Negative Energy Balance: The Science of Weight Loss

I smile wryly whenever my clients tell me they have reduced their food intake, stopped soft drinks, and other food binges, still, they have not lost weight.

I ask one question always, "Have you increased your exercises, and do you do them regularly?"

They always say no.

I then explain to them that sustainable weight loss is a combination of two things - reduction of food intake (for most people) and increase in moderate exercises - which must be done consistently. 

For weight loss, moderate exercises lasting 60 minutes for 5 days every week, are the standard. Any inconsistent effort will not give the expected result. For those who don't desire to lose weight, 30 minutes of moderate exercise is recommended for 5 days a week.

For persons not used to exercising, starting with 15 minutes for 5 days, then gradually attain 60 minutes, is recommended. One needs to train the body to endure the stress of exercises.

Moderate-intensity exercises include brisk walking, jogging, swimming, treadmill exercise, cycling, etc. The individual must sweat and have a feel on the chest that the heart beats faster.

To buttress my point, I watched a documentary sometime ago on Michael Phelps, the American multi-award-winning swimmer. During his active days, he ate about 4000 calories of food a day but expended about 6000 calories by swimming actively for 5 hours every day. The result? He became slender. He lost excess fat and weight which made him light to move faster in water.

Note that the average adult male requires 2500 calories of food a day, while the average adult female requires 2000 calories. So, Michael Phelps ate far more than he should, but he burnt everything during his daily 5-hour swimming exercises.

It therefore means that you can eat a lot if you are ready to burn more than you have eaten. Most of us are not ready to burn anything. We therefore console ourselves by eating less. This is not enough.

Either due to laziness or tight work/school schedule, most of us don't exercise enough to lose weight.

What weight loss tips are practical and sustainable for people who cannot practise the standard exercises?

1. Walk briskly as much as possible. You don't have to drive.

2. Use the stairs in tall buildings. Avoid the elevator as much as possible.

3. Get involved in house chores. Don't leave them for your helps or kids.  At least one hour of house chores will make you sweat. If done consistently with reduced portion of food, weight loss sets in.

4. Don't starve yourself to lose weight. It is hardly sustainable. Enjoy healthy foods but be ready to work out.

5. Don't buy often expensive weight loss supplements. Some of them contain purgative that makes you pass stool frequently. Purging does not give your body enough time to absorb the nutrients in the food before you feel the urge to stool. Hence, weight is lost. The malnutrition that occurs is unhealthy in the long run.

So, mathematically, #Eating causes energy gain; #Exercises cause energy loss. If energy lost in exercise is higher than that gained while eating, the negative energy balance reflects in weight loss.

Eat moderately, exercise more, and live.

Shalom!