5 Things You Don’t Know About Body Fat

4. Your Doctor is More Worried About The Fat You Can’t See

Fat-invisible

The parts of your tummy you poke at and the sections of your upper arms you squeeze may bother you, but it’s the “visceral fat” deep down that actually counts. In a bad way.

The fat that lies right beneath our skin, “subcutaneous fat,” is merely an insulator, a cushion, and a storage unit for energy. But that visceral fat, deep within your abdomen, fills in the spaces between your organs and pumps out chemicals that can actually increase your risk of cardiovascular disease, hypertension and diabetes.

So what do we do about something we can’t see? Lucky for us, visceral fat can be chipped away through losing weight in a controlled, healthy way, including a balanced diet and aerobics and strength training. But you have to really make it count, as that stubborn fat will not respond to spot training alone.

Tip: If you’re a pear-shaped gal, most of your body fat is subcutaneous. But if you have an appleshaped body, a larger portion of your fat is visceral.

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