Muscle Question

jenniekw

OK so if you can't build muscle on a cut then why is a big deal to lift heavy. How is it you can drop fat doing it without building the muscle. I'm a bit confused on the concept. :noway:

KarenJanine

The idea is to not lose muscle mass whilst dropping fat. When eating at a deficit the body will break down both fat and muscle reserves for energy to make up the deficit. However by lifting heavy and keeping the muscles active the body is less likely to let go of the energy stored as muscle. By maintaining muscle mass metabolism can be kept at an optimum level whereas by losing muscle mass metabolism will decrease along with weight.

Obese people and people new to lifting can sometimes increase muscle mass while eating at a deficit but most people will just lose fat but hang onto the muscle underneath. By eating at TDEE and lifting heavy most people can lose fat and gain some muscle at a the same time but as the body adapts people may need to eat above TDEE (i.e. 'bulk') to gain more muscle mass but this will also result in some fat gain. They will then go back into 'cut' to try and maintain the new muscle bulk and lose the new fat.