I don’t agree with the premise of Why Exercise Won't Make You Thin because the article assumes that all people who exercise rigorously reward themselves with non-nutritious food, thus negating the benefits of exercise, so why bother to exercise at all. That’s silly. Exercise is good for you, for a whole host of mental, physiological, and emotional reasons. Equally, if you find yourself rewarding your hard work with non-nutritious food, then yes, you’re taking 3 steps forward and 4 steps back. More to the point, while I will agree that exercise alone won’t necessarily help you lose and maintain weight (only proper nutrition can), I think a combination of vigorous exercise, proper nutrition AND (this is critical) MORE constant, daily motion are the key to better overall health. Constant motion? Let’s do the math.
24 hrs / day 7 days / week 60 mins / hr 10,080 Starting Mins Per Week 2,940 -- Sleep (7hrs / night) 3,600 -- Work (60 hrs / wk) 300 -- Travel (Commute, 30 mins * twice a day * 5 days); assumes automobile commute 420 -- 1 hr of TV every day (probably conservative) 1,260 -- 3 daily, 1 hr meals (Bkfst, Lunch, Dinner) 420 -- 1 hr daily on personal grooming / dressing (male + female average) 420 -- Misc (restroom, breaks, etc); 1 hr everyday 9,360 Subtotal Non-Exercise 420 -- 7 days of 1 hr fitness classes / gym / dedicated exercise (probably generous for some) 420 Subtotal Exercise 300 Surplus / (Deficit) Minutes 5.0 Surplus / (Deficit) Hrs RESULTS 4% Minutes spent on exercise activities 93% Minutes spent on non-exercise activities 3% Surplus minutes Based on the assumptions above, if you’re already spending roughly 90% of your weekly time on non-exercise (no motion at all) specific activities, nutrition aside, telling people to MOVE MORE makes more sense than telling them to not exercise at all. While your specific minute consumption times may vary, on average none of us are moving as much as we should, gym or not. Run your numbers and see where you shake out...I'm going for a walk.
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2/9/2011 12:36:05 pm
Hi Jose,
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Jose
2/18/2011 02:35:00 am
@Justin, thanks for the note and words of encouragement. You now have the distinct honor of being the very first comment-er on my blog. Congratulations! Balloons and cupcakes are on the way.
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Still baking...What is the difference between being comfortable versus being complacent? I have no idea, so I challenge myself. Challenge my thinking, my parenting, my husband-ing; attempt to challenge my assumptions and my understanding of things. I won't get it right all the time so I welcome all constructive feedback. The goal? To "...be satisfied with life always but never with one's self." (George Jean Nathan) Categories
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