What’s the REAL Key to Fat Loss?
How’s that for a title to pique some interest!? It’s no secret that we’re obsessed with fat loss in this country. I mean, anyone who’s spent a sleepless night channel surfing or perused the magazine rack in the grocery store is seemingly bombarded with infomercials and articles claiming to be the “next best thing” with regards to winning the battle of the bulge.
You all know what I’m talking about. And, if you’re like me, you’re constantly in a state of eye rolling.
Thing is, though – as much as we’re inundated with television shows, news stories, websites, books, webinars, magazines, and DVDs telling us how we can go about getting our sexification on, as a whole, when you take a minute and actually look around, we’re still pretty freakin fat. What gives?
Truthfully, I just feel that our efforts are going in the wrong place. Of course, first and foremost, diet is going to (and always will be) the determining factor. I’m sorry, but if you’re one of those people who hightails it to the local Starbucks after a workout in order to reward yourself by inhaling a Frappuccino and bagel you’ve got your priorities mixed up.
I know this is going to come as a shock to some people reading, but trust me when I say this: there’s no way in hell you just burned off 900 calories trudging along on the elliptical trainer for the past 45 minutes. I don’t care what the calorie tracker told you, it didn’t happen. Not even close. In related news – there’s no such thing as the Easter Bunny.
To expound on this a little further: when it comes to creating a caloric deficit (which in turn leads to increased fat loss), diet trumps exercise every time. If someone is really (and I mean REALLY) getting after it in the gym, I’d say it would generally take 45 minutes of vigorous exercise to burn off 500 kcals. Compare that to just NOT eating those three Oreo cookies you typically have as a mid-afternoon snack, and it becomes pretty clear which is the most efficient use of your time speaking strictly in the context of fat loss.
Moreover, my good friend, Mark Young, noted recently that there’s quite a bit of research which suggest that adding exercise to an already effective diet produces little (if any) additional weight or fat loss.
Of course, this isn’t to say that exercise (in any form) is a complete waste of time or doesn’t have any merit – that would just be looney talk. But, it does say something to all of these crazy “metabolic disturbance” type protocols that many trainees tend to follow when the main goal is fat loss.
As Mark demonstrated in THIS post, when already in a caloric deficit, adding in ANY type of exercise is not going to have a huge impact on weight (or fat) loss.
That being said, with regards to fat loss, exercise should be used for a different purpose altogether. Not so much as a form of burning calories (which doesn’t hurt), but moreso as a way to MAINTAIN MUSCLE MASS!!!!!!!
What makes muscle, keeps muscle. That’s the REAL key to fat loss. Do your best to retain muscle in the form of lifting heavy things, and let the diet take care of everything else.
Maybe it’s the strength coach in me talking, but I truely feel that if more people followed this mantra, they’d see marked improvements in their results.
Comments for This Entry
aap
Hallelujah! Someone finally said it and being a trainer it's not necessarily in your best interest but you said because you value your clients. People need to stop kidding themselves. What you put in your body matters more than what you do on the elliptical while watching Oprah and then eating a muffin afterwards.August 12, 2011 at 7:30 am |
Roland
I make my living as a lean eating coach and have often thought my job would be much easier if folks understood this message. Thanks Tony.August 12, 2011 at 8:30 am |
Damon
Great Post! It's a pretty simple concept but most people feel they will get better results if they over complicate things. It seems the more weight loss supps developed, crazy "metabolic protocols", and weekend warrior boot camps the fatter our society gets....August 12, 2011 at 8:57 am |
Donovan
It's funny, I don't know about you but the more weight loss/fat loss products come out over the years, the fatter we get. Kind of like how we like our guns and want them for protection, but we end up having the most gun deaths in the world. We seem to always just have it a** backwards. So it seems we should do the opposite...like watch fat people eat. From a diet side of things, it's a real good intervention for someone who's struggling to eat well, so THEY KNOW just how they'll end up if they don't get their act straight.August 12, 2011 at 9:22 am |
Juliet
I just posted an entry today about my frustrations with people and their diets. And not too long ago, a coworker (mocking me for my choice to eat chicken and veggies over the cake she was eating) explained to me that she just prefers to run it off later. Right. Really though, Oreos aren't even good. Anyway, great post - as usual! PS. Nice work on the deads a few days ago, they looked great!August 12, 2011 at 9:33 am |
Gaurav
I knew it that diet does work wonders. But I'm sort of disappointed with lack of great tasting liquid options other than milk for my shakes (even 1% gives me layer). Looks like I have to save my binge time for milk rather than on anything else.August 12, 2011 at 10:58 am |
Tony Gentilcore
@ aap: glad you agreed. I kinda felt I was going to piss some people off with this one, but no hate mail yet! @ Roland: coming from someone as esteemed as yourself, that means a lot! Glad you liked it.August 12, 2011 at 5:45 pm |
Tony Gentilcore
@ Damon: Yeah, that's kind of how I feel too. We're so inundated with info, people are just confused at what to do. When in doubt, keep it simple. It works. @ Juliet: I had a similar experience a few years ago. When someone asked me one day, "don't you ever get sick and tired of eating the same thing everyday?" My response was: "don't you ever get tired of not being able to take your shirt off?" I won that argument.August 12, 2011 at 5:49 pm |
Tony Gentilcore
@ Guarav: have you ever tried almond or hemp milk?August 12, 2011 at 5:49 pm |
Amy Sanchez
So simple, yet hardly ever understood. I am a trainer and my clients all seem surprised when I tell them that diet is the key to getting real results. I had my 80 year old client tell me today that if you just put your mind to it anyone can do it. She lost 26lbs since last December and that was after using a dietician plus she has limited mobility from hip and back pain. It wasn't the exercise!August 12, 2011 at 7:32 pm |
Matthew
Great read as well always Tony! Finally there are some articles without fallacious information about fat loss! It's true, no matter what your goal is whether it be fat loss or performance related in all comes down to nutrition (and recovery lol). I'm going to add this to my reads of the week on my blog!August 13, 2011 at 12:21 am |
Barath
I have two words for you: Kungfu Panda.August 13, 2011 at 9:30 am |
Jim
Tony, Awesome article. I think this one has been my favourite, and you have written some awesome ones! I am a medical vegan, the only animal products I eat are eggs, so I do have a bit of room for that Soy Steamer, with two shots of peppermint from starbucks, but yes, other than homemade cookies, the odd non homemade cookies, and dark chocolate, I am good. Anyways, thanks for the great article again. I keep telling my friends, you cry for joint pain, but have you seen the crap you just put in your mouth?August 14, 2011 at 8:45 am |
Rob
I wish more people were as candid as you are this was an excellent read! So many seek to be popular or trendy and society sits smack dab in the middle which is why as a society we are so fat! Thanks again Tony!August 14, 2011 at 9:52 am |
Ryan
The more i read and learn about health and nutrition, the more i realize how screwed up society is. The entire system is set up to kill us. literally. And yet, most people are mice on the wheel, never even contemplating a way off. Thanks for your work. Love your posts. Keep herding the mice!!August 15, 2011 at 12:11 am |
Tony Gentilcore
@ Amy Sanchez: keep fighting the good fight! Despite me saying that diet is going to be the main factor when it comes to fat loss, again, this isn't to say that exercise doesn't play a part. I just feel that most people are spinning their wheels - lift heavy stuff!!! KEEP MUSCLE. Diet will take care of the rest. @ Matthew: thanks, glad you liked it!August 15, 2011 at 5:21 am |
Tony Gentilcore
@ Jim: thanks for reading! And yes, it seems pretty counterproductive when people are meticulous to never miss a training session, yet, don't give a second thought to what they put down their pie hole! @ Rob: Well, I try....;o) @ Ryan: Definitely true.August 15, 2011 at 5:23 am |
Amy Sanchez
Your right, I get it. Thanks for your input. Love your blog posts. Hopefully someday I will make my way up to Boston from Miami to meet you guys.August 15, 2011 at 2:17 pm |
joe
The problem is most folks don't understand that you burn 100 kcal when you walk ie run a mile. You can run off the Oreos if you do the bath. Regarding strength training...which athletes have the greater life expectency? Answer ...Endurance! Strength is overrated once your hormones settle down.August 15, 2011 at 3:17 pm |
Sarah P
"When someone asked me one day, "don't you ever get sick and tired of eating the same thing everyday?" My response was: "don't you ever get tired of not being able to take your shirt off?" Oh my goodness I am SO USING this line. Thanks Tony!! Great article.August 15, 2011 at 7:02 pm |
Mark Young
Thanks for the shout out Tony! I would also add that it I think it IS possible to lose weight/fat with exercise above diet alone IF the exercise output is high enough (think elite endurance cyclists), but for most of us regular humans it is pretty unlikely.August 16, 2011 at 9:39 am |
Justin
Great article Tony! Since you don't agree with the calorie trackers on the cardio machines, does that mean that you also don't agree with the old "one pound of muscle burns 50 calories a day?" I've got some serious poundage to drop, and I am wondering if I should focus more on cardio (which makes me feel good starting my day) or if I should gain muscle to speed up fat loss. My main goal being weight loss. Also, I will strength train either way.August 16, 2011 at 9:48 am |
Use the Knowledge Gained in 2011 to Be the Best You Ever in 2012 « Scott Hansen Training
[...] What’s the Real Key to Fat Loss? by Tony [...]December 29, 2011 at 5:04 am |
Weight-loss
It comes down to reducing calories and exercise. The best way to reduce calories is to find out how many calories you can have daily to start losing weight. A BMR calorie calculator can help you find out the daily required calories for weight loss. This calculation is based on ones body factors. You also need to spend some time to put together a plan of how you are going to reach those weight loss goals. This is essential if you truly want to lose the weight and keep it off.June 16, 2012 at 9:53 am |
Weight-loss
It comes down to reducing calories and exercise. The best way to reduce calories is to find out how many calories you can have daily to start losing weight. A BMR calorie calculator can help you find out the daily required calories for weight loss. This calculation is based on ones body factors. You also need to spend some time to put together a plan of how you are going to reach those weight loss goals. This is essential if you truly want to lose the weight and keep it off.June 16, 2012 at 11:23 am |
Losing-weight
fiber is good for weight loss!June 16, 2012 at 11:26 am |
Losing-weight
why do you erase my comments it is not cool that you pick and choose what comments you like and don't like.June 16, 2012 at 11:37 am |