Are you dropping body fat with bodyweight exercises, but still trying to get rid of that little bit of belly fat? You are not alone…

Levi, I’ve been doing the standard plank every day for a few weeks and I think I’ve lost some belly fat, but I’m wondering if I’m imagining things. Do these plank exercises burn fat in the process of strengthening my body?

I’ve read all over the Internet that the exercise tones your body but haven’t seen any information that it actually burns fat. A friend told me that it did. I want to get a second opinion. I’ve lost over 50 pounds in the last year on the stationary bike! I’m around 5’10″ and now 164 pounds. Everyone in my life has noticed the loss and I’ve felt much more confident. One thing still bothers me, though, – my waist. I still have belly fat and love handles. I so dearly want to get rid of them and my belly. Thanks for reading!

Sincerely,
Bellyfat Benjamin

Hi Benjamin,

Congratulations on your weight loss! That is quite an accomplishment, especially when done on a *stationary* bike! Spending any amount of time on a stationary bike takes some commitment!

But yes, the last place you’re going to lose fat is around your midsection. It’s not uncommon to have veins popping out of your arms and legs, but then have a gut!

I can’t say from direct weight loss experience, but from my observations (as well as principles that apply to other endeavors,) I would estimate that it’s harder to lose the last 5-10 pounds of belly fat than it is to lose 50-100 pounds and go from “overweight” to “reasonably slim.” But, it is possible with the right diet and exercise.

When it comes to diet, I do have an article about dieting for six pack abs, in case you missed it.

It takes more than a perfect diet, though, so let’s talk about exercise. Yes, exercise burns fat. It also burns glycogen (i.e. sugar.) Depending on the intensity of the exercise, you will burn a different percentage of each fuel.

There are many theories (and myths) out there about the “fat burning zone” and whatnot, but I suggest you ignore those (since so many of them fall into the myth category.) As long as you’re burning off a lot of calories in total, it doesn’t matter whether you’re burning carbs or fat.

The point of it all is, high intensity exercise is the way to go. For example, doing a bunch of bodyweight exercises like the plank over the course of 20-30 minutes will probably burn as much fat as 1-2 hours of easy riding on a stationary bike. (Long days of hiking and bike riding are fun and are certainly a good way to burn fat, but you probably don’t have time to exercise 6+ hours each day.)

Toning is a whole other story, especially how it’s portrayed by the average fitness magazine, but here’s the quick version: Toning = fat loss. It’s the same thing. The “toned” look is simply because your muscles are more pronounced once you lose body fat. You can get a toned look by building more muscle or by losing fat, but to actually “tone” a muscle is a very complicated topic. Muscle can get bigger, but “toning” is just a word that is misused all too often (usually by the same people telling you you’ll lose a lot of fat by taking a stroll around the block!)

(*True muscle toning is beyond the scope of this article, and is better left for someone like Pavel Tsatsouline to explain.)

So keep eating healthy and exercising hard, and you’ll keep getting closer to that chiseled body.

(Just don’t expect it to be quick and easy, that will just lead to disappointment.)

In a desperate attempt to slim down for a big bike race in July (and get six pack abs in the process,) I was actually willing to buy and use diet pills. Normally I wouldn’t give any sort of diet pill a second glance, but this was different… this was an all-natural fat loss pill designed for bodybuilders who need to lose that extra bit of fat to look their best for competition.

It’s called Lean Out, and it’s a “fat transport system” from Beverly International.

So it’s not actually a “diet pill” per say. It’s more of a supplement that will preserve your muscle tissue and help you burn more fat for energy. While that is ideal for bodybuilders who need to be super cut and lean, it also sounds pretty damn good for a cyclist trying to slim down.

Heck, anyone that’s trying to slim down probably wants to lose fat instead of muscle. In most cases, when you ramp up your training and restrict calories, your body will end up burning muscle tissue for fuel. Even if you have some extra belly fat, your muscle is fair game.

So after hearing about Lean Out (thanks to the free fat loss bootcamp in Cyclo-Club,) I knew it was just what I needed to lose body fat without sacrificing my hard-earned muscle. Best of all, it was priced at about $30 for a 30-day supply – you won’t find a deal like that on any ‘infomercial miracle diet pills.’

Lean Out – How it Works

Let’s face it. Losing weight is a simple formula. But losing fat, that’s extremely hard!

So… aside from genetics, you’ll need a healthy diet and intense exercise, plus some serious supplements, to really shed body fat (without losing muscle at the same time.)

Beverly’s Lean Out formula is a big help. It’s primarily composed of lipotropics, which have the ability to dissolve and metabolize fats. In essence, they emulsify stored fats and dump them into the blood stream to make them more available for your body to use as an energy source.

Lean Out also contains L-Carnitine, the amino acid that transports those newly available fatty acids to the mitochondria in your body. In biology, we always referred to the mitochondria as the “power house” of the cell because that’s where your energy comes from! They suck up fat and incinerate it, producing energy for you in the process.

All the while, this and other ingredients are protecting your lean muscle tissue. It almost sounds too good to be true!

There are a few other ingredients, too. I’ll let Beverly explain them directly:

L-Carnitine (600 mg): Maximizes the retention of muscle tissue while dieting. Essential to convert stored fat into energy.

Methionine (1000 mg): Speeds fat and cholesterol utilization, mobilizes fat from the liver to be released and used as energy.

Choline (1000 mg): A special emulsifying nutrient that helps to break down cholesterol and prevents it from sticking to artery walls with Inositol to utilize fats.

Inositol (1000 mg): Aids in fat transportation, metabolism, and redistribution of fat in the body.

Chromium Picolinate (200 mcg): Aids sugar metabolism, improves blood lipid profile, helps fat burning and muscle gains. Moderates insulin release and keeps blood sugar levels stable.

CoQ 10 (10 mg): Helps convert fats and sugar to energy in the cell, while protecting the heart.

Betaine HCl (100 mg) B-12 (100 mcg) and Biotin (450 mcg). Vital factors in converting fat to energy.

Lean Out also acts as an appetite suppressant, although I’m not sure which ingredient is responsible for that. I think it’s a combination of everything.

Lean Out – My Test

After testing out some intense weight lifting this past winter in the Susquehanna Experiment, I had a little more upper body muscle, so I wanted to drop some fat to make sure I was still light enough to climb well on my bike. (I had bulked up from 158 to about 167 lb, and I could definitely feel the extra weight on the climbs!)

I started taking Lean Out according to the instructions on the bottle, which was basically 4 pills per day – one with each meal and one before a workout. I was going with one after my three largest meals, and one before my hardest workout. So the bottle would last me 30 days.

At first, I wasn’t too sure how to adapt my diet. I always keep a fairly healthy diet, but I was doing some weight training and lots of cycling, so obviously I was still getting plenty of sugar and carbs while riding. Should I have been eating more protein and fat? Who knows.

But I was exercising quite a bit and eating fairly normally (which was a lot, but definitely not overeating.)

Well I did that for about 10 days. I went from 165 to 166 and was looking fatter than usual. What great diet pills…

So I reevaluated my approach and did more research, leading me to these instructions from Beverly International. I saw some people did 4 pills, then 8 pills, then 12 pills daily. (Double or triple what I was doing!)

So I decided to bump things up to 6-8 pills per day. When I did that, I definitely noticed the “appetite suppressant” starting to kick in. While 4 pills per day did nothing whatsoever to suppress my appetite, 6-8 made me avoid eating!

So I got through about five days with the 6-8 pills per day, plus my normal workouts, but with less food. Let’s say normally I’d have four meals per day plus snacks. I switched to two meals per day plus snacks. Finally, I was able to drop down to 164 and then 163.

It wasn’t all good though… the lack of food sapped ALL my energy. My second day at 163 I got on my bike… and rode about 10 minutes in my granny gear. Afterwards I just went home and passed out.

I was eating less, but what about all my fat? Why wasn’t I getting any energy from it? (It’s not like I was starving myself. My extra low calorie days were still probably 2500 calories!)

That was the big downfall. So I ended up making sure I ate enough, and I always ate strategically to fuel my workouts. I was still low on energy, but I made it through my Lean Out test. (Which ending up being approximately 25 days.)

Lean Out – Final Results

In the end, I did see some results from my Lean Out test. Below is the “before” picture from June 2 along with the “after” picture on July 2.

If you look real close, you can see just a little bit more definition in my upper abs in the “After” shot.

I went from 165 to 163, giving me a net loss of 2 lb. That’s not amazing, but there’s a good chance that entire 2 lb was body fat!

Although it gets interesting… I first went from 165 back to 167, and then down to 163. So that was a little odd. But crazier still, in the days following my Lean Out use, I went to 161 for a few days then 159 lb. A delayed reaction, perhaps? Or just the buildup of Lean Out still in my body?

Whatever it was, I did have positive results, and I think this Lean Out stuff is pretty cool! (Even if my weight crept back up to 162 the next day…)

Although I was able to cut from 166 to 161 in May before my triathlon, without any pills like these, I don’t think much of that lost weight was body fat. And I gained it back shortly afterwards, anyway. So the Lean Out seems to be the way to go to lose fat.

Where to Buy Lean Out

I bought mine online at Supplements to Go. I got two 120ct bottles for $45 + shipping, which ended up even cheaper than ordering through Amazon.com.

Even with the cheapest shipping option (USPS,) they shipped my order within two hours and I got it in three days. (Ordered Wednesday, arrived Saturday.) I’m very happy with them.

(Although Amazon.com is still good to watch for a deal.)

My final verdict is…

Based on my overall experience, I would highly recommend this to all athletes or anyone trying to lose body fat (either to improve your health or to look good.) If you’re exercising regularly and eating a healthy diet, you should see some results from this.

You’ll have to test it to see what works for you though. I gained weight at first, but then I figured out a better dose for me, and it started to work. Just make sure you’re eating enough – I still don’t think my fat stores were utilized for energy that well, since I almost bonked a few times. (I guess I’m just used to eating a lot!)

In the end, I dropped quite a bit of weight, starting at 165 in June and hitting 159 lb on July 3. I hadn’t been that light since last November!

Official website: www.BeverlyInternational.com (or see the Lean Out page.)

Buy online: www.Amazon.com

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