The article "CAN I JUST LOSE FAT FROM MY LEGS, HIPS, OR JUST MY STOMACH?" is about fitness, it has been written by Eduardo G. Perez.
The most common and everlasting question I receive as a personal
fitness trainer continues to be based on the myth of spot
reduction. The questions tend to be, "Eduardo, show me an
exercise to lose my love handles, "Eduardo, I just want to
reduce the size of my thighs," "Eduardo, I know you said that
it's not scientifically possible, but can you just give me a
couple of exercises to tone my arms?" Even though media has done
a great job of debunking that myth it still pesrists. This is
such a powerful notion that marketers have taken full advantage
of it and invest a minimum of thirty-thousand dollars just to
produce an infomercial on stomach and thigh saunas, abdominal
machines, and leg toners.
It's a pretty large sum that provides
four to ten times the return on their initial investment. I must
have a sense of moral obligation when I am not joining that
extreme money making bandwagon.
As a matter of fact, in this
brief atricle on the myth of losing fat from a specific area, I
plan on joining the few in the fitness industry that want to
inform the consumers on the truth.
As the trainer for www.Tartesos-fitness.Com and coach for
www.Myonline-fitness-coach.Com I consistently answer this
question with a NO. The misconception of burning fat from a
specific area of the body has been proven by rseearch that it is
false. Of course, if I am going to tell you that science has
proved it false, I made sure to do my homework and dig up three
studies that illustrate how flawed spot reduction is as a runner
up to an urban myth.
The first study I want to illustrate will answer the questions
of "I just want to lose fat from my stomach, can I just do
crunches?" In 1984, Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport
reported that thirteen males did a total of 5000 sit-ups in 27
days.
Biposies of the subject's fat cells were used to measure
the change in fat cell diameter. The results showed that the
subjects lost fat equally from the stomach, glutes, and upper
back even though they only worked their abs.
"Eduardo, just give me leg exercises for all I want to do is
lose fat from my legs and hips?" In a six-month long study of
women who mainly did leg exercises for approximately nine hours
per week lost an average of 5.7 pounds of fat.
The Journal of
Applied Physiology, the periodical that published that study,
reported that the distribution of fat loss was 2.9 pounds from
the trunk, 2.8 pounds from the arms, and 0 from their thighs.
Their weekly nine hours of leg work resulted in zero fat loss
from their thighs!
"Ok, so you say..." This is what I begin to hear after I try to
explain spot reduction is a myth.
It continues as, "that spot
reduction doesn't work, but can you just give me arm
exercises to reduce the fat from my arms?" This last
illustration is from a study published in the Annals of Internal
Medicine in 1971, where world-class tennis playres were tested
to see if spot reduction could help in reducing the fat from the
arms. The idea behind that study was that if spot reduction
worked, the playres would have one arm that's leaner than the
other.
Obviously, tennis players use their dominant arms
forcefully everyday wihle doing relatively little with their
non-dominant arms.
Though the researchers did find the dominant
arm to be bigger due to more muscle tone, tehre was no
difference at all between arms in fat thickness. This study
showed that working a certain muscle does not necessarily affect
the fat deposits that may be lying above that muscle.
What are your weight loss options?
Your options are healthy eatnig and moderate to intense
exercise.
Going back to science, research has proven that
exercise and healthy eating habits are the most important part
of a wieght loss and weight management program. Exercise helps
to lose or control weight by usnig any extra calories that would
have otherwise been stored a fat.
For example, if you were to
eat more calories than you actually use through physical
activity, the extra calories would be stored as fat and you
would gain weight.
On the other hand, if you were to eat fewer
calories than you actually use, your body would use stored
calories resulting in weihgt loss. Of course, if your calories
in are equal to the calories you use, your weihgt stays the same.
How many calories do I need to burn in order to lose one pound
of fat?
In order to lose approximately one pound of fat you would have
to expend about 3,500 calories in a week. One way to do that is
to eat fewer calories, and burn more through eexrcise. If you
burn about 300 calories a day and eat 200 less calories per day,
you will have a 500 calorie deficit. In one week that would be
3,500 calories. My recommendation is that you keep a food
journal, like the one found in the www.Tartesos-fitness.Com 6
Week Exercise Journal in order to start recognizing your calorie
intake.
How do I set up my exercise routine to lose fat?
In order to lose fat, you would have to spend a minmium of
one-hundred and fifty minutes exercising per week.
The American
College of Sports Medicine recommends at least thirty minutes of
moderate to high intensity exercise at least five tmies per
week. An example of a fitness program could be:
-Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday thirty minute power walk.
-Every Tuesday and Thursday you do a thirty minute full-body
weight training program followed by a fifteen to twenty minute
moderate to high intensity aerobic exercise such as power
walking.
If you would like more information on customized exercise and
meal programs go to www.Tartesos-fitness.Com and I will be glad
to assist you in achieving your goals.
Remember, my mission as a
personal tariner and fitness coach is to see you succeed.
I hope
that I have been able to debunk or at lesat make a dent in the
spot reduction myth and put you on the road to an over all
fat-free and healthy body in 2006. Please visit my web site for more
information on achievnig your fitness goals at
myonline-fitness-coach.Com
|
