BURN FITNESS 101: Why Dieting and Cardio is Making You Weaker and Fatter!
So many potential clients come to see us in desperation. They’ve been dieting for years, and doing more and more lower-intensity cardio, walking, jogging… putting in hour after hour on the treadmill… Yet each passing year, despite doing MORE exercise than ever, they are fatter, softer, and weaker than they’ve ever been. Plagued by nagging injury after injury, their efforts get derailed again and again, which sets them further and further behind, deeper and deeper “in the hole”. In desperation, they cut calories even more, to the point where they are exercising 60-90 minutes per day, and eating under 1200 kcal, despite being near their heaviest weight ever.
It’s a HORRIBLE place to be! On low calories, they find themselves getting sick more frequently, injured or struggling through nagging aches, never seeming to recover or get any rest. It’s a vicious cycle!
Here’s WHY!
So many potential clients come to see us in desperation. They’ve been dieting for years, and doing more and more lower-intensity cardio, walking, jogging… putting in hour after hour on the treadmill… Yet each passing year, despite doing MORE exercise than ever, they are fatter, softer, and weaker than they’ve ever been. Plagued by nagging injury after injury, their efforts get derailed again and again, which sets them further and further behind, deeper and deeper “in the hole”. In desperation, they cut calories even more, to the point where they are exercising 60-90 minutes per day, and eating under 1200 kcal, despite being near their heaviest weight ever.
It’s a HORRIBLE place to be! On low calories, they find themselves getting sick more frequently, injured or struggling through nagging aches, never seeming to recover or get any rest. It’s a vicious cycle!
Here’s WHY!
As we age, our bodies naturally lose muscle mass. As we gain affluence, and more responsibility at work, our strenuous physical activity drops. As our muscle mass drops, our resting metabolism (the fat we burn sitting still) drops with it. We require fewer and fewer calories to move and maintain our weight. As we move less, and eat like we use to, we start gaining body-fat.
There are three types of body-fat that accumulate. The obvious fat is the sub-cutaneous fat, between our skin and our muscle, surface-fat. This fat is the growing yellow ring around the muscle in the diagram. The second body-fat accumulation is visceral fat. Visceral fat is the dangerous deposits around our organs, inside the body cavity (not in the diagram). This causes the hard distended “beer belly” look, or the hard “pooch” in women. The third, less known, accumulation of fat is “Interstitial” fat. Interstitial fat is what accumulates inside the muscle, between the muscle cells. This fat is represented by the smaller “petal-shaped” fat inside the muscle in the diagrams. Think of the ribbons of fat inside a cut of steak, like New York Strip, or a Ribeye.
As we age and lose muscle mass, the first fat deposits are usually a thin layer of subcutaneous fat (the second circle in the top diagram) under the skin. The muscle is shrinking, so the thigh (depicted) stays the same size, so your clothes still fit! You look okay in clothes… but in a swimsuit… your still-thin legs just look softer, lumpier. BUT YOUR CLOTHES STILL FIT… so no-worries! You’re just losing “tone”.
Eventually, after a few years of no strength training, the muscle loss progresses as the muscle atrophies. Now the fat starts to accumulate between the muscle cells INSIDE the muscle. The muscle gets softer, and sags more, yet your clothes still fit!!! But damn… your legs look NOTHING like they did in your twenties. Swimsuits are out the door! This can take anywhere from just a few years to a decade, depending on your genetics and activity level.
After 5-20 years of NOT INCREASING YOUR CALORIES a bit… SUDDENLY, your weight starts to climb QUICKLY. Your body can simply not lose ANY more muscle. You are weak, get tired quickly, and your legs ache after simply standing for a while. Your resting metabolism has hit rock bottom. Suddenly just eating a FEW extra calories, results in a gain of another pound. Your formerly thin legs start to grow! Blobs of unsightly fat accumulate on top of your sagging and weak muscles, as all the interstitial spaces for fat to accumulate are maxed out… YUCK!
So what do most people do at this point? Maybe head for the “Medically Supervised” Starvation Clinic? Go take amphetamines and B-12 shots, while eating even FEWER calories… Who needs food when you’re on enough drugs! And it gets worse… Short-term weight loss, with MORE muscle loss is the result. As soon as they get off the speed, all the weight and fat comes back, typically plus a few pounds!
So is there a solution????
Yes…
Is it quick and easy to fix it?
No… It’s not. And the solution is NOT more cardio, and fewer calories! Actually the solution is EXACTLY the opposite.
The solution is MORE calories, and WEIGHT TRAINING! Look at the bottom diagram…
Starting with the minimal-muscle, high interstitial fat, high subcutaneous fat thigh we’ve acquired through years of atrophy… We MUST RE-BUILD MUSCLE. This is NOT new muscle. Strength training after you’ve been fat (muscle-depleted) for a while will NOT result in bulky added muscle. It will simply work to REPLACE and regrow the muscle you’ve lost! The goal is NOT to bulk you up, unless you consider the thighs you had in your late teens as “bulky”. You just need to grow that muscle back!
Most of my clients approach me for the first time in their 40s… Well along in the top right portion of the diagram. It took them 20+ years to go from top left, to top right. Our goal is to take them from bottom left, BACK to bottom right, which is potentially even LEANER than where they started.
First… they must regrow enough muscle to push out the interstitial fat. For quite a while, their legs will NOT get any smaller! This is frustrating, but it is part of the process! Once the interstitial fat is burned up, then and ONLY then does the subcutaneous fat start to drop! Depending on how far “in the hole” they started, and on their diet and training intensity, eventually they will return to the bottom third circle… not perfect… but smaller, thighs with little interstitial fat. From there… the leaning continues as the muscle mass returns, to the point where eventually, the 40-something legs are just as lean, and just as smooth as the 20-something legs! It may take 6 months. It may take 2 years. BUT it WILL work.
It requires doing EXACTLY the opposite of what got them there in the first place:
- Inactivity turned to regular vigorous activity
- Starvation nutrition turned to muscle-building nutrition
- Long-duration, low-intensity muscle-wasting cardio turned to fat-scorching muscle-building sprints
Remember way back when, when we could eat anything and still stay lean?
It WASN’T because we were younger. It was because we had MUCH more muscle! NOW it the time to get your young muscle back. And with that muscle… your fat will melt away.
For personal education, motivation, and adherence, make an appointment to come see Lisa or myself at BURN Fitness. We’ll get you on the track to a leaner, healthier existence!
There are three types of body-fat that accumulate. The obvious fat is the sub-cutaneous fat, between our skin and our muscle, surface-fat. This fat is the growing yellow ring around the muscle in the diagram. The second body-fat accumulation is visceral fat. Visceral fat is the dangerous deposits around our organs, inside the body cavity (not in the diagram). This causes the hard distended “beer belly” look, or the hard “pooch” in women. The third, less known, accumulation of fat is “Interstitial” fat. Interstitial fat is what accumulates inside the muscle, between the muscle cells. This fat is represented by the smaller “petal-shaped” fat inside the muscle in the diagrams. Think of the ribbons of fat inside a cut of steak, like New York Strip, or a Ribeye.
As we age and lose muscle mass, the first fat deposits are usually a thin layer of subcutaneous fat (the second circle in the top diagram) under the skin. The muscle is shrinking, so the thigh (depicted) stays the same size, so your clothes still fit! You look okay in clothes… but in a swimsuit… your still-thin legs just look softer, lumpier. BUT YOUR CLOTHES STILL FIT… so no-worries! You’re just losing “tone”.
Eventually, after a few years of no strength training, the muscle loss progresses as the muscle atrophies. Now the fat starts to accumulate between the muscle cells INSIDE the muscle. The muscle gets softer, and sags more, yet your clothes still fit!!! But damn… your legs look NOTHING like they did in your twenties. Swimsuits are out the door! This can take anywhere from just a few years to a decade, depending on your genetics and activity level.
After 5-20 years of NOT INCREASING YOUR CALORIES a bit… SUDDENLY, your weight starts to climb QUICKLY. Your body can simply not lose ANY more muscle. You are weak, get tired quickly, and your legs ache after simply standing for a while. Your resting metabolism has hit rock bottom. Suddenly just eating a FEW extra calories, results in a gain of another pound. Your formerly thin legs start to grow! Blobs of unsightly fat accumulate on top of your sagging and weak muscles, as all the interstitial spaces for fat to accumulate are maxed out… YUCK!
So what do most people do at this point? Maybe head for the “Medically Supervised” Starvation Clinic? Go take amphetamines and B-12 shots, while eating even FEWER calories… Who needs food when you’re on enough drugs! And it gets worse… Short-term weight loss, with MORE muscle loss is the result. As soon as they get off the speed, all the weight and fat comes back, typically plus a few pounds!
So is there a solution????
Yes…
Is it quick and easy to fix it?
No… It’s not. And the solution is NOT more cardio, and fewer calories! Actually the solution is EXACTLY the opposite.
The solution is MORE calories, and WEIGHT TRAINING! Look at the bottom diagram…
Starting with the minimal-muscle, high interstitial fat, high subcutaneous fat thigh we’ve acquired through years of atrophy… We MUST RE-BUILD MUSCLE. This is NOT new muscle. Strength training after you’ve been fat (muscle-depleted) for a while will NOT result in bulky added muscle. It will simply work to REPLACE and regrow the muscle you’ve lost! The goal is NOT to bulk you up, unless you consider the thighs you had in your late teens as “bulky”. You just need to grow that muscle back!
Most of my clients approach me for the first time in their 40s… Well along in the top right portion of the diagram. It took them 20+ years to go from top left, to top right. Our goal is to take them from bottom left, BACK to bottom right, which is potentially even LEANER than where they started.
First… they must regrow enough muscle to push out the interstitial fat. For quite a while, their legs will NOT get any smaller! This is frustrating, but it is part of the process! Once the interstitial fat is burned up, then and ONLY then does the subcutaneous fat start to drop! Depending on how far “in the hole” they started, and on their diet and training intensity, eventually they will return to the bottom third circle… not perfect… but smaller, thighs with little interstitial fat. From there… the leaning continues as the muscle mass returns, to the point where eventually, the 40-something legs are just as lean, and just as smooth as the 20-something legs! It may take 6 months. It may take 2 years. BUT it WILL work.
It requires doing EXACTLY the opposite of what got them there in the first place:
- Inactivity turned to regular vigorous activity
- Starvation nutrition turned to muscle-building nutrition
- Long-duration, low-intensity muscle-wasting cardio turned to fat-scorching muscle-building sprints
Remember way back when, when we could eat anything and still stay lean?
It WASN’T because we were younger. It was because we had MUCH more muscle! NOW it the time to get your young muscle back. And with that muscle… your fat will melt away.
For personal education, motivation, and adherence, make an appointment to come see Lisa or myself at BURN Fitness. We’ll get you on the track to a leaner, healthier existence!