Welcome back #fitfam! Have you considered the reliability of spot reduction? Assuming that not everyone is completely familiar with the term, I’ll briefly explain. In health and wellness, spot reduction refers to the targeting of a specific body part to reduce the amount of fat in that area exclusively. You seen the advertisements, boasting of a targeted circuit that will trim inches from your mid-section or shed those saddlebags in 6 minutes. The problem with these types of claims is that you cannot target the fat from a specific area. Fat cells must be broken down in order to be eliminated and unlike muscle, fat cells are broken down from all over the body. You can see this on display when you or a friend loses a significant amount of weight and the difference is noticeable in the body size and often the neck and face as fat from everywhere is breaking down. Significant effort in cardio training is likely to produce fat-burning mode and provide the greatest reduction but can not be targeted to a specific area.
Though you cannot spot reduce fat areas, you CAN spot train muscles. Yes, you can naturally build muscles by targeting a specific muscle or muscle group. In my personal experience, I wanted to increase my chest and bicep size, so I targeted those areas with vigor. Using the information I learned from my personal trainer studies and additional resources online, I was able to create a program with extra focus on my targeted areas and with consistency and patience, I increased my tricep size (which gave my biceps more definition) and my upper and lower chest muscles. So for the readers who want bigger calves, bigger quads, or bigger glutes, be assured that the right level of focus can produce the type of physique you desire. In the end, patience will be the most important element to lead the path to success.
Have you ever tried spot reduction or spot training? I’d love to hear your input!
Lastly, I have training programs as low as $75/month that will supplement and guide you to your goals.
If you are interested in following along with my journey or contacting my company, I can be found on social media platforms:
Website – Total Camo Fitness
I’ve never heard about spot reduction but this is an interesting concept. Thanks for this informative article.
Hi April, due to the way that fat cells work, you cannot target fat loss in a specific area. So in general, when people lose a lot of fat, its noticeable in multiple areas. When someone lean loses weight, its less obvious because they simply lose mass. Thank you for reading!
I totally agree with you that the crazy claims about dropping inches from your waist or fat from your tummy are bogus! They perpetuate a damaging narrative in the fitness and health world. And I agree about “spot” training muscles! It’s totally doable to focus on gaining muscle in a certain area. Although, I would say a balanced regimen is preferable for the long term. 🙂
You nailed it Skye! Balance is the best approach!
It does sound like an interesting concept. Lord knows I have lots of spots to train. Thanks for sharing your journey.
Spot training is very good if you want to focus on developing an area that is deficient or has been neglected. Its also fairly common as many men work on chest and back development while I find that many women focus on glute and quad development. Usually this focus is in addition to a regular and consistent workout routine where the individual adds a few extra sets targeting a specific area.