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You Can’t Spot Reduce – So Stop Asking

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If I had a nickel for every time I’ve been asked if you can spot reduce, I’d have…well…I’d have about $179. I did the math. I’m nerdy like that. On average, I get asked that question about three times per week. I have 23 years in the fitness industry, so that’s $179.40.

While I can’t get rich off that, many in my industry can. Not with the money, but with the claim to target certain areas and reduce fat.

Got a “baby pooch” you just can’t get rid of? Try this wrap.

Want those flappy arms that keep waving after you’ve stopped lean and strong? Try this pill.

Jiggly, cellulitey (I know that’s not a word, but work with me here) buns? Wear these pants with “butt scrunch technology”.

What the?

I swear to you…this industry thrives on making you feel shitty about yourself.

Let me be very clear – you CANNOT SPOT REDUCE.

Here’s what you can do:

#1 – You can do cardio to put you into a fat-burning zone where you burn calories from fat and…help improve your mental health.

#2 – You can do workouts that burn calories for a longer period of time (natural metabolism boosters) to reduce fat in your body and…help improve your mental health.

#3 – You can lift weights to ensure your muscles are strong and will help you get through the day with ease and…help improve your mental health.

#4 – You can drink water to help your body systems work well and…help improve your mental health.

#5 – You can eat a balanced diet with reduced sugar to help fuel your body throughout the day and…help improve your mental health.

#6 – You can get active every day and move your body to strengthen your muscles, your heart, your lungs…oh…and help improve your mental health.

#7 – You can get active with your friends and family and be an incredible role model. You can move your body to show them that taking care of your body is important and staying healthy (not “skinny”, not because your ass jiggles, but because YOUR BODY IS IMPORTANT) is critical to having a happy life. YES IT IS…you can have the best life going, but if your body feels like shit…YOU ARE GOING TO FEEL LIKE SHIT!

You see – no, you cannot spot reduce. But, if you get active, take care of yourself, honour your body, you’re going to see changes. How about you change the conversation about the areas you don’t like and concentrate on the strength and power you have within your body.

Nobody cares if you have jiggly anything. Truly. Just you. You think your kids judge you for having soft arms? They don’t, they love your hugs. You think your partner cares about cellulite on your butt? Nope, he or she is probably thrilled when they get you naked and they’re mind is so far away from the cellulite… they simply love that butt.

You have strength and power within you.

Right here. Right now. You have strength now. You may not feel like it and that’s okay. I’m here to tell you that you do. You may not be as strong or as fit as you’d like. And hey, that’s okay too.

But you do have control. You do have the capacity to move your body. And, while I will never ever claim that you can spot reduce. I will tell you that cardio, intervals and weights can help you in more ways than targeting your inner thighs could ever even touch.

Taking care of your body and moving it helps ward off illness. It helps you function better throughout the day and allows you to have more energy to spare at the end of the day when demands are high (if you have kids, anyways). It helps your mind by not only releasing endorphins but also giving you a feeling of self-worth and general acceptance.

I could also list all the health benefits to actually moving your body versus putting on a wrap, slamming down some pills and spending a fortune on a new wardrobe. That shit isn’t going to change you. And, that’s a whole other post!

You need to change the way you look at fitness. I want you to stop thinking of it as something that you “have” to do and think of it as something you “get” to do.

It’s time to look at your body as a miracle. Because it fucking is. It’s a miracle you’re here, in this body, at this time. You have waged war on it and you may feel like it has waged war on YOU…but sheesh…that body has carried your soul since before you were born.

Show a little respect. Honor it. Move it. Treasure it. Don’t pick it apart piece by piece. Move it as a whole and let it continue to take care of you.

Rant over.

Not sure where to start? TRY THIS – Choose Your Own Fitventure – my health and fitness challenge group – challenges that include things like “drink your damn water”, “practice gratitude”, “go for a walk”. It’s fun and easy and cheap and you can try it FOR FREE. So do it…just do it. Seriously.

Have You Tried a Fasted Workout? Here’s Why & How You Should

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Have you heard of fasted workouts? It’s okay if you haven’t, but it’s becoming a more well-known practice and is definitely a not-so-hidden secret for fitness trainers. So, here’s the scoop on doing a fasted workout.

What exactly is a fasted workout?

As with any conversation in the fitness industry, there is mixed information out there for you on what a fasted workout actually is. You’ll read a lot of articles that suggest at least 3 hours after any type of meal before you workout, but a true fasted workout would be a workout done after at least 6 hours without any food ingested.

Some suggest as much as 18 hours of fasting, but if you’re just starting, let’s start slowly, shall we?!

Personally, my fasted workouts range from 10-12 hours after my last meal. I don’t eat after 8pm (unless there’s’ wine, then all bets are off) typically and I workout around 7am every morning.

What are the benefits of fasted workouts?

Fat burning. A lot of people have heard to do fasted workouts because of its magical power of fat burning. And, they’re not wrong. Starting your workouts in a fasted state allows your body to start burning fat faster for energy. This is a trained result, so don’t expect immediate results (as with all things fitness).

A quick lesson on how your body gets energy: Your body breaks down sugar for energy. Insulin is released to drag sugar into the cells to be converted to energy (sugar can’t go directly into the cell, it neeeeeeds insulin). After about 6 hours of fasting, your body enters a fasting state and quickly burns off stored sugar and moves on to breaking down fat, converting it into ketone bodies to be used for fuel.

During a fasted workout, if done correctly, you start your workout already getting some of your energy from fat. You’re already in a fat-burning “zone” and can increase your fat burning with a workout in this fasted state.

Insulin levels decrease. Excess insulin in your body is not good for you, in fact, it results in fat gain and can lead to Type 2 Diabetes. How can you decrease your insulin levels? Fasting works. So does exercise. Pair them together and BOOM…you’re an insulin decreasing ninja!

Exercise performance. We walk around carrying a huge energy supply in the form of fat. However, our bodies first burn sugar for energy and once that sugar is depleted, it’ll move into burning fat for energy. By doing fasted workouts, you train your body to tap into fat burning faster. You’re really just training your body to tap a different energy supply sooner. So, you train your pathways to train your body. Fun!

I like to call this metabolic flexibility. When your body can bend and twist and find different ways to get energy faster, you’re metabolically flexible and you get to burn a lot more fat during your workouts.

Muscle and brain fountain of youth? Okay, I could start spouting off about a bunch of different hormones, brain-derived neurotropic factor and muscle regulatory factors but I think I may lose you. So, let’s just say by exercising while fasted you may lay down some new neurons and new muscle cells. Basically by doing this type of workout you’re keeping your brain, neuro-motors and muscle fibers young.

Do’s & Don’t of Fasting Workouts

If you’ve never fasted before, please try fasting before you combine fasting with a workout! You need to train your body to tap into your fat stores and that takes time. So, allow your body time to train and figure out how to tap that fat quickly!

Start slowly. Try doing a walk or hike or an easy workout while fasted before you try any type of interval workout. You need to see how you feel and again, you need to train your body and get used to working out in a fasted state.

Do not do a long duration fasted workout. If you’re planning on a long run or anything over 40 minutes, you’re going to want to fuel properly before your workout/event/race. Your body does need fuel for those longer duration workouts, so a fasted long run is a terrible idea.

Eat after your workout. This is particularly true if you’re doing a weight session. Your body needs protein to help build and repair the muscles you destroy and tear to shreds (you beast!) when you strength train, so you need to refuel with a healthy meal after your workout. So eat all the good stuff.

Listen to your body. This is probably my best piece of advice. If you feel faint or nauseous while doing a fasted workout…STOP! Today is not your day. You can try again another day, but go eat an apple, drink your water and let your body catch up.