Well said, Teaser.

I think that suggesting that significant amounts of exercise is the way to maintain weight loss is a recipe for disaster. An injury or a change in schedule or demands on time without simultaneously cutting way back on calories will cause lots of weight gain almost immediately.

But most people who haven't ever lost weight maintain their weight (whether overweight and steady or thin and steady) without that much exercise. So I would describe successful maintaining as doing it without having to commit upwards of an hour a day to "moderate-to-vigorous" exercise (40 minute workouts, plus clothes changing, showering, etc.).

I think fitness is a great health goal, but you can definitely achieve that in far less time.

I have donkeys & think they're pretty special. Also, they're a lot smarter than people think.

I've heard that about donkeys.

Not discounting the experience others may have, but for me exercise doesn't do this. I'm putting in huge amounts of fitness time right now on a sport I enjoy. No effect on weight. None. A few years back I was sidelined by an injury a few weeks. Weight stayed the same, although my appetite automatically down-regulated and then back up when I was working out again. This time I can't detect any particular change in my eating, amount etc., with the many extra hours of sports but with no weight change except for when I tried zero carb and at the same time deliberately under-ate, staying hungry a lot, which is not sustainable for very long.

If they don't want to do what humans want them to do, they refuse to do it. Very smart.

There's usually a good reason for that refusal. Sometimes it's just "I don't wanna," but that's a good reason, isn't it?