Want to lose that belly fat? Do these ab exercises. Want to burn thigh fat? Do this leg workout. You’ve probably heard this before, and you may even do these exercise routines, too. It’s something called spot reduction. Or, the idea that if you target specific areas of your body, you will lose fat from those areas. But that’s not how weight loss works. In fact, spot reduction is a big myth you should stop believing if you want to burn fat.
Every body is different
It’s true there are exercise moves that target specific muscle groups, but that doesn’t mean focusing on ab exercises will reduce belly fat. That’s because the human body doesn’t burn fat in one specific area. Instead, how your body burns fat depends on a wide variety of factors, including your genetic makeup, your metabolism, your overall activity, your entire workout, and your diet.
Spot reduction exercises aren’t always fat-burning exercises
The exercises you typically find in spot reduction routines don’t always put your body into a calorie-burning, fat-burning state. So, instead of trying to target certain areas of your body to burn fat, opt for a combination of cardiovascular exercises and strength training.
Cardiovascular exercise helps to burn fat, and strength training helps to build and tone muscle. Why is it important to build and tone muscle? The more muscle mass you have, the more fat your body can burn.
So, the next time you feel tempted to burn away your love handles with a spot reduction workout, opt for something more effective: a combination of both cardio and strength training.
