Burn Fat and Keep It Off For Good

The other day, one of my clients and I were talking about her goals and her expectations with regards to the program that we have designed. The topic came up AGAIN that she didn’t want to lose her butt all she wanted to do was lose and tone up her stomach as well as she wanted to slim down her waist. I immediately tried to educate her on spot reduction and the myth that has been around for centuries with regards to weight loss and body transformation.

Today we are going to explore this topic once again and see if really there is truth to the concept that a person can workout a particular body part or parts and reduce that without losing in any other area.

Myth #1 If I concentrate on the one particular area that I want to lose weight, I will see the results that I am looking for

This myth starts our little conversation. It is the theory of spot reduction. Spot reduction is simply the idea that if you work a specific muscle group you will decrease the amount of fat in that area. The most popular body part examples are seen when clients come to me wanting to get that J-Lo/ Beyonce’ butt, those Tina Turner legs, or those abs like Terrell Owen (yeah T.O. body I would die for!). These people main focus is on a particular area in which their efforts are to either enhance that area or lose the excess baggage that is currently around or on that area.
In reality, there is no such thing as spot reduction. You will never attain a flat stomach just by performing abdominal exercises.

Let me say that sentence again for those that are skimming this article: You will never attain a flat stomach just by performing abdominal exercises.

The reason for this is simple: the muscle is underneath the fat. So when you go to the gym (which if you have been reading my blog posts you have canceled your memberships and are currently working out at home) you see this everywhere. The guys that go to the gym and do the same chest and stomach routine over and over to still look like Bookman off of “Good Times”. Many people compare fat to the layers of an onion. Rather than disappearing from a particular place, it comes off layer by layer from the whole body.
Moreover, the way fat is shed is different from person to person. It tends to go from the most recent place it appeared. If your tummy started gaining first - this will be the very last place for the fat to disappear from. Sorry!!
This is why, for example, a man may complain of getting too thin in the face - and yet still have a small 'spare tire' around his waist. Or a woman may complain of a smaller bust, and yet the hips may have barely moved in inch.

Myth #2 I can do ab work and it will reduce fat around my stomach

Um wrong! Sit-ups will definitely strengthen your abdominal muscles, but sit-ups alone will not get rid of the layer of fat that is covering the muscles. To lose fat anywhere on your body you need to burn calories by following a program that involves both cardiovascular training and weight training.

Let me repeat that statement once again! To lose fat anywhere (butt, legs, stomach, back aka back boobies) you need to burn calories by following a program that involves both cardiovascular aka cardio training and weight training.

In doing so, you will decrease fat stores throughout your entire body, including the problem areas that you are so desperately wanting to get rid of.

You may notice that you sometimes lose fat in some areas more quickly than in others; this is simply due to a genetic selective pattern rather than a particular type of exercise. It is a well known fact that men tend to gain weight in their stomach region, whereas women tend to gain weight in their butt, thus the old comment about men being shape like apples and women being shaped like pears when they gain weight. If fat was mobilized, or used from the stores near the exercising muscle, then you would expect both men and women to lose weight in the same areas when following a similar program. However, losing weight in the butt is much more difficult for women than it is for men. Sorry Miss Jackson!!!

Myth #3 Muscle will eventually turn into fat if I stop working out

Another common myth is that muscle gained during a strength training program will turn to fat once you stop strength training.

Muscle is muscle and fat, or scientific term adipose tissue, is fat. It is like comparing apples to pears. Pun intended. They tissues are two different tissues which are completely independent of each other. If you stop weight training, your muscles will shrink because the stimulus to increase or maintain their size is no longer there; but by no means can they, or will they, turn into fat.

If you feel your body is becoming less toned or what I sometimes hear most men and some women say to me “soft” it is simply because your proportion of fat to muscle has changed. Fat, although you may not have gained any more of it, is now dominant simply because you have lost muscle. Another possible reason for the change is a common problem that exists with many people, primarily athletes and which happened to me once I finished playing college football. The problem is that they stop exercising, but maintain their eating habits, and thus slowly begin to put on weight.

You should see some of my friends that I played football with in college “Holy Jesus! Who is that?”

If you had been exercising but stopped, be sure to make dietary changes to compensate for the decrease in daily energy expenditure. As I was telling one of my newest clients this weekend think of the analogy of your body being a bank account. If you spend more money (energy) then you deposit then the result is a small bank account i.e. weight loss. But, if you put more money in (calories) but never go to withdraw any of it out then you will have a FAT bank account.

The Truth

Here's the skinny of the matter! There is very little you can do to influence specific fat distribution. Exercise should always be a part of any fat loss program -but vigorously exercising a specific body part will not have any influence on local fat in that area. This myth has been debunked again and again. One should enroll in programs that give them the best of both worlds- have strength and cardio training components in them. Boot camps and cardio kickboxing classes are great way to accomplish this.

It can be very frustrating but everybody is different. Stay committed to your training and nutrition - and don't be dissuaded by the commercials and images that show perfectly proportioned clones. Understand how your body works, and set achievable goals accordingly.

It’s A Process.

A. Lamail Spain

Charlotte Boot Camp