There is no need for a man to spend hundreds of dollars on supplements to lose weight. A program based around resistance training, a modest amount of cardiovascular exercise and attention to your diet will work wonders. Your goal is to preserve muscle mass while burning fat, and this requires a little bit of effort and attention to detail, neither of which will cost you anything. Consult your physician before beginning any diet or exercise plan.
Move Iron for Big Results
Weight lifting is the best way to not only preserve lean muscle tissue but burn fat at the same time. If you do not maintain your muscle mass, your metabolism will slow, which will result in a decrease in your ability to shed body fat. So hit the weights hard, and use large, compound lifts such as the squat, deadlift, chin-up, row, bench press and military press. These lifts work the entire body and can be performed in minimal time. Keep your rest periods short to burn fat as well as stimulate your endocrine system to produce more testosterone, which is the primary growth, or anabolic, hormone. As a man, you will both build muscle, and preserve it, easier than a woman.
Cardiovascular Work
This is the type of exercise most people think of when they plan on losing weight, but there is no need to over complicate it. You will basically burn calories during the time you are exercising. Even a modest deficit of 250 calories a day burned through cardiovascular work equals about 1/2 lb. lost a week. While this may not seem like much, when combined with diet and resistance training, it can add up to quite a bit in short order. You should be able to condition yourself to tolerate a bit more impact when performing aerobic exercise, as men are less susceptible to stress fractures.
Diet
You need protein to repair your muscles after training and keep your metabolism up, which means beef, chicken, eggs, fish and milk. You need essential fatty acids such as omega-3 and omega-6, which means fish oil, flaxseeds, nuts and seeds. You need carbohydrates to refill muscle glycogen, or the sugar you burned during a workout, to not only help you recover but to provide energy for your next workout. You need to consume balanced meals and cut minimal calories, such as an additional 250 calories a day. Radical cuts in diet often cause radical problems. Start slowly, you can adjust your diet as you progress.
Programming
Everything must be properly integrated for maximal fat loss with minimal muscle loss. To avoid over training, you need to refuel immediately after lifting, which means this is not a good time to do cardiovascular work. Neither is before a workout, as you will be fatigued and at greater risk of injury. Your options are to do cardiovascular work on your off days, but if that is not enough, you can train twice a day. Do your cardiovascular exercise in the morning and lift in the evening. This has the additional benefit of boosting your metabolism twice a day, which many of us need.
References
- Journal of the American College of Nutrition: Beyond the Zone: Protein Needs of Active Individuals, Individuals
- PubMed.gov: Dietary omega-3 fatty acid supplementation increases the rate of muscle protein synthesis in older adults: a randomized controlled trial
- PubMed.gov: Decrease of Serum Total and Free Testosterone During a Low-Fat High-Fiber Diet
- PubMed.gov: Acute Hormonal and Neuromuscular Responses to Hypertrophy, Strength and Power Type Resistance Exercise
- PubMed.gov: Acute Testosterone and Cortisol Responses to High Power Resistance Exercise
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