Avoiding the loss of muscle mass

rgsmi
rgsmi Posts: 30 Member
edited September 26 in Fitness and Exercise
I have been using this site and its trackers for about two weeks. I am doing what I believe is right, including eating back calories so that according to the math, I maintain a roughly 2lb/week weight loss. (I have to trust the math, because I'm not going to weigh myself for at least two months--I find scales demotivating.)

That said, I am concerned about losing muscle mass during this process.

I am eating 2000-2500 calories a day as 6 meals, with a 600 to 1100 calories of exercise per day--keeping to a net 1400 +/- 10%.

The exercise is elliptical machine (on the highest setting for 45-65 minutes), trail walking (3-3.5mph for 2 hours) and eventually semi-hilly mountain biking for 1-2 hours when it warms up. I'm throwing in some push-ups to keep my upper body somewhat in shape, but I am NOT lifting weights...I don't have the time or patience for it.

I know from how stiff, sore and exhausted my legs are most of the time that what I'm doing is probably toning my legs, and improving my endurance and growing slow-twitch muscles. (My overall energy level is WAY up, btw.)

However, is this approach putting me at risk of net lean-tissue weight loss?

-Greg

Replies

  • hroush
    hroush Posts: 2,073 Member
    I believe the same thing is happening to me with my two spin classes. I think at first you would actually put on some muscle in your legs as they aren't used to the strain, but shortly your body will start to eat your muscle and it probably already is elsewhere in your body. I suggest doing this workout:

    http://stronglifts.com/stronglifts-5x5-beginner-strength-training-program/

    It's short, simple, and people have seen great results. I will be starting this on monday, a slight change from what I was doing.
  • xraychick77
    xraychick77 Posts: 1,775 Member
    cardio will make you lose muscle mass. if you are losing fat you'll lose muscle.

    the only way to keep muscle is to use them and not restrict calories too much.

    to build muscle you need to eat a cal surplus.

    i find cardio boring, lifting is much better anyways, as we rely too much on cardio..and it can be bad on the heart and lean tissue.
  • keith0373
    keith0373 Posts: 2,154 Member
    Based on your age . . . maybe a little. I do much the same as you (I'm 38), but lift 2 days a week and have had pretty good gains in muscle mass. My lifing sessions consist of 2-3 sets of upper body work that amount to less than an hour a week. You could do this with push ups and pull ups fairly easily if you spread it out more. Most importantly, keep the protein in you diet high. Make sure any muscle that is torn up is repaired.


    And xray is partailly wrong. You can gain muscle with a calorie deficit. I run deficits 95% of the time and have probably put on 5-7 lbs of upper body mass in the last year. Fat burns before protein in a 90/10 to 85/15 ratio. Keep your protein high and it will work out.
  • pandafoo
    pandafoo Posts: 367 Member
    the best way to avoid muscle loss is to do strength training. if you read more about it you'll see the value of it, and hopefully you will make time for it, such as 2-3 strength training workouts a week. i wrote a post last month about how 100% of my weight loss during a one-month period was due to muscle: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/186656-100-of-weight-loss-from-muscle

    the main reasons for this were: not strength training enough and not eating enough calories. thankfully, i've regained most of that muscle back because i upped my strength training and eaten more.

    i can't tell you exactly if you're eating enough (ideally, your net calories should be above your BMR but under your daily maintenance calories). but at least you're trying to eat back exercise calories, which is very important. it's good your leg muscles are getting more toned, yet this doesn't guarantee that you haven't lost muscle. to find out whether your approach is causing you to lose muscle, i'd recommend seeing whether your gym offers free services to have your fat/muscle composition analyzed (i think a monthly basis is fine), or using calipers. a body fat scale could also provide some trend data for you, tho it's arguable whether these scales are accurate.

    ultimately, strength training is the BEST way to ensure that you're not losing lean muscle. hope you'll give it a try! even 1x/week would be a good start, then you can increase the frequency if you'd like.
  • jamescuilty
    jamescuilty Posts: 3 Member
    Greg without any strength training you will lose muscle mass. Also current research has shown that long cardio sessions (30+ min) forces the body to start burning muscle mass for energy instead of fat.

    I suggest changing your cardio training to 20 min of HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) and incorporate a simple bodyweight routine to maintain your muscle mass and burn more fat at the same time.

    A simple routine would be:

    20 Bodyweight Squats
    20 Burpees
    20 pushups
    20 mountain climbers

    for 4-5 rounds with no rest in between. I can promise you this you will burn more fat than with this simple routine then your current routine and you will also preserve your muscle mass.
  • keith0373
    keith0373 Posts: 2,154 Member
    Also current research has shown that long cardio sessions (30+ min) forces the body to start burning muscle mass for energy instead of fat.

    Do you have a medical report on this? I have seen this "fact" popping up all over the place, but always from a nutritionist, who also happens to own a gym. It seems to me that they have a vested interest in people using their services rather than exercising at a local park for free.


    I know that olympic swimmers do 4-6 hous of cardio a day and I don't see any of their muscle mass withering away.

    Here is the article that I see most commonly posted regarding this. Notice the qualifications of the writer.

    http://www.fitness-nutrition-weightloss.com/is-your-cardio-a-waste-of-time.html
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