weight. Since I had 105lbs or so to lose from my staring weight, I figured taking it in chunks and adding in exercise when I was most comfortable with doing so would help me lose weight and achieve the look I want. Once I'm working towards my third goal, I want to go for it slowly, because I've never weighed less than 165-170lbs. Taking it one pound or so at a time will help me adjust to the smallest I've ever seen myself, and I feel it will be easier for me to find the point where I actually want to stop.

But losing weight certainly can be done with just diet alone. It just gets harder to do the less weight you have to lose.

Original Post by danip22:

the recommended daily exercise is about 30 minutes, so i'd say you're fine with your walking and chasing : ).  

this isn't exactly accurate.  the recommended minimum is 30 minutes.  in my opinion, that number represents an effort not to indimidate sedentary people.  basically, anything is better than nothing, but if you don't get 30 minutes, your life expectancy sucks.

if your only goal is to lose weight, then sure, you can do it just by modifying your diet.  if you care about health, that's not enough.

I have lost 28 pounds since May and I want to lose 12 more for my original goal.

33 years old, mother of toddler twins, started at 175 want to get to 135, (was up to 235 when preggo),

I have been going back and forth between just calorie counting and adding exercise.  When I want to eat more I make myself exercise and when I can do only cc I don't exercise much.  I wear a pedometer everyday and try to get 10,000 steps in and atleast 40 minutes of aroebic steps (usually a walk pushing a stroller).  This way I know I have done enough for my heart!

Good luck in finding the combination that works for you and gives you the energy to make it through the day w/ a 3yo!

Actually, I'm doing the same thing. I'm pretty active at work...most days anyway, and I have 3 kids to "chase after" too. If I get home early enough and there isn't too much to keep me busy inside the house then I'll go for a brisk evening walk through the neighborhood, but other than that ... no exercise. I've lost 8.5# in the last 3 weeks / 2 days. That's not as fast as I'd hoped to be loosing, but according to what I read, that is a "safe" weight loss. I don't see anything wrong with dieting in this manner as long as you are getting results.

Good luck and God Bless!

I mostly exercise, because I enjoy it, but on the weight loss side of things, it is because I cannot cut my calories low enough to have a sustainable weight loss.  I also think my BMR might be higher than what CC says. I just can't go below a certain amount of food unless I am so stressed or depressed that the negative emotions crowd out the hunger.  I feel so unbelievably hungry with a headache if I do not eat at least 1400 to 1500 calories per day. 

i have lost 5 pounds in the past week due to diet manipulation and mild excersize.. but excersize helps a lot

even just doing little things like jumping jacks for 5 to 10 minutes

i know how hard it can to be active.. i suffer from being a natural sloth ^_^ but ive noticed the more active i am the more i lose and the happier i am as well...

excersize is healthy in general

it helps regulate our sleep and get blood flowing better and is a huge mood raiser

so even if its a little here and there like jumping jacks.. its good

plus if you excersize with your kids that helps

and it teaches them good habbits as well

hope i helped you out