Can anyone contradict "you can't spot reduce weight"?

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katie1234
katie1234 Posts: 74 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Obviously in order to lose weight you have to be creating a calorie deficit on a consistent basis.

And all the advice you see online is that 'you can't spot reduce weight'

But surely there are ways to 'encourage' the inches to come off my belly and not elsewhere? My core is my problem area and I really need to get rid of a couple of inches there.
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  • phoebe1975
    phoebe1975 Posts: 55 Member
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    Unfortunately no you cannot spot reduce, and I also had issues with belly fat that I never thought would come off! But, it finally did over time- you just have to keep on weighing food, logging, and counting calories- I did have to be especially strict when I got closer to my goal weight.
  • CBD92
    CBD92 Posts: 72 Member
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    katie1234 wrote: »
    Obviously in order to lose weight you have to be creating a calorie deficit on a consistent basis.

    And all the advice you see online is that 'you can't spot reduce weight'

    But surely there are ways to 'encourage' the inches to come off my belly and not elsewhere? My core is my problem area and I really need to get rid of a couple of inches there.

    Nope, you can't choose where the fat comes off. You can choose where you build muscle and tone up, but you don't choose where your fat comes off at all. Not even a little bit.

    Fat loss works genetically. Your DNA decides that. Let's say, for example, your DNA (your body's blueprint) says "when we start gaining weight we will first gain on the thighs, then the butt, then the arms, then the belly" then that's what will happen you you start to gain weight. When you start to LOSE weight, it'll happen in the opposite order that you gained if. So "belly, arms, butt, thighs". This is obviously an incredible simplification, but this is the general idea. There is no way you can choose where fat comes off your body and there are no exercises that will make you lose fat on your belly but not the rest of your body. All this will do is lead to general fat loss and strength of the area you are working. Hope this helps!! :)
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
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    katie1234 wrote: »
    Obviously in order to lose weight you have to be creating a calorie deficit on a consistent basis.

    And all the advice you see online is that 'you can't spot reduce weight'

    But surely there are ways to 'encourage' the inches to come off my belly and not elsewhere? My core is my problem area and I really need to get rid of a couple of inches there.

    Nope
  • Chunkahlunkah
    Chunkahlunkah Posts: 373 Member
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    tinkerbellang83 wrote: »
    Chunkahlunkah wrote: »
    How is the statement that strength training can significantly change your appearance woo-worthy? :D

    No, it's not spot reducing (in terms of losing fat there), but it can tighten up the appearance. That's controversial?

    I wouldn't get too put out about being woo'd half of MFP thinks it means woohoo.

    Oh! :D
  • CSARdiver
    CSARdiver Posts: 6,252 Member
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    Chunkahlunkah wrote: »
    Although you can't spot reduce, for me, at least, strength training makes a profound difference. Back when I first stuck with it consistently, I was shocked by how positive the results were and wished I'd done it years earlier.

    This is absolutely true. What you're touching on is aesthetics e.g.minimize the appearance of a large waist by increasing chest size. Body builders do this to develop symmetrical perfection...or as close as they can.

    You cannot spot reduce fat loss, but you can build muscle as an aesthetic offset, which will also aid fat loss, although by a very small margin.
  • jennifer_417
    jennifer_417 Posts: 12,344 Member
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    Nope. You can't spot reduce, period.
  • DanaDark
    DanaDark Posts: 2,187 Member
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    Only way to spot reduce is liposuction.

    Alternatively, muscle development will help the area appear smaller. Fat that gets to hang from muscle looks way better than fat that just hangs there. Muscle development will require a different nutritional plan calorie-wise than fat loss.

    Fat typically follows a LIFO (Last In Fire Out) approach. So, if your tummy got fat and then your arms got fat, the first fat to go will be from the arms.
  • AnvilHead
    AnvilHead Posts: 18,344 Member
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    Can anyone contradict "you can't spot reduce weight"?

    No, because it's the truth. Not only can you not contradict it, there are studies which show it's not possible:
    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21804427

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