Lose weight only with exercise? According to a study, you have to plan SO much time per week

2023 Author: Gabrielle Mercer | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-05-21 12:25

Do you want to lose weight in a healthy way? A new study shows that weight loss is also possible with just exercise. But there is a catch!

We have good news and bad news for those looking to lose weight. The good: researchers are constantly working to determine the right amount of exercise and diet to lose weight effectively. And in a new study, they found a pretty solid time. But that's also the bad news, because 300 minutes a week - that's a lot …

12 weeks of intensive training:

Where does this number come from? From a study by Kyle Flack and colleagues at the University of Kentucky published in an exercise & medical journal. 44 study participants were examined. The men and women had a BMI of 25 to 35 (overweight and obesity grade I) and all worked while sitting. Flack asked half of them twice a week To do sport - and each no less than 90 minutes. In total, the individuals should burn 1,500 calories per week through their fitness sessions. Which sport they chose was up to them. The second half of the group did again six times a week Sport for each 40 to 60 minutes - Aiming to burn 3,000 calories a week through exercise.

After 12 weeks, all participants were weighed. It found that those who exercised six times a week lost up to four pounds. No big surprise for the researchers - and neither for us, because with such a blatant sports regiment you have to shed pounds!

1,000 more calories - completely automatically:

What is interesting, however, is a completely different finding that was confirmed a second time by this experiment: people automatically eat more when they exercise regularly. And that is 1,000 more calories! Kyle Flack had already recognized this in an earlier research that also ran for 12 weeks in 2018. In the study at the time, participants had to burn between 1,500 and 3,000 calories per week. And even then it was shown that the metabolism automatically adjusts itself in such a way that 1,000 additional calories per week to be included for "compensation".

I want to lose weight - what do these insights tell me?

If someone burns 1,500 calories a week with exercise, but at the same time takes in the compensatory 1,000 calories plus, "only" remains a loss of 500 calories. In other words: Losing weight with exercise is not as easy as expected! Flack's research suggests that for healthy weight loss, you should plan 300 minutes of exercise a week to get those 3,000 calories burned. That would be a loss of 2,000 calories per week if you take away the 1,000 compensating factors. And that would be the equivalent of a little more than 280 grams of body fat per week. Say: Approximately one kilo a month.

This calculation is based on the findings of Max Wishnofsky, who already established in 1958 that 3.5000 calories correspond to one pound or 500 grams of body fat.

What is not taken into account?

A pound a month - that seems like a pretty healthy measure of weight loss. However, for people who are overweight or even obese, it is certainly not so easy to start with 300 minutes of exercise per week (that's a total of 5 hours!). In addition, the body changes when you lose weight! This is also a concern for Flack, which is why he is seeking further research in this area.

In the end, it is still like this: If you want to lose weight, you should save calories when eating. It is the most effective method. However, exercise is also important as a supplement because you don't want to lose muscle mass, but fat. Therefore: If you would describe yourself as a sports freak, you can try the 300 minutes. All those who have to slowly get to grips with a fitness routine should continue to watch their diet.