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how do you decide??

pspetralia
Posts: 963 Member
From what I have read you can't be at a deficit if your goal is building muscle. My goal is to both build muscle and lose fat. I have been eating at a deficit in order to lose weight, doing lots of cardio. How do you decide how many extra calories you need to consume in order to build muscle? I have lost 28 pounds and need to lose about 25 more pounds, but I would like to focus more on strength training. Any suggestions are welcome. Thanks!!
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Replies
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Weight lifting isn't only beneficial when building muscle, it's also beneficial when dieting. To avoid spinning your wheels, you should pick a goal. Either muscle gain while limiting fat gain or fat loss while limiting muscle loss. Simply because you pick a goal doesn't mean you are stuck with it forever, you can cycle between them. For women, if your bodyfat is above 24-27%, it's probably better to diet first.0
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Hmm... my BMI is 28.2, so I guess it is best to focus on losing weight still. Thanks!0
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Well I actually don't follow what MFP has for my calorie deficit. It's like what my BMR is at the lowest point. So what I actually do is eat between my BMR and TDEE and right now (About 2000 a day) I'm focusing on strengthening my leg muscles because I want to run farther and longer and eventually faster.
So with that in mind if I lose weight while gaining leg muscle I'm one happy camper. If I gain weight while losing inches I'm still a happy camperI'd rather be heavier with muscle than skinnier without it
And I've noticed I'm slowly getting more definition in my calves so I'm happy all ready!0 -
Hmm... my BMI is 28.2, so I guess it is best to focus on losing weight still. Thanks!0
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Well I don't know about that. I have built quite a bit of muscle and lost weight too so I don't see the conflict.0
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