Can you lose fat & gain muscle at the same time??

ketofitnessmiranda

Hi! I've been eating keto for over two years now and been able to keep most of the weight off. However, I am now trying to lose the last 8 pounds and want to also gain muscle since I am training for a tough mudder. Has anyone had success eating keto and at a caloric deficit and also gaining muscle?? My workouts consist of mostly HIIT with a bit of mixed in cardio. I am following the tough mudder training guide currently. PS - Add me as a friend I like having others to motivate me and being a support person for others!

ccrdragon

If you eating at a deficit, it is very unlikely that you will add new muscle to your body (regardless of your diet choices).

However, you should not despair... you can increase endurance and strength, get faster, run farther, etc, simply by continuing your training. You just won't be adding very much muscle in the process.

I can tell you in my n=1 experience, I have increased my strength immensely since I started eating at a deficit (like doubled all of my major lifts), but by measurements, I have not added a significant amount of muscle to either my legs or arms during the process.

eta:
I would also add that the average muscle gain for a woman training with a progressive overload program in a high-intensity fashion (read 2-4 hours a day, 6 days a week) is 1 pound of muscle per month of training.

ketofitnessmiranda

@ccrdragon thank you for your response and insight! This was my feeling. I am keeping track of my measurements and taking progress pictures along the way so hopefully I will be able to see movement on more than just the scale with the body recomp. Strength and speed are definitely the biggest goals in terms of the upcoming race!

ccrdragon

Here is an interesting thread that goes into detail on your question, @ketofitnessmiranda ... give it a read when you have a chance:

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10611633/gaining-muscle-in-a-deficit/p1