I think a reduced appetite indirectly explains this far better than the direct effect of increased exercise. I climbed 600 extra flights of stairs for the month but that should only have burned a pound at most.
The 12 ounce glass of water way have been important. I think it displaced some hunger. I'd drink the water just before climbing the stairs. Generally speaking, I was less hungry after I exercised than before it.
And lastly, some of this may be seasonal. I tend to weigh more in the winter than I do in the summer. Summer is here.
In any event, I'm certainly willing to celebrate. I may actually get to the blue zone ahead of schedule.
Happy 4th of July everyone! I'm heading off to see my family and won't be back until the 5th.
See Also:
The "Free Lunch" Weight Loss Plan
Great start! Keep at it Mark! Have a great holiday weekend as well.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations, Mark. It is working for you.
ReplyDeleteFor many middle-aged people, 15-25 minutes of exercise a day changes metabolism quite a bit. The hunch is that it shifts up the body's uptake of sugar, probably through activating muscle tissue and increasing oxygen and blood flow to the organs. It also seems to drop blood pressure to a surprising extent in many people. More intense exercise for shorter durations may work the same way, because it seems to be time spent at higher work level, but the 20-minute walk might have a very similar effect.
You may be one of those that have a "two-state" metabolism. Also I gather you are doing this in the morning before you eat, so your body may be triggered to grab some fat.
The benefit of such a plan is that it is hardly onerous and almost everyone can stick to it for decades. Thus the net benefit of following such a "no-fail" plan may be huge in the longer term. You only have to shift your weight balance to 2 or 3 pounds less a year to see a very significant difference over 10 years.
Older people are far healthier now then they were when I was an adolescent, and I think it is because they are more active.
I think our society is keyed to adulation, but our health is keyed to moderation. So we're advised to adopt more heroic efforts, but it more probable that a "just-enough" approach will deliver results over time.
I'm back. I was visiting family on the other side of the state for the past week. I did some weight damage that won't show up here until July 31st, lol. There was SO much holiday food! I did stick to the routine though.
ReplyDeleteGYSC,
Thanks!
MaxedOutMama,
Also I gather you are doing this in the morning before you eat, so your body may be triggered to grab some fat.
I tend to do this exercise before the first meal of the day. The 12 ounce glass of water and/or the 20 flights seems to be displacing a lot of hunger. I'm generally hungrier before I start than after. This tends to postpone the first meal a bit.
In the past, I would exercise a lot longer but would do it after the big meals (often very late in the day since I am a night person). It did make me hungry though so I would tend to just eat more to compensate. It would still work, but it was a lot of work. I'm talking 200+ flights of stairs in a single day type work.
You only have to shift your weight balance to 2 or 3 pounds less a year to see a very significant difference over 10 years.
That's certainly my intent. I'm tired of these cyclical weight gain and weight loss patterns. I tried to pick the minimum I could do each day that would provide the same long-term effect. So far so good.
You're a guy, approaching middle age - right?
ReplyDeleteIf you're tubby round the middle you probably have fatty liver. Exercise is good, but won't address the core problem, and after a while you may get frustrated that all the effort isn't paying off.
Find a liver cleanse diet, 2 months and you're golden.
shtove,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the advice but I've never really had a hard time shedding pounds.