When you embark on a weight loss program, the question keeps coming up: does the body follow a specific order when you lose weight? And above all, can we hope to see the stomach, hips or thighs melt first? According to specialists, the scenario is often more unpredictable than we imagine… but certain trends are emerging. As Dr. Gérald Kierzek, emergency physician and medical director of True Medical, explains, everything does not depend on our efforts but above all on our physiology.
What Science Says About Fat Loss Order
There is no single rule: fat loss does not occur uniformly, insists Dr. Kierzek. Each organism has its own pattern of functioning, influenced by genetics, sex and body composition.
“Different people lose body fat in different places and at different times. Some people may lose weight in their abdomen, while others may lose weight in their thighs“, underlines Dr. Fatima Cody Stanford, obesity specialist at Harvard Medical School.
Certain areas, on the other hand, tend to react more quickly, particularly in men. According to Dr. Kierzek, “The first area to lose is often the abdominal region. On the other hand, the hips and thighs are generally recalcitrant areas especially in women because they play an important role in the energy reserve for pregnancy and breastfeeding.“.
Can we target the areas where we want to lose weight?
Unfortunately, there are many preconceived ideas about the possibility of choosing where to lose weight first. Targeted exercises, targeted diets or even certain localized practices have only a limited impact.
“One cannot target fat loss and specifically decide where the body will lose fat. Weight loss is global, our physiology and our body determine the areas where fat will be burned as a priority“, says Dr. Kierzek.
On the other hand, it is possible to strengthen certain muscle areas through exercise. This improves the silhouette, but does not locally reduce fat volume. Weight loss remains above all a question of caloric balance, where intake must be lower than expenditure.
What you need to remember to get started
The only scientifically validated method for initiating effective weight loss is based on a healthy, supervised eating program and regular physical activity. It is this imbalance between calories consumed and calories burned which triggers the loss of fat, without being able to control it.
There is therefore no need to concentrate all your efforts on the thighs or love handles: it is the whole body which reacts, at its own pace. A global, sustainable and personalized strategy remains the key to obtaining visible results.