Women Over 40: How Much Physical Exercise Leads To Weight Loss?

Losing weight is becoming tougher and tougher after menopause. Many women over 40 have a sedentary lifestyle with not sufficient exercise.

Regular exercise is an crucial ingredient to lose weight permanently- however, do you know how much exercise is actually required to lose weight? You might say "the more the better" and you are right- theoretically. After all, the common thinking is: The more calories you burn, the more weight you lose.

That's not really true. There is an effect called compensation. Compensation means: There is a gap between the anticipated weight loss (as predicted by the calories burnt by exercising) and the weight loss achieved. It doesn't take a PhD to understand where the compensation effect comes from: When people go on an exercise program, they start to eat more. The usual thinking pattern is "I am allowed to consume more, because I will burn the extra calories on my exercise program".

But, most dieters assess the quantity of calories burnt while exercising and the amount of calories consumed inaccurately: Calories burnt are overrated and calories eaten underrated. So the attitude of "when I am exercising I can eat more" leads not to permanent weight loss.

Researchers evaluated the amount of physical exercise linked to the compensation mechanism and observed a very interesting correlation. Previously inactive, overweight or obese, postmenopausal women took part in three different exercise programs of 72, 136 and 194 minutes per week.

The first two groups doing a bit over 1 hour of physical exercise a week and a bit over 2 hours a week didn't compensate- their actual weight loss was as expected. So these women did not eat more while being on the exercise program.

However, the women on the intensive exercise plan (more than 3 hours weekly) lost only half of the expected weight. It could be the case that they were thinking "I am allowed to eat more, because I work so hard on this program".

This does not mean you should go for low intensity exercise programs taking only 2 hours a week. It does mean though that if you are exercising hard, you might feel lured to compensate by eating more. So: If you are doing an physical exercise program, control your food intake as well- or you might not be able to lose weight permanently after 40.

A beneficial consequence of the above-mentioned mentioned study: All exercise groups had a reduced waist circumference- a leading indicator for healthy weight loss. Losing belly fat lowers the risk of diabetes and cardiovascular problems.

A good weight loss plan should assist you to determine how much physical exercise you in your special situation need and how to incorporate it in your day to day life.

Are you a woman over 40? I've created a free, personalized program for women over 40 who want to lose weight permanently. How would you like to get excellent, lasting weight loss results- be attractive, healthy, energetic, youthful? This program adjusts to your specific situation and keeps you motivated while you enjoy healthy eating and exercise.

Sign up for your free, personalized "Lose Weight Permanently" program at http://www.loseweightpermanently.com/ForWomenOver40

Perry Permann

You can read another article from Perry at Woman Over 40? Lose Belly Fat Now - The Health and Beauty Hazard

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