Muscle gain versus fat loss confusion

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eblakes93
eblakes93 Posts: 372 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I've seen a couple of threads talking about the difficulties of attempting to lose fat and gain muscle at the same time. What does that mean for me in terms of strength training? Should I continue doing arm/leg machines at the gym a couple of times a week, or should I stop that and just increase my cardio? Pointing me to any other helpful threads or links would be appreciated as well.

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  • thecakelocker
    thecakelocker Posts: 407 Member
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    You already have muscle, strength training will preserve it while you lose fat if you're eating on a calorie deficit. It's very difficult to increase muscle mass on a calorie deficit, which is why many people do bulk/cut cycles alternating eating at a surplus with eating at a deficit.
  • rick_po
    rick_po Posts: 449 Member
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    If you're just starting, you can still get some muscle growth even on a deficit. It might not be much, but a little is better than nothing.

    But more importantly, strength training on a deficit will protect your muscles from atrophy. Your body will cannibalize unused muscles for fuel when you're dieting. It's so hard to build even one pound of muscle, you want to maintain every little bit you can.

    It boils down to, it's much easier to keep the muscle you have than it is to lose it and then try to build it back.

    Also, you can still get stronger even if you aren't building muscle, and strong good.
  • eblakes93
    eblakes93 Posts: 372 Member
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    Thanks. The atrophy/deficit/protection thing makes sense.
  • belinus
    belinus Posts: 112 Member
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    How you do your sets also will determine muscle growth.

    This is not exact but the general rule is:

    Low Reps + High Weight = Strength Sets
    Med Reps + Med Weight = Toning Sets
    High Reps + Low Weigh = Stamina Sets

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