Let's talk pie

A few years ago I saw this clip of a guy sprinting on a treadmill while a man stands next to him shoveling half a pie into his mouth and washing it down with a root beer. The purpose of the video was not to torment the poor guy on the treadmill, but to point out how it’s impossible to out train a bad diet.  The man on the treadmill sprinted for three minutes and burned about 40 calories. In that same period of time, the pizza man consumed 900 calories of junk. Unless you plan to spend your entire day on a treadmill, you can’t get those calories back. A poor diet decision can derail your body composition goals in a matter of minutes.

The reason I find the video interesting is because it reminded me that when training for body composition goals (lose fat, gain muscle etc.) about 75% of the strategy involves proper nutrition. Even if you train like a madwoman in the gym, if you eat junk, you won’t see the results you’re looking for. Working out gets a lot of attention from the media, which makes sense because they want to sell you exercise products.These outlets won’t see a dime if you start eating more fresh produce and lean proteins, so there is less incentive for them to promote the biggest piece of the wellness pie – nutrition. Moreover, a workout typically lasts about an hour but healthy eating a much more difficult and less glamorous 24/7 endeavor.

Mmm meat pie graph

I experienced firsthand the 75% principle when I was training for a century ride a while ago. Thanks to consistent training and great coaches in the Team in Training program, I saw my biking abilities improve each week. Long rides over the weekend would test my muscle stamina and get my heart racing. Given the amount of time I spent training on the tarmac you would expect me to look like I was in the best shape of my life. But instead of looking like Lance Armstrong, I looked less in shape than I did before I started training. Did all that saddle time on my bike stymie my circulation and prevent me from burning fat? Nope, it’s just that my nutrition sucked. My workouts made me hungrier and I thought that all of the calories I burned gave me license to eat whatever I wanted. It’s a pretty common occurrence when training for endurance events. So much so that Team in Training now warns participants that their programs will not help you meet weight loss goals.

Yes, that is a Capitol dome on top of my helmet

None of this is to say that you should ditch exercising as a method to meet body composition goals. That 25% of the pie is absolutely essential. It helps you build muscle, which helps burn fat and calories throughout the day. Plus there are tons of overarching wellness benefits from working out like improved heart health, increased bone density, greater strength and boosts in energy. Exercise multiplies the effectiveness and results of your healthy eating. So don't lose sight of either parts of the pie and you'll be well on your way to getting better.