Can you lose fat locally?

Myth: You Can Lose Fat Locally

More Belly Fat Loss with Ab Workouts?

Finally, a myth that’s actually possible, but only with liposuction. In the gym, on your bike, or jogging through the woods, spot fat loss just isn’t happening. There’s only one study (as of this writing) that suggests you might lose slightly more fat around your belly by doing ab exercises instead of cardio. But let’s be real: the difference only showed after 40 training sessions of 84 minutes each (27 minutes of running and 57 minutes of ab exercises) compared to 40 running sessions of 45 minutes. If you were to spend those 1,560 minutes (or 26 hours) on running alone, you’d burn way more fat overall, including in your belly area. Moral of the story: don’t judge a study by its headline. In the end, this study barely deserves a mention.

Where Do You Lose Fat First?

Your body decides where to store and burn fat, it’s not up to you. If you’re aiming to lose 10 kilos of fat by adding 5,000 extra steps a day, you can’t pick and choose where the fat melts off. Doing squats won’t burn more thigh fat than bicep curls will. Sure, if you do 100 squats daily instead of curls, you’ll probably drop more weight simply because squats burn more energy. But even then, fat loss will only happen if you’re in a calorie deficit.

Calories In vs Calories Out

Fat loss always comes down to the balance between calories burned and calories consumed. Exercises that burn the most energy and are sustainable will give you the best shot at winning this game. But you won’t be able to control where the fat disappears. Think of your body like a car’s fuel tank. As you drive, the fuel drains evenly, it doesn’t disappear from one corner at a time.

More Fat Loss with Supplements?

Just like there’s no magic exercise to burn fat in specific spots, there’s no supplement that can do it either, despite what some flashy labels promise. When a product says, “Boosts belly fat burning,” it really means, “Boosts fat burning just like it does everywhere else.” In fact, there are no legal supplements that significantly increase your fat-burning rate. And that’s a good thing. Otherwise, your heart would be racing non-stop all day!

What About Caffeine?

Caffeine, a common ingredient in most legal fat-burning supplements, works mainly through the placebo effect. It makes you feel more alert and focused, which can lead to more intense and longer workouts. And let’s be honest, if that helps you burn extra calories, that’s a win! But be cautious, don’t consume caffeine too late in the day (ideally before 2 PM) because it could mess with your sleep. Poor sleep could ultimately hurt your fat loss progress more than those extra workout minutes fueled by late-day caffeine. This is especially important for evening exercisers!