Oh, it’s the day after Christmas and what do I see at the gym?
Lots of Santa’s elves, working out excessively, hoping to make up for yesterday’s excess eating! Perhaps they indulged in too many cookies, or Santa shared too many cups of eggnog!
There were some of us who would be there, no matter what our holiday was like. But the woman frantically grasping the treadmill rails as the timer ran past 75 minutes… and the red faced man rotating from bike to stairmaster to treadmill… those are signs of desperation, the all-out drive to burn calories after overeating – in short, MAKEUP EXERCISE!!
But is it actually possible to make up for yesterday’s calories by burning more today?
No, it isn’t.
The idea that calories can be taken in one day and “made up for” the next day is just one of the many false lessons diet mentality teaches us. Yesterday’s excesses are in the past, and the number on the treadmill digital readout under “calories” is closer to a guess than anything approaching reality.
Exercise is great for the human body. And, over time, it will build the muscle that will boost metabolism. THAT will aid weight loss.
But attempting a large calorie deficit one day to make up for yesterday’s long-absorbed calories is asking for fatigue, weakness, a bigger appetite tomorrow and muscle wasting, which lowers metabolism.
Be smart. Think long-term. Consistent exercise over a long period of time is the ticket to permanent weight loss.
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- Confused? Most people are. All this is diet advice from the perspective of what I call Diet Mentality. Based in fea… https://t.co/oLbdhU6utw
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- I've always said exercise is more important than food control. What do you think? https://t.co/nRyJeKMZ9y
- Before and after pictures are usually complete fakes, and give us the misconception that the "after" picture is the… https://t.co/QUdTrITjeG
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You really are a voice of reason, Pat.
Not only is consistent exercise key, but so is consistently eating well. One Christmas day is not going to make a huge difference in the long run, but when we turn it into a month of mindless munching, we’ve got problems.
So true Hanlie! I think one of the reasons it’s easy to go into a month of mindless eating is this FALSE idea we can make up for it later. All those folks going past the 1 hour mark on the treadmill… they had left fat burning a long time ago and were just breaking down valuable, useful body tissue. I know because I did it for years! But, no more!