We all want a lean muscular body with six packs to show off, but little do we know how to get it right.
Some misconceptions surrounding fat loss are as follows:
- Spot reduction is possible
- Eating less equals more fat loss
- Doing crunches and sit-up’s whole day will lead to flat tummy
- Only those blessed with good genes can have a six packs
- Lastly this applies mostly to women, they think once you hit the 30’s and the 40’s you can say goodbye to the sexy abs and welcome the love handles and the belly flab.
You cannot be further away from the truth. So let’s try and debunk these simple and false myths that seem to have clouded the minds of many women and men who seriously want to work hard and get results but are unable to cause deep down these ugly lies keep cropping up whenever they stumble or simply have a setback.
Ok let’s take the first one:
Spot Reduction is possible or not
NO! There is nothing known as spot reduction. I don’t even know how they ever came up with this term in the first place. Remember one thing your body has its own mind, no matter how hard you try and what you try, it will shed fat in its own way. Sometimes the fat you want out first starts coming off first from that area (must say you are lucky in that case) and sometimes in fact most of the times fat comes off from where you wouldn’t mind if its stays a little longer…(Women understand what am I talking about) but what can we do…Blame it on the fat ! So what the body does is, it just starts melting the fat deposits randomly not really favoring any part or area as in particular.
So with a structured exercise routine and healthy diet it will lead to fat-loss all over the body and not just the part you want. You just need to be patient here.
Eating less equals more fat loss
False again. Losing weight does not necessarily mean you are losing fat, when you eat less, your weighing scale might show you few kilos down but that’s not the true picture. As when you lose a lot of weight through dieting and eating less, you are only losing the water weight which comes of first along with muscles getting lost and bone density becoming less. And if you try to check your fat percentage at this stage you will be surprised to find it high? The reason being that when you eat less, your body goes into a starvation mode (it’s a biological response) so it holds on to every morsel as its last supper and stores it away as fat in your cells. So the moment you stop all your dieting you very well know what happens to your body. I am sure you do.
Doing crunches and sit-up’s whole day will lead to flat tummy
YES, this is the craziest myth of all. Absolutely a misnomer. This is exactly what we discussed above about spot reduction and how it’s not possible. Crunches and Sit ups helps build core muscles and back, but not fat.
Lastly the Myth about genes and age.
Yes our genes do play a role to some extent in determining our shape and composition, but our environment and habits can help us overcome the barriers and reshape our own body.
About Age, its true as we age our metabolism slows down and with wear and tear of the body it does seem impossible to get the body of our dreams but it’s not impossible, yes it is possible, if you have the right tools and the right mindset.
So coming back to how to lose stomach fat, of course not by spot reduction but by making changes to your workout routines and diet plans.
Follow the steps:
Increase the intensity of your workouts. Three to four moderate-intensity workouts per week will get your sweat on by elevating the heart and breathing rate, but still allow you to carry on a light conversation. High-intensity workouts are done at efforts in which you cannot carry on a conversation, which revs up the body’s metabolism and core temperature, leaving most people dripping in sweat.
Sweating itself does not necessarily equate to weight-loss; you could sweat in a sauna or on a hot day but lose primarily water weight. However, sweat produced during physical activity and moderate to high intensity workouts indicates you are working hard and burning off calories for fat-loss.
Aim to do two vigorous workouts per week with a day of recovery in between.
Increase the duration of your workouts. Longer workouts mean you will burn more calories and more stored fat all over the body including stomach fat. Schedule five 45-minute cardiovascular workouts, such as running, biking or swimming into your weekly workout plan and increase workouts up to 60 minutes as you get fitter.
Lift weights to tone up muscle and drop excess pounds. Muscle has a higher metabolic rate than fat which means you can burn more calories even while at rest. A sweaty strength-training session fires up the metabolism, builds lean muscle and decreases fat stores. Aim to do a circuit-training session two to three times per week in which you do eight to 10 exercises, targeting the upper, lower-body and core back to back, with little rest in between to get your heart rate up and subsequently start sweating. Repeat the circuit three times.
Add high-intensity interval training, or HIIT, into your weekly workout program to sweat off unwanted pounds. HIIT workouts involve alternating harder, all-out efforts with lighter recovery periods. A sample workout would be to sprint hard for 30 seconds followed by one minute of easy jogging; repeat eight to 10 times and include a five- to 10-minute warm-up and cool-down. You can use any exercise which you can do in form and keep up for the duration. Do this type of workout twice a week with a day of rest or moderate-paced cardio in between sessions.
The only equipment required is your Own Body and if possible you may add free weights. That’s it !
Thank you for reading!
Your trainer
Soma.:)
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