It may be a touchy subject for a lot of men, but man boobs, or "moobs", are not uncommon. Up to 10 percent of the male population — a million Australian men — will develop man boobs (clinically called gynecomastia) at some stage in their life.
Fitness and nutrition expert Libby Babbet from Bottoms Up Fitness gives her ultimate action plan for turning "moobs" into pecs.
Nutrition tips
First up, it's important to understand that those of you with a case of the man boobs are very likely to have high aromatase levels. Aromatase is an enzyme that is involved in the conversion of muscle-building hormone testosterone to boob-friendly hormone oestrogen. In order to turn those moobs back into pecs, you're going to have to lose the aromatase and that means reducing insulin levels.
High protein, low-carb diet is a must! Switch bread, pasta and rice for nutrition-packed vegies and plenty of lean protein.
Ditch the beer! I know it hurts to read those words but believe us, super-oestrogenic beer will have you heading to the ladies underwear section quicker than you can say "double-D cup". If you must have a drink, reach for a glass of red wine, which actually prevents aromatisation. Strike up another point for red!
No more soy milk. The isoflavones contained in soy can mimic an oestrogen effect, and let's face it guys, this one's embarrassing to order with your daily coffee anyway so why not just forget about it altogether (watch the video below to see what turned Jeremy Piven off soy!)
Up the zinc. Ninety-nine percent of the time, men with man boobs are super low in zinc, the ultimate anti-aromatase! So find a good zinc supplement quick-smart.
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Exercise ideas
Burn fat. Anything that gets your heart rate up will burn fat and that's a good thing when it comes to shaving that extra padding from your chest (and everywhere else). Think interval training — sprints, fast-paced circuit training and challenging, whole-body weights work-outs are all winners.
Push ups. First things first — beginners should start with the humble push-up when it comes to building strength in the chest. Ready to graduate? Move on to exercises that target both the upper and lower pecs — the incline bench press is best at building up the former and latest studies show that the flat bench press is more effective at building solid lower pecs than the decline press.
Keep it balanced. Make sure you also work opposing muscle groups to keep your body in balance, so alternate chest exercises with chin-ups, rows, pull-downs or cable pulls for your back.
Learn more about surgical procedures for gynecomastia.
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