Today I’m going to talk about a subject that doesn’t get much discussion at the gym…
Boobs….
Today I want to talk about breast tissue more specifically the possibility of loss of breast tissue during fat loss.
The breasts are primarily made up of adipose tissue (aka: fat). Usually as females gain weight they also in turn add fat to their breasts which creates a larger breast size.
Understandably, this can be a welcome outcome, but many times it’s also accompanied with excess body fat around the midsection, thighs, buttocks and wherever else that particular person stores body fat, which is very unhealthy.
It stands to reason that the opposite will also be true…. as you lose body fat it’s also possible to lose body fat in the breasts. This is a valid concern. Since breasts are mostly made up of body fat, (approximately 75%), it is possible that when you lose body fat, you will lose body fat in your breasts as well.
There are a couple of factors at play here…
1) You can not decide where you lose body fat.
Each person is completely different and has a different genetic make up and a different propensity to store body fat in certain areas. It’s impossible to spot reduce body fat, meaning it’s impossible to lose body fat in only specific areas. The body will shed body fat all over when you are losing body fat. Some women may lose more fat in their butt. Some women may lose more initially in their thighs. Some women will lose body fat in their belly, and unfortunately some women will lose some body fat in their breasts. The reality is, it’s unpredictable and there will be some kind of mix of body fat loss in all those areas.
2) How are you training?
If you’re doing a lot of long slow distance exercise, such as running, biking, swimming etc. That will do a couple of different things. It’ll cause a hormonal shift with a bias towards cortisol which can cause a great amount of generalized body fat loss and muscle shrinkage which could increase your chances of breast tissue loss.
If you’re female and want to maintain breast size, I’d forgo all the cardio and spend your time working on high intensity exercise and weight training. Weight training properly will also increase muscle tissue under the breasts and cause them to be more perky due to the increase in size of the muscle under the breasts.
3) What are your goals in general?
If you’re goals are to just have big boobs, then you can sit on the couch eat chocolate ice cream all day, and you’ll get big boobs, along with everything else, but this certainly isn’t healthy.
If you’re goals are overall health and well being, then as you eat well, and exercise correctly, you’re going to lose body fat all over (which is healthy) and add more muscle which is also healthy. I’ve had women lose a cup size which was also accompanied with a size 12 to a size 2 dress size. The boobs are a little smaller, but women are envious of her current body.
While I understand the concern, our program is designed around creating the healthiest person possible. When you train and lose body fat, you may drop a little in the fat in your breasts, but focus on the weight training and you’ll add muscle behind the breasts which will help them appear perkier and bigger.
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1-25-16 WOD
Strength:
Tall Clean and Jerk
“Karen”
Wall Balls x 150
For time
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