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Beyond the Scale: Why Nutrition and Exercise Work Better Together

For decades, weight loss advice has been distilled into a simple equation: calories in, calories out. Eat less, maybe combine that with exercise, and the pounds will fall away. But according to experts at Vail Health, that equation overlooks a much bigger picture. Sustainable health, they say, isn’t about restriction or extremes. It’s about balance, consistency and a mindset that prioritizes energy and longevity over the number on the scale.

According to registered dietician Jen Sommer-Dirks, the old equation doesn’t capture the complexity of how the body actually works. 

“Even though certain foods may be equal calorie for calorie, how full you feel and how your blood sugar responds can drastically differ depending on the nutrient density of the food,” she explains. “Just hitting your calorie target doesn’t ensure that you are getting the right macro distribution to meet your weight loss or metabolic health goals.”

“This is a nuanced topic and not one we can reduce simply to ‘calories in/calories out,’” says Christine Pierangeli, master nutrition therapist at Vail Health. “We do need a calorie deficit to lose weight. But being in an extreme deficit can cause stress on the system and cause the body to hold on to weight. Hormones can complicate the whole picture by driving insulin resistance and a heightened cortisol response.”

For Sarah Brubeck, a health coach at Vail Health, the takeaway is that energy balance, not just a caloric deficit, still matters. Those trying to lose weight will only do so when they take the balance of the entire wellness ecosystem into account. 

“Hormones, stress, sleep, muscle mass and mindset are all influential in this equation,” she says.
 

Why Exercise Alone Isn’t Enough — But Why it Matters 

When it comes to losing or maintaining weight, all three experts agree that movement and nutrition need to work together, but that one can’t make up for the other. 

“It is not possible to out-exercise a bad diet,” says Pierangeli. “Exercise does not cause us to lose weight. In fact, exercise can drive hunger and also weight gain. For women, this is especially true because exercise drives our ghrelin hormone and creates more hunger.”

Still, exercise has its place, not for the number on the scale, but for how it helps people feel in their own bodies. “Nutrition tends to move the scale more quickly,” says Brubeck, “but exercise is what helps you keep the weight off and feel strong, capable and confident in your body.”

Without exercise, adds Sommer-Dirks, it’s impossible to improve your healthspan, a term that refers to the part of a person’s life during which they are generally in good health. It’s a metric she considers more important than weight. 

“Healthy eating and regular exercise will literally lengthen your lifespan and improve your healthspan,” she says. “It results in better metabolic health, better blood values (glucose, lipids etc.), better energy levels, better sleep, better mood.”
 

When “Doing Everything Right” Doesn’t Work

For those who are trying to lose weight, sometimes, despite best intentions, the scale refuses to budge. The experts say this can happen for a variety of reasons and often, the problem isn’t effort, but imbalance.

“Sometimes people are actually under-eating, overtraining or living in a constant state of stress — which can all cause the body to hold on to energy,” Brubeck says. “Hormones, sleep and inflammation also play a huge role. And sometimes, healthy habits are working, just not showing up on the scale yet. You might be gaining muscle, improving hydration or stabilizing blood sugar. All amazing signs of progress that the scale can’t measure. That’s why noticing how you feel overall and looking at body composition, not just body weight, are a far better indicators of true success on a health or weight-loss journey. Don’t let one number define your success.”

A common misconception is that you have to be perfect to make progress. In reality, the people who succeed long term are the ones who stay consistent. They build routines that fit within their lifestyles and those that they can live with, not ones they can only survive for 30 days. 

“If you hate to run, trying a new routine of running every day will probably not be feasible in the long run,” Brubeck says. “Find something that you enjoy doing first, then figure out how it fits into your routine.”

Pierangeli adds that the problem is often confusion rather than failure. 

“The nutrition landscape is fraught with mixed messages,” she says. “Often clients think they are doing ‘everything right’ due to confusion in the space. When I clarify and give simple and common-sense information, light bulbs turn on, health improves and weight loss follows.”
 

The Real Benefits of Healthy Habits

Ultimately, weight loss is just one of many outcomes that come from good nutrition and movement.

“Healthy eating and regular exercise will literally lengthen your lifespan and improve your healthspan, the number of years you are healthy not just alive,” Sommer-Dirks says. “Health is so much more than weight.”

Brubeck sees those benefits show up in her clients’ everyday lives. 

“You sleep better, your mood improves, your energy stabilizes and your confidence grows,” she says. “Healthy eating and movement make everyday life easier — carrying groceries, playing with your kids, hiking on the weekend. Weight loss is great, but feeling strong and capable is what really keeps people going.”
 

A Lifelong Relationship, Not a Quick-Fix Fad

In a culture that constantly pushes new fads, from intermittent fasting to protein loading, the experts agree that simplicity wins.

“A lot of what we see online is trendy but not necessarily sustainable or even healthy,” Sommer-Dirks says. “Most people don’t need fancy, complicated nutrition strategies. They just need to focus on the basic building blocks of a healthy lifestyle.”

Pierangeli approaches her clients the same way. “I explain the science of nutrition, define the terms and educate with a simple approach that helps clients see solid nutrition as sustainable, no matter where they are in life. The messaging should not be ultra complex. Complexity often equals overwhelm and is unsustainable” she says.

At the end of the day, health isn’t a one-off fad; it’s a lifelong relationship with the body. The goal, these experts say, isn’t perfection or deprivation, but empowerment.

As Pierangeli puts it, “I wish all my clients the freedom to step away from old messaging about body image. Optimal healthspan and wellness should always be the goal.”

“My hope is that every client walks away feeling strong, capable and confident both in and out of the gym, not because of the scale, but because they built habits that make them feel good inside and out,” Brubeck says. “It's important to train and be fit for anything life throws your way. Even just training your mindset to complete a tough workout and getting through it will help you when something tough comes your way.”