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What do starfish and mankind have in common? When it comes to framing the physiological proportions of the starfish as a visual analogy for how human beings are genetically programmed to burn body fat, the parallels being drawn are perfectly matched. Take a good look at the curious creatures that belong to the
class Asteroidea. Most typically, they have five radials, or extremities, that extend outward from a common center. Like the starfish, the human being also has five extruded points (two legs, two arms, one head), that fan out from the "core" . . . the umbilicus (navel) being the absolute center of the body.
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Of particular emphasis is how the five "arms" of the starfish exhibit a gradual and uniform taper - getting thinner - as they extend further from its center. This progressive reduction in thickness from the midpoint outward bears a close resemblance to the way humans store and burn body fat.
More specifically, our bodies burn fat at a proportionately greater rate near the extremities . . . the abdominal region being the final place that fat disappears from our physiques.
In other words, as someone commences a fitness program and begins to gradually lose weight, they will systematically become leaner from the outside in - beginning with the face, fingers, forearms, ankles, calfs - and slowly but steadily make their way
toward the core of the body. It is practically impossible to earn that most-coveted and prized "six-pack" if you haven't already become leaner everywhere else! This is an immutable and inarguable science behind how humans (and many other mammals) are genetically programmed to metabolize and store energy, and such a law of biology cannot be changed or altered, no matter how many crunches and situps you do!
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Go With The Flow, Not The Fads
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Taking these facts into account, you can then begin to understand why countless people have grown so frustrated with their plight to lose the belly fat, especially after employing the typically flawed, idiosyncratic mentalities and gimmicks for trimming the waistline (e.g. - sweat / sauna belts,
gut-buster contraptions, fat-burning patches, body wraps, etc.).
The Starfish Effect: Stored fat tends to be burned from the outermost extremities inward, toward the center of the body.
It should be blatantly obvious that everyone would have been roaming the streets looking like Greek gods if the relentless onslaught of tummy-toning gadgets and widgets actually worked!
But fret and cuss not, for our hard-wired propensity for concentrating fat deposition at the body's core does not exist for the sole purpose of smiting us with bitter lamenting and desperation. We were designated this design as an imperative function of our survival. Apropos, many of our vital
organs - the lungs, kidneys, liver, spleen, colon, etc - are found at the center of our bodies, and therefor must be better shielded from external impact and injury. Indeed, our physiology has much less need for the subcutaneous (under-skin) fat residing at the fingers and wrists, as opposed to the parts of the body that are most integral to keeping us alive. Limbs in mammals may be broken or severed, but hearts must not stop beating,
at any cost. Notwithstanding the fact that because females add on the liability of possessing reproductive organs within the abdominal cavity which must cradle a highly-vulnerable fetus, the need for cushioning the core becomes that much more necessary.
Hence, this is the concept behind "The Starfish Effect," which stipulates that stored fat tends to be burned from the outermost extremities inward, toward the center of the body. Sadly, this reality is one of the leading reasons why many individuals will drop out of an exercise / fitness
program prematurely, simply because they're oblivious to the way their bodies burn stored fat. Instead of being hoodwinked into spending hundreds upon thousands of dollars on half-baked ideas and fault-ridden products to fight a biologically inevitable function, we should instead come to the realization that it takes patience and time to see all of the added baggage around our hips, butt and midsection melted away! We cannot change the order in which our physiques burn away fat, but what we can do is build up enough muscle to aid in our overall metabolism of adipose (fat) tissue through consistent and diligent training!
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"The Starfish Effect" stipulates that stored fat tends to be burned from the outermost extremities inward, toward the center of the body. This is a biological law of how humans (and
many other mammals) are genetically programmed and predisposed to metabolize and store energy, and thus it cannot be changed or altered.
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You cannot burn fat from your midsection directly, no matter how many crunches and situps you do! Abdominal exercises can firm and strengthen the muscles underneath the subcutaneous tissue (fat
stored beneath the skin) of your stomach, but the actual flab will only be minimized after the rest of your body has become lean.
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Train the body as a whole rather than wasting your energy by needlessly dwelling only on your "trouble spots." Understand that the one thing that you do have some control over is your
metabolism, and by building new muscle through exercise, you can increase the rate at which your body burns stored fat.
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Observe the three "P's" of fitness: Patience, Persistence and Pragmatism. A toned, rock-solid and strong core can most definately be yours,
but only through enduring and consistent training that employs sound and practical strategies. Choosing any other path, no matter how miraculously easy it seems, will continue to frustrate you!
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