Abdominal Fat Loss Myths

1. Drinking Cold Water Will Help You Burn Fat.  This is an interesting myth.  The theory is that the energy required to heat the water will burn extra calories and therefore lead to increased fat loss - all without any extra effort!  The calories that we talk about when we talk about nutrition are actually kilocalories, that means they are equal to 1000 calories, which is the measure of energy that it takes to raise the temperature of one gram of water by one degree Celsius.  An 8-ounce glass of water contains approximately 240 grams of water.  That means that in order heat up an ice-cold glass of water (0 degrees Celsius) to our body temperature (33.5 degrees Celsius), it will require 8,040 calories.  So, by drinking an ice-cold glass of water, a person can burn 8 extra food calories.  While this is better than nothing, 8 food calories in the context of a 2000 calorie diet is not enough to achieve real results.  Quick fixes like the cold-water myth are almost never an actual solution.

2. You Can "Spot Reduce" Fat in Your Trouble Areas.  This is one of the most persistent myths in the fitness world.  Some people believe that performing exercises that target a specific area of the body will help to reduce fat in that area of the body alone.  This is simply not true.  Fat loss happens all over the body in a pattern that is determined by age, genetics, gender, and a person's particular hormonal makeup.  It is not possible to perform abdominal exercises and see abdominal fat loss as the only result.  Every exercise undertaken and every calorie burned helps to add to the overall total, so every exercise helps to speed fat loss in every area of the body.  This is a dangerous myth because it leads to people performing hundreds of crunches or situps and becoming discouraged when their belly fat just doesn't go away.  The fact is, the purpose of abdominal exercises is not to target abdominal fat loss, but to strengthen the core muscles, which are incredibly important to the overall functioning of a healthy body.  And, if you have strong abs, then when you strip away your body fat by means of a successful diet and exercise program, then the muscles underneath will be that much more impressive when they are revealed.

3. Crash Dieting Is A Good Path To Fat Loss.  This myth is both ineffective and dangerous.  At best, crash dieting causes your body to believe that it is in a state of starvation.  Although the initial result may achieve the desired abdominal fat loss, once the crash diet is abandoned, the individual is likely to gain all of the previous weight back and possibly additional weight as their body struggles to store extra energy for future starvation periods.  At worst, crash diets can cause severe health issues and malnutrition.  Crash diets can put stress on the heart and cause the body to consume its own muscle tissue for energy, and in some extreme cases may even contribute to premature death if carried on for too long.  The best path to fat loss is always a steady and reasonable loss of weight accompanied by a healthy diet and an exercise plan.