fitness coach; It's a guy thing

Men have it easy - we're less prone to fat than women, and we're not under constant pressure to lose weight. But that's no excuse for growing a beergut and eating all the pies Last week we covered the female fat cell, how it works, and how it seems to make a beeline for the hips, thighs and backside. The most frustrating piece of information must have been that the more you diet, the less readily your fat cells will give out fat.

A man, on the other hand, could diet for a fortnight on cabbage soup and lose lots of weight without affecting his fat cells in the slightest. I know that isn't fair, but it's a fact of life. Men don't have super-thin supermodels as supposed role models (although we do like to look at people like Jennifer Aniston and her Friends). Consequently, we don't have the same inclination to shed pounds on the latest three-day miracle detox diet or to wrap ourselves in seaweed, get liposuction or a have a boob job.

In my experience, men want to increase muscle size more than they want to be thin. I'm sure you will correct me if I'm wrong, but men don't buy lads' magazines to see what insecure young women like Jordan and Geri Halliwell are wearing - it has more to do with what they are not wearing. And men don't like stick-thin women, despite what many women think. It was interesting to note the findings of a recent study: when a man left his wife for another woman, most women wanted to know whether the other woman was thinner than them.

Men rarely diet. We don't have the same social or psychological pressure to lose weight as women and our beer-bellies are bought and paid for. That last statement is definitely a macho one - but how many times have you heard that rubbish sprouted by some builder or guy down the pub who actually likes his beer belly? Science offers few answers as to why men store fat predominantly around their stomachs. One educated theory is that the availability of fat at the middle of the body makes it easier to transport it to the muscles to be used as energy. Another (less educated) theory is that a beer- belly would look pretty silly sitting on your shoulder.

The so-called beer-belly is a myth. Your body can store carbohydrates, protein and fat, but not alcohol. Any alcohol you consume is used as a source of energy - or you simply excrete it. So if alcohol cannot be stored in the body, what is hanging over your trousers? Fat. It's quite easy to explain. If your body uses the alcohol that you consume first, then the food you graze on afterwards - crisps, peanuts, a kebab or a fry-up - cannot be used as energy.

The body always has a fat cell willing to store as much fat as possible and where does it store it? That's right - that spare tyre that sits around your slowly increasing waist.

So what about teetotallers? Whether you drink alcohol or not, age and exercise are important factors. Men tend to slow down as they reach their thirties, when they take on responsibilities such as mortgages and senior positions at work, or get married and have children. Before they know it, the lifestyle that kept them thin and beer-belly-free has declined - and they also have to deal with a slower metabolism and muscle shrinkage. That's when the trouser size starts to escalate.

Men don't usually worry about diets or unhealthy lifestyles until they find themselves facing a health problem. But we should be aware that Scotland is the heart-attack capital of the world. We have more heart-related problems and heart disease than any other country. I should point out that being overweight or having a beer-belly does not, in itself, add to the probability of suffering from one or more of the rising health problems such as heart disease, sleep apnea, high blood-pressure, late-onset diabetes, back pain or a lower-than- usual sex drive.

One thing that does go against us guys is that although our fat in our belly is very easy to transport to the muscles to be used as energy, it doesn't travel straight back to the fat cells. Some of it is likely to stick to the artery walls and in time it could and probably will lead to a blocked artery. Having a large beer-belly could put the pancreas under severe pressure too - and that can cause late-onset diabetes.

More guys should address the beergut issue before it becomes a problem. Make some changes now. They could improve your longevity, give you a healthier lifestyle and reduce your chances of heart problems and similar problems in later lifeu Next week: learning to eat healthily Trim For Life Author Garry Egger Price # 4.99 Rating 4/ 5 Suitable for both genders and is not biased to age. Contains enough tips to last a lifetime and that's the whole idea. This book gives enough insight into nutrition, exercise, behavioural influences and rip off merchants. Egger is a one-off, he has written a book that is practical and easy to read. Unlike many books based on weight loss or dieting, there are no diets and no "lose it quick" schemes. The only thing I'd suggest is that you don't try all the tips at once.

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