Much of the first world is facing an obesity epidemic. This is especially plain to see if you live in the states. Many people take up the goal of losing weight. As a matter of fact, among those who makes New Years Resolutions, losing weight is the second most common goal, trailing just a little behind saving money. A good and noble goal, but many often fail to see results because of their dietary habits.
In a thread I was reading, I was quite surprised by how few people seemed to know this. I saw many commenters expressing frustration that despite the fact that they run or bike every day, they still are not losing weight. Thus, losing weight must, for some reason, be harder for them than most or even downright impossible.
Quick Summary of Losing Weight: Maintain a caloric deficit. Burn more calories than you are consuming in a day.
Many people think they can achieve this simply by exercising. Do you know how many calories running a mile burns? Obviously there are a few factors involved and this isn't a set in stone, all cases answer, but a quick google search turns up the result 100 calories burned per mile ran. A decent estimate.
Let's list some junk foods and how much you would have to run (according to this estimate) to burn off those calories.
Hershey Bar - 214 Calories - 2.14 Miles
Dr. Pepper (16 oz) - 200 Calories - 2 Miles
(note the above are quite high in sugar. A Hershey bar has about 24 Grams, while a Dr Pepper has a whopping 64 grams. For perspective, the recommended daily sugar intake for a man is about 36 grams. While these may not seem like a ton of calories, I can guarantee you you're not going to feel full after eating a candy bar and especially not after drinking a soda. These are essentially calories you're taking in with no nutritional value.)
McDonald's Cheeseburger - 313 Calories - 3.13 Miles
1/4 Digiorno Frozen Pizza - 549 Calories - 5.49 Miles
What sounds easier to you, running 2 miles or simply not consuming the Hershey Bar? The fact is you simply cannot outrun a bad diet. If you want to lose weight, 95 percent of that battle is fought in the kitchen. Not the treadmill. Not the bike. Not the swimming pool. It's all about what you eat.
I hope this doesn't sound condescending. I know " just eat better" is some advice but that is simply the fact of the matter. Not even eating better, just eating less. If your plan of attack for losing weight is continuing your diet but adding a two mile run everyday, you're gonna have a bad time.