Fat burning - myth or truth? 7 truths about fat burning
There are countless articles on the Internet about fat burning and "super" diets. They promise weight loss of 5 kilos in a week or a dream figure in a month! Unfortunately, it is easy to lose track and the prospect of success disappears even before the diet begins.
Let's start with a few facts. To lose fat, you need a calorie deficit. This means that you need to burn more calories than you take in. For example, if your body burns 2,000 kcal within 24 hours, you can only consume 1,700 kcal in order to maintain a deficit of 300 kcal. In 7 days you will then have a deficit of 2,100 kcal.
1 kilogramme of fat consists of around 7000 calories. With this slight calorie deficit, you therefore need a little more than 3 weeks to lose one kilogram of fat. On average, the diet is designed to achieve a weight loss of 500 grams per week. However, if the person has a very high fat percentage, a higher weight loss can be aimed for at the beginning. It makes a difference whether someone weighs 120 kilos or just wants to lose 1-2 kilos to get ready for the summer beach body.
I don't want to go into the different types of diets in this article, but I would like to point out that not every diet works for your body the way it may have worked for others. There are countless factors that play a role. Basically, a diet should consist of a balanced diet paired with a moderate calorie deficit. So much for the basics.
Let's move on to the actual topic. Which statements about fat burning are true and which are not.
There are countless articles on the Internet about fat burning and "super" diets. They promise weight loss of 5 kilos in a week or a dream figure in a month! Unfortunately, it is easy to lose track and the prospect of success disappears even before the diet begins.
Let's start with a few facts. To lose fat, you need a calorie deficit. This means that you need to burn more calories than you take in. For example, if your body burns 2,000 kcal within 24 hours, you can only consume 1,700 kcal in order to maintain a deficit of 300 kcal. In 7 days you will then have a deficit of 2,100 kcal.
1 kilogramme of fat consists of around 7000 calories. With this slight calorie deficit, you therefore need a little more than 3 weeks to lose one kilogram of fat. On average, the diet is designed to achieve a weight loss of 500 grams per week. However, if the person has a very high fat percentage, a higher weight loss can be aimed for at the beginning. It makes a difference whether someone weighs 120 kilos or just wants to lose 1-2 kilos to get ready for the summer beach body.
I don't want to go into the different types of diets in this article, but I would like to point out that not every diet works for your body the way it may have worked for others. There are countless factors that play a role. Basically, a diet should consist of a balanced diet paired with a moderate calorie deficit. So much for the basics.
Let's move on to the actual topic. Which statements about fat burning are true and which are not.
1 - Can I lose fat in a specific area of my body?
No, you can't. I'm often asked by my clients if we could train more abdominals as they have a lot of fat there. Unfortunately, it doesn't work that easily, otherwise our job would be a lot easier. Unfortunately, you usually only lose the fat in the problem areas at the end. So, for better or worse, you have to fight your way through the diet until the desired result is achieved. But there is light at the end of the tunnel. Fat cannot easily accumulate in a trained area.
2 - Does fat burning only start after 30 minutes of cardio?
This is also not true, as we burn fat even at rest. In the first 30 minutes, about half of the energy is provided by fats, the rest by carbohydrates. After an hour, fats contribute around two thirds of the energy supply. This is because more fatty acids are utilised in the blood, which in turn are released from the fatty tissue.
3 - Strength training does nothing for weight loss!
That is probably the biggest lie. The muscles in the body need a lot of energy. Firstly to make them grow and secondly to maintain them. The more muscle you have in your body, the more calories you burn within 24 hours. This is where the term "slim while you sleep" comes from. For a diet, we recommend muscle-building training and cardio for a better fat metabolism.
4 - No carbohydrates after 18:00
Those who stop eating carbohydrates in the evening do not lose weight faster, but possibly even more slowly, according to a Study by Sigal Sofer and colleagues from 2011. You have 78 overweight
Israeli policemen and policewomen were put on a diet for six months. The interesting thing is that both test groups were given a prescribed diet and consumed the same number of calories and macronutrients (1,300 to 1,500 kcal per day, 20 % protein, 30 - 35 % fat, 45-50 % carbohydrates).
The only difference was that the experimental group ate most of their carbohydrates in the evening and the control group in the morning. Test subjects who did not adhere to the diet or exceeded their calorie intake were also subsequently excluded from the study.
Those who ate the most carbohydrates in the evening lost 2 % more body fat than those who ate a lower-carb diet in the evening. It was also observed that the "carbs in the evening group" developed better insulin sensitivity, produced more leptin during the day and had less inflammation.
2 % could also be a measurement error, but more importantly, it proves that carbohydrates in the evening do not make you fat unless you are in a calorie surplus. On the contrary, another study ( https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/6164541/ ) has proven that carbohydrates in the evening lower your stress levels and help you sleep better.
5 - Fat makes you fat
Fat does not make you fat. Too much fat makes you fat. Here too, it's the quantity that makes the poison and, of course, the quality! Healthy fatty acids are actually very important in a diet. Polyunsaturated fatty acids contribute to the formation of hormones, among other things. We are talking here about fish oil, nuts, linseed oil etc.
Olive oil has a high proportion of oleic acid, which, along with omega-3 fatty acids, can protect you from cardiovascular disease.
But beware of trans fats. Trans fatty acids are unsaturated fatty acids. They are structurally similar to saturated fatty acids and can have an unfavourable effect on blood lipid levels.
This is why these "bad" fats play a role in the development of diseases such as heart attacks and strokes. Trans fatty acids can also be found in the following foods: margarine, deep-frying fat, frying fat, ready meals, baked goods and sweets.
6 - Weight training turns fat into muscle!
Hex Hex, Bibi Blocksberg would say! Unfortunately, the magic spell doesn't work here. To put it very simply, when you lose fat, body fat is converted into energy. When building muscle, amino acids are combined to form muscle proteins.
7 - The more you sweat, the more fat you burn!
People who sweat more do not necessarily burn more calories. It depends on weight, age, state of health, fitness level, environment and many other factors.
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