Fat-burning is a trendy term of misinformation. In terms of burning calories, the important factor is intensity, not foodstuff. The harder you work, the more calories you burn. A 155-pound person walking one hour at 2.0 mph will consume approximately 176 calories. That same person will consume 352 calories while walking one hour at a pace of 4.0 mph. Your body is much like your car. Driving (walking) at 40 mph uses less gas (fuel) then driving (walking) at 60 mph. The science of exercise physiology tells us that our bodies do use different types of foodstuffs for different levels of exercise. Fat is used for low-intensity activities, carbohydrate for high intensity. However, as Shakespeare would say, “A calorie is a calorie is a calorie.” Fat or carbohydrate is not important in terms of weight management. The important factor is number of calories consumed. Unfortunately, the “fat-burning” label suggests that more body fat loss will occur with so-called “fat-burning” exercises. But that’s not true! Fat loss relies on total calorie loss, which is related only to intensity. Intensity is total work performed. Total work performed is Force X Distance, which is weight (body or barbell) multiplied by distance moved.
Dr. Dawson is a retired exercise physiologist with 47 years’ experience as tenured faculty at Wake Forest University and UNC-Charlotte, director of orthopedic and cardiac rehabilitation programs, adult/senior wellness director, and author of research articles published in The Journal of Applied Physiology, Journal of Applied Psychology, Journal of American Geriatrics, Physician and Sports Medicine, The Swiss Medical Journal, and others.