Losing weight is much more enjoyable with a partner! You and your man eat healthy together and workout side by side, which makes a healthy lifestyle much easier to stick to. However, when your man starts seeing more progress after doing the same things, it can start getting a little frustrating. Why do men lose weight faster than women and how can women combat this?
Why do men lose more weight?
Muscle
Because men have higher levels of testosterone, about 10 times more than women, they are genetically designed to have a higher lean muscle mass. Lean muscle mass burns fat more quickly because of the naturally higher resting metabolic rate. In fact, men burn about 20% more calories each day because of this metabolic rate. Lean muscle mass also consumes more calories, so the higher the mass, the quicker the burn rate. Because of this, men typically need to consume more calories on a daily basis to meet their resting metabolic rate. So when men and women consume the same amount of calories during a diet, men will naturally be in a higher caloric deficit, resulting in higher weight loss.
Fat
When men store fat, it’s typically stored in their midsection, this fat is known as visceral fat. When visceral fat is lost, it will help to improve the body’s metabolic rate which helps burn calories at a faster rate. Because of this fat location, losing a little weight can be very noticeable. Visceral fat isn’t necessarily good though. This fat surrounds vital organs, so excess weight can put men at greater risk of heart disease, stroke, and diabetes.
Women, on the other hand, typically store subcutaneous fat near the thigh, hips, and bottom. Subcutaneous fat is not metabolically active, so losing this type of fat will not improve the body’s metabolic rate. Although excess weight is never a good thing, having excess subcutaneous fat is not nearly as dangerous as visceral as it does not surround vital organs.
What can women do?
Although men were genetically designed to lose weight faster than women, there are things women can do to even the score.
The best thing for women to do to increase their chance of weight loss is to increase lean muscle mass. This will increase your body’s fat-burning metabolic rate to help you burn more calories and decrease your fat stores. Here are a few ways to do this:
Strength and Resistance training.
These workouts should be done at least twice a week for 20-30 minutes per session. This is especially important as your age as metabolism naturally slows and muscle will be lost as you get older.
Don’t be afraid of weights. Women have significantly less testosterone than men, so lifting weights won’t give you a manly figure. When lifting weights, studies show that training with lighter loads with more repetitions is just as effective as using heavier weights with fewer reps – so use the weight you are comfortable with until your muscles need a break. Not only will weightlifting help build muscle and increase your metabolic rate, but it can also help prevent osteoporosis, which is much more common in women than in men.
Yoga or Pilates and other bodyweight exercises (squats, lunges, reverse lunges, planks, standing calf raises, crunches, pushups, triceps dips, etc.) are great for increasing muscle mass as well! These training exercises tone muscles all over the body and can help increase flexibility and endurance in the muscles.
Consume fewer calories than him. This may not seem fair, but remember, your man’s resting metabolic rate is naturally burning more calories without even doing anything, so you’ll need to take in less to keep up.
Be patient. This is not a phrase women like to hear. We live in a time where we want results immediately! But that old adage “good things come to those who wait” is true in this case. Studies show that most weight loss plans should show 5-10% weight loss within one year if you really stick to it. So with a little time and a lot of hard work, you should be seeing the results you want.
If you’ve been working hard and need a little boost, we would love to help. At New Health Kansas, we understand there are key differences to the makeup of men and women. We have multiple weight loss options for everyone and will customize our plans to meet your needs. Our team will be there for added support every step of the way, and there even when you’ve hit your goals! Come in today to see how we can help you be the you you’ve always wanted to be!