The initial thought does seem to make sense. If Old Johnny Boy wants to flatten his stomach, a million crunches should do the trick. And if he wants to lose some of that fat on his arms, a million triceps pressdowns will help that out, too. Right?
If only that were true. If only strengthening, toning, and tightening is all that it took to remove those squishy areas. If only.
Unfortunately, despite exercise playing a role in many fat loss journeys, it’s not necessarily a key factor or necessity in the endeavour.
True, performing exercise in general, regardless of the area of focus, can help “tone,” “tighten,” or “flatten” it. But this has nothing to do with targeting a specific area, and only has to do with a change in energy balance. Or, in other words, altering the ratio of calories consumed and calories burned.
For example, if Old Johnny Boy eats an excess amount of calories for what his body needs each day, a thousand crunches won’t be the magical cure to his bulging stomach. It’ll help his energy ratio alteration, but the thousand crunches won’t be the answer. In fact, performing those crunches can lead to the area expanding even further.
Think about it. What would happen if Old Johnny Boy strengthened his abdominal muscles? Exactly. He would build muscle. Now imagine what would happen if he had bigger abdominal muscles. Exactly. The layers of fat on his stomach would protrude even more, thereby increasing the size of his stomach.
You know what would help him more than spending $8 on that yoga mat he bought during an Aldi sale? Decreasing his caloric intake. Decreasing his beer consumption each week. Discontinuing his weekly habit of buying too many cookies and chips and sausage rolls.
If Old Johnny Boy doesn’t take into consideration how many calories he burns each week, it won’t matter how many crunches he performs. It won’t matter what specific areas he targets.
This doesn’t mean Old Johnny Boy needs to track every meal, every single day. But it does mean he should have a general idea for what he burns and how much he consumes. Thus resulting in him keeping his weight in check.
While some folk do seem to exhibit spot reduction (e.g., tennis players, labourers and their “toned” forearms from carrying bricks/buckets/etc., dancers and their “toned” legs), most of the time, instead of Old Johnny Boy wasting his time focusing on magical exercises, overall energy balance will help him in the long run.
Because, at the end of the day, a million crunches won’t necessarily flatten his stomach. Unless the crunches (i.e., the exercise) put him into a calorie deficit.
Questions? Hit me up below. Thanks for reading.