There is a lot of debate about whether or not men and women should go on different diets. Is losing weight for women somehow different than it is for men? Some experts believe that the differences in our bodies require the sexes to go on different diets. Others believe not.
So, what is the truth? Are there any advantages to following a diet that is specifically designed for your gender? Here are a few things to consider:
The average man requires more calories than the average woman. This is because men tend to have more muscle mass than women. Muscle tissue burns more calories than fat tissue, so men need more fuel to keep their bodies running efficiently.
While both genders need the same essential nutrients, we do have different amounts of certain vitamins and minerals. For example, men need more iron than women because they lose iron through their sweat. Women need more folate than men because they are at a higher risk for developing certain birth defects.
Men and women digest food differently due to our different hormones and enzymes. For example, testosterone helps men to break down protein efficiently, while estrogen helps women to absorb fat better.
Generally speaking, men want to build muscle and women want to lose fat. However, this isn’t always the case. Some women may want to build muscle, and some men may want to lose fat. But in general, most people of each gender tend to have different fitness goals.
Men and women also tend to have different eating habits. Studies have shown that men are more likely to skip meals, eat larger portions, and eat more often than women.
So, should men and women go on different diets? No. Here’s why:
Diets don’t work.
Though it's often seen as the go-to solution for weight loss, dieting actually has a number of drawbacks that make it ineffective in the long term. For one, dieting can trigger the body's fight or flight response. The body perceives dieting as famine and starts a number of fat-promoting biological responses like increasing hunger hormones, decreasing satiety hormones and slowing down metabolism by up to 15%. This makes it very difficult to stick to a diet and see results.
Additionally, research shows that dieters tend to regain any lost weight within one to five years, and they often end up weighing more than they did before starting the diet.
And that’s just your physical health. On the emotional side of the ledger, dieting has been linked to a number of mental health problems, including anxiety, depression, and eating disorders.
Dieting often leads to feelings of deprivation and restriction, which can be difficult to cope with. For some people, dieting can trigger disordered eating behaviours, such as bingeing or purging. This can lead to a vicious cycle of yo-yo dieting. When you are constantly restricting your food intake, it can lead to feelings of obsession and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) around food.
So why do we keep turning to dieting as a way to lose weight? Part of it may be that we live in a society that values thinness and places a premium on being overweight. But whatever the reason, dieting is not an effective or sustainable solution for weight loss. If you're looking to lose weight, focus on making lasting changes to your eating and exercise habits.
That’s why the best weight loss program for men isn’t a diet; it’s habit formation--creating new eating habits and patterns that produce sustainable and permanent weight loss.
One of the reasons changing your eating habits can be more successful than dieting is that it allows you to create sustainable changes that you can stick with long-term. Dieting, on the other hand, often involves making drastic changes that are difficult to maintain over time.
Another reason why changing your eating habits can be more effective than dieting is that it can help you learn to listen to your body’s hunger cues. When you’re on a diet, you may tend to ignore your body’s signals that it’s hungry, which can lead to overeating or binging later on. However, if you’re attuned to your body’s hunger cues and are responsive to them, you’re more likely to eat only when you’re truly hungry – and as a result, consume fewer calories overall.
So, if you’re looking to lose weight in a healthy and sustainable way, you have to focus on making changes to your eating habits. Some simple changes you can make include eliminating distractions while eating, such as TV or work, so that you’re more aware of how much you’re consuming; putting your fork down between bites so that you eat more slowly and give your body time to register satiety cues; removing "food cues" that trigger hunger, like leaving addictive cookies on the counter where you can see them.
But those things are easier said than done. That's why you need eating habit formation programs that can help you achieve them. Our top two winners have proven methods to changing your eating habits--Neuroslim and
Mindful Eating.
Both of Neuroslim and Mindful Eating (courses are plentiful and can be found in apps like Headspace, courses by weight loss coaches, and online education classes) aim to change your eating habits. Both emphasize being attuned to your own body and hunger cues, and both advocate for making peace with food.
Both programs also encourage choosing foods that you truly enjoy and that make you feel good physically and emotionally. The focuses is always on the present moment, while learning to trust your own body's wisdom, addressing emotional eating habits and developing a healthy relationship with food.
Neither program involves any food restrictions and allows you to eat what you want, when you want it. This makes it much easier to stick to the programs, and make it more likely to lose weight and keep it off.
In the end, these two programs give you a far more powerful tool than dieting--NEW HABITS. Here's why that's important: When you're trying to make a change in your life, it's easy to believe that motivation and willpower (dieting) are all you need. But the truth is, developing new habits is often more effective than relying on these things alone.
When you have a habit, it's like having a mini-system in place that helps you accomplish your goal. Let's use a non-food example. Say you want to start working out regularly. If you develop the habit of going to the gym three times a week, then you don't have to rely on motivation or willpower to keep yourself going - the habit will do it for you.
It's often said that goals are dreams with deadlines. And while there's nothing wrong with setting goals, the fact is that they can be tough to stick to. This is because goals are often based on motivation and willpower - two things that can be hard to come by on a consistent basis.
Habits, on the other hand, don't rely as much on these things. Yes, it may take some motivation and willpower to develop a new habit in the beginning, but once it's established, it becomes much easier to maintain.
When you're trying to accomplish something using motivation and willpower alone, it's easy to get caught up in the short-term. You might be motivated to lose 10 pounds in the next month, but after that month is over, what's going to keep you going?
Habits, as taught by these two programs, on the other hand, help you stay focused on the long-term. Developing a healthy eating habit, for example, isn't about losing 10 pounds in the next month - it's about developing a healthy relationship with food that will last a lifetime.
One of the biggest benefits of habits is that they allow you to tap into your unconscious mind. This is the part of your brain that controls things like breathing and heart rate - things that you don't have to think about consciously.
When you develop a habit, you're essentially training your unconscious mind to help you accomplish your goal. So, if you want to develop a habit of exercising regularly, your unconscious mind will eventually start to kick in and lend a hand.
Have you ever noticed that some tasks are much easier to do when they're part of a routine? This is because habits can make difficult tasks easier.
For example, let's say you want to start writing 500 words every day. If you make it a habit, then the task will become much easier over time. This is because your brain will start to see the task as part of a routine, and it won't require as much effort to do it.
If you're stuck in a rut, habits can help you break out of your comfort zone. This is because they force you to do things that you wouldn't normally do - and this can be a good thing.
For example, let's say you have the habit of performing a ritual before you eat (a proven weight loss technique). This means that you have to leave your comfort zone (eating impulsively) and go to a place that's probably not all that comfortable (mindfulness). But by doing this, you're expanding your comfort zone and opening yourself up to new experiences.
If you want to make a lasting change in your life, then developing new habits is the way to go. This is because habits have the ability to change your identity - and when your identity changes, so does your behavior.
For example, let's say you're trying to develop the habit of working out regularly. In the beginning, you might see yourself as someone who doesn't work out - but as you start to work out more and more, you'll begin to see yourself as someone who does. And once your identity has changed, it will be much easier to stick to your new habit.
The Neuroslim weight loss course helps people break negative eating patterns by using techniques that have been developed by neuroscientists and published in peer-reviewed science journals. These techniques can help people slim down and improve their overall health by breaking negative eating patterns.
This is not a diet-based approach to weight loss, but rather a way to change your relationship with food, through easy-to-follow methods like the "Pause-Rate-Decide" method of managing cravings.
Mindfulness Eating courses help you be present in the moment and aware of what you're eating. Here's what you'll learn: First, pay attention to the taste, texture, and smell of your food, and savor each bite.
Secondly, eat slowly and mindfully, without distractions. This means putting away your phone, turning off the TV, and avoiding other distractions so that you can focus on your meal.
Lastly, listen to your body's cues and stop eating when you're full. Mindful eating is about being present in the moment and being aware of what you're eating. It's about enjoying your food and savoring each bite.
We see the difference between these programs as a matter of emphasis. Neuroslim is more prescriptive (do this, not that) while mindful eating is more intuitive and reflective.