There is something different in our bodies due to the way hormones change the balance between muscle and fat and shape the size of our bones to respond to different needs later on.
In men, the hormone testosterone determines the size of bones, causes hair growth and deepens the voice. It also regulates the size of the muscle mass, which it turn regulates the metabolism. The more muscle mass, the faster a person burns the calories obtained from food, which is one of the big differences between men and women and between overweight people and those who are fit.
It’s an easily recognizable fact that men and women training side by side do not have the same results. Recent studies have found that women gain weight faster than men and that they have a harder time getting rid of it through exercise. It seems that women have the misfortune of being stuck with the worst part of the weight loss process and also with having to work twice as hard as men to stay in shape. And since this is no easy task for men, you can imagine how bad the ladies have it.
Another thing that makes it even worse for the ladies is the modern obsession with a thin body. Repeated attempts to drop the extra pounds teach the body to hang on to the existing fat and so weight loss becomes harder and harder as the years pass, while the women become more and more desperate and willing to try even half-baked ideas that should simply be avoided. This leads to dieting that makes the person thinner, but not healthier.
Quite on the contrary actually, since there are enough emaciated, rail-thin ladies around to serve as example. A recent study published by the BBC showed that 62 obese women who exercised 4 hours per week and learnt how to cook healthier meals felt a tremendous improvement in their self-image. They lost only 9 pounds over three months, but their blood pressure, cholesterol and heart rates were far better. And they felt much better.
So, maybe women should start to move away from achieving a certain weight to just staying healthy and feeling good regardless of weight.
Maybe this is indeed the future of the weight loss industry: to help people feel better about themselves instead of harming their bodies while chasing a dream.
1 comment:
Hey Brandon,
At last! Evidence that it really IS harder for me to lose the pounds than for my spouse! I understand the hormonal differences, and accept that certain parts of our bodies "hold on" to fat more than others, but it's still frustrating not to be able to lose those "love handles, saddlebags, and cellulite". No doubt that I feel better about myself since I've started training with you, but at times I still feel as if I'm chasing an unattainable goal. I need to have the more realistic goal of being a healthy 50-something year old woman, without the added stress of feeling as if I should look like I'm in my 30's. I know I have to work out, but I really do wish that there were some more specific exercises to target my problem areas (and don't tell me never to eat a carb again!).
Anyway, good article, and I'll keep on running............Jo
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