What do unicorns, fairy dust, spot training, and Big Foot have in common? They’re all great ideas, but none of them exist. In fact, the most mythical of them all is probably spot training. Do as many crunches as you like. That stomach fat is not going to magically melt away. Raise your leg 1,000 times. The fat on your thighs will remain. You’d have just as much luck waving a magic wand across your quads.Spot training — working out an area to lose weight in it — simply doesn’t work. Where we gain weight and where we lose it first is mostly due to genetics. For some, stomach fat is the last to go. To get a flat tummy, they must dramatically increase their exercise and cut back on calories.
Although spot training won’t help you lose fat in a specific area, it does have its benefits.
The Benefits of Spot Training
Spot training will increase your muscle tone. So, if you’re trying to lose belly fat and are doing intense ab workouts, you’ll gain strength in your core and muscle tone in your midsection. When the fat does finally come off through weight loss, your firm abdominal muscles will be visible. And they’ll look good!
Also, just like any other strength-building exercise, spot training will help you lose weight in general by increasing your metabolism. Because muscle burns more calories than fat, as your muscle mass increases through strength training, you’ll burn more calories and lose more weight. Of course, where you actually lose that weight has nothing to do with which muscles you worked out. Sorry!
Increase Weight Loss with Spot Training & Cardio
Cardio exercise will also help you lose weight. It raises your heart rate, causing you to burn calories short term. Dancing, cycling, running, aerobics, kickboxing—all of these are cardio exercises that will help you drop the pounds.
Through cardio workouts and strength training, you’ll lose more weight than you would by dieting alone—and you’ll enjoy improved muscle tone. If you’re still plagued by extra weight in your tummy and thighs, focus on losing more weight in general by stepping up your fitness routine.
Spot training won’t magically reduce the fat in problem areas, but it can aid in your overall weight loss and increase your muscle tone. The most important thing to remember when you are trying to work on your “problem areas”, is to get in a routine. If you are an avid reader of my blog, you can guess that I’m a Beachbody fanatic. From beginner workouts like Power 90, to more advanced workouts like P90X and Insanity, you’re bound to find a program that will improve your overall fitness, and in turn work on those “problem areas”. Good luck, and let me know if I can help! Comment below or contact me at the form found here. If you found this article helpful, please share below.
