If I want to tone up a specific part of my body, can I? Anytime I have a potential new client, I have a conversation with them that includes what goals they are trying to reach through personal training. More times than not I am told “I want to tone up…..(a specific body part). I’ll let you guess what body part I hear about the most. For now, though, let’s talk about spot reduction.
As much as I would love to say “great! I know exactly what exercise will get you toned in that area,” I can’t because it is impossible to spot reduce. The majority of us grew up learning and still believe, to some extent, that we can spot reduce fat just by working one part of the body. Unfortunately, that is a myth.
Always, give yourself a full body workout no matter what your goals are. This doesn’t mean you have to do full body workouts every time you do a workout. On Day one you can work biceps and triceps, on day two work chest and back and so on. You can also incorporate some HIIT workouts to get your heart rate up. That’s number one or really, number 2. Because your nutrition is number one. What you put into your body matters 100% to reach increased muscle and weight loss goals. Exercise alone cannot do it…just like nutrition alone cannot do it. We need both to achieve the goals we are looking for.
When it comes to food intake, it is about quality and quantity. Be sure to eat quality foods that include greens and lean protein while paying attention to serving sizes. In addition, try getting 30 minutes of workout in each day, 5 days a week. Incorporate Cardio, Strength and Mobility each week.
So, back to the initial question….we can’t spot reduce, but we certainly can tone up the areas we want to while toning up others and feeling good overall.