THE BEAUTIFUL LIE

Probably the single most frustrating thing about being a trainer is constantly fielding questions from clients about new exercises that will give them great abs. The question is asked so frequently and is very frustrating to deal with as a trainer, because the client never wants to hear the truth. So when I tell them the truth, they become frustrated that I don't have a secret wonder ab exercise that's going to make them look like those models in the latest infomercial.

“It's much easier to sell a beautiful lie than an ugly truth.”

I'm not sure who originally said this, but it certainly applies to the people who market products that promise to give you “that lean and sexy waistline that everyone loves.”

Just use the ab dolly for ten minutes a week and you'll get ripped fast!

Look at this celebrity, he uses the product and just look at his six pack!

So it's no wonder that clients show up to the gym armed with questions about how they can get those fast and easy results. The answer to their questions is, unfortunately – you can't get fast and easy results – the people on television are lying to you.

Get used to it. It's called a marketing ploy.

In the fitness industry, beautiful lies make millions of dollars for those that tell them. And all the consumer ends up with is another gimmick that ends up in the closet, under the bed or on Craigslist.

In fitness advertising, there is no need for proof, especially when you can write in teeny tiny letters at the bottom of the page “results may vary”. So advertisers are virtually free to say anything they want to sell the latest product, regardless if there is any validity to the product at all. Think about it, if you could tell a beautiful lie on TV and get rich doing it, wouldn't you? Fitness is the easiest industry to tell lies about because there is no watchdog. Nobody ever goes after the makers of the Ab Dealy 5000 because they sold a million units to a people that still have beer bellies.

All of these lies are based on one giant myth: THE MYTH OF SPOT REDUCTION!!!1

It's based on this idea – you have fat around your belly, so if you exercise the muscles in that area, the fat will go away and all that will be left is lean, sexy muscle. It's such a beautiful lie that almost anyone will believe it, but it is simply not true.

Between your skin and muscle there is a layer of fat called subcutaneous body fat. It accumulates on various areas on your body in varying amounts based on your percentage of body fat and your genetics.

If you have fat around your midsection, strengthening your abdominals will not make your belly fat disappear. You will have strong abs – but nobody will see them under the layer of fat that is still there.

“OK, so we get the beautiful lie – what's the ugly truth?”

The ugly truth will be exposed in my next post...

 Будь  здоров! Be healthy!