"I am interested in purchasing a piece of exercise equipment or a workout video from television, but I have heard that these products never work and that the claims they make are false. "

"work, but many of them are full of impossible-to-deliver claims. Here are a few tips that will help you distinguish between the ones that are worth trying and the ones that aren't."

" Watch carefully, and you'll usually see disclaimers on the screen that say "Results may vary" or "Results not typical." Often, infomercials feature people who have adhered to strict diets and done much more exercise (with or without the product) than the infomercials suggest. Others may have been using the product or program for a long time and lost the weight with a variety of diet and exercise programs, not just this one product."

" So don't let the few extraordinary testimonials provide you with false hope; your own results will probably not be as significant. Real success stories most certainly came with a lot of hard work."

"possible to lose 5 pounds in the first five days of an exercise program, but the weight might be mostly water. This amount of weight loss is unlikely to occur week after week without a risk to the exerciser -- and shouldn't be used as a marker for determining weight loss potential. Claims such as "30 pounds in 30 days" are simply not realistic or safe."

" Most exercise experts agree that only about 1 to 2 pounds of weight loss per week is safe, regardless of the exercise program or product. Besides, additional pounds are likely to be regained."

" Some infomercials sell products or programs designed to "isolate," or reduce weight from, a specific area of the body, such as the abs. Although many of these products and programs do a good job of training specific body parts, there is no way to "spot reduce." For example, a product designed to target the abs may result in weight loss (if accompanied by a reduced-calorie
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