HEALTH talks to Kris, Regional Fitness Manager at Body & Soul Health Club and Spa who dispels the myths about spot reduction and provides his top tips to achieving the slender waistline you’ve always wanted.
According to Kris, there is a famous myth about waist line reduction which is: If you do exercises that target the area, you will achieve a slimmer waist line. However, the truth about waist line reduction is there is nothing like spot reduction. Exercises that target a specific body part are designed to work on the muscle and not the fat around it. This, Kris adds, is known as ‘Isolation
exercises’.
Reasoning
So how do we target the fat around the waist line? To achieve this, Kris points out that we must first understand why it is not possible to have a spot reduction via exercise means. “The body operates in systems, respiratory system for breathing, circulation system for blood, nervous system, and excretory system for waste and so on,” he explains. “Fat is excess energy stored in the body.
To be able to remove it, one has to exercise holistically and integrate a sensible diet program.”
Tips to achieving a slimmer waistline
1. Diet
The word diet is confused for eating vegetables. However, the reality is that in order for a etables. However, the reality is that in order for a body builder to increase his/ her weight, large amounts of high caloric food need to be consumed; sometimes up to 8000 calories per day.
A sensible diet is eating right. Before eating, ask yourself what you are going to do in the next three hours. If it is sleep or watch TV, do you really need all that rice to sleep?
However, if you are going to have a long day, a good carbohydrate breakfast would be the best way to go. According to Kris, when the sun goes down, shy away from carbohydrates.
Remember fat loss/ weight loss = calories in – calories out. If you eat 2000 calories, and burn 3500 calories per day, the 1500 calories extra comes from your stored energy: fat. And that leads to
weight/fat loss.
2. Perform exercises that will increase your metabolism.
Exercises that target the large muscles like the legs, glutes, and quads are the best way to go. Some of these include: squats, lunges, and Bridge. Exercises that will increase your heart rate to above 60 percent of your resting heart rate are a variation. Some of these include: swimming and interval running.
3. Remember it’s the thought that counts.
Exercise must be a permanent thought at the forefront of your daily life. Thinking about exercise allows your body to gravitate towards exercise. We are a product of our thinking. What we think becomes our actions, our actions become our habits, and our habits become our character. And this is where change happens; when you do not struggle to choose what to eat, you do not think twice about going to the gym or not. It is your character; it is part of your personality. And that is how a permanently slender waistline is achieved
