Riddle me this (adding muscle mass and types of workouts)

angp7711

OK I think I am missing some information and something that I think is a truth (vs an opinion) is probably incorrect

From my reading and tiny bit of research here is what I think are facts

You can't build muscle in a calorie deficit
You can't actually "tone" a muscle only add strength and lose fat that surrounds a muscle

So here is where I am confused.

My opinion. People always look better when they do resistance training as part of their workout.

So I have lost weight one of two ways
Cardio bunny somebody that just jumps on (whatever machine) and puts in 60-90 minutes and that is about all the exercise they do and they lose weight.
Cross training, HIIT training with as much weight as I can do and doing a good amount of cardio

I look better when I add the weights when I weigh the same. SO if I can't build muscle and you can't actually "tone" a muscle why is that? I'm losing weight both ways and supposedly am not building muscle because I am in a deficit so what is the difference?


Obviously I am going to keep doing weights (because I like being strong) and doing as much cardio as I can because I want to burn calories but can somebody explain the whys?

Edgumacate me please ?

Amcantar

Obviously you can build/tone a muscle, have you ever seen a body builder? Obviously their muscles are literally and physically bigger, more defined, more built than an average person. I don't know where you got that idea from. And you can build muscle with a calorie deficit, but a calorie defiicit can't be the ONLY thing, you have to use weights and do some lifting. if you're just "dieting", no, you will never build muscle.

Pedro_Infante

You can definitely tone and sculpt your body while in a deficit. However, If your goal is to add muscle mass (get bigger) then your body will require my energy (calories).

Your doing it right girl! Keep up the great work!

carl1738

You can add muscle in a calorie deficit diet. I've greatly increased my strength and muscle mass while losing fat. Lift heavy weights and make sure that you're getting at least 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight. My weight loss has been slow but steady, and I'm losing inches where I don't want them (waist) and gaining them where I do (arms, chest). I've heard some people claim that this is supposed to be "impossible", but it's working for me!

Naomi91

Obviously you can build/tone a muscle, have you ever seen a body builder? Obviously their muscles are literally and physically bigger, more defined, more built than an average person. I don't know where you got that idea from. And you can build muscle with a calorie deficit, but a calorie defiicit can't be the ONLY thing, you have to use weights and do some lifting. if you're just "dieting", no, you will never build muscle.

Honestly nothing in this post makes sense. Body builders get big by bulking/cutting cycle. They are not gaining muscle mass on a 1200-1500 diet. And NO you cannot tone a muscle. We get more tone LOOKING once we cut our body fat sitting on top of the muscles so that the muscle shows through.

callipygianchronicle

Yes. I agree that the way people say this is confusing. But what they mean is that you cannot add significant muscle bulk while in calorie deficit. But you absolutely can build and strengthen muscle tissue and increase your lean muscle mass, versus fat mass. And that’s a very good thing :-)

Naomi91

You can definitely tone and sculpt your body while in a deficit. However, If your goal is to add muscle mass (get bigger) then your body will require my energy (calories).

Your doing it right girl! Keep up the great work!

Exactly! the "tone look" will result from dropping body fat % and by strength training you are holding on the the muscle you have. So from you lifting vs not lifting, you will look more defined of you do lift because you are not losing as much muscle like someone who is not lifting. :]

Tone and sculpting results in drop in body fat % and to actually add lean muscle mass you need more calories :]

It is not impossible to gain muscle mass, but it is much much harder!

btw average muscle gain in lbs PER YEAR is about 5-10lbs xD

koosdel

When you are weight training your muscles expand because they are being pumped full of fluids. They will gradually shrink until the fluids dissipate. They will retain some of the mass, to adapt themselves to the work you expose them too. As long as you continue to make them work, they will stay larger. If you add work, they will add size. The hard part is deciding exactly how much to feed them. If you are on a deficit, they can't grow at a rate fast enough to meet the work requirements. If you are on an excessive intake they will grow just fine, but the fat stores will be increased. Though, with the larger muscle comes a larger energy requirement which will use the fat store at a greater rate.

Muscle Toning is kind of a dirty word, but I think it depends on usage.

"I want to tone my abbs." Well, a zillion crunches won't do much for the way your abbs look if they are cover in a layer of fat because of diet and lack of exercise.

"I want to strengthen my core." Do a zillion crunches. To me, Toning means to strengthen a muscle group. To some others, it means spot reducing fat.

My opinion is that as long as you are reaching your goals, happy, and healthier, keep doing what your doing.

JennLifts

btw average muscle gain in lbs PER YEAR is about 5-10lbs xD

I'm not sure I agree with that. I added a pound/ week. I asked my friend who is a trainer for the athletics at my college and she said you can gain it at a pound a week normally.

Naomi91

btw average muscle gain in lbs PER YEAR is about 5-10lbs xD

I'm not sure I agree with that. I added a pound/ week. I asked my friend who is a trainer for the athletics at my college and she said you can gain it at a pound a week normally.

I would doubt that xD body builders normally add only 3/4 a pound a week xD
I was talking about the normal community though xD athletes are a bit different.

angp7711

Thank you everyone for your insight. I guess it really it all does just come down to this...

My opinion is that as long as you are reaching your goals, happy, and healthier, keep doing what your doing.

I know what makes me look better. BUT the "why"s of it are intriguing to me...

smiles
Ang

jenomaha

Before fitness became my career and not knowing too much about weights, I got to my goal weight and wondered why I still didnt like my body ( I was a skinny fat person :blushing:

So I worked with a trainer, added heavy weights and cleaner eating and got fantastic results. In 3 months I accomplished the following (while in a caloric deficit):

lost 8.7 lbs, 12.5 inches
went from 25% body fat to 15.4%
and GAINED 5.2 lbs of muscle, 5.2!!! (woot!)

I can do unassisted tricep dips and pull ups and have to modify push ups to make them harder! I LOVE lifting weights

Stick with the strength training girl!! Great job.

angp7711

Before fitness became my career and not knowing too much about weights, I got to my goal weight and wondered why I still didnt like my body ( I was a skinny fat person :blushing:

So I worked with a trainer, added heavy weights and cleaner eating and got fantastic results. In 3 months I accomplished the following (while in a caloric deficit):

lost 8.7 lbs, 12.5 inches
went from 25% body fat to 15.4%
and GAINED 5.2 lbs of muscle, 5.2!!! (woot!)

I can do unassisted tricep dips and pull ups and have to modify push ups to make them harder! I LOVE lifting weights

Stick with the strength training girl!! Great job.

Absolutely amazing! This is what I wanted to hear.

Jeff92se

Before fitness became my career and not knowing too much about weights, I got to my goal weight and wondered why I still didnt like my body ( I was a skinny fat person :blushing:

So I worked with a trainer, added heavy weights and cleaner eating and got fantastic results. In 3 months I accomplished the following (while in a caloric deficit):

lost 8.7 lbs, 12.5 inches
went from 25% body fat to 15.4%
and GAINED 5.2 lbs of muscle, 5.2!!! (woot!)

I can do unassisted tricep dips and pull ups and have to modify push ups to make them harder! I LOVE lifting weights

Stick with the strength training girl!! Great job.

Awesome work. Have you lifted before at all?

tigersword

You don't gain muscle on a calorie deficit, not any significant amounts, it's physically not possible, unless you have a very large excess of body fat (over 30%, in the obese range.) The difference is, dieting without strength training causes you to lose both muscle and fat, leaving you looking kind of "doughy." Dieting with strength training prevents the majority of muscle loss, leaving you looking stronger.

Hence why body builders bulk and then cut. The spend so many months eating a caloric surplus to add bulk muscle, and then eat at a caloric deficit to lose the body fat, while lifting heavy to preserve the muscle they added.

JamesBurkes

And NO you cannot tone a muscle. We get more tone LOOKING once we cut our body fat sitting on top of the muscles so that the muscle shows through.

I couldn't disagree more with this - the whole "you can't tone a muscle" thing is one of those bro-science things that is so demonstrably false.

Get a lardass who's done nothing for years and make them do a few heavy squat workouts. Their legs and *kitten* will be rock solid (even if they are hidden under a layer of blubber). Have they lost fat? No. Have they gained muscle? In 3 workouts? Maybe a few grams, but no. But are their muscles, even if obscured by fat, more solid to the touch, their glutes tighter and rounder? Yes, absolutely. THAT is tone.

Now "toned-looking" is a different animal and is related to bodyfat percentages etc.

But there is absolutely such a thing as muscle tone, that is entirely unrelated to body fat OR mass gain.

Jeff92se

Body builders bulk and cut because that's the most effective way of doing it.

The nunbers speak for themselves as far as this person's example. Unless you think something about that person's numbers are incorrect?

tigersword

Well, without knowing all of the numbers I couldn't judge. Is that "muscle gain" actual muscle, or just lean body mass? People have a bad habit of thinking and assuming that lean body mass and muscle are the same thing. Not the case at all. Lean Body Mass is everything in your body that isn't fat. So that includes water, organs, bones, muscle, tendons, ligaments, blood cells, etc. When people make large gains in LBM during weight training, a lot of it is actually water, as the body stores a lot of water while you weight train, in order to assist muscle recovery and also because it stores more glycogen in the muscles. Also, bone density increases, which causes your bones to weigh more. Ligaments and tendons can also thicken and get heavier.

So it's not as simple a question as you want it to be.

Rae6503

Weight training while in a deficit preserves, strengthens and I think slightly reshapes existing muscle. Without it you'd lose muscle while still maintaining small amounts of fat, especially when you get close to your goal.

Jeff92se

I only hold excess water from lifting for a few days. I've never really read about ligaments/tendons getting that much bigger. As they receive very little blood flow relative to muscle. How much weight can you gain due to increased bone desity?

Tell me, how do you measure muscle mass increases?

tigersword

You would need a full body scan, like a DEXA scan, that takes bone density into account, to truly get an accurate measure. Water actually makes up the vast majority of lean body mass, as the body is 70% water, and all of that is part of the LBM.

Jeff92se

You would need a full body scan, like a DEXA scan, that takes bone density into account, to truly get an accurate measure. Water actually makes up the vast majority of lean body mass, as the body is 70% water, and all of that is part of the LBM.

$250 per scan? Tell me, how many have you had done?