Spot Reduction: Myths and Truths

Eisha Sarkar

Posted on Hello Wellness on Aug 23 2010 12:25AM

"Our special thigh toning squeeze master will give you firm shapely legs in less than five minutes a day." You watch a rather attractive woman tone her thighs on the teleshopping network channel and you secretly wish to buy the product. It's better than sweating it out on the treadmill, you think. Besides, it works on just your problem area. The rest of your body is fine, anyway. Right?

Spot reduction, as advertisers of such products promise, is the reduction of fat from a specific area of the body through exercise of specific muscles in the desired area, such as exercising the abdominal muscles in an effort to lose weight in or around one's midsection. But does spot reduction really deliver? 

Here are some myths and truths related to spot reduction:

Myth: You will attain a flat stomach just by performing abdominal exercises.

Truth: You definitely won't. The reason is simple. A muscle does not own the fat that surrounds it. Sit-ups, for example, will definitely strengthen your abdominal muscles, but sit-ups alone will not get rid of the layer of fat that is covering the muscles. To lose fat anywhere on your body you need to burn calories by following a programme that involves both cardiovascular training and weight training. In doing so, you will decrease fat stores throughout your entire body, including the problem areas.

Myth: You'll get rid of all that stubborn fat if you rub some anti-cellulite cream.

Truth: Though there are contradicting reports on this one, scientists say that the cellulite cream is effective only when its ingredients have the capabilities to enter into the bloodstream and break down fats cells and connective tissues. But most of the cosmetic cellulite treatments just work on the upper skin rather inside the tissues and bloodstream. Also, most cellulite creams that are said to have been effective contain caffeine because it helps blood flow to the skin and works like a diuretic. By removing moisture from the skin, it firms it, temporarily.

Myth: Liposuction is a true spot reduction method that will permanently remove fat pockets.

Truth: When one thinks of surgery, there is always the possibility of complications. Though the dangers associated with liposuction are often over-hyped, they are dangers nonetheless. Liposuction involves suction of fat cells from specific parts of the body after loosening the fatty areas. Embolism may occur when fat is loosened and a fat particle enters the blood through ruptured blood vessels ruptured during liposuction. Consequently, some pieces of fat cells get trapped in the blood vessels, accumulate in the lungs, or worse, travel to the brain. The signs of pulmonary fat emboli (fat clots in the lungs), is usually shortness of breath or difficulty in breathing. If you are exhibiting these symptoms after your surgery, it is necessary to seek emergency medical help at once. The more common problems associated with liposuction are swelling or edema that may last for weeks together. Besides, if you keep eating more calories than you're burning off after liposuction, you will have to store those calories as fat again. 

Myth: Muscle gained during a strength training program will turn to fat once you stop strength training.

Truth: Muscle and fat are two different tissues which are completely independent of each other. If you stop weight-training, your muscles will shrink because the stimulus to increase or maintain their size is no longer there; but by no means can they, or will they, turn into fat. If you feel your body is becoming less toned or, for lack of a better word, more “soft” it is simply because your proportion of fat to muscle has changed. Fat, although you may not have gained any more of it, is now dominant simply because you have lost muscle. Another possible reason for the change is a common problem that exists with many people, primarily athletes. The problem is that they stop exercising, but maintain their eating habits, and thus slowly begin to put on weight. If you had been exercising but stopped, be sure to make dietary changes to compensate for the decrease in daily energy expenditure.