You have probably heard that a combination of a healthy diet and regular exercise can help you lose weight and look leaner. Ads for exercise routines or gyms talk about targeting body fat or burning fat so you can slim down. How does this work and why? How can intense exercise like Tabata training in Providence actually reduce your body fat content? Where does the fat go? Read on for the answers to these common questions.

How It Works

Exercise challenges your body and requires that you consume more calories, or units of energy that your body uses to engage muscles, move, and exercise. When you exercise, your body craves more energy. Of course, because you are probably not eating as much, exercising your body will target another source of energy: fat deposits, also known as adipose tissue.

Sometimes, the body will target muscle and process it as consumable energy. When you exercise, though, your body builds muscle rather than breaking it down, and targets fat instead. One of the most common causes of the body consuming muscle instead of fat is malnutrition or an improper diet.

When you keep your muscles active, though, your body will encourage muscle development while breaking down the extra energy source in your fat deposits. This essentially turns fatty tissue into muscle tissue through a process of burning and building.

Even better, regular exercise that causes your body to burn its fat deposits will target fat throughout your body. Though fat is stored in places throughout your body, from your shoulders and upper back to your stomach and thighs.

How to Target Fat

There is a common misconception that exercising a specific area of the body will burn more fat in that area. For example, many people believe that doing crunches will shrink your stomach fat deposits in particular. In reality, exercise will target all of your fatty tissue. When you see results, you are not seeing one specific area shrink; you are seeing the results of all fatty tissue throughout your body being converted into energy, including your target area.

The best way to exercise is with high-intensity interval training, which increases your metabolism-your ability to digest and process nutrients quickly rather than turn them into fat deposits-and burns fat. High-intensity interval training (HIIT) involves alternating between stages of intense and moderate exercise, for example sprinting and then walking, or doing quick jumping jacks and then resting, all in short bursts.

Your body will respond to HIIT by eliminating fat, a natural response to the challenge, and, therefore, the energy needs of working out so intensely. Alternating intense exercise with short periods of rest or moderate exercise will allow your body to recuperate, then continue with intense effort. This allows you to work out harder and for a longer total period of time.

One very effective form of high-intensity interval training is Tabata training, a unique and powerful exercise that will burn fat and help you maintain your muscle tissue. For best results, perform this type of exercise under the guidance of a trainer. There are many places you can try Tabata training in Providence. Give Tabata a try and you will see stubborn fatty tissue disappear.