Muscle loss

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euzgai
euzgai Posts: 17 Member
edited January 2015 in Fitness and Exercise
Hi,

I started to use mfp to record everything and try to lose 25 lbs. I already lost 6 lbs (on a period of 2 months). I'm eating 1600 kcal a day and I can't manage to reach my proteins need by day. I am afraid that I may lose muscle and not only fat.

I know that you should do exercices to maintain your muscle level. I am quite active but mainly cardio activites. I run 2 to 3 times a week, play 2x2h volleybal, 1h of basketball and 1h of yoga. I precise that except running, I'm doing these activites not to help me lose weight but because I really enjoy it. It is not really muscle building but can they prevent me to lose muscle? Or should I do specific exercices?

Thank you

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Replies

  • AllanMisner
    AllanMisner Posts: 4,140 Member
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    It starts with food. If you don’t get enough protein, you will lose muscle regardless of what activities you do. In fact, if you don’t get more protein and you add weight lifting, you’ll likely lose even more muscle (if you could even keep up the lifting).

    Add fish and chicken to your diet, it is easy protein and you can even buy it in convenient packets to carry. Beyond that, you can add protein powders, but I’d always advise getting what you need from real food.

    Once you’re on your diet, then you can consider adding 1-3 whole body weight lifting sessions (e.g., strong lifts) each week.

  • 47Jacqueline
    47Jacqueline Posts: 6,993 Member
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    If you have a lot to lose your odds of losing (not loosing) more fat than muscle are pretty good, but people who are already lean with more muscle mass, tend to lose muscle if they are not careful about their approach to weight loss.
  • euzgai
    euzgai Posts: 17 Member
    edited January 2015
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    @AllanMisner, thank you for your answer. I know that I should begin with the food. I will try be more careful about that. If I do that, do I still need to do the body weight lifting session? Is it just to have a nicer body or is it essential when you want to lose weight "correctly" ?

    @47Jacqueline, sorry for the mistake, english is not my native language :) Thanks for your answer.
  • AllanMisner
    AllanMisner Posts: 4,140 Member
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    Fat loss comes from what you’re eating (the right kind of food and not eating too much). You will maintain most of your muscle if you’re not under eating too much and ensure you’re getting enough protein. That said, a well managed weight lifting and eating program could allow you to build some muscle while you’re losing fat.
  • euzgai
    euzgai Posts: 17 Member
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    @AllanMisner, thank you. It is clearer for me now. I'll begin by eating more proteins then :)
  • hill8570
    hill8570 Posts: 1,466 Member
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    Getting plenty of cardio. Once you get your protein up, consider adding some heavy lifting to the mix -- not only will that help with muscle sparing, additional strength always comes in handy in sports. Stronglifts 5x5 and Starting Strength are both good beginner's programs. I can't see your diary, so I can't make any specific recommandations, but nonfat greek yogurt, fish, chicken and lowfat cheese all have good protein-per-calorie ratios.
  • euzgai
    euzgai Posts: 17 Member
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    @hill8570, I understand the benefits of strength exercises but I guess I should do it several times a week to be efficient. I'm afraid that it will be too much with the activities I'm already practicing. But I'll look more into these programs you suggest.
    Thanks for your recommendations. It helps. I lost the habit to eat fish and meat, I'll try to include them more in my diet. Cheese and yogurt seem to be really good ideas too! Thanks
  • AllanMisner
    AllanMisner Posts: 4,140 Member
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    No, you really only need to lift 1 - 3 times per week. A good 5x5 program takes about an hour.

    And I’d stick with meat as cheese and yogurt aren’t nearly as dense in protein (and low fat versions add sugar and other un-food stuff). Eating a boiled egg, or 3 oz of baked chicken breast shouldn’t be such a challenge.
  • euzgai
    euzgai Posts: 17 Member
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    @AllanMisner, Indeed, it's not that difficult :) I just need to get use to it again. I didn't know that we needed that much proteins per day. I thought that meat once or twice per week was sufficient.

    What is a little bit more difficult for me is to go to a gym for this 5x5 program. I just need to be a little bit more organized and it should be ok :)

  • Robbnva
    Robbnva Posts: 590 Member
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    How much protein are you eating daily?
  • McCloud33
    McCloud33 Posts: 959 Member
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    It really comes down to what you're doing/what you want to look like. If you're a long distance runner for instance, you don't want a lot of excess muscle, because that's more weight that you have to carry for the race. It all comes down to your goals and compromise. Are you doing exercise and diet to look good? Are you doing it to be healthy? Are you doing it for performance in a sport?

    sprinters-body1.jpg
  • Robbnva
    Robbnva Posts: 590 Member
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    1. Not sure that's an accurate representation in that pic
    2. I'd choose the one on the left over the one on the right personally
  • McCloud33
    McCloud33 Posts: 959 Member
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    Robbnva wrote: »
    1. Not sure that's an accurate representation in that pic
    2. I'd choose the one on the left over the one on the right personally

    It's a generalization. As far as you choosing the one on the left, that's kind of my point. Some people want more muscle than others and/or prefer a different body type.
  • euzgai
    euzgai Posts: 17 Member
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    @Robbnva, as an example here is my last week's graphic : b812463s8i83.png. I didn't log my dinner on the 23rd so don't worry, I'm not eating that little :) And for the 22nd I had dinner with friends so I ate more than an usual day. I had 700 hundred extra calories that day.

    @McCloud33, regarding the pictures, I precise that I'm a woman. :)
    I'm not gonna lie, my first motivation is to look good :) I also want to be healthy, this is why I'm really into running. My performance is getting better every time I run but I won't do strength exercise to improve it. It is not my priority. Though, if there are specific exercises for volleyball player I would be really interested :)
  • euzgai
    euzgai Posts: 17 Member
    edited January 2015
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    And I will definitely choose the one on the left also ;)
  • Robbnva
    Robbnva Posts: 590 Member
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    For an average sedentary woman, you need a minimum of 46 grams per day, more if you are active. I'd aim to get at least 60 a day, probably more than that if you can.
  • McCloud33
    McCloud33 Posts: 959 Member
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    euzgai wrote: »
    @Robbnva, as an example here is my last week's graphic : b812463s8i83.png. I didn't log my dinner on the 23rd so don't worry, I'm not eating that little :) And for the 22nd I had dinner with friends so I ate more than an usual day. I had 700 hundred extra calories that day.

    @McCloud33, regarding the pictures, I precise that I'm a woman. :)
    I'm not gonna lie, my first motivation is to look good :) I also want to be healthy, this is why I'm really into running. My performance is getting better every time I run but I won't do strength exercise to improve it. It is not my priority. Though, if there are specific exercises for volleyball player I would be really interested :)

    For volleyball/basketball I would go for plyometrics type exercises (jump training). Focus on your stamina, core, mobility and flexibility. As far as your protein, even if you're not trying to build muscle, it seems low. If you're on 1600 cal/day, you should be able to at the very least keep it up around 80g of protein. 8oz of chicken is going to get you half way there. Add in some cottage cheese, nuts, greek yogurt, beans, or whatever you like that has some protein in it. For comparison, I'm on 1500 cal right now (in a cut cycle) and I'm shooting for 150g of protein per day.
  • hill8570
    hill8570 Posts: 1,466 Member
    edited January 2015
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    I'm not gonna lie, my first motivation is to look good :) I also want to be healthy, this is why I'm really into running. My performance is getting better every time I run but I won't do strength exercise to improve it. It is not my priority. Though, if there are specific exercises for volleyball player I would be really interested :)

    Look at pics of Gabby Reece in her heyday -- she was plenty strong, and plenty hot, too. With v-ball, you want the whole kinetic chain to be strong -- it's a whole-body sort of sport. You can use plyometrics as an assistance exercise to train for explosive power, but they're something you do in addition to the strength training, not instead of. And you could get plenty of benefit out of lifting twice a week for an hour each time.

    BTW, on the protein thing, feel free to look at my diary -- I target 160g a day on net 1900 calories.
  • euzgai
    euzgai Posts: 17 Member
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    Thanks again for the food ideas. I'll definitely increase my daily protein.
    And thanks also for the "plyometrics" tip, it seems adapted. Just a question. I thought that to build muscle you should eat extra calories. Isn't muscle building incompatible with my calorie-deficit diet to lose fat?
  • MeanderingMammal
    MeanderingMammal Posts: 7,866 Member
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    Robbnva wrote: »
    1. Not sure that's an accurate representation in that pic
    2. I'd choose the one on the left over the one on the right personally

    Of course it's not, it's a standard trope that gets wheeled out in pretty much every resistance vs CV discussion. Worth noting that a sprinter gets the build results as a consequence of their resistance training, not their running.

    It kind of boils down to when someone says they want to look good being clear about what good means. Equally what one enjoys doing.

    You don't see many sprinter physiques in a trail half marathon or marathon, equally you're not going to find many trail marathoners willingly competing in 5000m and less on a track.

    Also worth noting that sprinters and long distance runners have different bodyfat percentage objectives.

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