There is a lot of media attention on growing waistlines and the corresponding balloon in heart disease and diabetes. Modern men are generally not as active as their predecessors, since manual labor has been replaced in many cases by sedentary office jobs. By knowing how calories are needed and utilized in weight loss, men can make adjustments to their diets and exercise habits to shed pounds. Before embarking on a weight-loss regimen, it is recommended to consult with a licensed health care practitioner.
Deficit Calories
In order lose weight, you must create a calorie deficit. This means that you must consume fewer calories than what is needed to maintain your basic metabolism plus energy expended in physical activity. UCLA’s Student Nutrition (& Body Image) Action Committee explains that a pound of lost weight equals a 3,500 calorie deficit. To lose a pound per week, the calorie deficit must therefore be around 500 calories per day.
A good tip to estimate a man’s resting metabolic rate (RMR) is to multiply his healthy weight by 11. This number is then multiplied by an activity factor of 1.3 to 2.4, going from very sedentary to very active, to determine the number of calories needed to maintain that weight. Consuming less than should equal weight loss. These are rough guidelines, and RMR is modified by your genetic makeup, amount of muscle mass, and other factors. Talk to your doctor before embarking on a calorie-restricted diet.
Sufficient Calories for Metabolism
Cutting calories too much can be counter-productive to your weight-loss efforts. If a man consumes too few calories, his body slows down his internal workings to survive. The Student Nutrition (& Body Image) Action Committee states that this can cause a loss of lean body mass, which further slows down the metabolism and makes weight loss even slower. It can also increase appetite and cravings, leading to binge eating. Other effects of too few calories include sleep disturbance and testosterone reduction.
Calories Burned from Strength Training
In addition to increasing lean muscle mass, strength training continues to burn calories for up to two hours after the workout is completed, according to the University of Florida College of Health and Human Performance. As such, burning 300 calories doing resistance exercises like weights or push-ups will result in more fat loss than 300 calories burned from a cardiovascular exercise like jogging, because the calorie consumption continues for a while. Talk to your doctor to ensure resistance training can safely be incorporated into any existing treatment plan.
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