I'm a big fan of research, especially when it comes to happenings in my body so I browse websites to learn more about weight loss. Seems like our bodies are doomed to obesity and it just blows my mind. Conclusion from the article:

"Despite relative preservation of FFM (fat-free mass), exercise did not prevent dramatic slowing of resting metabolism out of proportion to weight loss. This metabolic adaptation may persist during weight maintenance and predispose to weight regain unless high levels of physical activity or caloric restriction are maintained."

Here it is if you like reading this stuff, too:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3387402/

I wish all primary care physicians (and, hell, insurance companies) knew this already but they don't. You go to the doctor and so many of them are like "You need to lose weight. I recommend Weight Watchers and an exercise program" as if you don't already know that!!!! There is a very real reason why so many of us are fat. And it has nothing to do with willpower or effort. Obesity is clearly a biological imperative. Surgery is obviously the only solution and shouldn't be perceived as a last resort or the "easy way out." It is literally the ONLY way out. How many times have you lost weight and gained it back? Watched friends and family rebound? It's so frustrating but there's a cultural stigma around obesity which blames the individual for being fat because they're perceived as lazy and gluttonous.

Wow. But the good thing is, the more I read articles like this the easier I am on myself.

if you follow Dr Matthew Weiner on youtube, or dr Duc Vuong on facebook and many other surgeons they will all say it is well known that exercise has little impact on weight loss. it is all about the food.

I am active, but haven't spent a day in the gym and don't plan to. I do plan to stay active because I like it.

They both do advocate exercise for other reasons like stress relief, muscle preservation etc. but not for weight loss.

@needtorecover: Like you, I did a lot of research and came to the same conclusions as you. It really is obvious that for most people who are obese, that surgery really is the best answer in terms of helping them lose weight. It's the only way to reset the body against it's natural impulse to stay overweight.

Even now, though I haven't told anyone I've had the surgery, I do tell them that I don't exercise (I mean, that I haven't done anything extra for exercise - I just continue to go for my long walks and that's it) - I tell them that exercise has a small impact on weight loss, that it is mostly about diet.

Yeah, I opt for general movement over rigorous exercise anymore. Gardening, playing with my toddler son, gentle swimming, walking... My primary reason to go to the gym is to drop my boy off at their in-center childcare facility so he has some kids to play with and I can take a break listening to music and watch some TV while I use the equipment! It's great!

But simply going on Weight Watchers isn't the solution to morbid obesity. If it were that easy no one would be fat, right? It took a lot of self-control to work full-time and earn my master's degree part-time but it was doable. I had no problem disciplining myself to read articles and write papers, attend (and pay attention to) 3 hour lectures after working 8 hours, and spending my weekends in front of a computer. But for clear biological reasons I couldn't stick to calorie restriction without the help of my band. It wasn't from lack of trying.

Most obese and formerly fat people can lose weight without surgery. Losing weight is not the problem. In fact, I estimate I've lost a couple hundred pounds over the years via yo-yo dieting. I'd lose 50, regain 60, lose 75, regain 100, then rinse and repeat the miserable process. I'd regain much faster than I lost.

Maintaining the weight loss is the problem for many obese people. For me, weight loss surgery offered the last glimmer of hope to keep the weight off after losing it.

Exercise may not help with weight loss but building up your core muscles really helps with everyday living and not so everyday situations. I was working out with a trainer years prior to surgery. Within that time I ruptured my Achilles Tendon, had to have surgery, and was in a non-weight bearing cast for 3 weeks. At 370 pounds, if I hadn't built up my arm, stomach and back muscles, I would have not been able to get out of the bed. Those muscles in my stomach, back and glutes along with my arms helped hold my weight while transferring on one leg from the bed to the commode or the bed to the wheelchair and then when I was using the walker. I can't emphasize enough the benefits to doing core exercises to strengthen stomach, back and glutes and some weight training for the arms and legs. You never know when you have to rely on them.