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Sunday, May 9, 2010

Cutting Calories or Moving your butt?

Well it looks like a toss up when it comes to which is easier or harder: cutting calories or moving your buns. Personally I have a harder time with the calories. I do love to eat. My family loves to eat. I mean we enjoy food and everything about it: cooking, the smells, textures, tastes and most of all the great fellowship that happens around a well spread table. So, . . .I find it much easier to eat and work it off later.

Neither is easy, though, to be sure. You should see me sucking wind as I climb these hills. I actually wouldn't choose one over the other in your overall plan to stay healthy though. Making sure you cut calories and that the ones that make the cut are the good kind is just as important and increasing your heart rate and sculpting your temple.

There is research that shows if you were to just choose one, cutting calories would ultimately make you lose weight faster. But here's what I found. Exercise is healthier in the long run. If you just cut calories and lose weight, you are still left with saggy remnants of a bigger you. Your metabolism will slow down and your energy stores will be depleted. I think being thin without the ability to run, lift, or enjoy the active part of your life is missing the point entirely.

If you do, however, incorporate daily exercise into your routine and marry it to a healthy diet you will have more energy, feel better, look better and live longer (of course there are things beyond the far reaches of exercise and diet that dictate this last one, but they help anyway).

So I posed the question to not only see what you all would say, but to also deal with each others' weaknesses.

If you answered that cutting calories is harder, tell us on the facebook page what you do to motivate yourself for a great workout. If you answered that moving your buns was harder, help those of us who have a hard time saying no to our cravings.

Thanks for continuing this journey with me and remember to participate.

1 comment:

  1. This is an interesting topic. For me I believe getting the food under control is key first! I know for myself trying to do it all leads me directly to failure! So I started with getting the eating under control. Once I felt confident that I could mange the food I began to introduce some exercise. I have physical challenges when it comes to exercise due to bad knees & other issues but I am making it work even though my favorite thing to do is walk which I struggle with now! Both in my opinion are lifestyle changes & require a lifetime commitment. I see no sense in overindulging but thinking one can just workout to correct it. Everything in moderation keeps me on track!

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