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A nephew of mine has just lost twelve kgs. And it was easy-peasy. He just cut out bread, biscuits and sweets.
Easy as that – and it only took him three months. The weight just fell off.
Have you ever heard a woman say of her weight loss “the pounds just fell off”? Rarely, I’ll wager, for the simple reason that women don’t lose weight easily. It’s heavy going.
A study that compared male and female participants following a variety of diets,showed that men leave women standing when it comes to losing weight.
Why is it so easy for them and hard for us?
Well, firstly, men have more muscles than women – and muscle really burns off calories. So men doing the same kind of exercise will burn more calories than women.
In fact, a man’s muscle mass means he’ll burn more calories than a woman even while sleeping.
Plus, men, on the whole, are bigger and heavier than women.
And the bigger you are, the more energy you burn just by standing up, moving around or just by being a couch potato, doing nothing much more than breathing. Therefore, a man’s basal metabolic rate is greater than a woman’s.
As this accounts for about two thirds of the calories we burn every day, it’s easy to see why men find losing weight so easy – a man’s greater energy-burning capacity means quick results.
Another factor is psychological. Women tend to be emotional eaters, driven by frustration, unhappiness or boredom. These are all reasons why women eat and it’s harder for them to control the underlying stresses and emotions that may drive overeating.
But women can make some changes to their lifestyles.
Keeping active and exercising fairly regularly means your muscles are fit – and fit muscle burns more calories than unfit ones.
To stay in control, don’t just look at what you’re eating, but also why and when you do so.
For example, do you find the stress of trying to juggle a job and family makes you comfort eat – and then you’re consumed with guilt?
Don’t let yourself feel this way for not having a stronger will. Instead, keep healthy snacks in the fridge to eat in emergency situations.
If you fail to deal with underlying emotional issues, it will still be nigh on impossible to break bad habits and to start on a life of sensible eating.
Crack your demons and you’ll be able to resist temptations and cravings.
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