7 Scientific Reasons That Prove Abs Are Made In The Kitchen Not The Gym

It's 12:05 pm.

You're sitting in your cubicle thinking about lunch and debating if you should take the healthy route or cave in and grab a sandwich from the corner store.

You are signed up to take a spin class later in the day, so you figure you can just burn off the sandwich if you cave.

You know this isn't the best way to handle it, but beach season is still weeks away, so what can one sandwich hurt?

Well, unfortunately, it can hurt a lot more than you realize because despite taking a gym class, that sandwich isn't going to just "disappear."

Sadly, you can't out-exercise a bad diet, regardless of how many workouts you cram into one day and how much we wish this to be true.

A steady gym regimen is great for your mind, but is it really enough to give you that body you've been dreaming about?

Too many people overemphasize the importance of the gym while undervaluing the importance of a healthy diet. This results in having sh*tty food habits and a rigorous gym schedule.

Today we are going to clear up some of your more pressing questions and concerns when it comes to the gym versus food habits because if you haven't realized by now, abs are made in the kitchen, not the gym.

Lucky for you, Elite Daily spoke with Ricki Friedman, motivational health coach and founder of Break The Weight (an inspirational business designed to guide individuals in living healthier and happier lives built on three fundamental rules that create successful, long-term weight loss), who has offered up her expertise to get this desperately-needed message across.

1. Which is more worthy of your focus — counting calories or counting carbs?

We have all heard or been told carbs are the enemy, and the quickest way to drop weight is to give them up entirely. Does that even sound healthy to you?

Of course you should be careful of what type of carbohydrates you are eating, but carbs give you energy, and you need energy to survive.

If you are trying to lose weight in a healthy way, it's extremely important to be aware and understand what you are putting in your mouth.

Calories are an easy way to keep yourself accountable because at the end of the day, it's all about calories in, calories out.

2. We all get stressed, and sometimes (most of the time) smoking weed is the answer — but WTF do we do about our munchies?

Whether the munchies are real, an excuse to binge eat or a myth, one thing is for sure: Once you light that J, your stomach becomes a bottomless pit.

Ricki advises that prior to your relaxation session, you should make yourself a sign that says "not hungry, just high."

This visual reminder will hopefully help you realize that mindlessly eating is not the answer because honestly, you are just high, not really hungry.

Easier said than done? Of course it is. Ricki also suggests if you are going to eat (because let's be serious: who isn't?), plain popcorn is a good choice since you are going to be eating a lot in one sitting, and it's not awful for you.

If you can avoid eating when you're not hungry, however, that should be the route you should take.

3. Is there actually a "right" time to eat dinner, or is this just a myth?

We've all heard that eating too close to bedtime is bad for you, since you can't burn off anything you've just consumed. As a big late-night eater, I just had to ask Ricki her stance on this issue.

She told me, "The time you eat is one of the most important rules of weight loss. Dinner needs to be done on the earlier side. You should never go to bed on a full stomach.

I would say that it all depends on the time you go to bed at night, but let’s say you get into bed around 11 pm — I would stop eating by 8 pm the latest."

4. Are frequent meals a thing?

Do you eat three solid meals per day, or do you opt for frequent smaller meals?

Every person is different, so it's difficult to pick one route over the other. If you are going to split up a meal, Ricki says lunch is the best one.

It's far too easy to load up on lunch and immediately regret your decision. If this happens to you like it does to me, try splitting your lunch into two meals to try and slow yourself down while keeping your energy up.

5. Should you really be eating within moments of waking up?

Is breakfast really the most important meal of the day? Who is even hungry the second he or she wakes up in the morning?

We've all asked ourselves these questions, and now it's time to consult an expert.

The first thing Ricki recommends putting in your mouth when you wake up is water! But then, it is important to eat within an hour of waking up.

It gets your metabolism going, gives you energy and sets the tone for your day.

6. Is there any legitimacy when it comes to fad diets?

Do we really even need to ask this question? The word "fad" is defined as a temporary fashion — so what do you think the answer is?

Regardless, we asked, and Ricki answered: "Nothing that’s a fad is good for you.  You want sustainability. I think Weight Watchers is genius."

7. The burning question we've fall been wondering: Can you have an amazing body without exercising?

It sounds too good to be true — but is it? According to Ricki, it's actually quite possible. Bodies are truly made in the kitchen, so technically you could achieve desirable results just there.

She went on to explain, however, that exercising is still important and will get you toned in the long run.

The last line of our interview really summed everything up perfectly:

You need to move your body, and you need to close your mouth when you’re full. Combine those two, and you’re good to go.

For more of her thoughts, humor and ridiculous opinions follow Ashley Fern on Instagram and Twitter.