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One of the biggest fitness mistakes I’ve ever made is trying to out-exercise a poor diet. 

And that included me thinking I could sweat my way to a 6-pack.

Just imagine a sophomore in high school jogging around his parents’ neighborhood dressed in multiple layers (including a winter hat) right in the middle of summer.

Yes, you read that right.

SUMMER. 

As in June, July, and August.

The hottest months out of the year.

It’d be 90 degrees outside and there I was, dressed like a complete maniac.

No doubt my neighbors thought I was unhinged 😂

Actually, I know they did because our next-door neighbor asked my mom…

“Is everything okay with Chad? I’ve seen him running around the neighborhood like he’s dressed for a winter snowstorm.”

In my head, I justified it like this: 

There’s just no way you can’t out-exercise a bad diet if you’re working out this hard and putting in this much work.

Is that where you currently are?

Working out extremely hard but not seeing any weight loss? 

I say it’s time we get you off that fat loss hamster wheel.

Let’s talk about why you can’t out-exercise a bad diet and where you should put your focus instead to see the progress you want.

 

First, how does weight loss work?

 

If you want to lose weight, you HAVE TO be in a calorie deficit (it’s a non-negotiable).

So if you’ve been working out but not losing weight, guess what that means? 

I hate to break it to you but you’re not in a calorie deficit.

You’ll either see weight and/or inch loss if you’re truly in one.

A calorie deficit is kind of like a movie.

You have the main actor/actress (your nutrition).

And then your supporting characters–things like working out, cardio, sleep, stress management.

Well, what happens when the main character sucks?

The movie flops.

Moral of the story: 

Your nutrition drives weight loss.

Not your strength training workouts.

Or how much cardio you do.

In other words…

You can’t out-exercise a bad diet.

Another thing to point out about a calorie deficit…

HOW MUCH you eat drives weight loss, not what you eat.

So that means you can eat carbs, foods with sugar, and even…

FRUITS. 

I know it’s crazy but there are actually people who say fruits cause weight gain.

Ultimately, eating for fat loss means having balance and the flexibility to enjoy your favorites in moderation.

That’s the mindset shift you need to have–realize there is no such thing as “good” or “bad foods.” 

Research backs me up on this too.

Those who practice flexible eating have been shown to actually lose more weight than those who go on strict, rigid diets.  

Eating like that is sustainable. 

You know what sustainability helps with?

Producing results that last. 

So definitely don’t think you have to restrict yourself to only those “healthy foods” you typically think about when it comes to weight loss.

 

Why you can’t out-exercise a bad diet

 

Now, let’s get into the meat and potatoes of this article…

The 3 reasons why you can’t out-exercise a bad diet.

 

1. You’ll struggle to maintain a calorie deficit

 

Nutrition is the main character of your fat loss movie, not exercise.

So if your diet isn’t in order, you know by now what that means for your calorie deficit…

1. It’ll be nonexistent, which means…

2. You won’t lose weight.

Let’s say you eat 21 meals a week (3 meals per day) and you lift weights 4 days a week.

From a numbers perspective, just think about how many more opportunities you have to positively impact your nutrition as opposed to your workouts.

You get 21 meals to count calories and make sure you hit your daily protein goal.  

How do just 3-4 workouts a week stack up to that?

It illustrates that your nutrition carries much more weight (no pun intended) in the weight loss equation than your workouts.  

You can’t out-exercise a bad diet, and trying to do so would be like treating a stab wound with a Band-Aid.

It.

Just.

Won’t.

Work. 

2. You’re not going to the league

 

“But Chad, you say you can’t out-exercise a bad diet but what about professional athletes? I see them eat like crap and they’re still shredded AF.”

You’re right, some professional athletes can just eat whatever they want and still maintain physiques that look like those Greek god or goddess statues chiseled from marble. 

But the fact of the matter is you’re not them and neither am I (even though back in elementary school I would’ve argued with you like my life depended on it I was going pro 😂).

1. Professional athletes have utterly FREAKISH genetics (and insanely high metabolisms).

2. They need an insane number of calories just to keep up with their training and to perform at their best. 

They also have advanced methods of recovery at their disposal that just aren’t accessible to the general population. 

Professional athletes are 1% of the 1%, the extreme exceptions to the rule.

 

3. You’ll feel like crap and wear yourself down

 

Here’s the dangerous path you set yourself up to join when you try out-exercising a poor diet:

In the beginning, you’re feeling good👌🏾

You start off eating whatever you want because you’re convinced diet doesn’t matter for weight loss.

“It’s all about exercise,” you tell yourself.

So you hit the gym super hard and are able to stay consistent with things for a little while.

But then you start to notice doing weights and cardio without the nutrition piece isn’t producing any meaningful results. 

That’s when the tide starts to turn…

Not seeing any results despite all your efforts makes you feel discouraged (you may be at this point as you sit here today) and you lose all motivation to lose weight. 

Eventually, you give up out of frustration.

 

 Remember me running around my parents’ neighborhood dressed like a madman smack dab in the middle of summer?  

Please please PUHLEEEAASSEEE learn from my mistakes and buy into the fact that:

You can’t out-exercise a bad diet 

The key to losing weight lies in your NUTRITION.

Why you can’t out-exercise a bad diet FAQs 

 

What is a bad diet?

 

You might’ve been told your diet needs to be strictly “healthy foods” or that you should cut back on carbs, completely eliminate sugar, you shouldn’t eat fruit, or some other type of nonsense. 

You don’t have to do any of that for weight loss because the truth is a “bad diet’ is one that’s too restrictive.

A bad diet is one that unnecessarily forces you to cut out any foods or food groups you don’t want to.

You shouldn’t feel miserable with your diet and like you have to suffer just to see results.

If you’re not enjoying some of your favorite foods, you’re making weight loss and maintaining a calorie deficit a lot harder than it needs to be.  

Weight will take SOME sacrifice, don’t get me wrong.

But the key is to not view things in such all-or-nothing terms.

It’s more about finding that balance between making “healthier” food choices while still sprinkling in your favorites

A diet like that is sustainable and sustainability is what leads to long-term results. 

 

Do you need to do cardio to lose weight?

 

Technically, no.

The one thing you need to lose weight is a calorie deficit, and cardio doesn’t necessarily have to play a part in helping you create that deficit. 

Would I recommend just not doing any cardio though?

No, because cardio is great for your health (especially your heart health). 

 

What happens if you exercise without dieting?

A bad diet but lots of exercise won’t get you anywhere.

You’ll just be left frustrated and pulling your hair out at your lack of results.

Step off that fat loss hamster wheel and realize you can’t out-exercise a bad diet. 

 

What happens if you have a good diet but don’t exercise?

Even though nutrition is the main driver of weight loss, this one isn’t a good idea. 

You can lose weight, sure.

But it’s not healthy to just not exercise. 

And your body will just end up looking soft, pudgy, and with no real definition to it (AKA skinny fat).

 

Can exercise at least help me tone up my “problem areas”?

You can’t spot reduce body fat.

You lose body fat overall by being in a calorie deficit but where you lose fat first is up to your genetics.