I'm often asked the question "what's the best exercise to do to lose weight around the mid-section?" When I reply by first pointing to a treadmill or an exercise bike I often get a quizzical stare in response, and then another "No, not the legs, the stomach. I want to reduce the size of my stomach!"

Many people fail to appreciate the difference between spot training and spot reduction. Spot training refers to exercises or activities that focus on a particular body part. Bicep curls, for example would spot train the biceps muscle (front of upper arm).

In contrast, spot reduction refers to making a certain part or area of the body smaller. For example, some people may want to reduce the size of their abdomen, hips or back of the upper arms. Spot reduction and spot training are not the same, particularly in that spot training is possible and spot reduction is not.

Spot training is possible because targeting a muscle and working on it will make it stronger, and in many cases, larger. If you exercise your arms, they get stronger, not your legs. In essence, training is specific - the muscle(s) you work are the muscles that improve in strength.

Not so for spot reduction. That is, you can do curl ups and sit-ups till the "cows come home" and you may not decrease the size of your abdomen. In fact, if you don't do some type of exercise to decrease the body fat you store around your abdomen you may make your mid-section look even larger, as the curl ups train the abdominals, and with training, muscles may increase in size. (I like to refer to body fat as potential energy, because that's exactly what it is - energy waiting to be used.)

Your body has a unique "code" for how it utilizes body fat. It's predicated on a number of factors, and like it or not, your genetic code is an extension of your parents. In time, we will likely look more similar than different from our parents. However, your individual "code" is programmed to use body fat in a particular manner that is unique to you.

What this means is actually quite simple. Your body's muscles respond to exercise specifically - remember working your arms strengthens your arms and not your legs. The energy used to power this movement is less specific, and may come from stored body fat anywhere in your body. Your body's unique ability to use stored fat is not related to where the fat is stored, but where your body likes to get it from.

So, the message is clear. You can make a muscle stronger (and larger) by exercising it, but that exercise will not necessarily result in that area getting slimmer. It might, but it's more likely that the exercise will result in a larger muscle. The answer to slimming the mid-section is two-fold: Engage in cardiovascular type exercises (running, walking, aerobics, cycling, etc....) to burn up the potential energy (body fat) and weight train all major muscle groups to develop strength and muscle tone.