Of course it does. Famines tell us as much. Gyms increase your burn rate, though. Running for 5 miles a day will burn up a quarter of a 2000 calorie diet.
That being said, a lot of gym activity that I see is basically useless and probably taken up just to feel good about going to a gym regularly (some examples in my gym: walking on treadmills instead of around the block, paying for membership every month to solely use the 5lb dumbbells for 30 minutes that go for $12 online).
I'm sorry, but 5 miles a day is just not possible for, I'd say, the vast majority of people. As an average chump, I can barely do 2 miles every other day.
Any exercise does make me feel much better, so that alone is a good reason to do it, but for weight loss, eating less is the fastest way.
Is there a reason other than time commitment you think this is not possible for most people? With 12 minute miles, it takes an hour.
It takes time to build up endurance, but with pretty simple training - measuring weekly mileage and increasing that no more than 10% a week - building up to 5 miles is doable. It's challenging to and probably not advisable to do it every day due to injury risk, but I think 5 miles maybe 3-4 times a week is possible for many, barring any serious health conditions.
That being said, a lot of gym activity that I see is basically useless and probably taken up just to feel good about going to a gym regularly (some examples in my gym: walking on treadmills instead of around the block, paying for membership every month to solely use the 5lb dumbbells for 30 minutes that go for $12 online).