Working on Your Summer Body? Don't Forget to Add Vitamin C for Added Fat Loss.

 

Summer will be here before we know it.  This summer, in particular, feels special because it holds the promise of our first bit of normalcy after enduring a year-long pandemic.   I don't know about you but my weight definitely fluctuated during quarantine.  At the start of lockdown, I gained quite a bit of weight.  But, as time wore on, I lost most of it thanks to long walks.  But, after receiving my second vaccination shot, I gained some of the weight back thanks to rediscovering brunch again.  

Before things get out of hand, I've decided it's time to get healthy again in preparation for summer.  But this time, I want to make a slight tweak to my strategy.  By including one small action to my routine, I could be burning more fat without having to do more work.

The one change I'm going to make is to incorporate a supplement that helps fuel fat loss.  I'm not talking about adding any diet pills or teas either.  The supplement I speak of is an antioxidant that boosts the immune system, will give me glowing skin,  all while helping me get leaner.  

The supplement I speak of is...vitamin C.

If you aren't getting enough vitamin C in your diet, you directly impact your body's ability to synthesis L-carnitine.   L-carnitine is an amino acid that works by transporting fatty acids, from foods we eat, into the mitochondria of the cells where they can then be converted into energy.  This means enhanced fat loss from your workouts.  

This added fat loss isn't theoretical.  Researchers have shown in both mice and humans that higher levels of vitamin C in the bloodstream are able to maximize their fat loss.   

In one study, the participants were split into two groups.  One group consumed vitamin C supplementation while their counterparts were given a placebo.  After following a weight loss diet for 6 weeks, the placebo group lost an average of around 2.5 lbs while the vitamin C group lost around 5.5 lbs.   Vitamin C also lowers cortisol levels.   As a reminder, cortisol promotes unwanted weight gain.  

Coincidence?

This, to me, is a no-brainer.  If optimizing fat loss is a priority for you, supplementing with vitamin C is the way to go.   Although taking vitamin C alone comes with a host of benefits (my skin glows when I'm consistently taking vitamin C), added fat loss is definitely an incentive to maintain consistent vitamin C supplementation.