It is not easy to lose weight … we must defeat the laziness that assails us in the winter to join the gym, go jogging or play a game of tennis. It is not easy to start a diet if you love to eat … it is not easy to start any sport when you are completely on an empty stomach.
Let’s start with the diet
Starting from the assumption that “losing weight” and “losing weight” are two different concepts, we specify another important aspect: dieting does not mean giving up, restricting calories but eating healthy.
This is a goal that we should all achieve not only to lose weight but, above all, to prevent, live long and healthy; any weight loss will also be a consequence of healthy eating.
It is also true that excessive calorie reduction – eating little or skipping meals – leads us to lose weight, not to lose weight.
Why?
Because it pushes the body to produce the energy it needs by breaking down proteins. The liver produces the necessary glucose using the precious lean tissue as it cannot use fats (it does not have the necessary enzymes) through a catabolic action. In this way we will have a weight loss that is found not on the fat mass but mainly on the lean one.
Let’s analyze physical activity
The common mistake lies in confusing the calories consumed by doing physical activity with the consumption of fat.
It is not so: so many calories consumed while practicing a sport does not mean burning a lot of fat, since the body uses three types of fuel during physical activity: sugars, fats and proteins. So, thinking about doing a sport for many hours leads us to consume sugars (which we must then reintroduce), lose some fat and at the same time lean tissue.
So the effect of physical activity on weight loss has an indirect action: it helps you lose weight because it stimulates the metabolism; if we choose the “right” one, it will help us lose weight in the post workout and over time thanks to the increase in muscle mass (linked to the metabolic increase).
This presupposes that, if we practice physical activity by continuing to eat everything and in large quantities, the fat remains “with us” even if the body becomes more toned; that’s why the balance between sports – to maintain muscle mass – and correct and healthy (slightly low-calorie) nutrition – which allows us to gradually use small reserves of fat – is important.
To the question: Can we lose weight without doing diet and sport?
I answer by saying that neither diet nor physical activity alone can achieve proper weight loss; in fact they are two elements that go hand in hand through a right balance.
In conclusion, we can say that in order to lose weight properly it is necessary to change the lifestyle through healthy eating, in adequate quantities and to practice the right physical activity to maintain muscle mass and tone.