There are a lot of things about Gina Carano that might surprise the average woman working out.
First, Gina trains to fight in MMA (Mixed Martial Arts, formerly known as Ultimate Fighting or Cage Fighting), and she’s wicked hot.
I think when most girls think “cage fighter” they think of a chick that looks like a dude.
Surprise, Gina is a hottie who happens to be wicked strong and could also kick your boyfriend’s ass.
Here is something else I like about Gina – her last weigh in, she came in at 144.5lbs.
Check out those abs:
It kind of smashes the whole theory that women have to be 110lbs to look hot.
The truth is that with a little bit of strength, a woman can look wicked hot with a higher body weight than you would think… and get to eat more food.
I know… it’s hard to wrap your head around.
This is the difference between body fat percentage, and scale weight.
You can have a really low scale weight, and still have a pooch.
But if your body fat percentage is low, you are going to have abs.
Embed from Getty Images
This is also a great illustration of the kind of abs a woman gets when she isn’t afraid to get strong.
Gina is Training For Performance
She’s not trying to get abs, she’s trying to create a body that will knock someone out or tap them out in the ring.
Gina Carano is a strong strong woman.
And fighter workouts are wickedly intense.
The body she has comes with the performance.
That’s why athletic based training programs are so wickedly effective for fat loss.
If you train for performance, you always get the body.
And for all of the women that are scared of “bulking up” if they get too strong… just look at Gina Carano. Strong = hot.
Scale Weight vs. Body Fat Percentage
As a personal trainer, scale weight and body fat percentage tell me very different things.
Scale weight tells me –
– Tells me how many calories someone ate vs. how many calories they burned.
Body fat percentage tells me –
– Tells me the quality of food you ate.
– And the quality of your workouts.
To get to where you are going, you may need to change both.
Body Fat Percentage = Abs
Gina Carano has famously been struggling with her weight lately.
She’s been coming in too heavy to fight in her weight class.
For someone who is a fighter, this is a really big deal.
If you don’t make the right weight for the fight you are signed up for, you can’t fight.
Imagine if you had to weigh in before you could go to work!
For someone who has a goal of looking really lean, it totally illustrates how unimportant scale weight is.
Gina clearly has a very low bodyfat percentage, which is why she has the abs everyone wants.
Assuming you aren‘t a pro fighter –
Would you really care what the scale says if you looked awesome in a bikini?
And lastly, a shot of the kind of athleticism and power she trained for:
By Josh Hillis, CPT, PES, CES, WLS
author of Fat Loss Happens on Monday
I have been eating great for the past 2 weeks (getting ready for vaca 🙂 prior to that I ate better than most of America – i’d say. I eat lean meats, fruits, veggies. I do have weaknesses – wine once or twice a week, which lowers my inhibitions and makes me pig out MORE! But other than that i’m a pretty decent eater. I don’t ‘snack’ really. I do have the ocassional piece of chocolate and I do love cheese puffs – SICK I KNOW!! 🙁
But for the past 2 weeks I have been not drinking anything but water and milk at dinner, no snacks (except Wed I had peanutbutter pretzels and a brownie:( – and i’m not noticing any difference in my stomach. I don’t want a 6pack. Just a FLAT stomach.
Is it just that I haven’t been “clean” eating for that long?? WIll I eventually see a difference if I continue this way??
btw – i’m 5’6 125.
Hey, I’m just wondering, does fat loss necessarily guarantee weight loss? Because in the advertisement for your e-book for Stubborn Seven mentions how one girl’s weight stayed the same but she transformed the type of weight. I would love to shed many extra pounds.
Also, how much cardio should you do in addition to squats, lunges and that good stuff?
Milk is fattening FYI…cut out dairy and you’ll drop weight like crazy!
I’m sure she does a boatload of cardio, but her body just goes to show you how important resistance training is to fat loss for women and men.
Even skim milk??
Of course, for those of us who are fighters. . . pro or amateur. . . it’s back to the scale and counting calories.
Especially skim milk. Its packed with sugar which spikes insulin and stimulates fat storage and has no fat in it to slow the absorbtion of carbs into your blood stream.
I currently eat 0% fat free greek yoghurt – would i be better to eat 2% fat greek yoghurt instead?
Fat loss does not guarantee weight loss, they are totally different things.
“Weight” makes no distinction between muscle and fat.
You can lose weight, have it all be muscle, and look worse (most recreational marathon runners)
You can lose weight and gain muscle, and look way better, but have the same scale weight.
You can lose just fat, and look better.
You can gain just muscle, and look better.
You can lose muscle and fat and look about the same naked, but better with clothes on.
There are all kinds of options.
In general, I want my clients body fat percentage to go down more than any other measurement.
The second most important measurement to me is circumference of their belly (tape measure).
Scale weight just tells me how much they ate. If someone is 40lbs overweight, the scale will be important to me also.
If someone is skinny fat, then I’ll forget the scale completely and just focus on the tape measurements and the body fat tests.
Josef! What’s up man! I got wicked busy the other week and totally forgot that last research report you sent me! I’ve gotta go check that out!
Keep a food journal.
If you eat better, your body will look better. It’s only a matter of time.
Track the % of meals that are clean, and the % of meals that are brownies and pretzels and crap.
Eat clean, rock your workouts.
Always the scale for fighters.
Sometimes it’s hard for me to watch, to see someone in wicked shape, really lean, have to kill themselves to make weight.
I mean, I totally get it, and it’s totally necessary for the sport to work.
I’ve always felt like some fighters cut too much weight, and should just fight at a higher class. But it’s not my nose in the ring, so I’ve got no space to talk! =)
Hey Josh!
First of all, I weigh 137lb with the height of 5’4″ (162CM.
And I am a girl. I have a huge waist and belly and abs that I need to work this off.
Could you get me a healthy diet meal plan? SIMPLE meal plan.
And suggest me what exercises to do?
Please and thank you!! 🙂
She would weigh about a pound less if she didn’t sport those 500 cc breast implants,
She is really sexy, but little fatty. But no problem , can adjust
fat? really? I mean, yeah she’s rather thick-set, but fat?
WOW, holy mackeral those chicks are hot… something to aspire to.. I’ve got pretty good abs but I’d like abs like those chicks have pretty please!! THANKS for the inspiration. I think I’ll kick it up a notch and see if I can’t get there too.
sorry, what abs? i can’t see any. look at http://www.bodyrock.tv/ … her abs are wicked and visible
Yes, too many people get caught up with body weight, and ignore bodyfat percentage. It is alright for a women to be 130+ pounds, and carry around 12 – 15% bodyfat. That means they are in shape.
Does anyone know what Gina Carano’s current diet is as she prepares for her fight with Cyborg? There’s a lot of mention about her weight (especially when she doesn’t make weight for a fight), I’m just curious to know what her diet is this time.
Thanks a bunch!
Gina doesn’t look as lean as Cyborg but I think she always makes weight for a fight. It’s Cyborg who has been known to come in a bit overweight at times.