Exercise Myself Skinny?

So…..Exactly how important is it for our weight loss journey?

Do you like working out? Are you in the habit of working out?

We all know that it’s really good for us. But let me review some of the health benefits:

-Good for heart health

-Reduces risk of certain medical conditions like diabetes, heart disease and some cancers

-Strengthens bones and joints (Remember the old saying “use it or lose it” - so the muscles that you don’t use regularly, and don’t challenge regularly, start to atrophy) 

 -Improved sleep

-Reduction of stress

-Overall better mood and more energy

If you exercise with someone else, or a group, you have the added benefit that there’s the social component that can help you to stay accountable, and you may find it more fun.

Now - here’s the catch: EXERCISE in and of itself is NOT THE BEST tool for weight loss alone. So when we aim to lose weight, and we rely exclusively or mostly on exercise we are missing out a HUGE part of the equation. 

SO - here’s the lowdown on exercise. Is it important? YES. Is it as important as most of us think it is? NO!!

If you are not working out currently, and you are interested in losing weight, I would encourage you to focus first on your diet. Then you can consider starting to incorporate some light movement into your life, like walking. Start by a short walk a couple times a day and gradually increase it to 30 minutes on most days of the week. (Obviously, if you have a medical condition or physical ailment that prohibits you from walking, then please disregard this) 

If you are physically well enough to be adding exercise into your life - I highly recommend finding something that you really truly enjoy.

If you believe that all exercise is a pain in the neck and there is nothing that you could ever find enjoyable, then start by working on your thoughts around exercise.  I challenge you to think something along the lines of "I may not have found the activity that I love YET, but I will keep looking”, as opposed to automatically continuing to put “exercise” in the category of eye-ball rolls. (PS: what about having a dance party in the living room? not your thing? c’mon, I’m positive that you can find something you like if you give it a try).

Now, for those of you that are already in the habit of working out, then don’t stop. BUT, you need to recognize that most people fall into the trap of thinking that if they worked out that day, then they “deserve” extra food. This really counteracts the exercise, and defeats the weight loss benefits. So be VERY VERY careful.

This goes for virtually everyone: Plan will you will eat each day and eat that and only that regardless of how much exercise you do.

And……CLEAN UP YOUR DIET!!

Stop eating when you are not hungry!!

If you are in the habit of working out; unless you are an endurance athlete or are doing pretty intense workouts:

YOU DO NOT NEED A RECOVERY DRINK. OR A PROTEIN SMOOTHIE AFTERWARDS! JUST DRINK WATER!!

That’s all you need. A few people have told me they think it’s boring. Ok, so then you can make it fancy by adding mint or lemon, or cucumbers.

But please do not add anything to your water that contains sugar or artificial sweeteners. It’s best if you can avoid them.

Alright, that’s it for now. Until next time! Ciao!