I am a callanetics devotee - I loved it so much I flew all the way to South Africa to train as an instructor. I think we now have 4 instructors in Australia. I also sell the DVDs so you can read more about it on my website - see my signature.

The reasons I prefer it over other exercise forms is that you hold your muscle in contraction and make tiny pulses as opposed to big movements and this really works the muscles in a very short time. Most exercises are done in 60 seconds and the stronger you are, the shorter the workout. I really don't have time for long workouts that don't deliver quick results or guarantee their results as I do with callanetics.

Nadine is right in that you can't lose weight from one spot but in a way, you can spot tone. We do it with body sculpting - if you have smaller calves than thighs, you work the calves more to buid them and build proportion or you stop working the thighs so hard to allow them to get a bit smaller to balance the leg.

But this doesn't work for fat......the only way to spot reduce fat is liposuction and that is a bit extreme. With fat, it seems that you lose it from the last place you gained it - in your case, face, neck etc which is the same for most women - bum and tum is always last as we are designed to be padded there!!

So, start doing some sort of toning exercise, build a bit of muscle which gives you a bigger body engine (muscle burns more calories than fat) and eventually your dedication will pay off!!

Better go and do my cardio now......