First, it was the digital watch, then the heart rate monitor and, most recently, the GPS device that measures not only time, but speed and distance too.

Now, fresh from cutting-edge researchers in Japan, a new revolutionary gadget that just might change everything about the way we train to burn fat.

We’ve made a crucial shift in focus from other recent gadgets to measuring not even greater detail regarding the workout, but instead measuring aspects of the body itself.

The new gadget is essentially a miniature breathaliser that communicates with your smartphone. When you breathe into it, it doesn’t detect alcohol levels but something much more useful to our weight-loss endeavours.

It essentially measures how much fat your body is burning at that particular moment in time. Knowing how much fat you’re burning essentially means taking much of the guesswork and speculation out of the equation and finally finding out exactly what works and what doesn’t.

Sometimes we stick to an unsuccessful programme sheerly out of the desire to be patient, not knowing when to throw in the towel and try something else.

When programmes and initiatives don’t work, we too often quit feeling disappointed and reluctant to try something else for fear of repeated failure.

While the rules are generally similar for us all, when combined with other unique aspects of different lifestyles as well as other individual physical differences, some things are less effective on certain people than they are on others.

Not sure what types of training lead to the best fat loss results for you? Not sure if you should lift weights or not? Not sure if those walks in the morning are really cutting it? Well, now you can take all those niggling little nuggets of advice you had doubts about and find out for sure if they’re worth their salt. The potential for a fat-burning sensor is profound to say the least, but how can such a device exist and how does it work?

It’s actually not all that complicated. When fat is burned for energy, a substance called acetone is produced and sub­sequently circulates in the blood stream. When it reaches the alveoli, which are the little air sacs in your lungs responsible for the gaseous exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide, it passes through in gas form and is expelled through the airways.

Fresh from cutting-edge researchers in Japan, a new revolutionary gadget that just might change everything about the way we train to burn fat

When the expelled air is blown into this revolutionary, new Japanese device, gas sensors measure the concentration of acetone, and therefore the fat-burning activity of the body, and send the results to your smart­phone within seconds.

The researchers put their device to the test in an interesting study that ultimately tested not only the accuracy of the device but also the long- standing beliefs held so dearly by the wellness industry about the most effective methods to burn fat.

The study involved 17 healthy adults split into three groups. Participants in the first group carried on with their normal routine and were not instructed to exercise or alter their eating habits in any way.

Participants in the second group were instructed to par­ticipate in light physical activity for between 30 to 60 minutes per day. They were not, however, given any restrictions to their eating plans.

The third and final group followed the same physical activity guidelines but also followed a calorie-reduced eating plan.

All groups maintained this routine for 14 days and tested their breath acetone concen­tration every morning before breakfast. By the end of the study, the first two groups, those who followed no guidelines and those who followed only a physical activity plan, did not lose significant amounts of fat. The device showed their breath acetone levels to remain low and constant.

For the third group, significant amounts of fat were lost and significant increases in acetone levels were also found.

While exercise in itself will certainly yield benefits, when it comes to losing fat, it really comes into its own when combined with eating less. A combination of the two is the easiest way to create a negative energy balance where the body must delve into its fat stores to make up the balance and continue to meet essential energy needs.

The study therefore not only proved that exercise and diet together are the most sensible strategy for losing significant amounts of fat, but also proved that the device is an accurate and effective indicator of fat loss, based on the corresponding acetone readings.

Since the device is non-invasive and does not inflict trauma for the body like, say, a blood sugar level detector, the test can actually be repeated multiple times a day, unlike in the study where it was only performed once before breakfast. In this way, we can determine when fat-burning levels are the highest and therefore determine precisely what activities and routines are contributing towards those elevated fat-burning states.

If going for a walk elevates your acetone levels to a certain level, and half an hour of circuit training at home elevates them even further, then you know which activity is working for you and can increase the frequency and intensity of that activity, fine-tuning your routine and leveraging your fat-burning efforts for maximal effect.

Judging by how quickly similar devices have swept the industry, I would hazard a guess that acetone breath detectors will be on the market and available very soon indeed.

matthew.muscat.inglott@mcast.edu.mt

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