Which type of body fat are you trying to get rid of?

For many people, the notion that weight loss = calories in minus calories out is almost cemented in their mind. As long as we are in a calorie deficit, weight loss will ensue, correct?

On paper, in text books, in clinical trials, in fitness magazines and in the doctors office, it is portrayed as that simple.


I have a very interesting theory though that I will expand upon, and hopefully be published in a bigger publication.

I've been doing some research on this theory and so far, it seems to pan out pretty well.

Here's the gist of the article: There are two types of fat-loss patients:

• There are those who simply over eat and make poor food choices
• There are those who are stressed in multiple ways and as a result fail to lose abdominal fat.

How do we determine who is who?

Here is a list of characteristics I see in people from the two groups
Generalized adiposity - 

1. Poor food quality and quantity selection when observing a food eating record
2. Larger skin folds in multiple regions of the body
3. Soft, squishy fat around multiple body regions
4. Body fat fairly evenly distributed among the body regions and limbs
5. No history of prolonged dieting
6. Minimal physical activity
7. Somewhat sedentary job
8. No attention to hunger/fullness cues when eating

Centralized adiposity - 

1. Very conscious of food choices and quality
2. Lower skin fold measurements in arms, calves, chest and thighs, high skin fold in abdominal region, mid axillary and subscapular
3. Unevenly distributed fat (primarily deposited in abdominal region)
4. Hard abdominal fat (they look overweight, but the belly is as hard as a drum)
5. History of repeated attempts at losing weight with some success
6. High demand, high pressure career, often a business owner
7. Poor recover (ie poor sleep, dependence on caffiene, chronically tired, calories too low, deficient in certain macronutrients, micronutrients)

Now hopefully you recognize some of the traits characterized here in these 2 categories. And hopefully you indirectly see solutions to these characteristics. 

The solution for the Generalized Adiposity group is fairly simple:

• pay attention to hunger cues,
• eat to 80% full
• and focus on whole foods such as fruits/veggies, lean protein and root veggies for starches

Add in 2-3 hours of exercise a week and they can expect to lose weight fairly easily.

The solution for the Centralized Adiposity group is a bit more complex. Because their's is a problem of stress and managing that stress. This study and this study demonstrated that high levels of the stress hormone cortisol is related to increased abdominal fat storage.

A big hang up for most people in this boat is the fact that they (GASP!) need to eat more and exercise a little less (assuming they are exercising). Trying to wrap your mind around that paradigm shift is a pretty tough and many people struggle with it.

An article by nutrition coach Georgie Fear has an entire section of her website devoted to "reverse dieting." In it, she outlines the steps that are needed to restore a metabolism that has been devastated by stress from chronic dieting, over training, poor recovery and poor sleep habits.

What changes does the Centralized Adiposity (Stressed) client need?

• Make sure you're not cutting calories too low
• Sleep 7-9 hours per night
• Exercise at a lower intensity for 3-4 hours/week
• Focus on hunger/fullness rather than counting calories
• Minimize stimulants such as caffeine and added sugar
• Perform meditative exercises that focus on breathing patterns and removing mental clutter

So take a look at the two types of fat loss clients. If you know you're overweight, you're going to fall into one of these two categories. And knowing which category you are in can save you a lot of time, headaches and frustration by knowing what to expect.

I'd love to help you no matter which category you fall into. Because we can make changes that will lead to a healthier, happier life!

Email aaron@pairmarotta.com and let's get this ball rolling!

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Does your bootcamp do THIS???

Most people never give much thought to the variables in their workouts. After all, there are tons of articles in popular fitness magazines that tell us the best new exercises, but rarely do they divulge from the standard 3 sets of 10 reps. Most people go to the gym, do their upper body workout of triceps extensions, 3 different kinds of biceps curls and maybe some shoulder stuff that the magazines tell them will "tone" their arms.

But the truth is that you can do the same workout for months on end and still get no where because the body adapts to the stress you put on it. You have to change something. And most people think it must be the exercises. When they aren't seeing change, they swear that they just aren't doing the right exercises. Or that there is some new fancy trick exercise that they haven't tried yet.

However, you can use the same exercises and just change some of the other variables and get mind boggling changes in strength, flexibility. So that is what we've done with this round of the Hi-5 FitCamp. Usually we stay somewhat based in 3-4 sets of 5-12 repetitions, with each set having the same number of repetitions. However, this time around we are doing a bit more density training, trying to add more volume of exercise within each set.

For this round of the Hi-5 FitCamp we are doing a form of cluster sets. A cluster set is basically a longer repetition set (14 reps in this case) broken into smaller sets within the set. Cluster sets have been shown to be more effective in highly trained individuals and just as effective as traditional training formats in untrained people. This makes it a great system to use for our current crop of Hi-5 FitCamp members as many of them have been regular attendees for between 1-4 years, while others are brand new or have only been here for a month or two.

MMMM...Deadlifts!

Cluster sets have been shown to increase strength in both experienced and novice weight lifters. However, cluster sets have been shown to be more effective than traditional training when performing power exercises such as medicine ball throws, squat jumps, medicine ball chest passes and split jumps. Why? Well with the rest afforded between smaller sets, the person is able to give more effort in subsequent reps. Here's an example.

Lets compare a traditional set of 12 squat jumps to a cluster set of 12 in which the set is broken into 4 clusters of 3 with :30 rest between sets. The person doing the traditional set will decrease power output with each subsequent jump because each jump uses available energy and there is no time for recovery. However, the cluster set person is able to recover a little bit after every 3rd jump. So if person A has his percentage of effort decrease by 10% every 3 jumps, then at his final jump he'll only be jumping at 66% of his max effort. But if person B decreased 10% every 3 jumps, but was able to recover 5% after each rest interval, his 12th jump would be at 82% of max effort. Basically he would be declining only 5% with each subsequent cluster set. See the difference a litte rest makes?

In summary, the benefit of doing cluster sets is increased time under tension (which results in more muscle gain) as well as increased strength. These are two of the major components to fat-loss! So why wouldn't we do this? Plus, it's a nice little change up for everybody!