THE MYTH:
You can spot reduce body fat. For example...if you want to lose the fat around your stomach, focus on sit ups and crunches!
THE TRUTH:
You cannot spot reduce body fat. Your body does not target fat based upon you exercising the specific muscles groups that are near those fat stores.
THE EXPLANATION:
When you lose body fat, it primarily happens via the FILO (first in, last out) process. That means if, when you gained a bunch of weight your stomach was one of the areas that put on fat first, when you begin losing weight it will be one of the last places that slims down. Body fat storage patterns are genetic, and that is just one of the reasons why people come in so many different shapes. Some people store fat very proportionately over their entire body and don't have specific areas that really store larger proportions of fat. I consider these people the lucky ones :). Some people are genetically predisposed to disproportionately store fat in their hips (butt) and thighs, and some store it in their stomach and lower back. For me in particular, while I've worked hard to maintain a single digit body fat %, I store nearly all of my subcutaneous body fat (also called adipose tissue) in my stomach, love handles, and lower back. I carry little fat anywhere else...but DANG...it is hard to get rid of that stomach fat! The pizza, brownies and ice cream that I eat on a semi-regular basis probably doesn't help either :(
Your blood stream is the pathway for nutrients to flow to and from your organs, muscles and fat stores. Muscles and subcutaneous fat deposits are not directly linked, so burning calories doing biceps curls has no direct link to fat deposits in your arm. Just like not regularly exercising a muscle group doesn't mean fat is specifically going to congregate around that muscle group. If that were the case, there would be millions of guys out there with completely shredded upper bodies and fat legs. So no matter what muscle group you've worked, no matter how many crunches or sit-ups, how many squats and reverse leg raises you've done, your body burns fuel that comes through the blood stream which flows through your entire body. Wherever you are genetically pre-disposed to lose fat from is where it will come from. For the most part, fat will be burned from all over your body and results of burning fat are gradual. Obviously, if 50% of your fat is in your stomach, and you lose a few pounds of fat, you'll likely see the greatest fat loss in your stomach because that is where most of your fat is. However, don't think it is all those extra crunches you've been doing that specifically targeted belly fat. Strong 6-pack abdominal muscles (rectus abdominus) and a strong core (transverse abdominus) are important...but they are small muscles and exercising them won't burn much calories and fat.
Physiologically, the process that your body goes through to burn fat is completely independent of which regions of your body you are exercising that day. As you begin to understand how your body actually burns fat, it becomes more and more absurd to believe that exercising a muscle group near the fat stores will specifically burn those fat stores. I'm going to do the best I can to simplify the information below since I know everyone is not as much of a nerd as I am. EDIT - I actually typed up a paragraph about muscle and liver glycogen, glucagon, insulin and how your body uses these various items at differing times and triggers storage or usage of energy etc. Then I realized I was going down a rabbit hole and most people's eyes would glaze over anyway...so you have been spared :) Luckily, I found a great graphic online which really simplifies the process so that it is very easily understandable. Because your body regulates blood sugar extremely efficiently (in healthy people), it knows when to store energy and when to burn energy (convert stored energy). See the graphic on the right. We are going to start on the left side with Low Blood Glucose. When your blood sugar drops, your body regulates it by converting, among other things, body fat through the process above...eventually turning that fat into glucose that is released into the blood stream to achieve normal blood sugar levels. On the right side, is High Blood Glucose, which happens when we eat, and especially when we eat high Glycemic Index carbs. Insulin is released which allows your body to pull the glucose out of the blood stream and uses it to refill muscle and liver glycogen levels...and then stores the excess as fat. This is quite oversimplified...but that is really what you need to know about the way your body uses or stores energy.
I could come up with numerous other examples of people who perform various repetitive tasks that use specific muscle groups and are not disproportionately shaped. If spot reduction of body fat was possible...trust me, we'd all know it.
Alright, the next myth to be busted is: "You should eat more often to spike your metabolism." This one is going to be really interesting (at least to me) and will take us into the arena of Intermittent Fasting. There are still RDs (Registered Dieticians) out there propagating this myth, so it is a very important topic to discuss. Stay tuned!
Hebrews 12:11
"No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it."
Think about the process it takes to lose weight and get in shape and all of the challenges you have to deal with. You are out of breath, tired, sweaty, thirsty, hungry, muscles are sore, body aches, your mind is telling you that you can't, experience might even be telling you that you can't, you are tempted by food, tempted by the couch, your motivation fails, you might have to fight injury and recovery...the list goes on and on. Certainly staying disciplined on attaining better health and fitness habits can be painful. BUT...for those who stick with it, it produces a harvest...it produces results! And with those results come better self-esteem and confidence, better health, maybe even some added peace. The verse above can be applied in many ways and in many areas of our lives...but think about it today in terms of your health and fitness goals and let it remind you why you are going through the discipline! GET YOUR HEAD RIGHT!
- Major Pain
Physiology of Fat Burning
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| The basic process for energy utilization or storage. |
Physiologically, the process that your body goes through to burn fat is completely independent of which regions of your body you are exercising that day. As you begin to understand how your body actually burns fat, it becomes more and more absurd to believe that exercising a muscle group near the fat stores will specifically burn those fat stores. I'm going to do the best I can to simplify the information below since I know everyone is not as much of a nerd as I am. EDIT - I actually typed up a paragraph about muscle and liver glycogen, glucagon, insulin and how your body uses these various items at differing times and triggers storage or usage of energy etc. Then I realized I was going down a rabbit hole and most people's eyes would glaze over anyway...so you have been spared :) Luckily, I found a great graphic online which really simplifies the process so that it is very easily understandable. Because your body regulates blood sugar extremely efficiently (in healthy people), it knows when to store energy and when to burn energy (convert stored energy). See the graphic on the right. We are going to start on the left side with Low Blood Glucose. When your blood sugar drops, your body regulates it by converting, among other things, body fat through the process above...eventually turning that fat into glucose that is released into the blood stream to achieve normal blood sugar levels. On the right side, is High Blood Glucose, which happens when we eat, and especially when we eat high Glycemic Index carbs. Insulin is released which allows your body to pull the glucose out of the blood stream and uses it to refill muscle and liver glycogen levels...and then stores the excess as fat. This is quite oversimplified...but that is really what you need to know about the way your body uses or stores energy.
Common Sense
Some things make sense until we really think about them. If it were true that muscle activity and closely located fat deposits were linked, think about how weird different people who do different things would be shaped. You'd have some people who sit at a keyboard and type...their arms and hands should have zero fat on them even if they are overweight right? I mean, they are constantly moving the muscles in their hands and arms while sitting still with the rest of their body. That means they've burned off all of that finger and forearm fat by constantly using those muscles 8+ hours a day! They might look something like this: |
| If spot reducing body fat were possible, you'd see a bunch of people who look similar to this. |
Summary
I don't think I need to belabor the point...I think this myth has been BUSTED! One more thought though. Liposuction...not such a great idea. You can suck the fat out of certain areas of your body...but it will come right back if you continue to intake more calories than you are using. The best solution is to earn a fit body by developing habits that will allow you to lose the body fat and keep it off.
Alright, the next myth to be busted is: "You should eat more often to spike your metabolism." This one is going to be really interesting (at least to me) and will take us into the arena of Intermittent Fasting. There are still RDs (Registered Dieticians) out there propagating this myth, so it is a very important topic to discuss. Stay tuned!
Scripture for the Day
I thought about this verse earlier today and how applicable it is to a number of areas of our lives, including our health and fitness goals.Hebrews 12:11
"No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it."
Think about the process it takes to lose weight and get in shape and all of the challenges you have to deal with. You are out of breath, tired, sweaty, thirsty, hungry, muscles are sore, body aches, your mind is telling you that you can't, experience might even be telling you that you can't, you are tempted by food, tempted by the couch, your motivation fails, you might have to fight injury and recovery...the list goes on and on. Certainly staying disciplined on attaining better health and fitness habits can be painful. BUT...for those who stick with it, it produces a harvest...it produces results! And with those results come better self-esteem and confidence, better health, maybe even some added peace. The verse above can be applied in many ways and in many areas of our lives...but think about it today in terms of your health and fitness goals and let it remind you why you are going through the discipline! GET YOUR HEAD RIGHT!
- Major Pain
