Can you really gain muscle and lose fat at the same time?

D2244

I still have some weight to loose around my stomach but already at 17% body fat. There is alot of info on the web about it and it has left me confused. Some say no way while other say yes you can. I am concerned of of not losing quality lean muscle when I am losing fat and don't want to gain excess fat when I gain muscle (when i add in more calories).

Has anyone done this and had success? I was thinking of spending a few weeks doing more cardio and reducing calories to about 1500 to burn off some fat (but still doing pushups, crunches etc) and then switching off to up my calories to 2000 or higher and do more lifting.

Just not sure if I am doing the right thing to get the most of each phase. Any advice? Also, anyone recommend a protein powder to use as a suppliement? I am trying to get to about 150g of protein a day and do alot of meat but some days it is hard to get to that point with food alone.

Thanks.

ssims10

As long as you're eating enough protein, you should be losing fat and not muscle. Eat at least 1g protein/lb of body weight each day, preferably closer to 1.5g/lb. You should definitely be lifting even while you're trying to cut fat, though. If you continue to lift, while doing cardio (preferably high intensity interval training [HIIT}]) a few days/week you'll start looking way more cut. Then once you're satisfied with your fat loss and ready to bulk, you can cut down on the cardio and up your calories.

I've been using Optimum Nutrition 100% gold standard whey (double rich chocolate flavor) for awhile and it's been great. On workout days I have a shake just upon waking, one before I workout, one after I workout, and then one ON casein protein shake before bed. On non-lifting days, just 1 whey in the morning and casein at night.

Finally, I don't know how much you weigh, but 1500 calories is pretty low, even if you're trying to lose weight.

D2244

Thanks for the info. I weigh about 150lbs and 5 ft 7 but still have belly fat so I am eating about 150 g of protein a day (or trying to). Do you think I should up my calories?

jquijas

As long as you're eating enough protein, you should be losing fat and not muscle. Eat at least 1g protein/lb of body weight each day, preferably closer to 1.5g/lb. You should definitely be lifting even while you're trying to cut fat, though. If you continue to lift, while doing cardio (preferably high intensity interval training [HIIT}]) a few days/week you'll start looking way more cut. Then once you're satisfied with your fat loss and ready to bulk, you can cut down on the cardio and up your calories.

I've been using Optimum Nutrition 100% gold standard whey (double rich chocolate flavor) for awhile and it's been great. On workout days I have a shake just upon waking, one before I workout, one after I workout, and then one ON casein protein shake before bed. On non-lifting days, just 1 whey in the morning and casein at night.

Finally, I don't know how much you weigh, but 1500 calories is pretty low, even if you're trying to lose weight.

Pretty much ^^This^^ to include the protein powder (one of my favs). It is possible to do both, plenty of protein out there that is low on carbs. Not to mention most weight lifting routines are very effective fat burners all on their own without the help of additional cardio

DavPul

17% bodyfat is pretty darn good! Congrats on your progress so far! You didn't say what percentage you're hoping to hit or how many more pounds you'd like to lose, so I assume you're pretty close?

If you're close and are really trying to prioritize muscular gains then I would just go with a slight deficit (0.5 pound loss per week( and no cardio at all, just resistance training. If you're in more of a hurry or you have further to go that what I'm assuming, then add some HIIT or metabolic type workouts. I'm not suggesting those burn more calories than regular cardio, but what they will do is help you retain more muscle. Good luck!

ps. I posted this link in another thread but it's much more appropriate here. Rachel Cosgrove was in a similar situation where she needed to "tighten up" more than lose actual weight. Here's what she did:

http://members.rachelcosgrove.com/public/The_Final_Nail_in_the_Cardio_Coffin.cfm

nheilweil

http://members.rachelcosgrove.com/public/The_Final_Nail_in_the_Cardio_Coffin.cfm

Excellent article -- thanks for sharing!

I'm going to Google "metabolic type workouts" and think about replacing some of my cardio with that.

Rae6503

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

Some people can: obese people, people very new to weight lifting, those returning to lifting after a long time off.