Weight loss is seen as a challenging journey by many, and it seems like it tends to take a toll more on women! Well, it’s not a weight-loss myth. You must have noticed that a woman and her partner might start their weight-loss journey together. But the woman might find it harder to lose weight than the man. There are reasons why weight loss is harder for women than men. But it doesn’t mean that women don’t lose weight at all. They should stick to trying healthy weight loss tricks.
Weight loss comes easily to some and with a lot of difficulties to others. It turns out, women are usually in the latter group. HealthShots contacted Khushboo Jain Tibrewala, a nutritionist, lifestyle coach and diabetes educator, to know why women find it harder to lose weight than men.
Reasons why weight loss is difficult for women
1. Female body is designed to store more fat than males
You might be wondering why God would want women to store more fat than men. This is because we need the extra fat for childbirth, hormone production as well as breastfeeding, explains Tibrewala.
2. Emotions come in the way of weight loss journey
Women, as well know, are the more emotional gender. With every rise and drop in emotions, your body goes through a cascade of hormonal changes. This makes the fat loss even harder.
3. Women have lower muscle mass than men
Muscles are the active component of the body, and the higher the muscle mass, the more calories one can burn by default. Since women have lower muscle mass than men, weight loss becomes a relatively slower process.
4. Women tend to have a lot more on their plate than men
The expert, who is the founder of The Health Pantry, notes that we cannot forget the social angle to all this. Women generally have a lot more on their plate since they are managing work, home, family, kids, social obligations and much more. So, they are more prone to reaching out for a convenient snack that might not be a healthy choice. They might even eat unhealthy foods when stressed or emotional.
Diet women should follow for healthy weight loss
A diet is supposed to be a simple food routine that one can follow for years. So, a diet that will aid weight loss should focus on providing the right nutrients at the right time in the right quantity. This is one principle rule that no one should lose sight of at any point, stresses the expert.
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Every person has unique requirements and hence, needs a unique diet. But a simple format that most people can follow is:
• Start your day with a litre of warm water.
• After 1 hour, have a glass of celery, ginger and lime juice.
• For breakfast, have boiled sprouts or beans of choice with some seasoning along with one tablespoon of sunflower seeds and one tablespoon of sesame seeds and half a citrus fruit.
• Mid-morning, drink black tea or matcha tea.
• For lunch, eat one small ragi roti, one cup of Amti (dal with kokum), one cup of cooked vegetables and one spoon of regular pickle or chutney.
• In the evening, eat 2-3 Brazil nuts with a fruit or dhokla with coconut chutney or bhel with peanuts.
• For dinner, a palm sized piece of tofu or fish or a cup of beans or two dal cheelas with a bowl of vegetables as soup, salad or a regular Indian style sabzi will do.
• After dinner, drink a cup of ginger and chamomile tea.
Healthy exercises for weight loss
Resistance training is most important when it comes to healthy weight loss, says Tibrewala. You can do no-equipment exercises as follows:
1. Squats – 20 repetitions
• Keep your feet about shoulder-width apart
• Screw your feet into the floor and engage your core.
• Go down from your hips, pushing the hips back and ensuring your knees don’t go over your toes.
• Go as low as you can and hold for a breath.
• Come up to the quat stance.
2. Inchworm exercise – 15 repetitions
• To do the inchworm exercise, stand with your feet and hip width apart.
• Bend from your waist, placing your palms flat on the mat or floor and bending your knees as you do so.
• Now walk out with your palms to come into a plank.
• Hold here for a breath and start walking back towards to your toes.
• Come back up to the initial position and then repeat the steps.
3. High knees – 30 seconds
• Stand with your feet and hip width apart.
• With your hands on your side in running pose, start lifting your knees towards your chest such that the thighs are parallel to the floor, one knee at a time.
• If your body allows then add a bounce at your ankle to mimic spot jogging.
4. Jumping jacks – 30 seconds
• Start with your feet and hip width apart and your hands by your side.
• Now jump to shift your legs to wide stance and your hands above your head.
• Jump back to starting position and repeat this as fast as you can.
5. Crunches – 25 repetitions
• With your knees folded, lie down on the mat or floor.
• Place your palms under your hand and engage your core.
• Take a deep breathe in then as you breathe out, lift your head and shoulder blades.
• Now bring your head back down, breathing in and then repeat the steps.
