Diet Dilemmas: Understanding Differences Between Men and Women

Let's face it: There are just some things men and women see differently.

Men, for the most part, simply don't get shoe shopping, chick flicks or the nuances between emerald and kelly green.

Women, on the other hand, tend to cringe at the Three Stooges, car chases and endless discussions about the art of outdoor grilling.

Similar chasms exist when it comes to losing weight, probably because a couple of popular perceptions loom large: Women have to starve to whittle down one dress size. Guys cut back on beer, head to the gym a couple of times and lose 10 pounds right away.

There are good reasons why these stereotypes remain, says Natalie Johnson, a certified fitness trainer from Apollo Beach, Fla. Women have to deal with the pounds childbirth brings. Men do get beer bellies. Gals focus on counting calories. Guys tend to lose by sweating off the pounds.

"Men want to be trim and strong, and women want to be toned and small," says Johnson, who focuses on weight loss as owner of the Fit Chick Enterprises and Stroller Strides fitness programs.

The attitude, self-image and emotional baggage brought to weight loss plays a big part for both sexes, says Mario Rodriguez, a Tampa psychologist who works with the Healthy Weight Clinic at the University of South Florida.

"Women may be more motivated by societal pressure and expectations ... but it's there for men too," he says.

And there's a lot more to understanding weight loss than gender, says Denise Edwards, the healthy weight clinic's director. Our nation's chronic obesity problem and obsession with quick-hit diets pervades all genders, cultures and age groups, she says.

"I would not use (gender) as a universal excuse," Edwards says.

To put potential gender-based rationalizations to rest, we asked fitness, medical and psychological weight loss experts to explain some basic truths about how men and women gain and lose weight.