Richard Keelor

So you want to lose those love handles, eh? Or maybe tighten up that flab on the back of your arms where you used to see well-defined triceps?

Sorry, ain’t gonna happen unless you follow these basic fitness facts and avoid phony advertising claims and fitness misinformation about spot reducing any body part. 

Here’s a good example: I saw a blog post recently suggesting that squats, lunges and leg extensions could “sculpt” a female client’s thighs. It included photos showing recommended thigh and glute exercises.  Fat chance. The article is based upon a common distortion about fat loss facts and spot reducing.  

Really want to get rid of the dimpled thigh and fat in your buttocks? Sure, squats, leg curls/extensions, etc., will build strength and “tone” your legs. But the fat layer will still cover them up and the dimples (so-called cellulite) can often become even more pronounced. 

Why? Because until you reduce total percent body fat and increase your resting metabolic rate through a well-designed strength building program combined with healthy food and beverage consumption, you have next to zero chance of attaining your goals.

I cannot tell you how many people I've trained of all ages, gender, educational status and work backgrounds. No matter what their history—Ivy League or hard hats—they often remark, "I know I'm losing weight (fat) but it's all in my face and neck (shoulders, too). Can't you just give me more exercise for my butt and thighs?"

As one of my old professors was fond of saying, "If you could spot reduce, people who chewed gum all the time would have thin faces."

“Spot reduction” has been made popular in cosmetic surgery. That’s where you sign up to have a vacuum like device inserted into your abdominal wall, buttocks, or thighs to literally suck out subcutaneous fat deposits. Less invasive, laser and ultra-sound therapy have also gained popularity. But liposuction and related procedures are not a replacement for regular exercise and good eating habits.   

Ugh!  And what they don’t tell you in their advertising is there will likely be follow up surgery to cut away all the loose skin and, if the patient doesn’t do the exercises they should have been doing in the first place, fat will likely creep back. 

The concept of "spot reduction" can easily morph into negative self-esteem issues as well, and send a variety of the wrong messages about healthy living:  

• I will be more desirable because I will look sexy, 
• I am valued because I look sexier than other fat people, 
• Girls love six-pack abs, bulging biceps or shirt-popping pecs.
• Exercise is too hard and eating too good. I’ll try a short-cut.

In other words, my self-worth depends upon how the chicks or studs respond to my body and/or exercise doesn’t work for me. How do I know? Because “I tried it several times.”

Lack of self-esteem is one of the most important aspects of successful fat loss and body shaping. Getting your head around your personal responsibility for healthy living is an essential first step to any serious fat loss commitment. If your goal is primarily cosmetic, your potential for failure goes up substantially. If, on the other hand, you prefer health and vitality to obesity and chronic disease, you are on the right path.  

Here are the physiological/anatomical realities about fat-loss and body shaping:

• Adult females typically store body fat in their buttocks, thighs, back of           their arms and sometimes upper back.
• Adult males mostly exhibit excess body fat in their guts, crest of the ilium ("love handles") and chest.

Body fat cannot be targeted. Yes, resistance training of a fat body part will burn calories and eventually increase caloric burn at rest, too. Resistance training and aerobic work, combined with a sensible caloric-reduction eating plan, is how fat is lost and more important, how it’s kept off.   

And remember, once the percent body fat has been reduced, the underlying muscle structure becomes much better defined, thus improving one's physique or figure. But don’t measure your workout success by appearances. Changes in body shape and figure will be slow and difficult to measure in the beginning. But it will work, if you work it.  

That's why our Somadynamic theory is effective. We recommend a high repetition (low resistance) overall training program combined with aerobics and stretching every other day. This increases total caloric burn of each workout and slowly builds a higher resting metabolic rate during the other 23 hours of the day.  

Assuming no food addiction behaviors are at play (a big assumption, admittedly), individuals will lose fat. The increase muscle mass speeds up total caloric burn both at rest and during workouts. And, if the program is designed properly and changed about every 90 days, it can dramatically modify one’s physique or figure. That is, as long as you stick with your everyday healthy living initiative.  

Sorry, unlike fat, you can't store exercise.

I believe that the vast majority of moderate and morbidly obese individuals have compulsive over-eating issues and will die with them unless someone does an intervention. To lose fat and keep it off, we need to first examine our attitudes, behaviors and compulsive/addictive patterns. The physiology and neuromuscular part of training is a piece of cake in comparison.  

Try to explain these basic facts to some trainers and they will look at you like you're from outer space.  Set them down and ask them tough questions and a few will change the way they work with clients.

 Da Coach suggests this Coaching Progression:

• First, work with clients to define and refine their goals in one-on-one sessions.  This review should be done regularly to keep both coach and client on track.  
• Help clients be realistic but challenged.  
• Measure success not with tape measures or skin fold calipers, but with adherence to the workout schedule and the fun and positive vibes provided by the trainer.  Workouts should be fun and not torture. 
• Be emotionally present for your client. Remember anyone can demonstrate an exercise and count reps. Ask the clients how they're feeling, notice before they get into deep oxygen debt, use flexible thinking. 
• Never end a workout without telling the client something you really appreciate about their attitude or enhanced skill development.
• And at the end of the day, say a little prayer for each client. Then, one for yourself, giving thanks you can call yourself a “personal coach.”