Is the diet more important than exercise to lose weight?

No matter who you are or whatever your fitness goals, it's important to nourish your body with nutritious foods in order to work to the best of your ability. We do not believe that one diet is better than another (we'll let you debate with your friends), but we firmly believe that everything is moderated in moderation.

If you are trying to lose weight, most experts agree that starting with focusing on exercise and nutrition is a great place to start. And according to two experts, what you consume can actually be more important than exercise, if you are trying to lose weight for good.

"One of the biggest mistakes in weight management is that physical activity leads to significant weight loss," Fatima Cody Stanford, a physician and specialist scientist, told POPSUGAR in a previous interview. in the treatment of obesity. "On average, most people who exercise – especially if they are already doing it regularly – will be able to maintain their weight," she said.

"Exercise can certainly help, but to lose weight, it's not very powerful in itself, you also need to change your diet," said POPSUGAR Avigdor Arad, PhD, RDN, CDE, director of Mount Sinai PhysioLab. "People who are trying to lose weight really have to dive into their diet and what they eat because it's much more effective," he said. Doing three to four workouts a week has many benefits, but "you need to change diets" as well if your goal is to lose weight, Dr. Arad said.

Do not go and cancel any training courses you have booked for the next two weeks. Exercise has many benefits, such as "improving your heart function, your metabolic rate, your muscle mass, your immune system and your circulatory system," said Dr. Arad. "But if you only consider weight loss, what we are learning is that, in this context, food is also extremely, extremely important," he said.

If you think that losing weight is as simple as reducing calories, that is not the case. Dr. Stanford explained that the thought stream "calories in, out" does not always work. Indeed, everyone's body reacts differently to the calories and sometimes to the specific path taken by the brain, especially the hypothalamus.

If you are wondering what are the best diet and the best workout to lose weight, Dr. Stanford said in a previous interview that you want to commit to the years to come. As for the best workout to lose weight, it depends. Unfortunately, it's not as easy as saying HIIT training, cardio or weightlifting. If you are the type of person who needs an accurate answer, we advise you to do a Fatmax protocol test ($ 450 at Mount Sinai PhysioLab) in a specialized clinic to determine the optimal exercise for burn fat from your body.