Is "Gender Specific" Weight Loss Information Useful?

When I first tried Body for Life: 12 Weeks to Mental and Physical Strength (BFL), the only available "program" was definitely designed with the male body in mind (although many women used it successfully). Later, however, they created a Body for Life for Women: A Woman's Plan for Physical and Mental Transformation program. But do women really need the gender specific advice?

Although I believe that there are natural differences between female and male bodies--especially when it comes to things like muscle mass and body fat percentage--I also tend to think that basic weight loss advice can be applied to both genders.

The basic premise of the "male" BFL program is this:

• Eat frequent, small meals of "clean" foods
• Exercise regularly, including both strength training and cardio components
• Limit "cheat" meals to once a week

In my humble opinion, this should work for both men and women.

I recently purchased a copy of both BFL (for the third time... I always give away my copy) and BFL for Women (thinking about losing that baby weight!). Once I read both, I'll report back here as to the differences between the two programs.