We’ve all tried to lose weight, right? You know exercise, lots of exercise, very little food, constant checks in the mirror and scales. And while the old calorie-in method certainly works better than the calorie-out method, restrictive diets and brutal, sweat-filled workouts can dry up our resolve after a while. No wonder only 10 to 20 percent of dieters manage to lose weight, with some regaining 35 percent of lost weight within 12 months.
We want to talk to you about a better way to change body fat. The science remains the same, but by treating excess weight as fuel instead of carrying it, you’ll hopefully have a happier, more fulfilling journey that helps tip the scales in your favor.
‘Fast’ is a bad word. Should it be?
If you want to lose weight and lose some fat it is good if that is your goal. But we must keep in mind that we do not see any and all fat as “bad”, or something that should be shed. “Fat gets a bad rap in today’s society – and it really isn’t fair,” says Elena Cox, co-owner of Fitzroy’s Club Q Health Club. “While excess body fat is associated with a number of serious health issues,” he says, “some fat is essential.”
In fact, fat helps with everything from insulation to reproduction, immune system regulation and yes, metabolism. It is so vital that Veronika Larisova, dietician and co-founder of Big Nutrition, calls it “one of the most essential molecules in the human body” and adds that “deposited body fat acts as a long-term energy store, while adipose tissue is also involved in hormone production, releasing signaling molecules that help regulate appetite. It also helps support our internal organs and support cell membranes and nerves. The system forms an important part.
In other words: fat is your friend. Now that’s cleared up, let’s get down to business.
How to lose and burn body fat for fuel?
The body relies on carbohydrates and fat for energy, with saturated fat being preferred at low intensity. “The reason is the energy yield,” explains Cox. “Fat takes longer than carbohydrates, but provides significantly more energy per gram – 9 kcal compared to just 4 kcal from carbohydrates. On top of that, fat stores more in the body.” It’s true, even a lean person has about 100,000 calories of stored fat at any given time.
When our bodies burn fat for fuel, they go through a process called lipolysis, followed by fatty acid oxidation. Triglycerides stored in adipose tissue are broken down into fatty acids, which then enter the bloodstream and are transported to all cells in the body where they are converted into energy.
According to Adam Enaz, founder of Enaz Fitness, the average sedentary person burns about 60-80 grams of fat per day through basic bodyweight activities and low-intensity activities such as kettlebell squats. Keep yourself in a calorie deficit (the keto diet recommends cutting carbs by 50 grams per day to stimulate fat burning) and exercise, though, and you can increase your burn significantly.
Whichever way you take it, Cox is clear that you’ll probably have more fun if you remember that fat is fat. Don’t just run for an hour on the treadmill, staring at the gym wall. Use those calories to work towards your 10k PB, smash a V6 at your climbing gym, or do your cricket workout instead, and you’re more likely to enjoy yourself, and stick to your fat loss goals.
How much fat do I need to lose 1 kg of weight?
And, more importantly, how can I speed up the process?
Cox says, “For 50 years the field of clinical nutrition has worked around Wishnofsky’s rule that a 7,700kcal reduction is required to lose 1kg of body fat. However, in the last decade this rule has been largely simplified for real-world fat loss.”
The problem with assigning a general calorie number to each person and body type, Cox says, is that how much fat we actually lose is affected by many factors, from body composition to initial depletion of glycogen, fluids, and even protein, which may move the scales, but not the actual amount of fat lost. “Weight loss is never pure fat,” warns Cox. “It also comes at the expense of less weight, less connective tissue and less bone.”
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