The prevalence of sedentary behaviour in women increases as they age, with over one third of all women engaging in no exercise¹. Add to that the levels of low exercise that also increase with age, and we have more than two-thirds of all women failing to engage in adequate weekly exercise.

Is it a coincidence that 56% of adult woman are overweight or obese²?

When you ask most people what they would need to do to lose weight, they would tell you “eat less and exercise more”. So, with 56% of women carrying extra weight, and around 67% not exercising enough, what’s the problem?

If most people accept that exercising will affect their weight, why don’t they do it?

Perhaps the problem lies in their past experience. They’ve started or increased their exercise only to find that it had little effect on their weight. They didn’t have enough time to add enough exercise to their daily routines, and so gave up.

It may be that they expected too much from their exercise program. Playing netball once a week is unlikely to have much of an effect, especially if the game offers a wonderful social outlet and the team go out for coffee and cake afterwards. Walking around the block each morning is great exercise, but most women will tell you that while doing this was enjoyable and satisfying, it made no difference to their weight.

It’s not well known that the biggest calorie expenditure each day is your basal metabolic rate, or BMR. Your BMR is responsible for keeping your body functioning, and has nothing to do with exercise. So, the 150 calories you ‘burn’ in on your morning walk³ is a tiny amount compared to the 1400 calories required to stay alive. You can check your BMR here⁴.

If exercise doesn’t do much to make you lose weight, why do we bother?

Glad you asked. There are many fabulous – and essential – reasons to exercise that have nothing to do with weight⁵:

1. Boost happiness levels
2. Learn to set and achieve goals
3. Reduce the risk of heart disease
4. Sleep better
5. Get an energy boost
6. Increase strength and flexibility
7. Improve memory
8. Increase self-confidence
9. Perform better at work
10. Become less susceptible to disease
11. Live longer

And the secret to losing weight? Finding the right eating plan for your body. We’d love to help – fill in your details for a 7-Day Women’s Wellness Program and we’ll be in touch.

This short video outlines the role of exercise in our lives. It’s worth checking out.

1. https://www.heartfoundation.org.au/about-us/what-we-do/heart-disease-in-australia/level-of-exercise-statistics
2. https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/overweight-obesity/a-picture-of-overweight-and-obesity-in-australia/contents/summary
3. https://www.health.harvard.edu/diet-and-weight-loss/calories-burned-in-30-minutes-of-leisure-and-routine-activities
4. http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/#result
5. https://draxe.com/benefits-of-exercise/