To lose weight one must obviously consume fewer calories than are expended. However to specifically target fat loss other factors must be taken into consideration along with a maintenance program, which is completely different than the interventional program. The body has four compartments of energy from which to draw to meet its metabolic needs:
- Blood glucose
- Glycogen (stored glucose)
- Muscle
- Fat
It draws on these reserves in a very specific order;
- First, burning the glucose in the blood
- Next, the glycogen reserve
Once the glycogen is exhausted, then and only then will it turn to the muscle and fat compartments. If we replenish the glycogen stores the fat-burning stops until it is once again depleted. Two master metabolic hormones, insulin and glucagon, mediate how the body shifts from one compartment of energy to the next.
