Weight lifting is by far one of the most popular forms of workouts known to man. Anyone and everyone picks up a set of free weights at some point whether it be to lose weight or build up muscle. But does it help to cut out body fat? The answer goes two ways. It does and it doesn’t..
How Weight Lifting Works for Fat Loss
Breaking out the free weights and going to town with them alone won’t yield much in results. BUT if you couple it with aerobic exercises 
you will see greater results. Cardio is the ultimate fat burner but when coupled with weight lifting its fat shredding power increases significantly. This has been proven by several sports medicine colleges across the United States.
When you workout with weights you activate the muscles in your body which require energy. After working out long enough your body turns to sucking energy from fat cells to keep you going. To maximize the effects of this try doing some cardio first (such as running, jogging, etc) and then moving on to do a few sets of curls or other weight training exercises. This way you’re burning a ton of calories and toning your muscles at the same time.
So, to answer the question, lifting weights burns fat when it’s used in combination with other, more intensive exercises. Just hitting the iron won’t do you much good but it can amplify the effects of more effective workouts such as cardio based regimes. Weights are an integral part of developing your body as they do provide necessary resistance that force muscles that aren’t normally used to work hard. Unfortunately, that does not mean it is reliable for losing weight.
