This data came in the form of a study at the University of Texas.
In this study, nearly 100 initially sedentary participants either stayed sedentary (about half of them) OR began exercising (the other half). They exercisers were given a program to follow that added up to about 5 1/2 to 6 hours of activity per week and that lasted for a total of 12 weeks. The non-exercisers did nothing for the 12 weeks except show up for measurement sessions.
These individuals, as stated above, did no exercise before the study began. As a result of this sedentary lifestyle, they averaged between 35% and 40% body fat.
Once the study began, the training group gathered together for 3 weight training sessions and 2 group exercise sessions per week. All the training was overseen by a weightlifting coach and group exercise coach. So there was a pretty high level of quality control.
Now, it’s important to note that they didn’t alter the participant’s eating at all. And they did this on purpose. They tested the effects of exercise alone – without diet. In other words, the question became:
“Without a diet, can exercise alone reshape a person’s body?”
At the end of the 12 week study, the answer is:
“Not so much"
That’s right, when analyzing the data, I was shocked to find that even with 3+ hours of training per week with a weightlifting coach and 2+ hours of training per week with a body-weight circuit instructor, didn’t really work. The formerly sedentary participants didn’t do much better than their couch-sitting counterparts. So U need to diet.
