10 best ways for men to accelerate weight loss
A lot of men find it difficult to lose weight because of the plethora of misinformation regarding fat loss. Another week is another whizz bang diet or a super supplement that promises to melt all the kilos away. But time and time again, these "strategies" fail to deliver any meaningful results, leaving men right back to where they started. To combat this, we've put together 10 ways you can accelerate fat loss as a male using the findings of science, to help you shed your fat as fast as possible!
1. Understand the importance of a consistent calorie deficit
Here's where a lot of men go wrong:
they eat very well Monday to Friday but on the weekend consume so many calories they put themselves back days.
they eat very well Monday to Friday but on the weekend consume so many calories they put themselves back days.
Here's what I mean:
Monday = they eat 1800 calories (and achieve a 500 calorie deficit)
Tuesday = 1800 calories (500 calorie deficit)
Wednesday = 1800 calories (500 calorie deficit)
Thursday = 1800 calories (500 calorie deficit)
Friday = 1800 calories (500 calorie deficit)
Total deficit = 2500 calories.
Now do that for two more days (Saturday and Sunday) and you'll achieve a 3500 calorie deficit.
And what's so exciting about 3500 calories?
Well a 3500 calorie deficit is roughly, half a kilogram of fat lost. And whilst this is not 100 percent accurate at all times, it's still a strong yardstick scientists continue to use.
But so many men consume their maintenance calorie intake by lunchtime on a weekend, and then eat a "cheat" meal at dinner.
In the example above, the maintenance calories were 1800. And it's not unusual for a 2000-3000 calorie dinner to take place for a "cheat" meal, which then accounts for a huge surplus.
For example, if you consume 2500 calories at dinner after 1800 for the day, that's a total of 4300 calories. That's a surplus of 2500. Divided by your daily deficit of 500 calories, and that's five days of dieting you're undoing!
So you're basically going backwards by having an intense cheat meal of that size.
This brings us back to our point; we need a CONSISTENT calorie deficit.
On the days you want to eat more, consume lean protein and greens only. This will give you a bigger buffer for your dinner, and not put you in a surplus that blows the doors down.
Consistency wins the race, not days of a deficit and periods of excess calories.
2. Make best friends with protein in your fat loss meal plan
If you want to stay full most of the time, make sure you're getting enough protein. Protein keeps you full better than carbohydrates and fat.
It's incredible how many men begin a fat loss diet and consume lots of salads, inadequate protein, and nibble on "low calories foods" thinking that's going to get them there.
Sure, low calorie foods help, but the most important thing when it comes to setting up a diet plan for weight loss is protein intake.
You need 2.3 - 3.1 grams of protein per kilogram of fat free mass per day. Now to make things simple here, just take your weight in kilograms and times it by two.
So if you weigh 80 kilograms, a great place to start is 160 grams of protein per day.
But here's what else you don't get told; you can overeat on protein largely, and still NOT gain weight.
Yep! Remember when all the weight loss experts used to tell you: a calorie is a calorie!
They had no idea what they were talking about.
Because protein is the king bee of macronutrients when it comes to what's called thermogenesis.
Thermogenesis is how many calories your body burns up in the process of having to create heat to digest it. And for protein, the rate is the highest:
Protein: 30% rate of thermogenesis.
Fat: 0-3%
Carbohydrates: 5-10%.
So consume 100 calories from the Workout Meals lean chicken for example, and you're really only consuming about 70 calories. This is because the other 30 calories (thanks to the 30% thermogenic rate) are being lost in the digestion process.
So when you get hungry, eat lean protein!
Here's a study that will blow you away; it gave trained subjects an 800 calorie surplus from protein powder for 8 weeks, and they gained no body fat at all!Take a bow, thermogenesis.
Some lean protein sources to favor (those of course, without fat and carbohydrates) are:
- Kangaroo
- Turkey
- Barramundi or canned tuna
- Whey protein powder
- Chicken breast
- Egg whites
- Beef jerky
Ensure you're getting a serving of at least 20 plus grams of protein per meal, and you'll be getting one of the very important things right.
3. Save your money on "fat loss" supplements -- most of them do nothing.
Ah, the dirty secret of the fat loss industry.
For decades, we've been told how so many of these pills, powders and potions are going to carve the fat off us like no other.
Here's the truth, none of them work directly to help you burn fat to a degree that's worth noting.
This review into fat loss supplements noted:
"While there are several dietary supplements being marketed for the use in weight loss via several different mechanisms of action, there is very little clinical evidence to support their use."
Protein powder, as we've just been through, indirectly helps you lose weight. Others like creatine will help performance and thus burn more calories, but there's nothing that's going to torch your fat anymore than old fashioned hard work.
4. Join a body transformation for men program like Workout meals 360
The Workout Meals 360 (WM 360) weight loss coaching program is the result of the company's years in the market and listening to consumers.
There's three factors to a successful strategy when it comes to losing belly fat:
1. Nutrition
2. Training
3. Motivation and knowledge
So, if you sign onto WM 360, you get:
1. A nutrition plan from a nutritionist (who also keeps you motivated!)
2. A personal trainer who designs a tailored gym workout plan to lose weight (and who keeps you motivated, too!)
3. Meals delivered to your door (and of your choosing!) from our team of restaurant quality chefs
When you put all this together, you get a workout plan for men designed to deliver one thing: results!
So you can just get on with your life, and lose the fat you want to.
5. Understand that cardio isn't critical and you can lose weight without it.
Another common mistake men make; they decide they want to lose weight and begin running copious amounts of kilometers with no other strategy.
Now whilst this burns a lot of calories, understand that if you don't like running, this is not something you need to do.
But if you love running, don't let us deter you from it.
But know this; whether or not you create a calorie deficit for weight loss from JUST dieting, or dieting AND exercise, the weight loss results are the same.
And if your goal is maximal muscle gains with minimal body fat, then forget cardio altogether.
Here's a scientific fact that's inconvenient for some: weights and cardio are basically oil and water.
This is because both work to take your body in a different direction. Performing endurance cardio with weights hinders muscle growth, strength, and explosiveness.
Your body either wants to prepare you for large runs, or prepare you for weight training. And it has a near impossible time trying to do both.
Doing both cardio and weights is what the average gym-goer would refer to as "losing your gains." And our scientist friends call it the concurrent training effect, or "the interference effect."
Your muscle fiber types actually change and adapt depending on the exercise you do.
And whilst your muscles aren't boy band fans necessarily, their signaling pathways like to stick to one direction.
That is to say, they prefer to be engineered to run long distances or lift heavy weights.
The enzyme AMPK and PKB (protein kinase B/Akt) both fight each other:
PKB: Reduces protein breakdown and activates protein synthesis (great for muscle growth)
AMPK: Increases glucose transport and mitochondrial protein; ideal for increases in endurance and cardiorespiratory fitness.
PKB: Reduces protein breakdown and activates protein synthesis (great for muscle growth)
AMPK: Increases glucose transport and mitochondrial protein; ideal for increases in endurance and cardiorespiratory fitness.
And these two simply block the signalling of one another.
6. Get serious about resistance training
This brings us to the next point -- assuming you don't want to do lots of cardio -- get serious about your weight training.
This is five days a week, no matter what, getting in there and doing your best.
Cardio just doesn't build muscle like weight training does. So if you want a physique with maximal muscle mass and limited fat, then resistance training coupled with a calorie deficit will get you there.
This strategy is also helpful in reducing the "skinny-fat" look that can come from lots of cardio and no weight lifting; a physique devoid of much muscle development and still some remaining body fat.
Resistance training will make you look as good as possible. Combined with weight loss, and you'll be on track for your best shape possible.
7. Understand there are no special weight loss diets
Every year, we hear about another superior diet that promises everything: more muscle growth, more fat loss, and the life span of a tubeworm (for the record, they live for 300 plus years).
And of course, all the celebrities are on it and vouch for it, too.
But guess what all of these diets have in common?
1. They allow for a calorie deficit
2. They prioritise protein intake
3. They (not all the time) are selling something in tandem with the diet to ensure "success."
Well, tattoo this on your stomach for all time:
The best diet to follow for weight loss is the one you can consistently stick to.
So that might be intermittent fasting, flexible dieting, the ketogenic diet, heck, even something like the paleo diet.
Weight loss comes down to a calorie deficit. The end.
So make sure you're getting enough protein and are in a consistent calorie deficit, and it's EASY to maintain, and weight loss will be yours.
8. Understand you can still have the snacks you want
In recent years, you've been lied to about sugar and how it automatically causes fat gains (regardless of whether or not you're eating more calories than you burn).
Luckily, those business and fraudulent "health experts" have largely disappeared.
But their BS still lingers (sadly).
And luckily, scientists got to work in trying to educate the public about the truth, like this review in 2014 that noted:
"Based on a thorough review of the literature, we demonstrate that fructose, as commonly consumed in mixed carbohydrate sources, does not exert specific metabolic effects that can account for an increase in body weight." (Sugar is made up of glucose and fructose).
Or one of my other personal favorite studies: when scientists put two groups of subjects on a diet containing 4% of their calories from sugar or 43%,the fat loss results are the same.
So how much sugar can we have a day?
Scientists say 20% of our daily calories is fine, as that doesn't water down our intake of essential micronutrients.
Again, it's moderation, and not demonising any particular foods.
9. Have a selection of low calorie sweets ready to eat at all times
Hunger can strike when you're dieting and sometimes when you least expect it.
So having a good quality whey protein powder ready to go at all times helps.
But so do other things like:
- Sugar free jelly (next to calories!)
- An array of diet soft drinks
- Pork crackling chips (there are some with about 35 grams of protein and 10 grams of fat only per serve!)
- Pikelets (just 10 grams of carbs and next to no fat per one!)
Keep an eye out for treats that are low in calories that you like the taste of, to keep you sane during your diet!
10. Forget motivation and focus on habit
Here's a strong piece of fitness advice: motivation comes from doing.
So if you go home from work to sit by the window, to wait for the next gush of motivation to blow in and take you to the gym, you'll be waiting forever.
Because the most consistent gym-goers don't necessarily feel motivated to train. They just do it. They form the habit; work finishes, they go.
Lunch break? They go.
First thing in the morning? They go.
They find their time and make it happen.
No. Matter. What.
Think of your gym program like brushing your teeth; no matter how much you feel like NOT doing it, just go and do it.
Motivation comes from doing. The first rep, the first set; it will give you the "motivation" to keep going.
All said and done, motivation is really for rookies.
So, there are ten ways to accelerate your fat loss results as a man, that aren't broadcast to you enough!
Best of luck on your fat loss journey!
References
Hall KD. What is the required energy deficit per unit weight loss?. Int J Obes (Lond). 2008;32(3):573-576. doi:10.1038/sj.ijo.0803720
Acheson KJ. Influence of autonomic nervous system on nutrient-induced thermogenesis in humans. Nutrition. 1993 Jul-Aug;9(4):373-80. PMID: 8400596.
Leaf A, Antonio J. The Effects of Overfeeding on Body Composition: The Role of Macronutrient Composition - A Narrative Review. Int J Exerc Sci. 2017;10(8):1275-1296. Published 2017 Dec 1.
Egras AM, Hamilton WR, Lenz TL, Monaghan MS. An evidence-based review of fat modifying supplemental weight loss products. J Obes. 2011;2011:297315. doi:10.1155/2011/297315
Strasser B, Spreitzer A, Haber P. Fat loss depends on energy deficit only, independently of the method for weight loss. Ann Nutr Metab. 2007;51(5):428-32. doi: 10.1159/000111162. Epub 2007 Nov 20. PMID: 18025815.
Häkkinen K, Alen M, Kraemer WJ, Gorostiaga E, Izquierdo M, Rusko H, Mikkola J, Häkkinen A, Valkeinen H, Kaarakainen E, Romu S, Erola V, Ahtiainen J, Paavolainen L. Neuromuscular adaptations during concurrent strength and endurance training versus strength training. Eur J Appl Physiol. 2003 Mar;89(1):42-52. doi: 10.1007/s00421-002-0751-9. Epub 2002 Dec 14. PMID: 12627304.
Wilson JM, Marin PJ, Rhea MR, Wilson SM, Loenneke JP, Anderson JC. Concurrent training: a meta-analysis examining interference of aerobic and resistance exercises. J Strength Cond Res. 2012 Aug;26(8):2293-307. doi: 10.1519/JSC.0b013e31823a3e2d. PMID: 22002517.
Nader GA. Concurrent strength and endurance training: from molecules to man. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2006 Nov;38(11):1965-70. doi: 10.1249/01.mss.0000233795.39282.33. PMID: 17095931.
Paddon-Jones D, Westman E, Mattes RD, Wolfe RR, Astrup A, Westerterp-Plantenga M. Protein, weight management, and satiety. Am J Clin Nutr. 2008 May;87(5):1558S-1561S. doi: 10.1093/ajcn/87.5.1558S. PMID: 18469287.
Baar K. Training for endurance and strength: lessons from cell signaling. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2006 Nov;38(11):1939-44. doi: 10.1249/01.mss.0000233799.62153.19. PMID: 17095927.
van Buul VJ, Tappy L, Brouns FJ. Misconceptions about fructose-containing sugars and their role in the obesity epidemic. Nutr Res Rev. 2014;27(1):119-130. doi:10.1017/S0954422414000067
Surwit RS, Feinglos MN, McCaskill CC, Clay SL, Babyak MA, Brownlow BS, Plaisted CS, Lin PH. Metabolic and behavioral effects of a high-sucrose diet during weight loss. Am J Clin Nutr. 1997 Apr;65(4):908-15. doi: 10.1093/ajcn/65.4.908. PMID: 9094871.
Gibson SA. Dietary sugars intake and micronutrient adequacy: a systematic review of the evidence. Nutr Res Rev. 2007 Dec;20(2):121-31. doi: 10.1017/S0954422407797846. PMID: 19079865.
Baar K. Training for endurance and strength: lessons from cell signaling. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2006 Nov;38(11):1939-44. doi: 10.1249/01.mss.0000233799.62153.19. PMID: 17095927.
van Buul VJ, Tappy L, Brouns FJ. Misconceptions about fructose-containing sugars and their role in the obesity epidemic. Nutr Res Rev. 2014;27(1):119-130. doi:10.1017/S0954422414000067
Gibson SA. Dietary sugars intake and micronutrient adequacy: a systematic review of the evidence. Nutr Res Rev. 2007 Dec;20(2):121-31. doi: 10.1017/S0954422407797846. PMID: 19079865.
