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How Does Fat Burn? Where Does Fat Go? What is the Best Way to Burn Fat?

 

How does fat burn, where does fat go, and what is the best way to burn fat are three questions that I have heard many times throughout my career. With that said I have also given many different answers throughout the years. The reason is, is that science changed and improved.  For the past 8-10 years science has continued to fall onto relatively the same answers.  So, I feel now is the time to write about it so you are getting the correct information.

Being that 65% of the United States is Obese and 80% is overweight we have to start getting educated. The issue that many Americans are faced with is that there is far too much miss-information available.  For people to be successful in becoming healthy they must have appropriate knowledge and understanding.  We all know we cannot do something without having knowledge on how something is done, works, etc.

So let’s get into some of that knowledge.  According to a new study published in the British Medical Journal, people believe that fat gets “burned” off by being converted into heat and energy, or they believe that it gets turned into muscle.

These thoughts are common, and very incorrect. The sad story is many doctors, dietitians nutritionists, and personal trainers believe this to be true as well. I have been in this industry for 17 years and it makes me cringe when I hear professionals telling their clients this very thing.

I know…You are probably thinking “Oh Man, I have been told that very thing and I believed it.  That’s okay.  You are reading this because you are interested in learning and getting educated on what the truth is. 

So now that you know that it doesn't turn into muscle, really get used for energy, and you know it doesn't just magically disappear, it is time to learn what really happens.

How Does Fat Burn?

When talking about fat burning we are talking about a specific type of fat.  This is fat that accumulates when there is a consumption of excess carbohydrates, proteins, and fats that our bodies don’t need or cannot use due to the excess amount. Excess macronutrients get converted into triglycerides, which are then stored in what is called Adipocytes (aka our fat cells). So if you have weight to lose, you need to metabolize (burn off) the triglycerides.

Where Does Your Fat Go?

For you to burn fat the triglycerides must go through a chemical reaction so they can leave the body in the form of carbon dioxide and water.  Yep, you are breathing, sweating, and urinating your fat away.

Through recent studies, researchers have found that you actually BREATH 84% of that fat out of your body, and the other 16% leaves the body in fluid form (i.e. sweat, urination, condensation in your breath and so on).  Researchers studied the atoms with in the fat cells and traced each atom’s pathway as they were released from the body.  They found through their studies 80% of the fat was carried out of the body in the form of Carbon Dioxide, and 20% was carried out of the body via fluid.

Note: The research has shown that if the goal is to lose weight, simply breathing more or working out more isn't necessarily going to help you achieve your weight loss goal. There still needs to be less consumption of the macronutrients so the consumption is in line with what the particular person’s body needs on a daily basis based on Basal Metabolic Rate, and activity. Back to Calories In, Calories Out. As their research shows: “Physical activity as a weight loss strategy is ineffective if plagued by excess quantities of macronutrients (food).”

What is the Best Way to Burn Fat?

So now that we know how fat is burned and where it goes we need to address what is the most efficient way to burn the fat we want to lose.

Most people have heard the term the “fat burning zone”. Many doctors, and trainers have used this term.  Is there really a “fat burning zone”?  I beg to differ.  So let’s take a look.

Through the years there has been science that says low and slow intensity burns more, than moderate to high intensity burns.  Well we just learned above that we lose most of our fat through breathing, sweating and urination.  So it appears that low and slow is not really going to be the best course of action. The reason that this has been said in the past is that science had shown that more fat is used as energy when activity is slow and low, versus a higher intensity that uses fat, calories and oxygen processes for the energy to do the activity. Through the research that has revealed how fat actually releases from the body, science has found the low and slow process to be wrong.  Let’s break this down so you can see what I mean.

If you walk around for an hour and burn 150 calories, approximately 90% of those calories will come from fat, which will equate to about 135 calories from fat burned. Now, if you jog on a treadmill for one hour and burn 600 calories with 50% of those calories coming from fat, this would equate to 300 calories from fat.  So this should be a no brainer on which would burn more.  Unfortunately people believe that a larger percentage equals more burned.  Clearly not true if you do the math. 300 is definitely bigger than 135. Therefore the best way to burn fat is put out a greater amount of exertion and energy use.

Another fat burning concept to keep in mind of, is what is called the “After Burn” or “Post-Exercise Burn”. The scientific name is EPOC (Excess Post-Exercise Oxygen Consumption).  This is the energy above your normal metabolic rate that continues to be used after your activity.

What does this mean?  This means if you exercise at a high exertion rate, you will continue to use energy during recovery due to the elevated state of your metabolic system. This continued use of energy is directly related to your muscles needing to replenish their carbohydrate stores, repair, and remove waste products (i.e. lactic acid). This after burn concept is not found with low intensity exercise.  Therefore Low and Slow is not the way to go. 

Let’s Put it all Together:

The best way to burn stored body fat is with exercise that is at a higher intensity, this should include many variations of exercise.  What I mean by this is, use a bike, running, interval training, weight training and more.  The more you change it up the better.  Of course with that said, it is not necessary to maintain a high effort for your entire workout. In fact I recommend doing interval style training at least three days per week. The reason I recommend this, is it allows you to work at a high intensity with taking brief rests, which in turn also creates increased fat burning throughout the workout and after as you increase your sweat production, and breathing.  The bottom line is the harder you work the more fat energy you burn, and the greater your after burn, which in turn means you will have greater fat burn overall. So therefore, your “Fat Burning Zone” is really your “Weight Loss Zone”.