Ask the Nutritionist: If Exercise Causes You to Get Hungry and Eat More, What’s the Point of Exercising?

DSC_3919-EditBy: Yossi Muller. Congratulations to last week’s winner Blimi Meisels. Submit a question and you can win a free dinner for two at the Reserve Steakhouse ‘lite’ menu ($120 value). The Reserve Sushi and Steakhouse is proud to introduce a new and exciting menu which provides not only delectable ways to please your palate but is actually healthy and conscious of those looking to stay away from saturated fat, cholesterol, ‘carbs’, and other poor health choices when eating out. To submit a question to be featured in the “Ask the Nutritionist” column, email Yossi HERE (questions @ yossimuller.com). Be sure to include your full name. If your question is published your name will be mentioned and you will be awarded a free dinner for 2 from The Reserve Steakhouse’s brand new ‘Lite’ menu.

Q: If exercise causes you to get hungry and eat more, what is the point of exercising?

A: If exercising causes you to eat more, then you are right, as far as weight loss is concerned there is no point in exercising. There may be other health benefits that make it worthwhile but from purely a weight loss standpoint there is none.

Exercise on average, accounts for 20% of a person’s weight loss; the more crucial part by far is what foods you eat. You can exercise for an hour a day and still lose less than one plate of french fries worth of weight. And while it is true that exercise speeds up your metabolism and improves your body’s ability to lose weight, if every time you finish your jog you drink a bottle of soda and eat a roll of kokosh cake, you will exercise your way to obesity.

This may come as a big surprise to some people. After all, you just exercised for a full hour- that has got to count for more than 20% of your weight loss! But consider that the body will burn 2000 calories even if all you did is sat in bed the entire day. (The brain itself, which only weighs 3 pounds and doesn’t do any physical exercise, burns 500 calories a day). Exercise will add on to the 2000, but not enough to justify an eating binge right afterwards.

In no way do I want to discourage exercise. The countless benefits to your overall health and emotional well-being cannot be overstated, but from a weight loss perspective you need to decide if it works for you.

The reality is that most people will benefit greatly from exercise. After a good work-out, many people are on such a high that they will be motivated to control any urge they may have to eat the wrong foods. Whether you drive to a gym, walk around the lake, or play a game of paddle ball, the time and energy you just dedicated to your health will not allow you to just throw it all away. Have a cold glass of water and eat some lean protein and steamed vegetables, you will find that your newfound appetite will be more than satisfied. And so together with the right diet, exercise is an excellent way to shed pounds.

So to sum up: In general exercise will cause people to lose, not gain, weight, but if you find that not to be the case, stop exercising. It’s that simple.

Ultimately this is good news. Many people get discouraged because they have no time to exercise. They think that they have no chance of losing weight without dedicating a few hours a week to the gym. Others may not even be healthy enough to exercise initially. If a person is very obese, he or she may be uncomfortable exercising or incapable of it. All of these scenarios may cause people to get discouraged and give up their diet all together. This is a big mistake. People starting a diet have enough on their plate (or too little!) that adding the pressure of a daily workout is simply unfair. While exercise is great, it is not nearly as important as people think. It is the foods you eat that account for the overwhelming majority of how much weight you will lose or gain.

Yossi Muller, CNWC, is a nutritionist with a private practice in Lakewood and also gives a college course in Applied Nutrition. His unique approach to nutrition is reaching hundreds of men in local businesses, schools, and organizations. Yossi can be reached at 732-806-7373.

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7 COMMENTS

  1. I have known yossi for a long time .Besides the fact hes an amazing yireh shamayim and does alot of good for the community .hes an amazing nutritionist .in a time were fast food is so common i belive every person young and old should have their personal nutritionist .yossi is amazing at helping every person with their personal fitness needs with out hurting their feelings!

  2. I was shocked when my son aced his nutrition test in R’ Muller’s class. Now, however, seeing how clear & focused his lessons are, I’m no longer surprised. R’ Yossi is a genius, in many fields, & we’re happy to know him. Did u know he also gives piano lessons ? & he composed “Lo Yavod Udum” on the Schwekey Cry No More album ? What a guy !!

  3. i know many people who really turned their lives around after using yossi as their personal nutritionist ..with his true caring for each client and his humor its a real pleasure to work with him…May HASHEM continue to give him the strength to continue educating the lakewood community on these topics ..thank you yossi

  4. 20%

    Are you trying to tell me that all those dieters running around the lake and at the gym are pretty much wasting their time?!?!?!

  5. very true i lost over a 100 pounds i believe that exercise is very good to keep you motivated to keep you in a healthy lifestyle of eating a routine but i would say as weight loss is concerned if your trying to loss weight its 90 percent what you eat and 10 percent your exercise.

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