Men face mixed fortunes when gearing up for the war on belly fat. On the positive side, they naturally have a lower percentage of body fat then women.
Ideally, a man should have a body fat percentage between 6 – 17%. For women, the numbers are much higher, between 14 – 24%.
Men also tend to lose weight much more swiftly then their unfortunate female weight loss partners. The male body is typically comprised of more muscle fiber than the female body, and muscle is much more metabolically active than fat, meaning that a pound of muscle burns many more calories than fat throughout the day.
Men Are More Prone to Larger Belly
Unfortunately, the belly fat outlook isn’t entirely rosy for males. While men tend to have a lower body fat percentage overall, the fat they do have is often stored in the stomach area, which makes this mid-section fat much more dangerous than fat stored in other areas of the body.
Then there's the body shape: While women tend to be “pear-shaped”, meaning they store their fat in their thighs and rear, men have the unlucky tendency toward a more round, or “apple” shape. There’s a reason a big belly is well known as a “beer gut” and not a “chocolate gut.”
Men who have a protruding bellys have to be especially concerned about their health and need to educate themselves about the dangers of belly fat.
Belly and Visceral Fat
Excess mid-section fat, called
visceral fat, surrounds the vital organs and releases dangerous hormones that can cause diseases such as diabetes, cancer, heart disease and metabolic disease. The bigger the belly, the more at risk you are, and the more damage your belly is doing to your overall health.
All is not lost. Beer guts can be banished just like other types of fat with good diet, fitness and lifestyle habits.
Remember men, you lose weight much easier than women, so if you are ready to tackle your belly fat, you have a good chance of seeing results more quickly than your wife or girlfriend. Just try not to rub it in!
