"The Incredible Shrinking FAT Cell" What Happens To Fat Cells When They Are Burned?
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"The Incredible Shrinking FAT Cell" What Happens To Fat Cells When They Are Burned?
"The Incredible
Shrinking Fat Cell" By Tom Venuto, NSCA-CPT, CSCS |
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Burn The Fat And Feed The Muscle Book
Burn The Fat, Feed The Muscle Syndicated Q & A Column
(Ask Tom / Ask The Fat Loss Guru)
QUESTION: Dear
Tom: would you please try to explain in laymen's terms
exactly how fat cells work and what happens when you
start to burn body fat. I heard a statement that the fat
cell has to get moved into the muscle cell for it to be
released or burned. Thought you could explain a little
better.
ANSWER: Earlier this week someone in our
discussion forum wrote, "I haven't LOST any fat... I
know EXACTLY where it went! I got a chuckle out of that
because I "got" the joke, but truth is, most people
really don't know where the fat goes when it's burned or
how the fat burning process takes place, so this is a
really good question.
When you "lose" body fat, the fat cell (also called an adipocyte) does not go anywhere or "move into the
muscle cell to be burned", as it was suggested to you
(although that's not too far off). The fat cell itself,
(unfortunately) stays right where it was - under the
skin in your thighs, stomach, hips, arms, etc., and on
top of the muscles - which is why you can't see muscle
"definition" when your body fat is high.
Fat is stored inside the fat cell in the form of triaglycerol. The fat is not burned right there in
the fat cell, it must be liberated from the fat cell
through somewhat complex hormonal/biochemical pathways.
When stimulated to do so, the fat cell simply releases
its contents (triaglycerol) into the bloodstream as free
fatty acids (FFA's), and they are transported through
the blood to the tissues where the energy is needed.
A typical young male adult stores about 60,000 to
100,000 calories of energy in body fat cells. What
triggers the release of all these stored fatty acids
from the fat cell? Simple: When your body needs energy
because you're consuming fewer calories than you are
burning (an energy deficit), then your body releases
hormones and enzymes that signal your fat cells to
release your fat reserves instead of keeping them in
storage.
For stored fat to be liberated from the fat cell,
hydrolysis (lipolysis or fat breakdown), splits the
molecule of triaglycerol into glycerol and three fatty
acids. An important enzyme called hormone sensitive
lipase (HSL) is the catalyst for this reaction. The
stored fat (energy) gets released into the bloodstream
as FFA's and they are shuttled off to the muscles where
the energy is needed. As blood flow increases to the
active muscles, more FFA's are delivered to the muscles
that need them.
An important enzyme called lipoprotein lipase (LPL),
then helps the FFA's get inside the mitochondria of the
muscle cell, where the FFA's can be burned for energy.
If you've ever taken a biology class, then you've
probably heard of the mitochondria. This is the
"cellular powerhouse" where energy production takes
place and this is where the FFA's go to be burned for
energy.
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When the FFA's are released from the fat cell, the
fat cell shrinks and that's why you look leaner when
you lose body fat - because the fat cell is now
smaller. A small or "empty" fat cell is what you're
after if you want the lean, defined look.
It was once believed that the number of fat
cells could not increase after adulthood, only the
size of the fat cells could increase (or decrease).
We now know that fat cells can indeed increase both
in size (hypertrophy) and in number (hyperplasia)
and that they are more likely to increase in number
at certain times and under certain circumstances,
such as 1) during late childhood and early puberty,
2) During pregnancy, and 3) During adulthood when
extreme amounts of weight are gained
Some people are genetically predisposed to have
more fat cells than others and women have more fat
cells than men. An infant usually has about 5 - 6
billion fat cells. This number increases during
early childhood and puberty, and a healthy adult
with normal body composition has about 25 to 30
billion fat cells. A typical overweight adult has
around 75 billion fat cells. But in the case of
severe obesity, this number can be as high as 250 to
300 billion!
The average size (weight) of an adult fat cell
is about 0.6 micrograms, but they can vary in size
from 0.2 micograms to 0.9 micrograms. An overweight
person's fat cells can be up to three times larger
than a person with ideal body composition.
Remember, body fat is basically just a reserve
source of energy and fat cells are the like the
storage tanks. Unlike a gas tank in your car which
is fixed in size, however, fat cells can expand or
shrink in size depending on how "filled" they are.
Picture a balloon that is not inflated: It's
tiny when not filled with air - maybe the size of
your thumb. When you blow it up with air, it can
expand 10 or 12 times it's normal size, because it
simply fills up. That's what happens to fat cells:
They start as nearly empty fat storage "tanks" (when
you are lean), and when energy intake exceeds your
needs, your fat cells "fill up" and "stretch out"
like balloons filling up with jelly (not a pretty
picture, is it?)
So you don't actually "lose" fat cells, you
"shrink" or "empty out" fat cells.
Take-home lessons:
1. Calories count!The signal that triggers your
body to release adipose from fat cells is an energy
deficit... you have to burn more than you eat.
2. Cut calories conservatively. Starving
yourself may cause quick weightloss at first, but
never works long term because it actually decreases
the activity of fat burning enzymes that release fat
from the cells. to avoid this "starvation mode" use
exercise to BURN THE FAT, not very low calorie crash
diets.
3. Get control of your weight now. If you are
gaining weight, and especially if your weight is
climbing upwards out of control, make a decision to
STOP RIGHT NOW. Your fat cells might be multiplying,
making it more difficult to burn fat in the future.
NOW is the time!
4. If you've already lost weight, you must be
forever diligent. Your fat cells are not gone, they
have merely "shrunk" or "emptied out." Fitness is
not a 12 week program, its a lifestyle. To stay lean
you have to eat clean and stay active
5. Genetics are only a minor factor. You may not
have control over how many fat cells you were born
with, but you do control the major factors that
determine how much fat you store: lifestyle,
exercise, nutrition, mental attitude.
Genetics are not an excuse. The past is not an
excuse. Your present condition is not an excuse. You
can either make excuses or get results, but you
can't do both.
So keep educating yourself about the science,
read these newsletters, take action every day and go
out there and make it happen!
If you need more help, Burn The Fat is the
eating plan that turned it all around for thousands
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Tom Venuto is a lifetime natural bodybuilder, an NSCA-certified personal trainer (CPT), certified strength & conditioning specialist (CSCS), and author of the #1 best-selling e-book, "Burn the Fat, Feed The Muscle.” Tom has written more than 200 articles and has been featured in print magazines such as IRONMAN, Australian IRONMAN, Natural Bodybuilding, Muscular Development, Exercise for Men and Men’s Exercise, as well as on hundreds of websites worldwide.
