Weight Loss VS. Fat Loss: Are you sure you’re losing fat?
This month I have a topic to discuss that I think will interest everyone. A lot of us get confused or don’t fully understand the difference between weight loss and fat loss. To many of us, if we see the numbers on the scale going down it’s a victory.
I think this is a topic that leaves a lot of us (especially the ladies) perplexed, and it’s something that unfortunately, despite our best efforts, is a message that gets lost in translation, especially within the mainstream media.
With this said, below is a conversation between yours truly and a client of mine.
Client: Hey Jennifer, it’s been a while since I’ve been in and I’m so excited to start training again! I still have some things I’d like to work on in terms of increasing my strength, but I’m getting married in six months and I really want to focus on losing weight. I would like to lose fifty pounds before the wedding. Do you have any suggestions for me?
Me: Hey Christine. It’s great to hear from you and congrats on your upcoming wedding! I’m so excited to hear that you’re coming back. In regards to the weight loss question. You need to remember that there is a huge difference between weight loss and fat loss. Wouldn’t you rather lose twenty five pounds, look amazing in your dress and have a sculpted physique than lose fifty pounds and look the same?
Far too often I have clients that focus too much on what the scale tells them instead of going by how their clothes fit or how they look in the mirror. Weight loss can be completely subjective, and the truth of the of matter is the scale really doesn’t tell the whole story.
If I told you to not eat for eight hours, you would weigh less. If I told you to not drink water for a day, you would weigh less. If I told you to stop snacking after dinner, you would weigh less. In all three scenarios you would weigh less, but does that really mean you made any significant progress?
Client: Um, no.
Me: Sure, you weigh less, but you really haven’t accomplished anything. There’s no shape, form or contour to your body and as soon as you go back to your normal eating habits you will go right back to your original weight. Then what will you do?
I think it’s not necessarily an education thing, but rather a behavioral issue that we need to address. It’s all about changing your behavior. You know that it’s not the best idea to ever forego a home cooked meal in lieu of hitting up a fast food restaurant on your way home from work. You know that eating a giant plate of pasta on a day you’re not hitting the gym probably isn’t the best idea. You know all of this. So why do you continue to do it?
How most of us approach weight loss is wrong. We need to change our mindset. We need to start thinking in terms of fat loss, not weight loss. Our ultimate goal should be to maintain as much muscle as possible (even better, build some muscle) and focus on reducing our body fat and changing our overall physique.
Did you know that one pound of muscle weighs the EXACT same as one pound of fat? The difference, however, is that muscle is more dense than fat and takes up less space. In fact, one pound of fat takes up eighteen percent more space than one pound of muscle.
I’m not necessarily saying that you should toss your scale into the trash, but what I am saying is that if you’ve been training your ass off and you step on the scale and see that it hasn’t changed, you shouldn’t let it upset you! Muscle is more dense than fat so those few pounds of muscle that you’ve gained will make you look better.
I know you’ve heard this from me a thousand times, but when it comes to fat loss, almost always, nutrition is going to be the biggest determining factor.
So, let me ask you this? How confident would you feel about eliminating fast food or soda from your daily regimen?
If this doesn’t seem like an easy task for you to accomplish, we need to take a step back and figure out a better approach. When you are able to figure out a way to successfully accomplish a consistent behavior, you will really start to see a difference.
Remember: YOU CANNOT OUTTRAIN A POOR DIET. I repeat. You. Can. Not. Out. Train. A. Poor. Diet. It’s just not going to happen. I can put you through a workout that will make you hate life, but it’s not going to matter if we don’t tackle the nutritional side of things.
Let me throw another analogy at you. If we know that fat loss is mostly determined by calories in vs. calories out, which seems to be a more efficient use of our time:
A) Spending an hour on the treadmill burning off approximately three hundred and fifty to five hundred calories
Or
B) Electing not to eat that bag of M&Ms before bed?
From a time efficiency standpoint, and with fat loss as the goal, nutrition is going to trump exercise (in terms of better use of our time) no matter what.
In Conclusion
You should always be thinking ahead. What can you do each day to bring you one step closer to your goals?
Find a place where you feel confident that you can be successful. If you are sincerely making an effort and putting in the work, you’re going to get results. Period.
Focus less on weight loss and more on fat loss! Make the decision to exercise daily and lead a healtheir lifestyle. Be good to your body and your body will be good to you. Keep muscle, burn fat and lose inches. It’s simply a better way to lose weight.
I have been a personal trainer for over seventeen years and I absolutely love what I do. I honestly feel that I have one of the best jobs out there! The most rewarding part of my profession is helping one of my clients succeed at reaching their personal fitness goals. Making a difference in someone’s life makes it all worthwhile. I am currently certified by the National Sports Conditioning Association, Apex Fitness Group, and the International Sports Science Association.
Muscle is more dense than fat and takes up less space. In fact, one pound of fat takes up eighteen percent more space than one pound of muscle.
