Diet OR Exercise: The World’s Most Misleading Question

Maybe I exaggerate a little bit, but probably not — if you’re anyone that has struggled, in any capacity, with trying to lose weight or get in better shape, there might have come a time where you considered your own diet and your own fitness plan and thought — which one is more important?

I’m here to say that question is totally, 100% invalid.

You Can’t Ignore What You Eat

Simple as that, really. If you’re going to the gym and working out on a regular basis, or running, or keeping active, or doing whatever — you still can’t afford, in any way, shape, or form to ignore your diet.

This doesn’t mean you have to be permanently on a diet — it means you have to just pay attention to what you eat, day in, and day out. That’s it. No sprints where you cut out one ingredient for a month and then over-indulge later, or completely toss out everything you once ate and start chowing down on only cabbage or something.

None of that is sustainable, none of that is enjoyable, and none of it really works, long-term.

Paying attention to what you eat is more than just about choosing what to eat from a pre-determined menu, or choosing something based on its calorie content.

It’s really about cooking and shopping. Without learning how to do those two things properly, you can never get any kind of balance, any kind of knowledge, or any kind of perspective on what you’re eating. If you’re lacking fundamentals, talk to someone who you know has them — ask them serious questions about how they buy groceries, plan meals, what they do when they get lazy, and so on.

Have five conversations like that, with people you respect, and you’ll have more information than you can ever get from any flavor-of-the-month diet book.

You Can’t Stay Inactive

But hold on — just because you’re eating really well, doesn’t mean you can ignore exercise, either.

And this isn’t just “take the stairs at the office instead of the elevator” advice (although, hey, take those stairs, while you’re at it). This is actually doing something active on a regular basis. That’s 3-4 times a week, plus moving around on your rest days.

Play sports. Go jogging. Buy weights or some resistance bands and follow some exercises. Join a gym, a health club, a community center. Don’t consider these choices optional — consider them fundamental.

This isn’t just about looking great, although that too will happen. This is about your health, this is about giving yourself more energy (paradoxically, you’ll have way more energy, the more you spend), and about making every day feel great.

The ‘Miracle Examples’ Don’t Matter

Every time I talk to someone about this whole ‘diet vs. exercise’ (which is a false dichotomy/useless comparison to make), I hear a lot about those ‘miraculous’ examples — people who never exercise yet never gain a pound, or people who eat the purest junk all day and yet seem thin and healthy.

These people are anomalies. If you look closer, a lot of them probably aren’t that healthy — their muscles aren’t so great, or their internal organs are more like those of a really obese person because of what they’ve been eating, or all that sugar has done a number on their teeth, their kidneys — whatever.

Miraculous exceptions to the rule are curiosities and nothing more.

The people who put the work in because of the unbelievably great rewards that living a healthy, active life gives you back — from the very first day you start doing it — these people are the examples to follow!

Your Comments

Have you ever ‘chosen’ diet or exercise in the past? What were some of the problems you had with such an either/or approach? Tell me about them!