Improving one will not change anything if the other is not working at least as well.

Burning fat can roughly be broken down into two major steps. Peripheral lipolysis that consists in breaking down the stored fat into glycerol and fatty acids and releasing them into the bloodstream, and lipolysis itself, which consists in breaking the fatty acids down for energy (ATP) in your body’s cells (the glycerol is catabolized in the liver).

But for the huge majority of overweight people, problems occur in the second stage.  These problems occur for a variety of reasons, including muscle type (fewer mitochondria) and improper absorption of glucose and fatty acids in the cells (resistance to insulin). If fatty acids and glucose don’t make it in the cells that need them for energy, you get drowsy and lose an opportunity to burn fat.  Peripheral lipolysis went great but the fat that was released was stored again, so it was all for nothing.

“Fat burning” belts, wraps, creams and other contraptions concentrate on peripheral lipolysis.  You’ll be fooled into thinking you’ve gotten results when the fat that was released in the targeted area was stored again somewhere else.  But your overall fat ratio will remain the same, and it will sometimes be worse if the fat was relocated in a sensitive area (close to the heart or liver).

I cannot stress enough how understanding fat loss is an essential first step to avoid wasting time, effort and money for poor results, no results at all, or health-hindering negative results.  Lipolysis is just one matter that potentially needs fixing.