If you’re like most of us, you have a hard time burning fat, especially around the belly. So what exactly are the secrets to burning off that fat and finally fitting into those jeans?

The first thing to know is that, when it comes to weight loss, there are many untruths and flat out lies being promoted. Time after time, people are being told to cut fat, reduce calories, and exercise more in order to lose weight. The problem is that following this advise will not help you lose that stubborn fat, especially not over the long run. But enough about what doesn’t work. Let’s move on to what really does work to help you burn fat.

First off, exercising, especially aerobic exercising, has not been proven to help people lose weight over the long run. The trouble is that, the more people exercise, the hungrier they get. So the first secret is that aerobic exercise might have many health benefits, but long term weight loss is likely not one of them. Run, walk, or swim to increase your overall health, but don’t expect doing so to help you burn fat in and of itself.