Countless hours on the treadmill and weight machine and a seeming eternity spent resisting those chips in the pantry, yet your waistline is getting bigger, not smaller. This is a simple matter of biophysics and psychology. Amend your weight-loss tactics to drop those pounds and trim your profile.

Whether you call it a muffin top, love handle, or spare tire, there's nothing funny about excess fat in your lower back. It jiggles and hangs over your waistline and negatively affects your appearance. In order to burn off lower back fat, you'll have to integrate a regular exercise routine and a healthy diet.

Yams, according to USDA National Nutrient Database, are an excellent source of vitamin B-6 and potassium, vitamin C and fiber. With just 157 calories in a cup, yams can be an excellent food when you're trying to lose weight.

In addition to a sensible, reduced-calorie diet, consistent exercise is essential if you want to lose 50 pounds. By scheduling exercise ahead of time, it becomes harder to make excuses, such as not having enough time.

Excess body weight is not just a problem for people older than the teen years. Teenagers also face obesity and the health problems associated with it, according to the American College of Sports Medicine.

Weight gain at age 56 is caused by a variety of factors, such as inactivity and eating more calories than your body needs. However, losing extra pounds is important to your health. It can reduce your risk for coronary heart disease, stroke and high cholesterol, according to the U.S.

You can lose weight with dieting alone, but according to statistics from the American Council on Exercise, only about 5 percent of those who use dieting as their only tool for weight loss will actually lose the weight and keep it off. If you add exercise to the mix, your odds improve dramatically.

Thirty days of targeted weight loss is a big undertaking that requires time, effort and planning. It isn't impossible, though, and it doesn't have to be arduous.

If you have reached a plateau in your weight loss or are simply not able to make the scale budge, it is important to take a closer look at your diet and lifestyle.

Running is an efficient way to burn calories because it engages the body's aerobic energy system. Running helps burn calories from fat and glycogen -- where your body stores carbohydrates. Depending on how many calories you eat each day, you can start to take off pounds with running within a week.

There could be several reasons you might feel a burning sensation in your nose after exercising, but outside influences are ultimately the cause for most of them. In that case, controlling your environment while exercising is the best way to prevent the symptom. Contact your doctor if the burning persists or is severe.

Having excess body weight is more than just a cosmetic issue — it also contributes to serious medical conditions such as heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke and diabetes. Excess weight can also interfere with daily activities and movement, causing your muscles to weaken from disuse.