"But what about my stomach?!"

A client said to me the other day.

"What about it?" I replied, as politely as humanly possible as I was about to blow a gasket.

This question is so common in my gym that comparatively, the preschool question "Why?" sounds as rare as Putijarra. (The world's rarest language. What - didn't you know that?!)

"Look!" my client says, poking her substantial middle with her manicured finger.

"Yes I see it. How did that happen?"

She thought about that for a second - actually several seconds, and as she did, I looked over the notes in my client chart to see how she did in her last session.

"I don't know." she said, mascara aflutter. "Lack of exercise? I used to do Yoga!"

"Where did you eat dinner last night?" I said sounding exactly like Sgt. Friday.

Instantly I got an expanded Zagat's report of a French restaurant on the upper east side that would have me refinancing my home to eat at. Great review, but she was missing the point - ENTIRELY.

"Do you go there or to places like this often?"

Another colorful review began. I squelched it swiftly.  OK no more parables.

Janice (we'll call her Janice), you're fat because you eat too much food and the wrong kind of food too often.

Mascara un-aflutter. If she had a bat, I'd have been a ball.

It really amazes me how many people think that the excess fat their bodies have created comes from lack of exercising. And since it does of course, exercising is the only way to get rid of it.

Think of the logic - or the lack thereof.

So I said to Janice before being cremated, "It's not lack of exercise that put the fat there in the first place. It's what you've been putting into your body."

She was curious.

"Let me put it another way, it's not what you put your body through - it's what you put through your body."

I saw the lights come on. I felt her absorb the concept and was pleased that I had managed to redirect her thinking which is the first and most important step to body transformation. Just doing what I say is OK but really 'getting it,' as they say in EST, is the top of the mountain.

Zen Eating - Flabby Thoughts Flabby Body should be my next book.

"OK Janice now that we've solved Rubik's fat cube, let's go get your Burn on!" A phrase one of our instructor's Tommy Day coined for a Slow Burn workout.

All asmile with new found knowledge Janice replied:

"Can we do the ab machine first?!"

Comments

[michael jones]

Very interesting story. We have to protect our health and we have to try to achieve its optimal conditions. Achieving that will make us happier.

[Tom Traynor]

Fred--I about came to blows with a female client who got quite lean and strong, then added belly fat--and asked me "What are WE going to do about this?" "WE need to do some abs, etc." I ignored her. Several days later: "Do I look leaner?" "Yes--what did you change?" I went back to this (any suitable diet) plan." "Oh, what did you CHANGE by doing so?" "I just went back to the diet plan that worked before." Yes, but FROM whence did you come nutritionally? What were you DOING before that this diet plan changes?" Oh, I added back some running." "No--WHAT DID YOU STOP DOING BY STARTING THIS DIET PLAN?" She stammered and mumbled about women's hormones at age 50 (what was I supposed to do about THAT?!?!--yet 4 weeks earlier she achieved excellent leannness). "DID you eat candy, drink beer (;)) , eat some things you shouldn't have?" "Well, I might have." "Might have--were you drugged and fed these foods?" "Well, you know--girls like choclate" "Did YOU--Annie F.-- EAT INCORRECTLY TO STAY/BECOME LEAN?" She WOULD not come clean, admit responsibility and confirm HER eating off track caused fat gain. She would not take responsibility...She was like an Alcoholic in denial.

Me? Down to single digits bodyfat AND I have QUIT my weekly mountain bike ride. But my diet is spot on. It's diet. It's ALWAYS diet. It can be nothing else BUT diet. ALWAYS. EVERYTIME. FOREVER. DIET.

[Cindy Moore]

I think it's also not just the rich, fancy food or the garbage fatty foods that people eat. It's the quality of, and the amount of, macro nutrients. To me the ratio of macro nutrients is very important too.

I know so many people that exercise daily, ride bikes to work, walk on lunch break, go to the gym several times a week, etc and are still overweight...especially in the belly! And yea, when you see what they eat you can understand why. All carbs with little fat and protein.

One guy rides his bike daily, to work and back is over 10 miles each, and goes to the gym at least 4-5 times a week. He's very muscular and also very overweight...but he also has an enormous abdomen! I see him in the lunch room when he's getting breakfast and lunch. Breakfast is a massive bowl of oatmeal and lunch is always rice/pasta, a veggie (corn & potatoes seem to be his favorites) and a little piece of meat.

He looks at me like I'm crazy, eating meat/eggs/etc (protein) at every meal, along with a serving or two of veggie at lunch. We've both been "eating healthy and exercising" for about a year....I've lost over 40 pounds...and I think he's found them, and then some! My activity? I walk my dogs most days and I do weights 2-3 times a week for about 15 min each time.

Low fat high carb with restricted protein? This is considered a healthy diet by so many! Until this changes neither will their weight.

[fred hahn]

Train (correctly), Eat (correctly), Grow. So simple right? Thanks for reading!!

[kadill]

Ya know, I often have the reverse conversation with young men who want to gain weight. They think that lifting will make them bigger, but then I ask "so what did you eat today", most will have skipped breakfast, maybe grabbed a slice of pizza and a coke for lunch, and the same for dinner. But lifting is gonna make them hyooge!