Lift while dieting or after?

Brynich

Hello everyone! I wanted to know, would it be better to:

a) lift weights in conjunction with dieting

OR

b) focus on dieting first, until a desirable body fat percentage is achieved, then focus solely on lifting weights thereafter (to bulk up).

Or is it that it doesn't matter and both routes will end up with the same (or similar) end-results?

Nightfall30

When you cut your calories, and eat at a deficit, you lose weight - some fat and some muscle. Lifting during that period helps to minimise loss of muscle. While you will not see significant changes with respect to muscle size when eating at a deficit, you'll be doing a plenty of good for your body in the long run - it's hard to build muscle anyway so it's best to not lose it in the first place. Furthermore, it's been observed that lifting alongside doing cardio is the best way to lose fat. The increased strength is just a massive bonus.

So, definitely a.

geekyjock76

You will have a less than desirable body fat percentage - relative to lean mass - without engaging in progressive lifting. If you are after the "toned" appearance, then minimizing loss of muscle mass is crucial. You can't really expose the underlying muscle tissue if you cause significant muscle atrophy to occur.

So assume a reasonable deficit appropriate for how much fat mass you have to lose (less fat mass=smaller deficit); eat 100% of your lean mass (lbs) in protein (grams) and lift using progressive resistance.

Brynich

Thanks for the quick responses. So would body weight exercises be enough while dieting to reduce the degree of muscle atrophy, or would "heavy duty" lifting be required?

geekyjock76

If you are a completely untrained person, body weight exercises may work initially and to some degree. But if you want to minimize loss of lean mass, then employing a progressive routine with heavier resistance will be more beneficial in that sense.

To start, check out the following books that are highly regarded and have been given much praise by lots of women here:

Starting Strength
New Rules of Lifting for Women

You can also look into Strong Lifts online.

Sarauk2sf

a)


You should do resistance training to mitigate muscle loss, as well as for a myriad of other benefits.

You do not need to 'lift heavy'. Do something which has progressive loading baked in (increasing the resistance) and works your full body.

If you do not have access to a gym, look into You Are Your Own Gym or Convict Conditioning

fushigi1988

Lift + small deficit. Get enough protein (at least 100 grams)
Why wait until you lose weight? The combo of exercise and healthy eating works better lomg term.