dieting vs exercise

A new study confirms the overall research findings that dietary change, specifically eating less fat, produces more weight loss than changes in exercise. But it also shows that changes in one kind of behavior may help promote changes in the other, especially among women.

Many studies have compared weight loss resulting from changing diet versus increasing activity. Most often, weight loss during programs focused on dietary change produced two to three times greater weight loss than programs focused on exercise. 

Cutting calories doesn't have to mean dieting Cutting calories doesn’t necessarily have to mean going on a “diet.”  It can just mean avoiding or limiting one or more foods high in calories from fat (such as high-fat meat, cheese, or snack foods, or too much added fat), lots of sugar (like sweets or sweetened drinks), or alcohol.  Cutting calories can also be accomplished by reducing our portion sizes, or by eating smaller portions of those high-calorie foods and filling up on larger portions of low-calorie vegetables and fruits.
Objective analysis shows that cuts in calorie consumption add up faster than increases in exercise. Studies show that a combination of smaller portions and changes in what we eat can easily add up to reduce calorie consumption by 500 daily, whereas burning an extra 500 calories daily can be a daunting target.

Exercise plus lower calories for women In this new study conducted at the University of Minnesota, moderate or substantial drops in dietary fat were linked to weight loss in overweight and obese men and women, regardless of how much they changed physical activity. In women, even substantial increases in exercise were not enough to produce weight loss if they did not decrease fat consumption. Men, however, were able to lose weight through increased exercise alone.   
Whether exercise changes metabolism to allow more successful weight loss, or whether its stress-reduction benefits allow more consistent progress in changing eating habits, this and other studies show that both increasing exercise and decreasing calorie consumption clearly seems the best weight-loss choice for everyone.

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