Muscle loss

2»

Replies

  • hill8570
    hill8570 Posts: 1,466 Member
    Azdak wrote: »
    hill8570 wrote: »
    Think of weight loss as using a straw to drink a root beer float from the bottom. The root beer is your fat, the ice cream is your lean muscle. If you're really overweight to begin with, there's lots of root beer in the glass and just a little ice cream on top. As you sip through the straw, the root beer level drops, and the ice cream gets closer to the bottom. After a while, you're sipping a mixture of ice cream and root beer, which turns into more and more ice cream as you sip. With resistance training, you're trying to "freeze" the ice cream harder, so it doesn't get sucked easily into the straw.

    OK, funky analogy, but I hope you get the point. The less fat you have to lose, the more likely your body is to start scavenging other parts of your body (ooooh, look here -- this tricep is hardly used -- let's throw half of it in the fire!). When you're eating at a deficit, the strength training is there to promote "muscle sparing" -- convincing your body that the muscles are being used, and to look elsewhere for things to burn.

    That actually made a little sense to me.

    I'm going to see a psychiatrist now.

    Then my work here is done. :trollface:
  • euzgai
    euzgai Posts: 17 Member
    edited January 2015
    hill8570 wrote: »
    Think of weight loss as using a straw to drink a root beer float from the bottom. The root beer is your fat, the ice cream is your lean muscle. If you're really overweight to begin with, there's lots of root beer in the glass and just a little ice cream on top. As you sip through the straw, the root beer level drops, and the ice cream gets closer to the bottom. After a while, you're sipping a mixture of ice cream and root beer, which turns into more and more ice cream as you sip. With resistance training, you're trying to "freeze" the ice cream harder, so it doesn't get sucked easily into the straw.

    Haha I love the analogy.

    Thank you all for your advices! It really helps!

    And I guess I'm convinced that I should begin as soon as possible the strength training. I'm easily influenced :D But I'll begin at home. For now, I just can't go to the gym.

    I weigh 150 lbs and I'm 5'7". I calculated my BMR as being around 1500 kcal, I'm eating 1600 kcal. How much should I eat if I add strength training in my program?


  • hill8570
    hill8570 Posts: 1,466 Member
    edited January 2015
    euzgai wrote: »
    I weigh 150 lbs and I'm 5'7". I calculated my BMR as being around 1500 kcal, I'm eating 1600 kcal. How much should I eat if I add strength training in my program?

    Strength training doesn't really require a lot of extra calories...100-200 calories on lift days, at most. However, I would recommend trying to get that protein up, especially on lift days. For your weight, I'd generally recommend around 125g, but given how low your protein intake is now, just do your best to improve it. Even if you could get close to 100g on a regular basis it would be a significant improvement. Heck, I target 160g per day on 1900 calories net, and average closer to 170...it's just a matter of finding some foods with high protein-per-calorie ratios that you like.
  • harryalmighty
    harryalmighty Posts: 10 Member
    AllanMisner wrote: »
    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.

    dont understand why people spout this *kitten*. you can gain muscle with 1g per KG of BW
  • Robbnva
    Robbnva Posts: 590 Member
    harryalmighty wrote: »
    AllanMisner wrote: »
    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.

    dont understand why people spout this *kitten*. you can gain muscle with 1g per KG of BW

    Some believe you can even as low as .75g per
  • ajwall3
    ajwall3 Posts: 187
    The reason I'm beginning a weight lifting regimen is because muscle burns fat even when you're resting. The more muscle you build the more fat your body will burn. The more muscle you have, the more your metabolism works and the more you get to eat. win win win! If you want to build muscle, you're right, you can't undereat or you'll lose muscle as your body will use it for energy... I've done cardio (running, intervals, elliptical) and that got my weight low, but I don't feel toned. I want to build muscle so I'm also upping my protein to 115g a day. I can get about 60-80 in food (eggs are awesome, I eat 2 a day in a whole wheat wrap that has 5g of protein and hot sauce. I crave that meal!) but I am using a powder for the 60g I can't eat) Your extra calories, if you want to build muscle, needs to come from protein. I'm totally excited about seeing results. Good luck to you!
  • euzgai
    euzgai Posts: 17 Member
    edited January 2015
    hill8570 wrote: »
    For your weight, I'd generally recommend around 125g, but given how low your protein intake is now, just do your best to improve it. Even if you could get close to 100g on a regular basis it would be a significant improvement. Heck, I target 160g per day on 1900 calories net, and average closer to 170...it's just a matter of finding some foods with high protein-per-calorie ratios that you like.

    It begins to be a lot! :D My 1600 calories are distributed as 55% carbs, 15% proteins and 30% fat. Increasing my daily goal to 1900 and with the protein amount you recommend means that at least 35% go to proteins. Where do I cut then?
    ajwall3 wrote: »
    I've done cardio (running, intervals, elliptical) and that got my weight low, but I don't feel toned. I want to build muscle so I'm also upping my protein to 115g a day. I can get about 60-80 in food (eggs are awesome, I eat 2 a day in a whole wheat wrap that has 5g of protein and hot sauce. I crave that meal!) but I am using a powder for the 60g I can't eat) Your extra calories, if you want to build muscle, needs to come from protein. I'm totally excited about seeing results. Good luck to you!

    Thank you for your message! I'm excited to see the results too :) Since when did you begin weight lifting? How do you track your progress? For me it's easy, as I'm just looking to lose fat I weigh myself once a week. How do you do when you begin to build muscle? You make measurements of your waist, hips etc.? And did you continue cardio?
    I don't feel comfortable using protein powder. :/ I'd like to take all my macros from what I eat.
    You seem to be really motivated, good luck to you too :)

  • Camo_xxx
    Camo_xxx Posts: 1,082 Member
    Calorie deficit to lose fat
  • AllanMisner
    AllanMisner Posts: 4,140 Member
    Cutting is the process bodybuilders go through to cut fat and water from their bodies just prior to a competition. Their goal is to cut fat and water as low as possible, while retaining muscle mass (and be able to actually pose for the show). They will go to extreme, unhealthy measures to get down to approximately 5% body fat and severe dehydration to look the way they do for contests. Some models (particularly fitness models) do this as well, but not to the same extent.
This discussion has been closed.

Categories