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Why Losing Weight is More Difficult for Women Than Men

Why Losing Weight is More Difficult for Women Than Men

Are you trying to lose weight? If your answer is yes, you’re not alone. Nearly 50% of American adults try to lose weight every year — but not everyone achieves the success they’re hoping for.

Achieving a healthy body weight is a noble goal. Losing extra pounds can increase your mobility, reduce your risk of chronic health issues, and help you feel better about yourself. But if you’ve tried to lose weight without success, you know that losing weight isn’t easy.

For women in particular, losing weight and keeping it off can seem like an impossible goal. It’s frustrating to diet and exercise to no avail while you watch your husband, boyfriend, brother, or male friends drop weight like it’s nothing.

Women lose weight differently than men, but achieving your goals is possible. With prescription weight loss programs for women, Daniel Moghadam, MD and our team at Modern Aesthetica are here to help.

Understanding the elements of weight loss for women

Your metabolism is the process that converts calories from the food you eat into energy for your body. You need energy from calories for your body to function at its best, but if you regularly eat more calories than your body needs, you’ll gain weight.

In the simplest terms, weight gain occurs when you consume more calories than you burn. Your body still converts those extra calories into energy, but the energy is stored as fat and your weight goes up.

You burn calories constantly, even when you’re sleeping. While the average person burns about 1,800 calories per day, your metabolism is unique — and there are numerous factors that affect how well your body uses energy and how easy it is to lose extra weight.

One of those factors is your gender. Women often find that losing weight is much more difficult for them than it is for men, and it’s due in large part to body composition and hormonal changes.

Body composition

Body composition is the ratio of muscle to fat in your body. In general, women have more body fat and less muscle mass than men, and this affects how easy it is for you to lose weight.

When you have more body fat, losing extra fat is more difficult. Your metabolism is slower, which means you burn fewer calories while at rest. On the other hand, having more muscle means your metabolism is faster and your body burns extra fat more quickly.

Hormonal changes

Women experience a series of biological and hormonal changes throughout their lives, and these events can also make weight loss more difficult. Many women gain body fat when they get pregnant, and shedding that weight after the baby is born isn’t easy.

Even if you don’t have children, menopause is a process that every woman experiences at the end of her reproductive years. During menopause, you may gain extra weight around your middle, and hormonal changes make maintaining a healthy weight more challenging.

Up to 15% of women in the United States have polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) during their reproductive years. PCOS is a reproductive condition that triggers hormonal imbalance that often causes weight gain and makes losing weight very difficult.

It’s time to try personalized weight loss support

Struggling to lose weight is frustrating, and carrying excess weight could be damaging to your health. The good news is that you don’t have to keep trying to lose weight all on your own. 

Dr. Moghadam and our team at Modern Aesthetica specialize in personalized prescription weight loss programs. We take a comprehensive approach to weight loss, and we evaluate all the factors that are contributing to your situation.

Your weight loss program starts with a full assessment of your health. We discuss your current diet, exercise habits, and sleep patterns, as well as medical markers like:

After we review your health and your weight loss goals, we develop a weight loss program just for you. We’re proud to bring a suite of weight loss services to our patients, and we offer:

Dr. Moghadam maintains close contact with you throughout your weight loss program. You have regular in-office appointments for accountability, and you have direct access via email for any questions you may have.

Stop struggling to lose weight on your own. Partner with our team at Modern Aesthetic and start seeing real results. Call our Santa Monica, California, office at 310-975-3918 or send us a message online to get started.

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