Need to lose Muscle!!
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abbytat
Posts: 14 Member
I'm not sure if this is in here anywhere, but in order to get to my ultimate goal weight with a Fitness % body fat (note...not BMI) of 21% I need to lose roughly 19.7 lbs of lean mass. My intention is to keep my organs and bones ;P so how can I get rid of all that muscle w/o damaging myself??? (I also need to lose 24 lbs of fat) 
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Replies
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I'm not sure if this is in here anywhere, but in order to get to my ultimate goal weight with a Fitness % body fat (note...not BMI) of 21% I need to lose roughly 19.7 lbs of lean mass. My intention is to keep my organs and bones ;P so how can I get rid of all that muscle w/o damaging myself??? (I also need to lose 24 lbs of fat) 0
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What would be the advantage of losing lean mass?? Why on earth would you want to lose muscle???0
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Because if I don't then I can't get to the weight I should be at. I currently have approximately 140 lbs of lean mass (that's bone, muscle, organs). For most women that's their whole weight!!!! I've always been a fairly muscular person (I gain it really easily) so when I started working out I put on a lot of muscle even though I wasn't really trying to. Now I need to get rid of it. I'll still be 79% lean mass at my goal, which puts me at the lower end of the fitness scale. Women generally complain that they can't build enough muscle, my problem is the opposite!!0
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Sorry but I do not understand why you would want to lose muscle. Losing muscle will not help you reduce your body fat %. Muscle, bones, organs, etc. are all part of fat free mass. You want to maintain or increase your FFM while losing fat to lower your body fat%.0
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Still, muscle takes up less space than fat. It if were me I would never even entertain the idea of losing muscle. Health is more based on body fat % than the number on the scale. Why are you trying so hard to "get to the weight you should be at" ? LIke armed forces or something?0
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I too am confused by this. I get what you're saying (and I'm a woman who gains muscle really easily too) but I'm very confused as to why you're so hung up on numbers?! We each possess our own unique composition and the important thing is your body fat to FFM ratios. What is causing your desire to fit within particular prescribed numbers? Anything other than the numbers themselves?:huh:0
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Uh, personally, I would just try to lose the fat first. Your body disposes of muscle it doesn't need or use. If you have it, and you've had it for a while, then you are using it. Getting rid of muscle will cause you to feel weak, and change your ability to do activities. If you get down to say, 14% body fat or so and you still think you need to lose muscle, then you could try talking to a personal trainer.
Plus, muscle is attractive, and healthy. Sorry, it's just contrary to everything I've ever been taught by my trainers, doctors, and physical therapists.
Also, I'm confused why you say getting rid of lean tissue will help you get to a certain % body fat. If anything more muscle will help you get there faster.0 -
Humm...why lose muscle? Are you trying to make it...less beefy looking? Now this is too much:
I could see picking up yoga or some sort of toning to elongate muscle to not look like my BFF above...But removal? No clue?0 -
Wow.... uh... I'm going to throw up! :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: That is so gross to me. WHY?!0 -
:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:
:noway:
:bigsmile:0 -
Ummm....maybe you shouldn't focus so much on the numbers (weight, fat vs lmm) and focus more on how you look and feel.
Don't get me wrong I understand....I too am "overly" muscular, but muscle helps burn fat...so the more you have the better off you are. Muscle is more attractive then fat and takes up less room.
If it's a visual issue, lose the fat first then re-evaluate. Certain workouts/styles (yoga, pilates, ball work, etc) help elongate muscle which will make it appear leaner and not as bulky
If it's a number issue, don't focus on it so much.
Lastly, EW Princess L!!!! :sick:0 -
Humm...why lose muscle? Are you trying to make it...less beefy looking? Now this is too much:
I could see picking up yoga or some sort of toning to elongate muscle to not look like my BFF above...But removal? No clue?
OMG!!! It's Bubble Man!!!!0 -
Humm...why lose muscle? Are you trying to make it...less beefy looking? Now this is too much:
I could see picking up yoga or some sort of toning to elongate muscle to not look like my BFF above...But removal? No clue?
OMG!!! It's Bubble Man!!!!
I wonder if he'd pop if you pricked him with a pin.0 -
To all of you who don't understand...in order for me to reach my goal, I need to lose both the fat and the muscle (otherwise my %body fat will drop below 10%...unhealthy for a woman). The personal trainer I saw for my "free evaluation" (ie sales pitch) told me the same thing...I DO need to drop some muscle b/c when I was 30 lbs heavier I guess my body put it on to support the weight, but I don't need that much anymore. Plus I DO NOT want to look muscular. I want to look soft...sorry for all of you ladies out there going for the muscular look...it's not what I want. I want to be fit, but I don't want to show a lot of muscle. I see a lot of women in the gym who do that and that's cool for them, but not for me. So please if you have constructive advice please post...otherwise I'm not interested!!0
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You might want to seek the advice of a medical doctor for this issue - possibly one who specializes in sports medicine, or a related area.
My quick answer would be that your body will adjust this amount of muscle tissue. You mentioned that you put it on because you were heavier (e.g. If a person has a lean mass of 100 lbs, but weighs 250, they would begin to build muscles to support that excess weight, much like in weight lifting). Once you start to drop weight, you will also stop building the muscle needed to support that weight.
20 lbs of excess muscle tissue is a considerable amount. What do you do to maintain this muscle mass? Maybe you could cut down on those activities (lifting any weights that are heavier than 5-10lbs), and your muscle mass should adjust to what your body needs. Unless you are in a very physically demanding job, your body will not maintain that large amount of muscle unless you are pushing it to do so (i.e. lifting weights / weight bearing activity that is tearing the muscle fibres to promote growth). Women, generally, do not have high enough levels of testosterone to maintain large amounts of muscle without some serious lifting and protein supplementation.
My brother was a body builder (now he's just a "fit guy") and I used to lift pretty seriously in my 20's so it was a hobby that I extensively researched. Not to question your information, but is it possible that your lean tissue estimate is inaccurate? How did you come about these numbers? Just as a side note, I've done body fat tests that come up with a range of 10-25% for my body fat - depending on the methodology used.
I think that some advisable steps would be (1) Seek the advice of a health professional / physician, (2) Start losing the fat, and when you get really close to your goal, you can re-evaluate. If you want to give us some numbers and info, we could see what you are working with (it is also possible, as I'm sitting here thinking, that you are quite tall, which could indeed account for the extra muscle).
Good luck!!!
P.S. I used to be quite muscular, and after I stopped the lifting, had two babies and gained some weight, then lost some weight and started Yoga, I'm "soft and curvy" not muscular at all!!!
:flowerforyou:0 -
To all of you who don't understand...in order for me to reach my goal, I need to lose both the fat and the muscle (otherwise my %body fat will drop below 10%...unhealthy for a woman). The personal trainer I saw for my "free evaluation" (ie sales pitch) told me the same thing...I DO need to drop some muscle b/c when I was 30 lbs heavier I guess my body put it on to support the weight, but I don't need that much anymore. Plus I DO NOT want to look muscular. I want to look soft...sorry for all of you ladies out there going for the muscular look...it's not what I want. I want to be fit, but I don't want to show a lot of muscle. I see a lot of women in the gym who do that and that's cool for them, but not for me. So please if you have constructive advice please post...otherwise I'm not interested!!
Hey, we're trying to understand where you're coming from and help you. You don't really need to get so defensive.
If that is the issue, then as Banks said, as the muscle isn't needed to "support the weight" it will naturally lessen. I really think the numbers can be deceiving. Plus, you can be "muscular" and not be bulky. However, maybe pilates or yoga would help "elongate" the muscle and make it appear smoother and give you the look you are after. I think you will have success if you give it some time and maybe relax just a hair!!0 -
To all of you who don't understand...in order for me to reach my goal, I need to lose both the fat and the muscle (otherwise my %body fat will drop below 10%...unhealthy for a woman). The personal trainer I saw for my "free evaluation" (ie sales pitch) told me the same thing...I DO need to drop some muscle b/c when I was 30 lbs heavier I guess my body put it on to support the weight, but I don't need that much anymore. Plus I DO NOT want to look muscular. I want to look soft...sorry for all of you ladies out there going for the muscular look...it's not what I want. I want to be fit, but I don't want to show a lot of muscle. I see a lot of women in the gym who do that and that's cool for them, but not for me. So please if you have constructive advice please post...otherwise I'm not interested!!
Hey, we're trying to understand where you're coming from and help you. You don't really need to get so defensive.
If that is the issue, then as Banks said, as the muscle isn't needed to "support the weight" it will naturally lessen. I really think the numbers can be deceiving. Plus, you can be "muscular" and not be bulky. However, maybe pilates or yoga would help "elongate" the muscle and make it appear smoother and give you the look you are after. I think you will have success if you give it some time and maybe relax just a hair!!
Montanagirl - you said it better and clearer than I (hey - I'm tired! - it's late on the East Coast!!!)...
- The muscle will lessen as you no longer use it to support excess weight
- Yoga and Pilates are GREAT and keep muscles toned yet flexible
- We are here to support you! Keep us posted on your progress!
:flowerforyou:0 -
High reps, low weight, cardio, cardio, cardio, eat clean!0
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I'm curious of your height and current weight??? Will you share these? This will help us figure out what the numbers and % are for you.
(In my best SheArnold voice...) SHE WANT TO PUMP!!! YOU UP!
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Sit on the couch... Don't lift any weights, especially with your legs. If you do work out, do just cardio. And count yourself lucky. Many of us would be happy to have your "problem."
By the way. Get a second opinion. Many trainers are not as educated as they might seem. One who is advocating losing muscle to obtain a number seems like a dangerous person to take advice from. And definitely talk to a doctor. That muscle you want to lose has more benefits to keep than to try to lose. It would be healthiest to achieve a percentage then brag about that than a number.
By the way, bubble man, I see your socks in there. Most guys just try to get away with one. Pretty "ballsy" to try to get away with two.0
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