[king_jester]

> I believe that most "normal" people are capable of doing enough exercise (combined with good eating choices) that they can lose weight.

The point is there is there no set point of "enough" exercise to induce weight loss. It is highly variable between people and it is very unlikely that any individual can keep weight off in this fashion over a period of time. Linking exercise and weight is a time waster and, more importantly, can dissuade people from exercising when they don't achieve an impossible standard for weight loss.

> For example, say you have a 1-hour lunch break each day. During that lunch break, you could easily go for a 6km run (30-40 minutes), as well as have time for a shower, and grab food. If you're prepared to have a faster shower, and eat a quick snack, heck, you could even make it a 10km run (50 minutes).

First of all, the majority of workers do not have hour long lunch breaks. Second, that exercise during the middle of the work day sounds like a great way to ratchet up stress rather than be relaxing since now you are stuck in a time management game. This isn't an appropriate approach for everyone.

> Either way, I personally know many ordinary people who manage to get a healthy amount of exercise, and achieve their weight goals.

Again, this notion of a "healthy amount" of exercise is a fiction w.r.t. weight loss.

> I also have a friend who quite honestly, eats what seems to be an incredibly unhealthy mix - think large amounts of junk food and deep-fried fast food. However, they manage to stay reasonably slim (think BMI 18) by doing insane amounts of exercise (several hours a day). So it's definitely achievable, assuming you have that sort of willpower.

This person would likely still be a low BMI even without exercise.

> What studies are you referring to, that show that "normal" exercise will not cause weight loss? I'd be very curious to see them.

For a compilation of study data about weight loss, see the first half of Health at Every Size [1] (this is not an endorsement of a HAES lifestyle, but this book does collect the evidence).

[1] www.amazon.com/Health-At-Every-Size-Surprising/dp/1935618253/

[victorhooi]

To be honest, I find exercise during the day to actually be helpful - it gets me out of the office, and lets me recharge.

However, you do need to find an activity that you enjoy - if it's running 10km, then do that. If it's swimming 2km, do that. Or maybe you like doing weights, then do that. Or rock-climbing after work. It can't be something that you hate. (There are days you just don't feel like it though - sometimes you just need to grit your teeth and do it).

Also, what is a "healthy amount" of exercise?

I argue that it is possible to combine good food choices with a reasonable amount of exercise that will help you lose weight.

The below calorie burn numbers are from myself, using a HR band and a sports watch.

E.g. your lunchtime run/swim will burn say 300-350 calories.

If you jog or cycle to work, you can easily burn another 100 calories each way, so 200 calories both ways.

And maybe after work, you go to the gym, or do kickboxing, or play a sport you enjoy (e.g. touch footy, hockey, water polo etc.) - that's another 300-500 calories. (I don't wear a band during my sports though, since it'd come off - so these are rough guesses). You might only do that 2-3 nights a week though.

Either way though, if you choose to, you can be very active.