Lose 30 Pounds Guide » Uncategorized » Ab Workouts Reduce Ab Fat? Yes and No
Ab Workouts Reduce Ab Fat? Yes and No
You cannot target fat areas for fat loss, period. You cannot do ab workouts with the inclination that it will directly reduce the fat around the midsection. It just doesn’t work that way. Why do so many people think that it does work that way? Simple. Night after night after night on TV you’ll see an advertisement for a revolutionary new ab machine. Then you’ll see all the hunks and babes with tight abs that are using that machine. Put one and one together and you get three.
What I especially love are the small, hard to read disclaimers that you always miss at the bottom of the screen: “Results vary. Follow a diet and exercise program for maximum effect.” Translation: “This ab machine is worthless.”
Just once I would like to see, “Results ARE typical.”
Fat Loss: Regardless of the type of exercise and/or diet, you will reduce fat from where you have the most of it. For most men, that means most body fat is around the stomach. For most women, that is around the hips and legs. It’s simply a percentage game.
Let’s say you have worked hard and eaten well, and reduced your total fat percentage by 10%. That means that you’ve reduced fat by 10% each and every place that it is stored. 10% of the fat in your arms is gone, 10% of the fat in your legs is gone, and 10% of the fat in your midsection is gone. The actual amount of fat in the arms is less than that in your midsection, but each area loses 10% individually. Hense, wherever you have the most, you lose the most.
You can’t take water out of one end of the pool and expect the water-level at that end to be lower; the loss gets dispersed throughout the whole pool.
Ahah! But ab workouts DO reduce ab fat! <sigh> Ok, here’s the deal. An ab workout, by itself, is still a workout. It’s not a great workout, but it still gets you to burn some calories. As we all know, burning more calories than we consume causes fat loss. Just don’t think that an ab workout will replace a normal one.
Do not spend 30 minutes on your abs. If you want, include five to ten minutes of ab workout in your regular routine two or three times per week, but no more. Most likely, your abs already get a good workout by simply being involved in other exercises: pull-ups, push-ups, jumping jacks, lunges, cable cross-overs, etc., etc., etc.
If you have weight to lose, and you spend hours working on your abs, you’ll probably have good-looking abs – if you could see under all that fat. So, while an ab workout can tone your abs and make them stronger, you’ll have to diet and exercise regularly to show them off.
Filed under: Uncategorized · Tags: ab workout, body fat, fat loss, reduce fat
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Hi Tourq,
Let me tell you, as a trainer the two biggest obstacles we have to deal with are the product commercials on television and the popular series The Biggest Loser. As you know you can flip through the channels at any time of day and find a commercial for either a piece of equipment, usually targeting the abs and usually overpriced junk, or a diet pill that will “melt off fat” or an eating plan that allows you to “eat whatever you want and watch the fat fall off your body.” Unfortunately people fall for the marketing hype but don’t want to hear the truth about how to get physiques like the models on those commercials(even though the fine print says you have to eat right and train hard in their own words). And of course if we tell them what is required to get a body like that we come off as some morons living in prehistoric times because we don’t believe it is possible to lose 10 pounds and 20 inches in a week. It is very frustrating, not only that people are so gullible but also at how many marketers take advantage of the people who are desperate to lose fat and are willing to invest money into their efforts but not hard work and discipline.
As for the Biggest Loser, well I could go on for way too long and possibly use up more of your bandwidth than would be fair so I’ll stop.
But you are right about the ab machines, they are not necessary. Fitness models and bodybuilders can rely on resisted crunches on the floor or hanging knee raises knowing it is their diet that has the greatest impact on getting the muscles to stand out. As far as the general fitness exerciser basic crunches, leg lifts or something like ball walkouts, or rollouts will develop plenty of ab strength. We need to convince people to not fall for the marketing hype, save their money, workout and eat right. Keep spreading the good word Tourq, maybe we’ll get through to them!
Identifying it is the hardest part, but I agree with your conclusion. I am going to do some research and post it here for clarity. Stay tuned and I’ll be back with the info. I made sure to bookmark the site so I’ll be able to find my way back. LOL Also, if any of you women need <a href="http://www.squidoo.com/best-ab-exercises-for-women" ab exercise for women don’t hesitate to begin immediately.
There does exist some great guidance available yet for reasons uknown men and women still choose to follow these the latest celeb diet plan.
I totally agree. The thing is, the amount of ab exercise machines out there just goes to show how so many people are obsessed with having 6 pack abs. Many of these people just want those abs for the aesthetic appeal and aren’t so interested in committing to a healthier lifestyle change (diet, exercise, etc.).
Most people just want an easy solution and it simply does not exist. I mean, focusing on the abs through various exercises can definitely help strengthen them, but you’ll never get the rock hard/defined looking abs that so many people want just through simple exercises. If you want that look then you better be ready to do a lot of cardio and stick to a good diet. Lowering your body fat percentage is ultimately what it takes.
Anyhow, good article. This is something that the masses definitely need to realize concerning toned abs.
I don’t totally agree with you about the fat loss percentage. If someone drops their total percentage of body fat by 10 percent it does not mean that every square inch of fat on their body has been reduced by exactly that amount. For some people the percentage from certain areas like their arms, and legs will lose a higher percentage than their midsection (waist and hips). When the total is calculated it is presented as a general(overall) loss of fat. This goes for hydrostatic weighing, bio-electrical impedance and skin fold measurements. None of these methods give you the exact amount of fat lost from certain areas, but the skin fold test can inform you as to where the greatest loss has taken place. But this does not mean spot reducing is possible, just what stored fat is tapped into most efficiently by an exercising body.
Aaron, you’re probably right about the specifics. However, I wrote this article because I watched two commercials back-to-back for two different ab machines, and both indicated that all one needed to do for flat, sexy abs (and the models’ abs were sexy) was to use their ab machines so many minutes a week.
I simply believe that ab machines are not the way to go.
Thanks for your input, Aaron. Comment again…
-Tourq
Hi Tourq,
Let me tell you, as a trainer the two biggest obstacles we have to deal with are the product commercials on television and the popular series The Biggest Loser. As you know you can flip through the channels at any time of day and find a commercial for either a piece of equipment, usually targeting the abs and usually overpriced junk, or a diet pill that will “melt off fat” or an eating plan that allows you to “eat whatever you want and watch the fat fall off your body.” Unfortunately people fall for the marketing hype but don’t want to hear the truth about how to get physiques like the models on those commercials(even though the fine print says you have to eat right and train hard in their own words). And of course if we tell them what is required to get a body like that we come off as some morons living in prehistoric times because we don’t believe it is possible to lose 10 pounds and 20 inches in a week. It is very frustrating, not only that people are so gullible but also at how many marketers take advantage of the people who are desperate to lose fat and are willing to invest money into their efforts but not hard work and discipline.
As for the Biggest Loser, well I could go on for way too long and possibly use up more of your bandwidth than would be fair so I’ll stop.
But you are right about the ab machines, they are not necessary. Fitness models and bodybuilders can rely on resisted crunches on the floor or hanging knee raises knowing it is their diet that has the greatest impact on getting the muscles to stand out. As far as the general fitness exerciser basic crunches, leg lifts or something like ball walkouts, or rollouts will develop plenty of ab strength. We need to convince people to not fall for the marketing hype, save their money, workout and eat right. Keep spreading the good word Tourq, maybe we’ll get through to them!
I couldn’t have said it better, Aaron!
-Tourq
This is good – I’ve actually forgotten about this. I keep working on my abs and seeing no results. I need to get rid of the fat!
Thanks!