Your Questions About Weight Loss Plans For Men

by Maricela on March 16, 2013

Linda asks…

How do I loss weight when my body won’t stop fighting me?

I am a mother of two and have had loads of trouble lossing weight and getting into shape. I recently tried the slim-fast diet and after 6 weeks ofno weight loss (or gain) i decided to quit because i was getting aggetated. I am at a stand still and I am very unhappy with my appearance. Does anyone out there have any tips on dieting without living on shakes and nutrition bars for the rest of my life? Possibley a way to increase my more then lost energy level?? I will try just about anything if I havent tried it already!!!!

Maricela answers:

I totally understand exactly where you are at cause I have been there. After my second child I had enough and was determined to get into shape. I hired a Personal Trainer for motivation and learnt so much. Here is the plan i followed good luck, you can do this cause I know it can be done.

If you want to do this it is for life so you need to totally change your way of eating and exercising. This is not a diet rather than a healthy eating plan for life. So no more talking diet cause it means time limit.

Here are the golden rules:
Initially cut down to 1200 (women) – 1500 (men) calories.
Exercise 6 times per week for 1 hours a day. Do three weight sessions and three cardio sessions. No gym involved if you don’t have the access.
Don’t eat carbs after 4pm, never eat carbs within 2 hours of exercise or within 1 hour of exercise.
Drink 3 litres of water per day. You can have a green tea at the end of the day.
Limit your fruit in take to 2 pieces per day.
Never eat dinner after 6pm.
Adopt of low GI eating plan this is sustainable for life!
Make low fat dairy choices

Follow this menu plan as a suggestion:
Breakfast 7am – 1 cup hot water w lemon
20 minutes later have a bowel of oats w water (no honey) OR
fruit salad w low GI soy yogurt
Snack 10am – pear or apple (both low GI)
Lunch 12.30pm – muligrain sandwich w 50g tuna & salad (no butter)
Snack 3pm – low GI yogurt OR skim berry smoothie (no honey or banana) plenty of ice, 1/2 cup skim milk & 1/4 cup yogurt
Dinner 5.30pm – 120g grilled lean meat/fish/prawns/tofu patties (not fried) w spinach salad & mixed vegies (no whites, carbs) OR 3 egg white/soy omlette with ham, cheese and tomato
Snack – 1 scoop of low cal low fat ice cream (if hungry)

Exercise is must be intense. Refer to for your weights routine. Never do weights two consecutive days have a cardio day in between.

Cardio needs to include running, go hard up stair wells and cycling. If you have access to a gym include boxing and spin classes as well. You get the most benefits from exercise when your body is totally fatigued and this is when you see changes.

To maintain you can increase calories to 1500 (women) – 1800 (men) and reduce exercise sessions to 3-4 times per week. If weight creeps up again due to holiday period etc.. Go back to 1200 (women) – 1500 (men) cal and 6 sessions again.

Good luck it worked for me it can work for anyone.

Helen asks…

Is the stomach the last place you lose weight at?

I have been exercising and dieting for a month now and have gone from 255 lbs. to 240 lbs. for a total loss of 15 lbs. The thing is I don’t really see any difference in my stomach area. Also will only eating one meal a day, lunch, have negative effects on weight loss and strength training instead of positive effects?

Maricela answers:

In men, the abdominal area is where the bulk of excess fat tends to be deposited. This has to do with genetic factors as well as physiological characteristics that have evolved over time. In women, by contrast, fat tends to get deposited in the thighs.

When you are in a calorie-restricted state, you will burn fat from all areas of your body in an attempt to close the “energy gap.” However, because you likely have more overall fat in your trunk than in your legs or arms, the fat loss in your stomach area will be less noticeable. It’s like removing a 1/2 cup of water from a container that has a gallon of water in it, versus removing the same amount of water from a container with a cup of water. The one with the less volume will be more noticeable, even though you’ve removed exactly the same amount of liquid from it.

That said, your eating plan really needs to change. Eating once a day is counter-productive and is probably already slowing down your ability to burn fat effectively. You should be eating your calories across six smaller meals. When you eat, your body has to not only expend calories just to digest your food, but it also lets your brain know that you aren’t starving and that it’s okay to tap into those stores of fat for additional energy. Right now, at one meal a day, your body thinks there’s a famine in the land and it’s actually tenaciously holding on to that stomach fat because it doesn’t know how long the famine might last.

Make sense?

Remember that a “meal” doesn’t have to be anything huge, so working or being on the go isn’t really an excuse for not being able to eat six times a day. For example, an apple with a couple tablespoons of natural peanut butter counts as a “meal” under this approach. So does a bowl of oatmeal with a scoop of protein powder, or a cup of low-fat cottage cheese and some almonds. The main thing is to always try to have a complex carb, a lean protein and some good fats in each meal.

By the way, congratulations on the 15 pounds — that’s no small feat. Change your approach to eating and you’ll really start to chip away at the belly.

Best of luck!

George asks…

What can I do to keep my weight loss from plateauing?

Every time I try to lose some weight, I eat right (and don’t starve myself–I know that’s bad), exercise often, and end up losing 6 or 7 lbs. and then can’t lose anymore. What can I do to keep this from happening?

Maricela answers:

When you consume an amount of calories equal to or greater than the amount you need, you will either break even or gain weight. It’s that simple. Therefore you have to slowly decrease the amount you consume per day. Set a weekly goal. Do not starve yourself or you will plateau or even gain. That’s how the body reacts.

With sensible eating and exercise, you can a large amount of weight over time. Also, the body will allow about two pounds of weight loss (not water weight) per week. Luckily for you, that will be about 32 lbs. Lost in four months. If this seems fast to you, then be happy, it can be done.

Think of it this way: “x” is the amount of calories you consume, “y” is what you burn. Only if x is less than y will you lose weight. It’s simple math.

There is a correct way and a wrong way to lose weight. When you consume too few calories per day, your body thinks that it’s facing a famine and it slows the metabolism, so that weight loss is more difficult. This ability has helped man survive for as long as we did. Although food is plentiful today, that feature has not changed.

Therefore, the right way to lose weight is to cut a few hundred calories per day and exercise. Doing one without the other leads to slow progress. Consume whole grains (100% whole wheat bread; plain “wheat” bread is not the real thing) and more fruits and vegetables. Exercise need not be intense; twenty minutes of brisk walking a day, three times a week will suffice. Keep to this plan and the weight will come off slowly but surely. Cutting 500 calories per day and exercising would lead to losing at least one pound per week. In addition, exercise helps speeds up the metabolism, eventually leading to quicker weight loss. But it won’t happen overnight.

Although you may want to diet, but a lot of diets require you to restrict yourself to certain foods or keep a very low calorie intake, which is why many diets fail. You could eventually lose weight by starving yourself, but not without hunger pangs, fatigue and possible blackouts. You may not want to wait, but in the long run, losing weight the correct way is actually faster than starving yourself.

Furthermore, other weight loss plans require that you spend money on expensive meal plans or pills, etc. In conjunction with exercising on your own. While the exercise is free either way, why spend you money on unnecessary things? You can simply do a brisk 20 minute walk through the neighborhood (at least three days a week) and eat healthier for about the same cost as what you spend on groceries already.

Finally, throw fatty snacks out of the house. Chips or cookies will not hurt you every now and then, but why have the temptation? Replace them with fresh fruits that can be eaten by hand, such as apples and bananas. In addition, only drink water, milk, and 100% fruit juices. When you’re out at the mall, avoid buying a quick snack. Don’t take a lot of money with you, just in case.

Laura asks…

What exercises or exercise program can I follow at home to overall tone my body?

I do need to lose some weight, (about 10 lbs) but I really need to tone my muscles overall. I think I can manage the weight loss, but I really need some direction on how to proceed with an exercise plan. I’ve seen several video programs available, namely Slim in 6, bit I’d rather invest in workout equipment, such as balls, elastic tubes, etc. instead of videos. I just need to know what to buy and how to use them. I would really like some specific suggestions, and some good web links would be great!
Also, we already have a set of free weights and a treadmill that my husband uses. But I don’t want to build bulk!

Maricela answers:

Here is a workout that you can do with a pair of dumbells and an exercise ball.

Also, even most men have a hard time become overly muscular and they have much more testosterone (the body’s steroid) than an average woman will ever have. In other words, you do not need to worry.

David asks…

What causes diabetes to get worse with weight loss?

My dad has been a diabetic for years and he has finally lost a lot of weight I mean the man wears a size 32 pants now and looks like a skeleton. His diabetes has gotten worse and he has had to go up on his medication. Anyone else ever experience this?

Maricela answers:

If hyperglycemia goes untreated, diabetic ketoacidosis is a complication that occurs when high levels of ketones build up in the blood and urine, according to University of Iowa Health Care. When your body does not produce enough insulin, the cells are unable to use glucose for fuel. As a result, the body begins breaking down fat for energy, a process, which produces ketones. Although the first symptoms of hyperglycemia can develop slowly, diabetic ketoacidosis is a medical emergency. Symptoms include loss of appetite, significant weight loss, frequent urination and confusion. Vomiting is another sign of ketoacidosis that requires immediate medical attention as loss of consciousness and coma can occur.

Gastroparesis is a condition where food moves slowly down through the digestive tract. High blood glucose levels can damage the vagus nerve over time. When this occurs, the muscles of the GI tract can no longer move food easily out of the stomach into the small intestine where it continues the digestion process. Symptoms of gastroparesis include loss of appetite, weight loss, heartburn, abdominal bloating, gastroesophageal reflux, nausea and vomiting undigested food. Additional symptoms such as high or low blood glucose levels and stomach spasms can occur. The condition makes blood glucose levels more difficult to control.

His medication has been adjusted but if these problems continue they should be addressed. There are tests that the doctor can give your dad in order to determine if there are other underlying conditions to his weight loss along with increasing the insulin. Talk to your Dad and have him speak to his doctor about testing to diagnose any other underlying conditions that are complicating his condition. There are medications for gastroparesis. Also you can have your dad see a dietician who can help him with his dietary meal planning suited for his individual needs. I can’t believe the doctor hasn’t referred him to a dietitian. It is a good thing you are looking out for your dad.

Hope this helps.

Powered by Yahoo! Answers

Leave a Comment

CommentLuv badge

Previous post:

Next post: