--- title: The Best Exercise For Weight Loss: This Week in Health description: This week's health news explored targeted weight loss, the health value of protein powders and why people think expensive wine tastes better canonical: https://time.com/4904548/how-to-lose-weight-belly-fat/ author: Alexandra Sifferlin article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-08-17T19:11:56.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T04:58:34.253Z article:section: Health og:title: The Best Exercise For Fat Loss: This Week in Health og:description: Here are the biggest stories in health news this week og:url: https://time.com/4904548/how-to-lose-weight-belly-fat/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt65b8f2e027e78a10/6988d48197cdff3ee76b1760/time-magazine-exercise-fitness-health-bethan-mooney-69.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2405 og:image:height: 1353 og:image:alt: time-magazine-exercise-fitness-health-bethan-mooney-69 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: The Best Exercise For Fat Loss: This Week in Health twitter:description: Here are the biggest stories in health news this week twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt65b8f2e027e78a10/6988d48197cdff3ee76b1760/time-magazine-exercise-fitness-health-bethan-mooney-69.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # The Best Exercise For Fat Loss: This Week in Health > Sponsored content. 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Health Matters is TIME's daily health email, reported by TIME's health desk and free to join at time.com/newsletters. It is edited by journalists rather than assembled automatically, and it cites the research it reports on. #### Is Health Matters free? Yes. Health Matters is a free daily newsletter from TIME, available at time.com/newsletters. #### Who reads TIME's Health Matters newsletter? Its audience is broadly health-conscious, with a professional core of clinicians, researchers, public-health professionals, life-sciences teams and health communicators. by [Alexandra Sifferlin](https://time.com/author/alexandra-sifferlin/) ## Alexandra Sifferlin Aug 17, 2017 7:11 PM UTC  Bethan Mooney for TIME by [Alexandra Sifferlin](https://time.com/author/alexandra-sifferlin/) ## Alexandra Sifferlin Aug 17, 2017 7:11 PM UTC Exercise is not always intuitive. (Case in point: [running a marathon](http://time.com/4714344/running-marathon-kidney-injury/) isn’t always healthy, but [brief bouts of exercise](http://time.com/4893161/hiit-high-intensity-interval-training-exercise/) are among the best for you.) This week, TIME explored two burning workout questions: [is protein powder good for you,](http://time.com/4901309/is-protein-powder-good-for-you/) and [can you lose weight just from your stomach](http://new.time.com/4901936/weight-loss-stomach/)? Here’s what else caught our attention this week. (Sign up for the [TIME Health newsletter](http://time.com/newsletter-health) for more.) ## [You Asked: Can you lose weight just from your stomach?](http://time.com/4901936/weight-loss-stomach/)  Getty Images In most cases, you can’t spot-target weight loss. But your stomach may be the one exception. Fat stored in your gut, arms and chest is metabolically active, experts say, which means the fat there is more likely to respond to exercise and diet than excess fat elsewhere. ## [People age better if they have a purpose-driven life](http://time.com/4903166/purpose-in-life-aging/)  Jessica Pettway for TIME Purposeful living is linked to many aspects of wellbeing, like a longer life, lower risk of disease and better sleep. Having a purpose may also help seniors keep their physical strength and independence, according to a new study. ## ## [The surprising dangers of grooming your pubic hair](http://time.com/4903102/shaving-pubic-hair-grooming-waxing/) Most adults in the U.S. shave, wax or groom their pubic hair. But the practice is leading to a surprising number of injuries, a new survey finds. ## [Is protein powder good for you?](http://time.com/4901309/is-protein-powder-good-for-you/) Protein is now available in a wide variety powders, including whey, hemp, soy and pea. But is getting protein from a powder just as good for you as getting it from whole foods? ## [What to know about the pro-vegan Netflix film _What the Health_](http://time.com/4897133/vegan-netflix-what-the-health/)  Danny Kim for TIME The recent Netflix film “What the Health” is being criticized by some health professionals for pushing a vegan diet with poor nutrition science. TIME breaks down what the film got wrong when it comes to nutrition and health, and what it got right. ## [You need to stop putting smiley faces in work emails](http://time.com/4899351/smiley-faces-work-emails/) The results of a study about using smileys in email may be disappointing to emoji lovers. Even when they’re meant as a sign of friendliness, using them at the office could backfire, researchers report. ## [Why wine tastes better when it costs more](http://time.com/4902359/wine-tastes-better-when-it-costs-more/)  Molly Cranna for TIME It’s long been suspected that people think a bottle of vino tastes better simply if the price tag is higher. This week researchers got closer to understanding why: the brain may react differently to pricier bottles, according to a new study. ## [Texas passes law requiring women to get extra insurance for abortions](http://time.com/4901883/texas-abortion-law/) The new law forbids insurance providers in the state from covering abortions, even in the case of rape or incest. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4904548/how-to-lose-weight-belly-fat/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4904548/how-to-lose-weight-belly-fat/"},"headline":"The Best Exercise For Fat Loss: This Week in Health","datePublished":"2017-08-17T19:11:56.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T04:58:34.253Z","description":"This week's health news explored targeted weight loss, the health value of protein powders and why people think expensive wine tastes better","url":"https://time.com/4904548/how-to-lose-weight-belly-fat/","keywords":["this week in health","Weight loss","Vegan","protein"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt65b8f2e027e78a10/6988d48197cdff3ee76b1760/time-magazine-exercise-fitness-health-bethan-mooney-69.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Alexandra Sifferlin","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/alexandra-sifferlin/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt65b8f2e027e78a10/6988d48197cdff3ee76b1760/time-magazine-exercise-fitness-health-bethan-mooney-69.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"time-magazine-exercise-fitness-health-bethan-mooney-69","caption":"","creditText":"Bethan Mooney for TIME","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/this-week-in-health/","name":"this week in health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4904548/how-to-lose-weight-belly-fat/","name":"The Best Exercise For Fat Loss: This Week in Health"}}]}] ```