Why is the concept of spot reduction considered a myth?
Unfounded programs and devices that purport to achieve spot reducing have become a multi-million dollar industry in a country where the health and aesthetic disadvantages of obesity are well recognized. Numerous scientific studies, however, cast doubt on the validity of spot reductionthe process of selectively taking inches off the waist, thighs or buttocks. In one study, for example, the circumferences and fat deposits in the arms of high-level tennis players were compared. The investigators proposed that if spot reduction worked, the playing arm of a tennis player should have considerably less fat than the inactive arm. This prediction, however, was not the case. Despite the fact that circumference measures in the playing arms of the athletes were greater due to more muscular development, skinfold thickness measures revealed no difference in fat deposition between the two arms. Arguably the most compelling evidence refuting the myth of spot reduction comes from a study conducted at t
