I need a hug and someone to tell me i'm wrong

mantium999

Of course you can build muscle while eating at a deficit.

Weight-lifters are so superstitious...

Uh oh. DUCK!!! You just opened an MFP sh!tstorm. Yeah, you may want to be prepared to back up that statement, or not return to this thread, because as a general rule, building muscle while in a deficit, even if it can be done, is quite often very minimal and inefficient.

Seems I like commas today

I didn't say it was efficient...

There's no reason to not-lift while in a deficit trying to lose fat. You will at least reduce muscle loss and at best make small gains.

And yes, weightlifters *are* superstitious. That's why there are so many products out there trying to take advantage of weight lifters, promising greater bulk for the effort or whatever. There's a whole industry out there that spends its time generating superstitions among weight-lifters in order to sell them some new "nutritional supplement" and make them fear they'll lose their gains if they stop using said product.

There's too much financial conflict of interest, with trainers endorsing certain products & dealing in them, etc...it's to their advantage to foster a belief in financially favorable disinformation.

And of course not all trainers. But it doesn't have to be all trainers--just enough of them to spread confusion.

I was referring to the part of "build muscle while eating at a deficit". Everything else you just added has nothing to do with your original comment. This part "There's no reason to not-lift while in a deficit trying to lose fat. You will at least reduce muscle loss and at best make small gains." is absolutely correct though.

_BearNecessities_

Of course you can build muscle while eating at a deficit.

Weight-lifters are so superstitious...

Uh oh. DUCK!!! You just opened an MFP sh!tstorm. Yeah, you may want to be prepared to back up that statement, or not return to this thread, because as a general rule, building muscle while in a deficit, even if it can be done, is quite often very minimal and inefficient.

Seems I like commas today

I didn't say it was efficient...

There's no reason to not-lift while in a deficit trying to lose fat. You will at least reduce muscle loss and at best make small gains.

And yes, weightlifters *are* superstitious. That's why there are so many products out there trying to take advantage of weight lifters, promising greater bulk for the effort or whatever. There's a whole industry out there that spends its time generating superstitions among weight-lifters in order to sell them some new "nutritional supplement" and make them fear they'll lose their gains if they stop using said product.

There's too much financial conflict of interest, with trainers endorsing certain products & dealing in them, etc...it's to their advantage to foster a belief in financially favorable disinformation.

And of course not all trainers. But it doesn't have to be all trainers--just enough of them to spread confusion.

su·per·sti·tion (noun): a belief or way of behaving that is based on fear of the unknown and faith in magic or luck : a belief that certain events or things will bring good or bad luck

:huh:

PikaKnight

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/adding-muscle-while-losing-fat-qa.html

http://body-improvements.com/2013/09/04/can-you-build-muscle-and-lose-fat-at-the-same-time/

http://body-improvements.com/2012/08/22/qa-how-can-i-go-about-building-some-muscle/

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/training/weight-training-for-fat-loss-part-1.html

Liftng4Lis

Uh oh. DUCK!!! You just opened an MFP sh!tstorm. Yeah, you may want to be prepared to back up that statement, or not return to this thread, because as a general rule, building muscle while in a deficit, even if it can be done, is quite often very minimal and inefficient.

Seems I like commas today

In for the sh*tstorm!

LAT1963

Of course you can build muscle while eating at a deficit.

Weight-lifters are so superstitious...

Uh oh. DUCK!!! You just opened an MFP sh!tstorm. Yeah, you may want to be prepared to back up that statement, or not return to this thread, because as a general rule, building muscle while in a deficit, even if it can be done, is quite often very minimal and inefficient.

Seems I like commas today

I didn't say it was efficient...

you're right- you said it couldn't be done at all.

Actually, I said you COULD build muscle when eating at a calorie deficit.

Your muscles are going to use micronutrients and energy in the form of glucose and triglycerides from your blood. They don't care how those things got into your blood, just that they are sufficiently present to respond to the "build" signal exercise produces.

If you are eating a calorie-deficit with sufficient micronutrients, you will be breaking down fats to get your blood chemistry into the right ranges--at which point your muscles don't care where the things they need came from--food or fat-breakdown. If they are present in the blood then your muscles can respond to exercise in the normal fashion.

I am not aware of any hormonal situation caused by burning fat that would shut down building muscle. (By contrast there are hormonal reasons that you can't have high sugar in your diet and burn fat--high insulin levels shut down fat-burning; also chemical reasons you can't have a zero carb diet and burn fat--you can't manufacture the sugar-chain backbones of triglyderides which transport fats out of storage without a small amount of carbohydrate to work with.)

add: re "superstition"--in this case I mean the belief that a particular product or practice is the 'magic bullet' which allowed your lifting program to succeed, and without which it will fail.

mantium999

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/adding-muscle-while-losing-fat-qa.html

http://body-improvements.com/2013/09/04/can-you-build-muscle-and-lose-fat-at-the-same-time/

http://body-improvements.com/2012/08/22/qa-how-can-i-go-about-building-some-muscle/

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/training/weight-training-for-fat-loss-part-1.html

Good stuff right here.

Blacklance36

I doubt you'll lose 50 lbs in 10 months. Assuming you'll love 1 lb every week is awfully optimistic.

Hope this helps.

Sounds like a challenge...but it can be done.
"hugs"

Ang108

Of course you can build muscle while eating at a deficit.

Weight-lifters are so superstitious...

Wow, it seems you can make something out of nothing......:o). Would you please share your secret ?
I bet people would be willing to pay and you could be a millionaire before you build a couple of pounds of muscle.
Just joking........you need to however back up your statement and that will be really difficult.

Early_Riser

I doubt you'll lose 50 lbs in 10 months. Assuming you'll love 1 lb every week is awfully optimistic.

Hope this helps.

Why not? I see plenty of people that do that..

BombshellPhoenix

Of course you can build muscle while eating at a deficit.

Weight-lifters are so superstitious...

Uh oh. DUCK!!! You just opened an MFP sh!tstorm. Yeah, you may want to be prepared to back up that statement, or not return to this thread, because as a general rule, building muscle while in a deficit, even if it can be done, is quite often very minimal and inefficient.

Seems I like commas today

I didn't say it was efficient...

you're right- you said it couldn't be done at all.

Actually, I said you COULD build muscle when eating at a calorie deficit.

Please, do tell me your secret or I've been bulking in vain. You mean I could've built muscle in my 9 months of cutting 53 lbs and lifting and skipped bulking? At what point after CNS adaptation does my body create something out of nothing?

BombshellPhoenix

I doubt you'll lose 50 lbs in 10 months. Assuming you'll love 1 lb every week is awfully optimistic.

Hope this helps.

Why not? I see plenty of people that do that..

I lost 53 lbs in 9 months...

Early_Riser

So have I

ninerbuff

Of course you can build muscle while eating at a deficit.

Weight-lifters are so superstitious...

Well no. Possible, yes, but lingers more in the realm of improbability.

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

JoRocka

Of course you can build muscle while eating at a deficit.

Weight-lifters are so superstitious...

Uh oh. DUCK!!! You just opened an MFP sh!tstorm. Yeah, you may want to be prepared to back up that statement, or not return to this thread, because as a general rule, building muscle while in a deficit, even if it can be done, is quite often very minimal and inefficient.

Seems I like commas today

I didn't say it was efficient...

you're right- you said it couldn't be done at all.

Actually, I said you COULD build muscle when eating at a calorie deficit.

Your muscles are going to use micronutrients and energy in the form of glucose and triglycerides from your blood. They don't care how those things got into your blood, just that they are sufficiently present to respond to the "build" signal exercise produces.

If you are eating a calorie-deficit with sufficient micronutrients, you will be breaking down fats to get your blood chemistry into the right ranges--at which point your muscles don't care where the things they need came from--food or fat-breakdown. If they are present in the blood then your muscles can respond to exercise in the normal fashion.

I am not aware of any hormonal situation caused by burning fat that would shut down building muscle. (By contrast there are hormonal reasons that you can't have high sugar in your diet and burn fat--high insulin levels shut down fat-burning; also chemical reasons you can't have a zero carb diet and burn fat--you can't manufacture the sugar-chain backbones of triglyderides which transport fats out of storage without a small amount of carbohydrate to work with.)

add: re "superstition"--in this case I mean the belief that a particular product or practice is the 'magic bullet' which allowed your lifting program to succeed, and without which it will fail.

You're correct. I absolutely ot my negative's mixed up- my apologies.


But you're still wrong.
There is a distinct reason why people who are trying to get bigger and significantly stronger go on bulk cycles of eating at a surplus. That's how this works.

lose weight = calorie deficit
gain weight = calorie surplus.

Now- you can just get fat gaining- or you get swole (and a little fat). But at no point to magically start putting on actual SIZE at a calorie deficit.

Size=/= strength- and this is very important at the onset of your lifting careeer- but after while- you're max your gains for the size you are- and when you want more- you have to bulk.

Well- the rest of us will be bulking- you - well- you can keep believing in dreams made of unicorn tears and pony farts because that's going to be about as effective as building any appreciable muscle on a deficit.

SideSteel

Context applies here as usual.

Someone who is relatively new to resistance training who also has excess fat to lose can build muscle in a calorie deficit. But in comparison, an experienced lean athlete gaining muscle in a deficit?? -- ain't gonna happen.

And just as an observation, it would appear that there's a reasonably big population of people on MFP who fit the category of "overweight and new to resistance training" and these are typically the people who ask about whether or not they can build muscle in a deficit. They probably can. (I don't say the previous statement with any judgement, it's just an observation in that more often than not, the answer to the question is "yes" or "probably" given the population who typically asks the question here, and yet it's almost always met with "no" by people who can't due to training experience/leanness).


Either way, resistance training will result in a greater amount of muscle mass when it's all said and done whether it's a result of a net gain in muscle mass or the prevention of muscle loss.

SunofaBeach14

Context applies here as usual.

Someone who is relatively new to resistance training who also has excess fat to lose can build muscle in a calorie deficit. But in comparison, an experienced lean athlete gaining muscle in a deficit?? -- ain't gonna happen.

And just as an observation, it would appear that there's a reasonably big population of people on MFP who fit the category of "overweight and new to resistance training" and these are typically the people who ask about whether or not they can build muscle in a deficit. They probably can. (I don't say the previous statement with any judgement, it's just an observation in that more often than not, the answer to the question is "yes" or "probably" given the population who typically asks the question here, and yet it's almost always met with "no" by people who can't due to training experience/leanness).


Either way, resistance training will result in a greater amount of muscle mass when it's all said and done whether it's a result of a net gain in muscle mass or the prevention of muscle loss.

*jumping up and down and pointing at the bold*






*still jumping and pointing*

mantium999

Context applies here as usual.

Someone who is relatively new to resistance training who also has excess fat to lose can build muscle in a calorie deficit. But in comparison, an experienced lean athlete gaining muscle in a deficit?? -- ain't gonna happen.

And just as an observation, it would appear that there's a reasonably big population of people on MFP who fit the category of "overweight and new to resistance training" and these are typically the people who ask about whether or not they can build muscle in a deficit. They probably can. (I don't say the previous statement with any judgement, it's just an observation in that more often than not, the answer to the question is "yes" or "probably" given the population who typically asks the question here, and yet it's almost always met with "no" by people who can't due to training experience/leanness).


Either way, resistance training will result in a greater amount of muscle mass when it's all said and done whether it's a result of a net gain in muscle mass or the prevention of muscle loss.

*jumping up and down and pointing at the bold*






*still jumping and pointing*

Yay for sidesteel popping by, and telling it straight in a way that doesn't offend people.

Sarauk2sf

Context applies here as usual.

Someone who is relatively new to resistance training who also has excess fat to lose can build muscle in a calorie deficit. But in comparison, an experienced lean athlete gaining muscle in a deficit?? -- ain't gonna happen.

And just as an observation, it would appear that there's a reasonably big population of people on MFP who fit the category of "overweight and new to resistance training" and these are typically the people who ask about whether or not they can build muscle in a deficit. They probably can. (I don't say the previous statement with any judgement, it's just an observation in that more often than not, the answer to the question is "yes" or "probably" given the population who typically asks the question here, and yet it's almost always met with "no" by people who can't due to training experience/leanness).


Either way, resistance training will result in a greater amount of muscle mass when it's all said and done whether it's a result of a net gain in muscle mass or the prevention of muscle loss.

QFT!

Obviously individual factors apply, including the size of someone's deficit, their training routine, gender, how new they are to training and genetics, but it is highly unlikely that the statement 'no, you will not gain muscle because you are at a deficit' is true for many people.

carolineat111

Good thread, this is something I'm struggling with too. I've lost about 60lbs (and I did it pretty quickly through diet and exercise, about 1600 calories a day, took 5 months and I've kept it off almost 18 months-it was pregnancy weight). Anyways, like you I want to get stronger and keep the muscle I have but still have some fat I'd like to get rid of. I'm happy someone finally explained the gaining muscle mass vs. strength.
Good luck!!

SremCica

I am giving you a HUG! and don't give up. YOU can do this!