Bradley Simpson

“My edict has always been: the best exercise for losing weight is pushing yourself away from the table” - Joan Collins

A common debate amongst those in the health and fitness industry is what is more important to health and fitness: Exercise or Nutrition. I would like to think I am relatively well qualified to answer this question because I do not feel like I have to protect the interests of myself and my industry, because I am in both!

The answer for me is not a hard one.

I think the results from a crap training program and excellent nutrition program would far outweigh the results from a crap nutrition program and excellent training program especially when your goal is to lose fat.

If you are training for a sports performance, and your body composition is not a major focus (Golf, Basketball, Cricket, Hockey etc and not Boxing, Wrestling, Gymnastics, Marathon running etc) then the argument is not so strong. I think there are many great Rugby and Golf players out there that are living testimony to this fact. For these people the opposite is true: The training they do is far more important than anything that goes in their mouth.

So the answer really depends on your goals: More performance based then focus on the training, more aesthetics based then  focus on the diet.

Think of all the people you know that have a good body composition that do not exercise, and all those that do spend time exercising but have a not-so-great body composition. I know quite a few that fit into both categories.

Don’t get me wrong though. I am not advocating sitting on the couch all day and starving yourself if you want to look good and be healthy.

I am simply saying that if your goal is fat loss then you are better spent analysing your nutrition than you are spending time worrying about whether the machine or free weight bench press is a better exercise for you (which is a whole other issue!). Likewise, if you want to lower your handicap in golf then don’t worry too much about what you eat for lunch after a round.

Just to throw another factor into the equation (and totally contradict much of the above), if you are an elite athlete who is already addressing many of the fundamental issues (training for sportsmen, diet for aesthetics based people) then don’t underestimate the effect of putting some energy into the other factor. Tiger Woods spends a lot of time physically conditioning himself. Something I think will help his longevity in the game and certainly wont negatively effect his ability. Likewise someone who is seeing a nutritionist and following their advice and still not getting the results they desire should consider getting a decent training program.