Many women think that weight loss for men is easier than it is for women. And maybe that is true, men do have more lean muscle mass on average then women. Lean muscle mass is the thing that can keep the metabolism burning hot which will help burn up those calories, but that is really only part of the picture.

You see, men have to deal with slowing metabolism as they age just like women do. In many cases it is caused by the same factors, loss of lean muscle mass. It doesn’t matter that they are male, weight loss for men will be just as challenging if they have less lean muscle mass.

The good news is that if you are really motivated, and you have the right information, there is a lot you can do to reverse this trend and stay in good shape throughout your life.

Here are some points to consider, they may just help a little:

1. Of course, the first thing you need to do before you start to workout, especially if you are over 40, is to go to your doctor and get a thorough physical. The last thing you want to have happen is to find you have some heart related issues after you start working out.

2. Get a plan, better yet, get a personal trainer. The more detailed you are in your workout routine, the more likely you will stick with it. Keeping a workout journal can be an excellent idea, especially when you are first starting.

And, as I said above, having a personal trainer teach you a good workout routine as well as the proper form to use during all the exercises will help you get the most out of each and every workout.

It may just keep you honest too. You will be less likely to slough off if your trainer is there ready to kick you in the butt.

3. Lose the notion of eating “3 squares a day”. That is not the best way to keep your body fueled throughout the day. Keeping your bodies furnace burning hot all day long is the best way to keep those unwanted love handles at bay. And the best way to keep that furnace burning hot all day long is to feed it.

Cut back on the carbs, get out of thinking that beef is a major food group and get in touch with the idea that fish is good for you.

Eat more fruits and vegetables and cut back on the beer and other alcohol. Hey, there has to be some sacrifices if you want to look great!

No matter what your age or current fitness level, weight loss for men can be accomplished and it doesn’t even have to be miserable. Just by making some simple changes to your daily routine you may be able to get back in much better shape. You can look better and feel better so it is worth the small sacrifices.

Tags: Butt, Calories, Eating Habits, Exercises, Fruits And Vegetables, Furnace, Good Shape, Heart, Lean Muscle Mass, Losing Weight, Love, Men Muscle, Muscle Women, Notion, Personal Trainer, Slowing Metabolism, Squares, True Men, Weight Loss, Workout Journal, Workout Routine —

OK, you are getting older and you are starting to see the dial on your scale creep up. You know it is not your fault, after all, we all know that slowed metabolism as women get older is something that just happens. Or is it? Is this an inevitable and irreversible side effect of getting older?

Well, I’m not a doctor and I can’t really say for sure but according to what I have read we don’t necessarily have to expect to have slowed metabolism as women get older. As a matter of fact, from what I read, in some ways we are causing the problem ourselves!

You see one of the biggest culprits of a slowing metabolism is the loss of lean muscle mass. As we age we stop being as active as we were when we were younger.

As we become more sedentary the lean muscle mass in our bodies decreases thus slowing our metabolism.

This issue is made worse when we start to see the numbers on the bathroom scale getting higher and higher. Many of us will then mistakenly try to cut down on our food intake.

This only makes things worse because then our body thinks that it is starving so it shuts down as much as possible to conserve energy.

Once that happens we are really heading in a downward spiral. We will continue to gain weight because our metabolism is slowing down so we panic and eat less thus slowing our metabolism down even more.

The good news is that there are a few simple things you can do to combat this trend, it does not have to be an inevitable part of aging.

Here are two of the best things you can do to reverse this trend and keep that trim figure you’ve had up until now:

1. Eat better. That can mean different things to different people. For some of you that will mean to eat less food in general. Some of you may need to cut way back on the amount of bad for you fast food that you eat.

Others may just need to eat more “organic” types of food and steer clear of the overly processed foods. That may include those frozen “good for you” dinners.

As a rule of thumb, anything that is already prepared is not that nutritious. You are almost always better off making all your food from scratch with natural, fresh ingredients.

2. Weight train. If you are wasting hours every week on the cardio machines at your local gym and not doing any weight training, you are wasting your time.

You see endless cycles of cardio can actually burn off your lean muscle mass. Have you ever seen a long distance runner? They look almost emaciated, they sure don’t look healthy. That is because they have very little lean muscle mass.

To really increase your metabolism you should add as much lean muscle mass as possible. And for crying out loud ladies, don’t fret about “bulking up”. You can’t. You don’t have the right hormones to “accidentally” get big. Even if you really wanted to it would be a challenge for most women, you sure aren’t going to do it accidentally.

These are the best ways to combat slowed metabolism as women get older.

Tags: Bathroom Scale, Culprits, Different Things, Downward Spiral, Fast Food, food intake;, Lean Muscle Mass, Losing Weight, Matter Of Fact, Slowing Metabolism, Types Of Food —