Is training or diet more important when you want to lose weight?
This is a great question which I get asked all the time, and I do believe there is an answer!
Have you heard the saying “abs are made in the kitchen”, well it’s around for a reason.
Its TRUE abs are made in the kitchen. You could do 1000’s crunches and Plank all day and it’s still not guaranteed you’ll have visible abs.
Why?
Well unless you get rid of the layer of fat covering those abdominal muscles you might still look like a keg rather than a 6 pack.
But what if you do hours of cardio a day? Surely that will melt away the fat?
Well, not necessarily. When I trained for a marathon, I gained weight. I was running 4-5 times a week with my shortest run being 1 hour and longest about 3 and I still didn’t get lean…..
Why? Because I needed more energy for my runs and I ate a bit more than I needed. So as fit as I was I wasn’t the leanest I had been, as I was eating more than I needed.
What I’m going to try and explain today is why MOST OFTEN you will get better results through diet than training.
Yep, diet is the winner and let me explain WHY…..
When trying to lose weight you need to create a calorie deficit. Yes, there are many other factors that come in to play but to keep it SIMPLE you do need to consume less calories than your body requires for maintenance.
This means that if you’re currently gaining weight then you need to bring in your total food intake to a level so your body starts LOSING weight.
Quite often what a lot of people “assume” is that when they want to lose weight just by adding in some exercise it will all magically happen.
What ends up happening is you start exercising, you increase your fitness, tone up but not necessarily lose weight. This could happen for a couple of reasons.
You start exercising and you’re hungrier, you eat more and hence the calories that were burnt through your training are quickly eaten up. Have you ever rewarded yourself with food for working hard? Mmmm you know how it goes…. “I deserve this cake as I worked out this morning”.
You gain muscle. Which results in the scale not moving but doesn’t necessarily mean you haven’t lost fat
Now don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying exercise isn’t amazing but if your NUMBER 1 goal is fat loss then NUTRITION is the first thing you want to focus on. Thinking that adding in a couple of training sessions a week will do it can lead to disappointment.
Whereas if you put more effort into planning your food, being organised and really tightening things up, you will get quicker results. You won’t tone up as that’s what the exercise is for but if you want to shift fat then your diet needs to be on track FIRST.
That means aiming for regular meals containing protein, limiting your sugar and processed carbs. Including as many fibrous vegetables as you can and drinking at least 2L of water per day.
I’ve been working online now for nearly 10 years and I’m still impressed at how quickly my online clients make changes.
They don’t see me face to face for training sessions but instead they learn what to eat for their bodies to get the results they’re after. We really focus on getting their nutrition on track and it pays of big time.
Check out one of my bootcampers who also committed to my 12 Week Body Transformation Program. At Bootcamp she was getting fitter and stronger but until she got REALLY accountable with her nutrition she didn’t get the final changes she was after. These pics are just 5 weeks apart and show what a difference cleaning up your nutrition can make and most importantly being accountable.
Have you been training for a while but not getting the results you want?
Or are you thinking of starting exercise because you want to lose weight?
Just make sure you don’t rely on the training ALONE and put as much effort into your nutrition. You want to make sure that all those muscles you’re building in the gym get a chance to show through and it’s your nutrition that will make this happen.
If you need someone to motivate you and keep you accountable jump on board my 12 Week Body Transformation!
Hilds