Saunas and Turkish baths

There's not really an awful lot to say here I'm afraid. They are a pleasant way of passing the time of day, and one that promotes (for a short time) a general feeling of well-being. But it has to be remembered that the weight lost through sweating is not fat but water which is very quickly replaced.

Exercise clubs

Exercise by itself is most unlikely to lead to weight loss. Providing that you remember this, exercise clubs offer superb equipment (which can be a great psychological stimulus) for exercise which is undeniably important for your general health and which, if done as part of the Norwood Weight Loss Program, can help you in your weight-control program. But of course you can exercise perfectly adequately in your own home without any special apparatus, as demonstrated in the Norwood Weight Loss Program.

Exercise machines

These are legion and different ones seem to be in fashion at different times. Examples are rowing machines, bicycling machines, chest expanders, weights, and various gadgets using ropes and pulleys. Again they provide useful incentives to exercise but you must not forget that you must also eat less if you are to lose weight. Remember, too, that to be of value exercise must help you in one or more of four aims ~ to improve the mobility of your joints, to improve the strength of your muscles, to improve your stamina by increasing the efficiency of your heart and lungs, and to use up energy. In evaluating the usefulness of any piece of apparatus apply these aims and see how many are fulfilled. And, of course, no form of exercise will be of benefit unless it is done regularly, for example, every day or two to three times a week.

Spot fat reducers

Once again, these are legion. They are based on the fallacy that you can lose weight from selected areas (such as your thighs) without losing weight from other parts of your body. There are even clinics which offer to rid you of something called 'cellulite' which is supposed to be lumpy deposits of fat due to water-logged toxin-infested fat cells, although there seems to be little evidence for its existence.

Some of the machines work on the principle of breaking down fat cells, for example, massage machines and vibrator belts. In fact, unless you eat less, there is no appreciable fat loss: and if you do eat less you are unlikely to lose more fat from the areas to which the machine has been applied than other parts of your body. Other machines work by electrical stimulation of groups of muscles causing them to contract. There is no doubt that they do improve the strength and tone of the muscles but the machines are very expensive and you can achieve the same result by exercising with the added benefit of using up energy. These machines, which are in use in slimming clinics, health farms and physiotherapy departments, are probably most useful for people who are not fit enough to exercise. Various types of garments corsets and inflatable belts, for example - are also claimed to help in spot reduction by making you sweat. Of course, all you lose is water, not fat.