If you’re frustrated not seeing the weight loss you desire this could very well be the most informative blog post I’ve written to help you understand the big picture.

In all the years I’ve been coaching others on nutrition and weight loss I’ve seen this one misconception trip people up more than any other.

With the countless ways you’re pitched on how to lose weight from fat diets, pills, shots, etc, there’s something being left out. The majority of these so called solutions don’t address the single biggest question you should be asking yourself…

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One of the biggest controversies about fat loss is the idea of dietary fats causing you to gain body fat. So will you really store more body fat by eating foods with saturated or unsaturated fats? The answer is it depends.

For years there’s been an idea passed down mainly through the bodybuilding community that your diet should be ultra low-fat when trying to get lean. It’s not uncommon to see bodybuilders following strategies of eating all egg-white omelets, not using butter, and strictly restricting pretty much all fat intake.

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I received a great question this morning from an email coaching client that addresses a common misconception I find a lot of people have about abdominal training.

Here is the question…

“If I do standing dumbbell oblique crunches every day and follow a strict diet how long before my love handles disappear?”

Answer: The reality is this strategy is a recipe for certain frustration and disappointment. Not only will standing dumbbell oblique crunches do nothing to help you lose your love handles, you’re also more likely to destabilize your lumbar spine and thicken your waistline (by developing the external oblique muscles) instead of slimming this area.

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I’ve been writing and speaking on the benefits of burst training for some time now. If you’re over the age of 35, there is simply no better form of exercise to help you lose body fat and improve your body composition, period!

While I’m always on my soapbox preaching the benefits of burst training, I figured it would be good idea to fully explain the science behind it for those who really want to understand the “why.�

The key component we’ll be looking at is the hormonal changes that come with aging and how different types of exercise impacts those changes.

Not all exercise is created equal when it comes to the hormonal responses that occur during and post-workout. This is the most important concept to get your head around because fat loss is 100% controlled by the hormonal balances in your body.

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One of the biggest mistakes I see people making on a weight loss program is getting on the scale every day. The scale can be a tricky thing because as you’ll learn it doesn’t tell you all the facts.

The last thing you want in your weight loss program is to be going on an emotional rollercoaster ride every day based solely on what the scale tells you.

Watching the scale too much can create negative emotions that can undermine your progress. I personally recommend to my clients that they only weigh themselves once a week. Let me explain why.

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I received an email last week with a great question about how to lose stubborn belly fat. This individual was understandably frustrated with not being able to lose that layer of fat around her lower stomach area even though she was doing a lot of lower ab exercises.

There are a ton of misconceptions about how to lose stubborn belly fat so I wanted to share my response in case you are struggling with the same issue.

Here’s the question I received:

“Shane, I’m struggling with trying to lose fat around my lower ab area.  I’m unsure of how to burn this fat, and it’s a bit frustrating for me because I do lower ab core workouts.  I’ve searched up how to burn it, but haven’t found many results. Are there any suggestions you can give me?â€�

Here’s my response:

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Here’s an email that I received this morning…

Hey Shane,
I had emailed you a while back about some lower ab workout suggestions, and I still seem to be struggling with my lower abs.  I know you said not to isolate your abs when doing workouts, but I feel like I should isolate my lower abs because the rest of my stomach is flat.  Do you have any suggestions on the kind of workouts i should do specifically for that area?  Thank you so much !

I get this question quite frequently so I figured I’d expand on my answer in a blog post.

Here is my reply along with some additional comments so you know exactly how to target lower abdominal fat. The “pooch belly” as its called is very common with women who use diet and cardio to lose the layer of fat over the upper abdominals, but then get stuck with the lower abs.

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I know this may sound absolutely crazy but it’s certifiably true. Everything we’re led to believe about weight loss is focused on eating less and exercising more.

The reality is this combination does more to wreck your metabolism than just about anything you can do!

I recently met with a client who was working out with a trainer regularly but was actually gaining weight instead of losing it. She was understandably frustrated with the scale going the wrong way. With a quick review of her food journal I was able to spot the reason why almost immediately.

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When looking for assistance in a weight management program there are lots of options to choose from in the Charleston, SC area. The question becomes which program will be best suited for you?

In order to make a good decision you’ll have to sort through the marketing hype and look at the core components of each program.

I’ve created this page to help you make an informed decision by breaking down how each program goes about delivering weight loss along with an assessment on each method.

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A multi-million dollar weight loss industry pushes pills, fad diets, and other quick fixes all promising you a solution to a body transformation. Of all the weight loss options the most controversial and arguably the riskiest is cosmetic weight loss surgery.

If you’re considering weight loss surgery you’ll be well advised to consider the risk factors and potential negative consequences. A recent story in the USA today this week spotlighted a little known dark secret in this industry where doctors who aren’t board certified are performing surgeries.

A lack of training and safety precautions has sadly led to the unnecessary death in numerous patients across the country. Most of these stories are kept under cover by an industry vowing to protect lucrative profits but expect to hear more about it now that it’s being exposed.

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