How often do you need to train for fat loss?

In my previous email, we looked at how training frequency and training volume can impact hypertrophy (aka muscle gain so we can look and become more athletic). 

Now, I promised that in this week's email, I would cover this same question but in relation to Fat Loss. 

The only problem is that exercise isn't the best mechanism for losing fat. Let me explain (I'm going to give it to you as succinctly as possible): 

Fat Loss 101: The following are three main factors that are involved in losing body fat (without losing too much muscle - remember, we want to hold onto muscle for a myriad of reasons) 

• Calorie Deficit (expending more calories than we have consumed) 

• Enough Protein to help our bodies maintain the muscle that currently exists (and possibly add more muscle because we want to support our training goals) 

• A training stimulus great enough to do two things: One - to help us expend calories, and two, to help us create the right kind of (and amount of) stress that will stimulate muscle growth. 

With these three things, as well as quality sleep and adequate hydration, we can start to lose body fat and maintain muscle.    

So why can't we just use exercise to lose body fat and maintain muscle - rather than restricting our calorie intake? 

Well, the short answer is: You can. However, it's unlikely that it would be sustainable (or psychologically healthy) for a number of reasons.  

1. Food-related Caloric Deficit:
   It's generally easier and faster to create a caloric deficit by reducing food intake than by trying to burn off a comparable amount of calories through exercise. 

2. Exercise-Induced Hunger:
   Exercise can stimulate hunger, leading us to consume more calories post-exercise, which can potentially offset the calories burned during the workout.

3. Overestimation of Calories Burned:
   We often overestimate the number of calories burned through exercise, which can lead to a compensatory increase in food intake.

4. Efficiency of the Body:
   As we exercise more, our bodies can become more efficient at performing the exercise, potentially burning fewer calories for the same activity over time. This is why our work has to get harder over time (lucky for those of you doing our programmes, progressive overload is worked into the programming). 

5. Dietary Choices:
   It's easier to make lower-calorie food choices to support fat loss goals compared to trying to out-exercise a calorie-dense diet. This doesn't actually mean restricting your favourite foods. It actually might just mean one less pumpkin latte a day. 

6. Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (NEAT):

   While formal exercise might burn a certain amount of calories, increasing overall daily activity (like walking more, taking the stairs, etc.) can also contribute to energy expenditure, though dietary control might still be easier or more impactful for many. Something you do have to consider is that your body is very smart, and if your calories drop too low, your body will naturally try to prevent weight loss by reducing your non-exercise-based movements. 

7. Adherence:
   Life gets in the way of training in ways that food choices likely won't, and this is because sometimes we just GOTTA EAT. So, we may find it easier to stick to dietary modifications than maintain a consistent exercise intensity and frequency level.

8. Exercise for the love of exercise:
   When we overemphasize exercise as a mechanism for 'fat burning' we reinforce the wrong type of relationship with movement. 

This list was not exhaustive but hopefully helps you to do two things in your health endeavours; 

1. Consider creating a deficit with food rather than exercise (I can't stress enough that this should not be aggressive levels of food restriction. A small deficit each day will be more sustainable and yield better results than a huge 500kcal deficit that causes you to rebound because it wasn't sustainable). This could truly be the difference between one pumpkin latte instead of two. Not some aggressive juice cleanse or a Carb-restricted diet. Start with a small change that you can adhere to consistently. You'll be amazed at the difference it makes. 

2. Remove fat loss as a reason for training and instead shift your focus towards strength, hypertrophy and improving health markers (these will have longer-lasting effects on how you look, feel and function). 

Not sure where to start? Hit the button below, and let’s chat.

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