Diet versus exercise; three meals or six

According to the Pew Research Center, about a third (34 percent) of Americans are neither exercising nor Dieting; 17 percent are doing both; 8 percent are Dieting but not exercising; and 40 percent are exercising but not Dieting. Well, a recent study in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism demonstrated that Dieting and exercise are equally good at taking off the pounds — as long as the number of calories consumed is the same as the number of calories burned.

And, according to David L. Katz, M.D., associate professor of public health and director of the Prevention Research Center at Yale University School of Medicine, the answer is simpler than the debate would imply. "If you can exercise enough to burn more calories and would rather do that than cut calories, then exercise is the way to go. If, however, you're more willing to trim your portions than go out running, Dieting will work better." That said, it's clear from the research that the majority of people who have lost weight and kept it off for five years or more combine Diet and exercise as Dietpriority. Should you eat three or six meals per day ?

t really depends on whether those six meals are going to increase or decrease how many calories you take in for the day overall. According to Milton Stokes, R.D. M.P.H., spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association, "A small amount of research says that eating mini-meals consisting of less food more frequently may help rev metabolism and prevent extreme variations in blood sugar. Some people reap benefits from eating about every four or five hours daily. People get hungry every four hours, says Nancy Clark, a sports nutritionist and author of Nancy Clark's Sports Nutrition Guidebook (Human Kinetics, 2003). She recommends four meals: breakfast, two lunches with about three hours between them, and dinner. Katz favors six meals because, "People trying to control their weight are often worried about deprivation and going hungry. Having food available at regular intervals cuts off this anxiety," he says.

"I caution people about the six meals per day," says Lona Sandon, M.Ed., R.D., a professor of nutrition at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas. Six meals a day at 300 calories each would be a total of 1,800 calories for the day. A bowl of cereal with skim milk and maybe ½ cup of juice would be about 300 calories. People who follow this type of plan need to really watch their portion sizes."

Katz agrees. He believes that if you are eating often, you must make sure you're eating well, as Dietpriority. It's pretty much unanimous among health experts: The daily walk, even for a few minutes, is better than the all-day weekend hike. According to Stephen Rice, M.D., Ph.D., M.P.H., a sports medical expert at the Jersey Shore Medical Center in Neptune, N.J., "Daily exercise is superior to being a 'weekend warrior.' Couch potatoes Monday through Friday and vigorous athletes Saturday and Sunday can come up with both acute and overuse injuries easily."

Not only that, but if you have the time to walk 15 minutes a day, it is better for your health and fitness, and, according to Michael R. Bracko, Ed.D., a spokesperson for the American College of Sports Medicine, these short walks can be the start of bigger and better things for fitness and health and could ultimately change your life.