Spot Training

One of the questions I am frequently asked is what kind of exercises should be done to get rid of fat in a specific area.  Here is my answer:


You could do 2000 abdominal crunches every day for six months and not lose an inch around your waist.  Why not?  Because you cannot spot train!  There is no isolation exercise that is going to burn enough calories to significantly reduce fat storage.  Everyone is genetically predisposed to store fat in a certain area and whether it's your belly or thighs, it all gets reduced the same way.


TADA...


Calorie deficit!  You must burn more calories than you take in.  For example, if you currently consume 2000 calories per day, you must reduce your caloric intake to 1500 in order to lose one pound per week.  If you expidite the process by burning an additional 500 calories per day through exercise, you can achieve a 1000 calorie deficit enabling you to drop two pounds per week.


So if abdominal crunches are not going to turn my keg to a six-pack, what kind of exercise should I do?  So glad you asked.   To burn the most calories, you should preform exercises that use large muscles.  The legs, back and chest would be considered large muscles.  Also, working out at higher intensities will burn more calories.  What is a higher intensity?  Move faster and rest less.


So, sorry all of those crunches have not been paying off, but when you adjust your nutrition and increase your calorie burn, you may just uncover all of those muscles you have been working on.