If you are one of the many people trying to lose weight by following a fad diet or the latest diet regimen, then you should know that most of these diets do not work. What I mean by that is that even though these diets may work at first, more often than not they end up shooting you. Most people end up putting on more weight than they were before starting the diet.

Dieting alone will not help you lose all those pounds. The best way to lose weight permanently is by following a solid diet regimen in combination with a good exercise plan. Exercise is absolutely important if you really want to keep that weight off.

Exercise trains your body to burn calories efficiently. The more you burn, the more you lose. Exercise will help speed up your metabolism so you can use the food you eat and not store it as fat. A more fit person can burn more calories than an overweight and less fit person.

In fact, our bodies burn calories no matter what we do. Your body needs energy to function, and that energy is what you get from the food you eat. If you want to lose weight, you need to make sure your energy intake doesn’t exceed your energy output. That is the only way you can lose weight efficiently. That’s why exercise is crucial if you want to burn more calories and help balance your energy intake versus energy output.

Exercises like jumping rope, aerobics, swimming, running, cycling and others really help your body to increase its rate of energy use and lose a few pounds. Your activity level will determine your metabolism rate and that is what will determine how skinny or flabby you are. So the next time your partner asks you to go to the gym, don’t make excuses, go for it. Your good looks depend on it.