Convinced fat loss is mostly diet!

[Charles Izzo]

I am. My friend gave me some diet advise to lose some fat. I tried it and the fat started melting off real easily. I lost size on my waist. But that is even though I have been working out less than I was earlier in the year.

This reminded me of a time when I was in college there was a guy I knew from the gym. I noticed at some point in time he had lost some fat. I could see it in his face. I asked him how he did it. His reply was that he hurt his foot, had to stop working out for a while, and couldn't eat as much calories because of it.

You lose fat by consuming less calories than you burn. And people say that means to exercise more to burn more calories than you eat. That can't be easier. Its obviously harder. A lot of times when people exercise more they only end up getting hungrier and eating more, so it doesn't necessarily work as good. Its easier to just eat less.

I'm not saying exercise is bad. Athletes of all sorts lift weights to get bigger and stronger muscles. But cardio such as treadmils when your sport doesn't require it? I don't know. Don't forget, we burn oxygen all day every day and even while we are resting and sleeping, much more than in workouts, anyways. So where is the need for cardio, unless your heart is weak and you need the extra work?

So thats just what I think. Granted most of us love lifting weights, I think eating right is the road to leanness. If all else fails, look back to your diet and see what is wrong with it and how you can improve it. Chances are, macros can be improved, nutrient timing, calorie manipulation, number of meals, or even increase calories for a while and bulk up again or zig zag in order to boost metabolism again.

[Charles Izzo]

How right or wrong am I on that? I think most of the time people focus on the wrong things. Even if they go to a personal trainer. Think about this. If someone hires a personal trainer what is the chances they will do what they say in the gym but they won't stick to the diet? I bet it is a lot easier for a trainer to give people training advise and not diet advise. That way their customers will keep coming back. Think about this. If a trainer gave someone diet advise and it worked, they would lose a client. If a gym owner did the same they could lose customers as well. Not because of failures. But because success would then mean the customers don't need to come back.

[klosey]

er half and half agree, by body goes into shock when calories are cut and tries to hold onto the calories to the point i dont lose weight for weeks

[Commander]

I barely added any cardio on my cut, just 10 minutes jump rope 2 to 3 times per week, and I lost considerably fat. I tend to agree with you Charles.

[joneser3eb]

this is my understanding / thinking. i believe that exercise is a great addition to losing weight and staying healthy but diet is the key to losing fat. In my personal experience , i exercised most of my life and did not loose weight until i learned how to eat properly.

[RawIron]

my cousin lost a lot of weight by just dieting and not exercising at all. It was nuts. I gave him the diet plan but told him to workout along with it and he only followed the diet. However, hes now FINALLY into lifting and almost looks as good as me. haha.

[joneser3eb]

i have done the opposite before. for example. when i first came across this site, i did the 13 week exercise program only. I saw some very minimal if any results. however when i did the diet program. 40 pounds.

[Charles Izzo]

Looks like most of us concur on this matter. Its just something I thought of a while ago. I knew if I knew what I was doing all it would take is for me to impliment it into my life, set goals, make a plan, and do it. Simple as that.

But the reality turns out that if I knew what I was doing previously I would have been ripped years ago. Doing the diet plan as I am doing it now, the fat is shedding much more easily.

And that just goes right along with what I was thinking. If the fat isn't coming off easily then it can be generally one of the two reasons:
1) Something currently isn't right with your diet and you need to make the right change(s).
or
2) For what ever reason (maybe you didn't diet right or you did it too quickly or for too long) your body is in a (possibly severe) catabolic state. And in such as case the only possible solution is to make the right changes to put your body in an anabolic state for a while; only then eventually will you be able to get the fat to shed off easily again.

[GodsGladiator]

changing your diet can have effects too. some dramatically and some not so much. when i first started lifting after highschool i started eating wholesome natural meals, less junk, lost 20lbs in a month with very little cardio.

[keeptruckin]

Agreed. Although, instead of using the term dieting which has connotations of wild calorie-cutting, I would prefer to call it diet technique, where multiple things are managed ...

macro ratios
calorie cycling
following the protein-synthesis protocol

Plus, I am firm believer that your body is efficient at burning fat when the calorie deficit comes at rest heart rate. Now the idea is to use high intensity exercise to stimulate hypertrophy, hormones, and metabolism so that when the deficit is forced and occurs at rest heart rate, the conditions are in place for shedding fat and keeping or even slightly building lean mass.