Over the years I've heard countless women say, "I only want to lose my belly." But the reality is that we can not spot reduce.

The theory behind spot reduction is that when you exercise a set of muscles, fat is lost in that area. For example, if you perform abdominal exercises, you’ll drop stomach fat. While spot reduction might seem like simple common sense, the reality is different. One example is the crunch, a popular abdominal exercise. When you perform a crunch, you strain your ab muscles. If you keep doing crunches regularly, your ab muscles will grow larger and stronger. At the same time, every body movement uses up energy.When food is consumed, excess calories are transformed into stored, subcutaneous fat. This process is reversed in exercise, when calories are metabolized into fuel for the muscles. Since working out makes your body use up calories, any sort of exercise will help you drop the pounds. When the body resorts to burning fat that has been stored, it doesn’t use the stored fat nearest the muscles being flexed. Instead, fat from the entire body is burned. Don’t believe the hype. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is — especially when someone is trying to sell you something.