MY FITNESS ERA DEBUNKING THE FAT BURNING MYTH
Have you ever looked in the mirror and thought okay this is it I am going to get my six pack this year? Especially since SPM is finished right. Yeah me too! With the new year right around the corner we always see hordes of sweaty people packing into the gym with the exact same resolution to burn fat and lose weight. But there is so much confusion and so many myths out there.
Honestly I used to be one of those people who believed every single fitness myth on the internet. But recently I watched this mind blowing video by the Institute of Human Anatomy and it completely reworked my entire perspective on fat loss. Let us dive into the actual science of it all, lesgoo.
THE TRUTH ABOUT ADIPOSE TISSUE
First of all let us get a little scientific but keep it fun. Fat is basically called adipose tissue. We have it everywhere but the one we always complain about is the subcutaneous fat which sits right on top of our muscles. Fun fact we actually all have a six pack or the rectus abdominis muscle. It is just hiding under that layer of fat! So how do we actually burn it off?
THE FAT BURNING ZONE ILLUSION
For the longest time people told me to stay in the fat burning zone. This is basically Zone 2 cardio where your heart is pumping but you can still easily hold a conversation with your friend. The science says that in this zone your body burns a higher percentage of fat compared to carbohydrates.
So naturally my rookie brain thought okay I will just do low intensity workouts forever! But here is the massive plot twist. The ratio of fat to carbs does not actually matter as much as we think. The video totally exposed that the absolute most important factor for fat loss is simply the total amount of calories you burn.
THE CALORIE REALITY CHECK
They talked about this super interesting study where one group did low intensity Zone 2 cardio and another group did high intensity workouts. They adjusted the time so both groups burned the exact same amount of total calories. And guess what?! Both groups lost the exact same amount of fat.
This means you do not have to stress over staying in a specific heart rate zone. If you are a busy student like me and only have thirty minutes to spare you can absolutely just smash a high intensity workout and get back to your assignments. High intensity exercise even gives you an oxygen debt where your body continues to burn fat to replenish energy long after you finish sweating!
THE HEARTBREAK OF SPOT REDUCTION
Now this next part actually broke my heart a little bit. Remember how we all used to do a hundred crunches hoping to burn belly fat? Yeah that is completely fake news. The video confirmed that spot reduction is a total myth. We cannot control where our body decides to pull fat from because that is entirely up to our genetics and gender. We just have to trust the process and let our bodies do their thing.
THE ULTIMATE LESSON
If there is one massive takeaway from all of this science it is consistency. We can track our heart rates and calculate our ratios until we are blue in the face but none of it matters if we do not actually exercise.
The absolute best workout routine is simply the one you genuinely enjoy doing. Whether that is playing touch rugby with your friends or doing sprints on the field just find what makes you happy and stick to it. Consistency is the ultimate secret weapon to unlocking your best potential.
SOOOOO THEN Whats the point of this article then.
FIRST, IT BUSTS THE FAT BURNING ZONE MYTH
For years, people were told they MUST do low intensity workouts (Zone 2) if they want to burn fat because of the percentage of fat versus carbs utilized. The video proves that the ratio does not matter for fat loss. The only thing that dictates fat loss is your total caloric expenditure.
SECOND, IT HIGHLIGHTS TIME EFFICIENCY
If total calories are all that matter for fat loss, then high intensity workouts are the ultimate time saver. If you are a busy student or professional, you do not have to spend two hours walking on a treadmill. You can do a 30 minute high intensity session, burn a massive amount of calories, and get the exact same fat loss results.
THIRD, IT SHOWS DIFFERENT PHYSIOLOGICAL BENEFITS
Even though both intensities lead to the same fat loss if the calories match, they do different things for your body. High intensity is great for time saving and building explosive power. Low intensity Zone 2 cardio is incredible for your heart health, building endurance, and actually increasing the mitochondria in your cells!
You can watch the full video that inspired this post right here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPNBBJHjRk8