Spot Reduction Myth

Doing an exercise that targets a specific body part or muscle group will help you lose fat from that particular area.  Spot reduction is a concept that refers to the idea that you can “reduce” fat from one specific "spot" on your body say your abs just by doing exercises that target that body part. It doesn’t work like that. 

Despite the many false information, the fitness industry puts out, especially the blatant lies companies telling to sell various types of fitness equipment and ab exercise machines, spot reduction is nothing but an impossible myth. Spot reduction does not exist, and there is no such thing. Fat throughout the body is dependent upon genetics, sex hormones and age. Even though fat is lost or gained throughout the body, it seems the last area to lose fat or get lean is our midsection (in men and some women) and hips and thighs (in women and few men). Exercises like sit-ups, crunches, hip raises, leg raises, hip adduction, hip abduction will not result in you losing fat, but instead muscles under the fat. 

Body fat is also stored under the abdominal muscles, around the intestines and under other organs. This fat storage contributes to what we know as the "potbelly" which pushes the abdominal muscles and the overlying fat outward. This "apple shape" fat distribution has greater health consequences than the lower body "pear shape" fat.

How do you lose fat from a specific spot? Simple, you will need to create a caloric deficit through either proper dieting, exercise, or a combination of both. For fat happen, you have to take in fewer calories than you burn. In turn, this will create a deficit of calories, and it will make your body burn your own stored fat for energy. This is the only way that will allow you to lose fat from the entire body. It is also the only way the human body is capable of losing fat. 


Sherldine Tomlinson, MSc, R.Kin