Firming up the Flab

The truth about fat loss and exercise -

“The fabulous flab-o-later 5000 can firm your thighs, flatten your abdominals and have you feeling fit in no time flat. This limited time offer is not available in stores so act NOW!”

Ah, the info-mercial! It’s hard to go anywhere these days without seeing the latest and greatest wonder-gadget to help us get a “better” body. Whether it is saggy saddlebags, flabby abs, or a drooping derrière – those pesky “problem areas” are clearly the root of all evil. The promise is that you can: tone it, tighten it, lift it, firm it, shape it, or sculpt it with this machine or that exercise… But, these are promises that no single exercise can deliver. To find out why, we need to take a look at what “it” is and how “it” works.

What is it? We name it, specifically love handles or beer belly and in general terms flab. Is it a muscle issue? No, it is a fat issue. Adipose tissue. Fat, not muscle is the problem. Physiologically, fat and muscle are two totally separate systems in the body. They have different jobs. Muscle, helps us move around or even just sit upright. Muscle is like the engine in a car, it works to get from one place to another. Fat is an essential part of our bodies, some is located just under the skin and helps to insulate our bodies and some helps to cushion our vital organs. When we repeatedly consume more calories than our bodies can burn, we store those excess calories as - you guessed it – FAT. The distribution of that excess fat around our bodies is genetically predetermined. We don’t get to decide where to store it or where to lose it. Bummer!

How does it work? Fat doesn’t work like muscle does, it just hangs out. Using the car analogy, if muscle is the engine – then fat is the baggage in the trunk. Generally speaking, fat is a storage unit. Muscle can contract to help us run, jump or lift a weight – fat can’t. Muscle can be trained (through exercise) and get bigger and stronger – fat can’t. In essence, fat is lazy – it will not work no matter how hard your try. There is no “target” exercise for fat so it cannot be toned, tightened, lifted, firmed, shaped or sculpted. Fat is not a muscle group. You can’t train fat – it refuses to do work. Fat is totally, utterly and completely disobedient!

The brutal truth is you can’t firm up the flab. You can train the muscle under the flab, but the flab will remain flab. To get rid of flab we need to burn the excess calories that we have stored in the trunk. Calories are burned in the greatest amounts when we do whole body, cardiovascular exercise. Reducing the amount of calories we consume will also help us lose the excess body fat. We don’t lose fat from pieces and parts of our bodies; we lose it from the whole system. And when we train our muscles, we should train the whole system (all major muscle groups) not just pieces and parts. Reduced calorie consumption + increased calorie burning (whole body exercise) = body fat reduction - aka flab loss. So, step away from the flab-o-later 5000 and back on the bike, the treadmill or whatever gets your heart rate up and makes you sweat for about 30 minutes, 5 or more days a week.

Burn Baby Burn!

The Truth About Fat Burning and Weight Loss...

Anyone who has ever used a treadmill, bike, elliptical or other cardiovascular training machine has probably noticed the “Fat Burning” workout or “Fat Burning Zone” designated on the machine. For those of you who don’t know, the theory is that the lower end of your target heart rate training zone is the “fat burning zone,” if you train at these low levels you will burn more body fat and lose weight faster. Well I have good news and bad news about this assumption.

First the bad news – the “Fat Burning Zone” is myth, a timeless urban legend much like big-foot or the loch-ness monster. I know what you’re thinking, “if it’s not true why is it written on every cardio machine?” I had the opportunity to speak with James Peterson, Ph.D., FACSM, sports medicine consultant and former director of sports medicine for StairMaster Sports/Medical Products Inc. (now owned by Nautilus) and ask that very question. He answered with one word, “marketing”. Despite what the researchers know and advise, marketing gets the final word on selling equipment. After all, every equipment manufacturer is in business to sell machines and to do so they need to convince consumers that their product is the best and burns the most fat and calories. The concept of “fat burning” is a popular trend and therefore a must have for advertising purposes. The truth about the “fat burning zone” is not part of the equation.

Now, the truth - weight loss is all about burning enough calories to help us lose body fat. To lose a pound of body fat through exercise you need to burn approximately 3500 calories. A calorie is a calorie is a calorie: one calorie of fat is equal to one calorie of carbohydrate, which is equal to one calorie of protein. Think about it, which weighs more a pound of lead or a pound of feathers? A pound is a pound and a calorie is a calorie – both are units of measure. There is no magical “fat burning zone” because the energy units being utilized as you exercise are equivalent.

The good news - no more worries about having your heart rate “too high” to burn fat! If you are burning calories you are on the right track for weight and fat loss. Strive to burn as many calories as possible in whatever amount of time you have available to exercise. Choose an exercise intensity level that is challenging, but not exhausting, and work at that level for as long as you can. The other half of the equation is your calorie consumption. Reducing your calorie intake and increasing the amount of calories you burn will get you to your weight loss goals even faster.