Comment by belter | Hacker News Reader

Comment by belter | Hacker News Reader

Not paying 32 bucks for the study, but it seems the study was mostly done on mice. We share 99% percent of genes with mice but hope the 1% are important enough :-)

The abstract mentions the effect also occurs on humans and horses, without further details if they were part of the study, or if is just well known. It could be a temporary effect.

If you are trying to lose weight, change diet before starting with exercise. When at the proper weight, use exercise to keep at the correct level.

Several studies compared two groups. One group changed just diet, and other used diet and exercise from the beginning. Faster weight loss noticed in the group just doing a diet change and not doing increased exercise.

The assumption that the increase of exercise, might call for additional cravings, even if of a different type of food.

[1] "...For weight loss, diet seems to be more effective than physical activity,"... "You have to do huge amounts of physical activity to lose weight, but you can get a better energy deficit just by cutting down on calories..." ...

"...So both diet and physical activity are important,"..."Diet probably more important for losing weight. Physical activity for keeping it off..."

[2] "...Despite the prevailing advice, exercise is pretty unhelpful for weight loss..."

[1] "Mayo Clinic Minute: Which is better for losing weight – diet or exercise?": https://newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/mayo-clinic-mi...

[2] "Why you shouldn't exercise to lose weight, explained with 60+ studies": https://www.vox.com/2016/4/28/11518804/weight-loss-exercise-...

>Faster weight loss noticed in the group just doing a diet change and not doing increased exercise.

Did they track muscle mass? Because from personal anecdata: When I change diet and don't excercise I tend to lose "weight" faster (as weight on a scale) but a lot of that weight loss is from muscle mass. Just dieting makes me "skinny fat".

When I exercise (resistance training like weight lifting - cardio is uslesess) I tend to lose weight on the scale slower but I look better and my muscle mass increases. I also feel _way_ better than on a restrictive diet.

As the saying goes: "weight is lost in the kitchen, muscle is gained in the gym"

Personally, my own experience (and that of a few close friends) is that if you want to lose weight it's going to suck. No easy way to do it, you have to go hungry. There are some low-cal fruits and vegetables, or other things you can try to lessen the hunger. But this popular notion that you can just change a few things you eat and still eat 3+ meals a day on some special "diet" is wrong. I don't understand why it perseveres.

I know plenty of people, including myself, that have lost weight without feeling hungry. It takes a lot of consistency in eating lots of vegetables and high protein foods. But I recognize that that this is highly dependent on the person and many (most?) people may not have this experience.

Other than playing on people's delusions I think there are people who are lucky enough to be able to get away with doing that and their stories end up at the top of the pile.

Yeah, I don't actually have the willpower to reduce the screaming in my body for food, even at a healthy/correct weight (which I am currently) I could just start eating and never stop.

With sauna or sunbathing in the morning and exercising in the heat late afternoon I give myself two separate blocks without the constant hunger, between the two appetite suppression periods and the psychological boost of not wanting to waste all my painful effort it makes eating less possible if not enjoyable.

The whole point is that people who do not have a fixed diet would spontaneously eat less after exercise because they do not feel hungry. This by the way matches my personal experience and there are several other comments saying the same thing.

Exercise is important for general health and fitness too, though. Holding off on starting exercise seems foolish when it has so many benefits. Count calories, but don't wait to exercise.

See my reference [2] for the 60 studies analyzed plus the 9 specialists interviewed. It's not about not recommending exercise, but about the fastest way to get back to a more healthy weight, then add exercise to complement and maintain.

If a subject is already severely overweight, adding exercise could compound the risks.

>The researchers behind the study found that people who have had success losing weight have a few things in common: They weigh themselves at least once a week. They restrict their calorie intake, stay away from high-fat foods, and watch their portion sizes. They also exercise regularly.

From your reference.

>If a subject is already severely overweight, adding exercise could compound the risks.

I can see how this would make sense, but for people who are living a sedentary lifestyle and are only moderately overweight, I find it hard to believe that exercise is a bad idea, even if it were to somewhat slow their weight loss progress (and this is without getting into "weight" loss vs. fat loss, which is what really matters)

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