If your goal is to lose fat, you're likely hopeful it will fall off in a certain place. Maybe you're looking to thin out your beer belly, some love handles, or unwanted fat in your chest. Truth is, you don't get to decide where fat sheds first. Even if you do all the right things-be mindful of what you're eating, stay consistent in the gym, drink enough water, and get consistent sleep-you still might not see the results you're looking for if you're hoping to narrow your weight loss to a specific spot. It raises a handful of questions: How does fat burn off? Is there a specific place where fat comes off the body first? Is targeted weight loss even a real thing?
The Initial Weight Loss Location: An Individual Affair
The answer is different for everybody. "Different people lose body fat from different places at different times. Some people may lose from their abdomen, while others may lose from their thighs," says Fatima Cody Stanford, M.D., M.P.H., an obesity medicine physician at Harvard Medical School and a Men's Health advisor. "It is difficult to predict where a person will lose fat from first." Fat loss comes down to genetics, studies show, and also gender.
Gender Differences in Weight Loss Patterns
Men commonly lose weight through their trunk and glutes first, says Jeffrey Crespin, M.D., M.B.A., a gastroenterologist and obesity medicine specialist. In fact, a study published in The Physician and Sports Medicine found that men are more likely to lose weight around their trunk area first than women. (The study is small, though, so more research needs to be done to confirm its findings.)
A recent study published in Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism looked into the connection between weight loss and gender, and the findings confirmed what was happening in my house: During an eight-week period in which 2,000 adults followed a low-calorie diet, men lost 26 pounds on average, compared to 22 pounds on average for women. In addition, the men lowered their body fat and decreased their risk for diabetes and heart disease.
This is largely, in part, because men have more muscle mass than women, says John La Puma, M.D., F.A.C.P., a board-certified internist and clinical director and founder of Chef Clinic, based in Santa Barbara, California. In addition to muscle burning more calories at rest, the muscles are also where insulin receptors are, meaning that blood sugar is often metabolized more quickly in men than in women,” La Puma adds. The receptors allow insulin in the blood to bind with these muscle cells, which then creates glucose that the body can use for energy. Because men have more muscle mass, they have more insulin receptors attached to these muscle cells, giving them an advantage with their metabolism. This means that men typically burn 500 to 1,000 more calories during an average day than women, says Wendy Scinta, M.D., M.S., president of the Obesity Medicine Association and a board-certified bariatric physician based in Fayetteville, New York. “That equates to one to two more pounds of weight loss than women per week, if both are eating the same number of calories. In addition to having less muscle mass and, therefore, a slower starting metabolism, women have another hurdle when it comes to weight loss: hormones. “In premenopausal women [especially during PMS, one to two weeks before a woman’s period starts], fatigue, bloating and carb or sweet cravings can be very difficult to control,” Scinta says. “During menopause, woman can have sleep disturbances (which by themselves leads to weight gain) as well as depression and anxiety.” These depression symptoms tend to drive women toward sweets and carbs, which cause the brain to release serotonin, a chemical that makes you feel good. Postmenopause, women are dealing with significantly decreased testosterone levels, which leads to a drop in muscle mass and in metabolic rate, Scinta says. Because men typically have less of an emotional attachment to food and eating, they respond to more innate hunger signals as the driving force of their weight gain, adds Scinta. “Since most men carry their fat centrally, they have more weight-related conditions or diseases-one of which is insulin resistance that leads to metabolic syndrome and affects satiety. I find that if hunger is controlled, men will lose weight relatively fast,” she says. With women, the relationship with food can be more complicated, says La Puma.
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The Myth of Spot Training
Unfortunately, there's no such thing as "spot training" or "spot reduction." It's a myth that you can train one specific spot on your body enough to lose fat in that area. For example, you may try to do a ton of crunches and sit-ups in an attempt to lose fat from your abdomen-but it's not going to do anything to speed up the process of losing your beer belly. Training specific areas of the body, like doing bicep curls for your arms or crunches for your abs, will help you build muscle in those spots, but these exercises won't help you lose weight in those areas.
“All the crunches in the world won't spot-reduce your waistline,” says MH Fitness Director Ebenezer Samuel, C.S.C.S. "Instead, those exercises are helping you gain more muscle, creating a more toned appearance overall."
Effective Strategies for Weight Loss
Weight loss is (mostly) about one thing: calories in verses calories out, meaning you're burning more calories than you are taking in. That starts with incorporating a healthy exercise and nutrition regime.
Exercise Recommendations
Department of Health, adults should aim for 150 to 300 minutes of exercise per week. It's important to incorporate both strength training and cardio exercise. Strength training builds and preserves muscle mass, which supports our joints and longevity. Not sure where to start? Try out our 12-week program tailored to beginners. Cardio exercises are vital for your heart health, and help you burn calories by increasing your heart rate. Plus, there are so many options that it's easy to find something you enjoy. Activities like running, rowing, biking, walking, skiing, or hiking all boost your heart health and calorie burn.
The Role of Nutrition
Nutrition plays a vital role in fat loss as well. Maintaining hydration, eating in a calorie deficit, and consuming a protein-rich diet are key practices that can aid in weight loss. Of course, consult with a healthcare professional such as a doctor or dietitian to tailor your approach to your body's specific needs.
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The Science Behind Fat Storage and Loss
No matter if you believe you have “good” or “bad” genetics, you can’t increase fat stores without consuming excess calories. Unfortunately, this doesn’t work-you can’t “spot reduce” fat. Fat loss occurs in a whole-body fashion. When you lose weight, your body breaks down most of the fat and converts it into carbon dioxide and water.
Signs that you’re losing belly fat include your clothes fitting looser around your waist, a visibly flatter stomach, and a decrease in waist size. Weight loss is typically most noticeable in the parts of the body where you store the least fat. For men, this often means the arms, shoulders, and legs lean out first.
Types of Fat Cells and Receptors
Fat cells have two types of catecholamine receptors: Alpha- and beta-receptors. Another problem with these stubborn fat deposits is that they often have lower blood flow, which is why they’re typically colder to the touch than fat in other areas of your body. The good news is that all fat quails in the face of a prolonged calorie deficit.
Visceral Fat
This is known as visceral fat, and it’s associated with an increased risk of various diseases, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, insulin resistance, and dyslipidemia. Beyond this, you’re likely to lose fat fastest from wherever you happen to store it most. What’s more, research also shows that men typically lose fat slightly quicker than women. This is the immutable mechanism of fat storage.
Genetic Predisposition and Weight Loss
Where exactly you lose weight first will depend on many factors, such as genetics, hormones, age, and sex assigned at birth. In most cases, you can’t target specific areas for fat loss. Weight loss is a process that takes time, patience, and commitment. Some people want to lose body fat in general, while others may wish to lose fat in one specific area, known as “spot reduction.” Although many weight loss proponents claim that spot reduction is possible, there’s little research to support these claims. Where and how you lose weight are largely determined by factors outside your control, such as genetics, hormonal fluctuations, and sex assigned at birth.
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Genetic factors largely determine where fat is distributed in your body. According to a 2019 review, genetic analysis shows that the relationship between genes and body fat distribution is stronger in women than it is in men. For example, if people in your family tend to accumulate weight in the hips and thighs, you may gain weight there, too. Genetics may also play a role in how fast you lose fat mass and body weight. Some people may lose weight quickly, while others may do so more slowly. A 2024 review identified over 50 genetic markers that contribute to how quickly people lose fat mass in response to dietary changes and exercise. The authors found that carriers of certain genetic alleles, such as G, T, or I alleles, were more likely to have reduced body fat than carriers of DD or CC genotypes. This may be due to more effective nutrient absorption and metabolization. Research is ongoing to discover how genetics can help healthcare professionals personalize weight loss programs.
Age-Related Changes in Weight Distribution
If you’ve lost weight before, you may already know where your body tends to show weight loss first. But as you age, weight loss may affect you differently, especially as it pertains to fat mass or lean muscle mass. Some research suggests that adults start to lose lean muscle in their 20s, while fat mass continues to grow until age 70 years. So, if the weight on the scale doesn’t fluctuate too much, but you notice that you have more fat or that your clothes are fitting more tightly, you might be losing muscle and gaining fat. This is because muscle is denser than fat, so it weighs more per volume. Where you gain or lose weight first is also likely to change as you get older. Research suggests that older adults tend to store fat around their midsections.
Managing Visceral Fat
Although you won’t necessarily be able to see visceral fat loss, it’s still important to manage it since it can harm your health. The approach to losing visceral fat is similar to that of general fat loss. This includes a combination of eating a balanced diet, exercising, getting enough sleep, and managing stress to maintain a calorie deficit. Some research suggests that visceral fat is more responsive to changes in exercise duration and intensity than to caloric restrictions specifically. Getting enough weekly exercise may play a key role in managing visceral fat. The Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans recommends that adults get at least 150 to 300 minutes of moderate aerobic exercise weekly, and at least two resistance training sessions that target all of the major muscle groups. When you lose weight, your body breaks down fat cells. It then uses the energy in those cells to fuel your activity levels and keep your body warm. Once fat cells have been metabolized, the byproducts leave your body in sweat, urine, or carbon dioxide when you exhale.
The Face: An Early Indicator of Weight Loss
When it comes to slimming down, your focus may be your belly, derriere or thighs, but one of the first places a weight change shows up is on your face. Now, researchers have pinpointed the least amount of weight you need to lose for people to notice a difference in your looks, plus the weight loss at which they find you more attractive. Yes, those are two different concepts. The face, it turns out, can broadcast all sorts of information about what’s going on with your body.
“It says a lot of things about our health, actually,” study co-author Daniel Re, a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Toronto, told TODAY.
Besides offering cues about your immune system, cardiovascular health and stress levels, the face can also be a good indicator of your weight and body mass index (BMI), he noted. If you’re overweight, the fatty areas in your cheeks, called buccal fat pads, will give you a heavier appearance. If you’re too skinny, the lack of fat on your face will leave you looking gaunt. Healthy BMI ranges from 18.5 to 24.9, and most people like to gaze at faces that correspond to a BMI in the lower end of that range, the study notes. You can calculate your BMI here.
“The healthy weight is what tends to be the most preferable weight to look at,” Re said.
For a weight change to show up on your face, you’d need to change your BMI by 1.33 points, the study found. That means a woman and man of average height would need to gain or lose eight pounds and nine pounds, respectively. For this study, the average woman was 5 feet 4 inches tall; the average man 5 feet 10 inches.
But just because other people notice a weight change doesn’t mean they will find you more attractive. So for part two of his study, Re set out to measure how much you’d need to lose to boost your looks. To make your face look more attractive, you’d need to lower your BMI by about 2.5 points. That means a woman and man of average height would need to lose about 14 pounds and 18 pounds, respectively, the study found. For technical reasons, Re focused on weight loss, even though gaunt faces are just as likely to be judged as unattractive as overweight ones, he said. The most attractive faces corresponded to a BMI of about 19 for women and 24 for men. For a woman and man of average height, that translates to body weights of 111 pounds and 165 pounds, respectively.
The speed of weight loss may affect when others notice it, Re added. “A rapid weight loss would be much more noticeable to those around you, whereas a slower one - people adapt to the way you look with time,” he said. For the study, researchers used a collection of photos of men and women that they digitally altered to show gradually increasing “facial adiposity,” or the perception of weight in the face. The results are based on responses from participants who noticed the changes and judged their attractiveness.
Re cautioned the study is not intended to pressure anyone to slim down. Rather, it’s meant to be helpful for people who are already looking to lose weight and could use specific guidance as an incentive.
“We don’t do these studies to tell people that they should be more attractive,” Re said. “We know from other research that people are more motivated to look attractive than they are to be healthy, and a concrete goal with an actual number attached is more motivating than just an abstract goal.”
Supplements and Weight Loss
You don't need supplements to build muscle, lose fat, and get healthy. But the right ones can help.
- Caffeine: Taking 3-to-6 mg of caffeine per kilogram of body weight per day raises the number of calories you burn and increases strength, muscle endurance, and anaerobic performance.
- Yohimbine: Taking 0.1-to-0.2 milligrams of yohimbine per kilogram of body weight before fasted training increases fat loss and is particularly helpful with losing “stubborn” fat.
- Phoenix Fat Burner: Phoenix speeds up your metabolism, enhances fat burning, and reduces hunger and cravings.