by Michelle Wilkinson

Created on: July 28, 2010

It is extremely easy to fall into leading a sedentary lifestyle because basically you don’t have to do anything! That is why so many people are leading inactive lives and gaining weight as a result. Weight gain is the result of consuming more calories than your body burns, causing these extra calories to be stored as fat. It isn’t hard to do in a society where you can pop into a fast food restaurant at any time of day and order a burger that provides you with more than half your daily calorie needs. If you’re going to lose weight, though, you have to make changes to your diet and exercise routine.

You may think you can lose weight by simply making changes to your diet. Some people have no problems sticking to a very low calorie diet and don’t bother with exercise at all, but if you aim to lose weight in a sensible way you have to embrace a more active lifestyle. If you follow a very low calorie diet you probably won’t have any energy to exercise, but exercise is essential for toning your body and speeding up your metabolism. The fact is that when you come off your diet you will have to start eating properly again and exercise is essential if you’re going to keep the weight off.

It’s better to simply embrace exercise at the very beginning of your weight-loss journey so that doing it becomes a habit you stick with whether you’re aiming to lose weight or maintain a healthy weight. By getting more active when you’re trying to lose weight you will be in a better position to judge the number of calories you actually need so that you can adjust your diet and exercise regime to ensure that you’re burning enough calories to avoid weight gain. Clearly, the more active you are the more calories your body is forced to use. Consequently, you can consume more calories without worrying that you won’t lose weight.

Losing weight therefore becomes slightly easier as you have more flexibility at meal times. It doesn’t matter if you occasionally drink a glass of wine or eat a slab of chocolate cake because you know you can adjust your workout routine to accommodate such a treat. On the other hand, when you lead a sedentary lifestyle you only have so many calories to play around with and this is unlikely to change unless you do some exercise.

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