Loosing Weight or Gaining Muscle?

annemariemk4

I have around 25lbs I want to loose but would love to gain muscle .... having a hard time figuring out what to do.
I hear you should concentrate on loosing the weight first and then gain muscle.
Others say do both at the same time.

Would 1200 calories daily be too low to gain muscle?

onefortyone

I'm going to say that since 1200 calories is about what they'd put in your IV if you were in a coma, that yes, it's too low to gain muscle. I doubt people wake up from comas all buff.

TeaBea

I have around 25lbs I want to loose but would love to gain muscle .... having a hard time figuring out what to do.
I hear you should concentrate on loosing the weight first and then gain muscle.
Others say do both at the same time.

Would 1200 calories daily be too low to gain muscle?

Most people will agree it's extremely difficult to gain muscle while eating at a deficit.

1200 would very likely be too low. Unless you're older & petite....your BMR is higher than 1200. Which means you are likely losing muscle + fat while dieting.

Body recomposition - replacing fat with muscle. This is a slow process & calorie deficits are very small. I strength train, eat at a small deficit, eat lots of protein.....in the hopes of keep as much muscle as I can.

thavoice

I have around 25lbs I want to loose but would love to gain muscle .... having a hard time figuring out what to do.
I hear you should concentrate on loosing the weight first and then gain muscle.
Others say do both at the same time.

Would 1200 calories daily be too low to gain muscle?

Would may be a bit low to gain much muscle, but weight training will help you burn some calories and more importantly keep the muscles that you already have.

Start working out with weights and you wont be disappointed.

RGv2

Gaining Muscle is EXTREMELY HARD, it takes hours of work, an on point diet (including a caloric surplus).....for guys, it's EXPONENTIALLY harder for women to gain muscle.

You shouldn't try to "do it at the same time".

When you eat at a deficit you lose water, fat, and muscle. Lifting in that deficit maintains muscle mass you already have so that you lose mostly water and fat, uncovering the muscle.

Why would you want to get to some predetermined weight and then put in ALL the work it takes to gain a miniscule amount of muscle when you already have it and just need to work to maintain it?

annemariemk4

Thank you so much for your advice/information/tips.
Looks like weight training it is, it'll be worth the long process! :happy: