How do I lose fat while gaining muscle and what do I eat.

shawnstevennelson1988

I started lifting weights and have gained muscle and fat I feel. What can I do nutrition using this site to lose fat and gain muscle?

contingencyplan

Gaining muscle and losing fat at the same time is only possible when you're in the beginner phase of initially starting strength training. And as long as you're eating slightly below maintenance and training hard that'll happen on its own. After that initial phase ends though you can't focus on both at the same time. You've got to choose one or the other to focus on right now and address the other later.

metaphoria

Its a tricky balance to do both at once. I understand you have to eat at at a slight calorie surplus, and get 1 gram of protein per 1 pound of existing lean body mass. You can calculate your lean body mass with an online calculator and set your micronutrients goals on MFP to fit those calculations.

I suggest joining the mfp group called Eat Train Progress. Good help from great people with tons of information.

rassha01

Either focus on losing fat while maintaining lean mass or gaining lean mass and fat. Or research body re-composition.

ejsherms

I have found that as I am losing weight my muscles are beginning to make an appearance, they have been hiding under all that fat. So, I would focus on losing weight first while doing whatever exercise plan that suits you. You might want to check out http://www.nerdfitness.com/, they focus on a lifting exercise plan and a paleo diet. I am not a real paleo, but I like the exercise plans and they have some great inspirational stories of men and women losing massive amounts of weight and getting buff. Check it out and lose weight first so you can see the muscles you already have. Don't give up and Best of Luck!

AllanMisner

You most certainly can increase muscle while you lose fat, but as noted above, it is tricky. Losing fat is done almost exclusively through diet. If you continue to strength train while you cut back your calories, you should lose fat while you maintain and possibly increase muscle mass. I'd also recommend looking at what you're eating and how it affects you. Experiment with your eating and find the right balance. Stick to compound, heavy lifting to get your hormones working in your favor.

The way you'll know you're on the right path is when your waist measurement goes down when you're not losing much weight.

pinklipstick13

contingencyplan wrote: »

Gaining muscle and losing fat at the same time is only possible when you're in the beginner phase of initially starting strength training. And as long as you're eating slightly below maintenance and training hard that'll happen on its own. After that initial phase ends though you can't focus on both at the same time. You've got to choose one or the other to focus on right now and address the other later.

What do you mean by "below maintenance"?

ninerbuff

pinklipstick13 wrote: »

contingencyplan wrote: »

Gaining muscle and losing fat at the same time is only possible when you're in the beginner phase of initially starting strength training. And as long as you're eating slightly below maintenance and training hard that'll happen on its own. After that initial phase ends though you can't focus on both at the same time. You've got to choose one or the other to focus on right now and address the other later.

What do you mean by "below maintenance"?

TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) calories.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

AsISmile

I think the important question is, what is your weightgoal?

For weightloss:
To lose weight you need to eat at a calorie defecit to lose weight. If you don't do any resistance training while eating at a calorie defecit your weightloss will be both muscle and fat loss. If you do resistance training you will gain little to no muscle mass (only noob gains) because you eat at a defecit. To increase muscle mass you need to eat at a surplus.
However, it is definitely recommended to do resistance training while eating at a defecit to preserve the existing muscle. If you do this, almost all your weightloss will be fat loss. Furthermore, it will look like you have more muscle simply because the layer of fat covering your muscles is coming off. Eating enough protein, about a minimum of 0.8 gram per pound of bodyweight will help you in preserving those muscles.
https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10232698/muscle-gaining-misconceptions

For maintenance:
Some people reach their goal weight and don't want to lose more weight but do want to look more muscular and less fat. For those people recomp can be a solution. It basically is losing fat and gaining muscle while eating at maintenance. It is a very slow process that can take years.
More info on this in the recomp thread in the maintenance sub forum.

As to lifting weights, for either of these two to work you need to follow a progressive overload program. Also, if you are new to lifting a full body program rather than an upper/lower split is best. Which program are you following?
I'll list some of the recommended beginner programs here:
- stronglifts 5x5
- Icf 5x5
- New rules of lifting
- Starting strength

Hope this helps.

sheldonklein

Alan Misner - I know from prior posts that you are very knowledgeable, but your opinion here is so out of line with the MFP orthodoxy that I would appreciate if you could elaborate on the basis for your opinion.

DR2501

Interesting article I found yesterday which is on topic here - wonder what people's thoughts are?

http://www.muscleandfitness.com/nutrition/lose-fat/death-bulk-and-cut-diet