losing weight and gaining muscle????
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I too am in the same boat and was under the impression that I should probably lose weight first then work on gaining muscle after I hit the weight that I am comfortable with. I started out at 258 and I am down to 232 now, I was waiting until I got to 200 to start strength training but apparently this isn't the way to go according to many people. I am going to start weight training as well as eating at a deficit to retain what muscle mass I do have. I also hear that whey protein powders will help retain your muscle mass as well as add more while helping you burn fat as long as your still eating at a deficit. So I would look into some whey protein powders to help with your muscle mass as well as giving you that extra protein you will need. Hope this helps.0
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nutmegoreo wrote: »chewbacakz wrote: »Graceious1 wrote: »The best way to build muscle is to lift and lift heavy and as a previous poster said start now. There are a ton of programmes out there and the one I follow is Stronglifts 5x5, where you work out three times a week and increase the weight each time you lift. Cardio is good but to burn fat more effectively resistance are key. Cleaning up your diet is also key. When I started on MFP three years ago I was a pound lighter than I am now but a dress size bigger. This is because I got to my goal weight pretty quickly by following certain exercise programmes then stopping. I ate less of of the rubbish I ate before then starting eating "normally" again. Inevitably it all piled on again.
At the beginning if this year I started incorporating lifting into my programme then really cleaned up my diet and ate more veg, protein and started juicing. Since doing this I am not only losing fat I am changing the shape of my body to be more athletic. What is making it work this time is my mindset and recognising that the scale is not the best way for me to record my progress but my clothes are. Also, I am more consistent with my exercises and love what I do and will make it part of my life no matter what is going on for me during any day.
So in a nutshell your muscles are more likely appear when you:
Strength train
Do some cardio
Increase protein and veg in your diet
Continue with carbs (they will fuel your workout)
Eat less processed foods (I've learned that if your food has ingredients you can't pronounce or numbers in them they're processed)
Think positively about your food and you'll enjoy it more.
All the best and feel free to add me.
Diet is definitely important, and I have changed mime alot, I used to guzzle away dr.pepper all day long, and eat all sorts of junk food. Not now, I only drink water, well I have a coffee in the morning and in the evening, hahaha We also started eating alot of fish and chicken, and veggies and fruit. I also like alot of eggs though, but I'm trying hard to stay consistent with it. Feel free to check out my diary and give me some advice!!!!!!!
Your daily calorie intake is too low and your protein intake is really low for what you are trying to do. As others have mentioned it is easier to maintain the muscle you have and cut the fat than it is to rebuild the muscle. With your current intake, you are losing muscle!
Consider reevaluating your intake and start a regular lifting program. Great loss so far, but more than you would like of that is muscle due to the larger than needed calorie deficit.
I am more than willing to make changes, but I'm not really sure where I'm supposed to be on calories, I just now that my body can safely live off of 1,200 to 1,500 calories, so I said heck with it, let's go there. I do not doubt you if you say I'm losing muscle, but I have definitely been gaining strength, so should I be real worried at this point??? As far as protein, I try to get what this ap calls for?!?!?! Is that not enough??? I'm not trying to eat a gram a pound rite now, that would take a lot of calories, and I still have a lot of fat to lose. I'm not trying to argue just curious.
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TL;DR I recommend to eat enough to not lose weight too fast, and lift.
I lost about 25lb in one summer. One thing I regret is that, I did it too fast, and lost some muscle. Losing fat and gaining muscle is possible if your body fat % is high, but once you get to certain point like body fat 20%, it's difficult. As a matter of fact, you don't eat enough, any exercise is meaningless as your body is not getting enough nutrients to rebuild muscle after exercise.
If I were you, I'd rather eat TDEE, eat lots of protein, and lift. Weight will come off as you gain muscle. Gaining muscle is so much harder than losing fat. So, not losing muscle is the first priority.
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ceoverturf wrote: »As a general rule of thumb, it's advised to cut/diet down to a point where you have less than 15% body fat before actively trying to re-add muscle mass.
That said, I would start with a good solid weight lifting program now - even while cutting - if you're not already. Primarily because you want to encourage your body to maintain the muscle mass you currently have during the cut to the extent possible, but too, it will set you up for a good foundation when the time comes that you are ready to actively bulk.
This.0 -
nutmegoreo wrote: »chewbacakz wrote: »Graceious1 wrote: »The best way to build muscle is to lift and lift heavy and as a previous poster said start now. There are a ton of programmes out there and the one I follow is Stronglifts 5x5, where you work out three times a week and increase the weight each time you lift. Cardio is good but to burn fat more effectively resistance are key. Cleaning up your diet is also key. When I started on MFP three years ago I was a pound lighter than I am now but a dress size bigger. This is because I got to my goal weight pretty quickly by following certain exercise programmes then stopping. I ate less of of the rubbish I ate before then starting eating "normally" again. Inevitably it all piled on again.
At the beginning if this year I started incorporating lifting into my programme then really cleaned up my diet and ate more veg, protein and started juicing. Since doing this I am not only losing fat I am changing the shape of my body to be more athletic. What is making it work this time is my mindset and recognising that the scale is not the best way for me to record my progress but my clothes are. Also, I am more consistent with my exercises and love what I do and will make it part of my life no matter what is going on for me during any day.
So in a nutshell your muscles are more likely appear when you:
Strength train
Do some cardio
Increase protein and veg in your diet
Continue with carbs (they will fuel your workout)
Eat less processed foods (I've learned that if your food has ingredients you can't pronounce or numbers in them they're processed)
Think positively about your food and you'll enjoy it more.
All the best and feel free to add me.
Diet is definitely important, and I have changed mime alot, I used to guzzle away dr.pepper all day long, and eat all sorts of junk food. Not now, I only drink water, well I have a coffee in the morning and in the evening, hahaha We also started eating alot of fish and chicken, and veggies and fruit. I also like alot of eggs though, but I'm trying hard to stay consistent with it. Feel free to check out my diary and give me some advice!!!!!!!
Your daily calorie intake is too low and your protein intake is really low for what you are trying to do. As others have mentioned it is easier to maintain the muscle you have and cut the fat than it is to rebuild the muscle. With your current intake, you are losing muscle!
Consider reevaluating your intake and start a regular lifting program. Great loss so far, but more than you would like of that is muscle due to the larger than needed calorie deficit.
Actually, I don't think it's actually as low as it appears due to unintentional miscalculations. For one, his exercise calorie burns are high. I suspect the numbers rendered come from treadmills and/or MFP exercise database, phone exercise app, or other internet sources. Also, his diary indicates that he may measure his food with cups and spoons but doe not weight, thereby meaning his intake is most likely underestimated.
@chewbacakz, am I correct that you measure food but not weigh it and that you get your exercise burn estimates from one of the sources I listed above?0 -
Definitely would recommend upping the calories. As a small-ish female at 158lb's and eating 1350 calories a day now, I couldn't eat less than that. Most likely your not getting enough nutrients to fuel your body. Definitely recommend the weight training aswell! Burns alot of calories and builds strength and muscle. I'm feeling so much better for it. Pace yourself and up the calories, you're in for a long ride with weight loss. It's a life long thing so do it right in the first place
Don't lose the muscle you've got! 0 -
chewbacakz wrote: »nutmegoreo wrote: »chewbacakz wrote: »Graceious1 wrote: »The best way to build muscle is to lift and lift heavy and as a previous poster said start now. There are a ton of programmes out there and the one I follow is Stronglifts 5x5, where you work out three times a week and increase the weight each time you lift. Cardio is good but to burn fat more effectively resistance are key. Cleaning up your diet is also key. When I started on MFP three years ago I was a pound lighter than I am now but a dress size bigger. This is because I got to my goal weight pretty quickly by following certain exercise programmes then stopping. I ate less of of the rubbish I ate before then starting eating "normally" again. Inevitably it all piled on again.
At the beginning if this year I started incorporating lifting into my programme then really cleaned up my diet and ate more veg, protein and started juicing. Since doing this I am not only losing fat I am changing the shape of my body to be more athletic. What is making it work this time is my mindset and recognising that the scale is not the best way for me to record my progress but my clothes are. Also, I am more consistent with my exercises and love what I do and will make it part of my life no matter what is going on for me during any day.
So in a nutshell your muscles are more likely appear when you:
Strength train
Do some cardio
Increase protein and veg in your diet
Continue with carbs (they will fuel your workout)
Eat less processed foods (I've learned that if your food has ingredients you can't pronounce or numbers in them they're processed)
Think positively about your food and you'll enjoy it more.
All the best and feel free to add me.
Diet is definitely important, and I have changed mime alot, I used to guzzle away dr.pepper all day long, and eat all sorts of junk food. Not now, I only drink water, well I have a coffee in the morning and in the evening, hahaha We also started eating alot of fish and chicken, and veggies and fruit. I also like alot of eggs though, but I'm trying hard to stay consistent with it. Feel free to check out my diary and give me some advice!!!!!!!
Your daily calorie intake is too low and your protein intake is really low for what you are trying to do. As others have mentioned it is easier to maintain the muscle you have and cut the fat than it is to rebuild the muscle. With your current intake, you are losing muscle!
Consider reevaluating your intake and start a regular lifting program. Great loss so far, but more than you would like of that is muscle due to the larger than needed calorie deficit.
I am more than willing to make changes, but I'm not really sure where I'm supposed to be on calories, I just now that my body can safely live off of 1,200 to 1,500 calories, so I said heck with it, let's go there. I do not doubt you if you say I'm losing muscle, but I have definitely been gaining strength, so should I be real worried at this point??? As far as protein, I try to get what this ap calls for?!?!?! Is that not enough??? I'm not trying to eat a gram a pound rite now, that would take a lot of calories, and I still have a lot of fat to lose. I'm not trying to argue just curious.
You can absolutely gain strength while eating in a calorie deficit, but that is not the same as gaining muscle. As far as being worried at this time, it has been said in this thread a few times that muscle is harder to build, so minimizing the loss of it during your weight loss phase, should be a pretty high priority. For specific demographics the macro targets on MFP can be inaccurate, so yes, for someone who is trying to maintain the muscle mass they have, the protein targets given to you will be way to low. I will see if I can find where someone more knowledgeable has made a post with all of this covered (macros and calorie target).0 -
nutmegoreo wrote: »chewbacakz wrote: »Graceious1 wrote: »The best way to build muscle is to lift and lift heavy and as a previous poster said start now. There are a ton of programmes out there and the one I follow is Stronglifts 5x5, where you work out three times a week and increase the weight each time you lift. Cardio is good but to burn fat more effectively resistance are key. Cleaning up your diet is also key. When I started on MFP three years ago I was a pound lighter than I am now but a dress size bigger. This is because I got to my goal weight pretty quickly by following certain exercise programmes then stopping. I ate less of of the rubbish I ate before then starting eating "normally" again. Inevitably it all piled on again.
At the beginning if this year I started incorporating lifting into my programme then really cleaned up my diet and ate more veg, protein and started juicing. Since doing this I am not only losing fat I am changing the shape of my body to be more athletic. What is making it work this time is my mindset and recognising that the scale is not the best way for me to record my progress but my clothes are. Also, I am more consistent with my exercises and love what I do and will make it part of my life no matter what is going on for me during any day.
So in a nutshell your muscles are more likely appear when you:
Strength train
Do some cardio
Increase protein and veg in your diet
Continue with carbs (they will fuel your workout)
Eat less processed foods (I've learned that if your food has ingredients you can't pronounce or numbers in them they're processed)
Think positively about your food and you'll enjoy it more.
All the best and feel free to add me.
Diet is definitely important, and I have changed mime alot, I used to guzzle away dr.pepper all day long, and eat all sorts of junk food. Not now, I only drink water, well I have a coffee in the morning and in the evening, hahaha We also started eating alot of fish and chicken, and veggies and fruit. I also like alot of eggs though, but I'm trying hard to stay consistent with it. Feel free to check out my diary and give me some advice!!!!!!!
Your daily calorie intake is too low and your protein intake is really low for what you are trying to do. As others have mentioned it is easier to maintain the muscle you have and cut the fat than it is to rebuild the muscle. With your current intake, you are losing muscle!
Consider reevaluating your intake and start a regular lifting program. Great loss so far, but more than you would like of that is muscle due to the larger than needed calorie deficit.
Actually, I don't think it's actually as low as it appears due to unintentional miscalculations. For one, his exercise calorie burns are high. I suspect the numbers rendered come from treadmills and/or MFP exercise database, phone exercise app, or other internet sources. Also, his diary indicates that he may measure his food with cups and spoons but doe not weight, thereby meaning his intake is most likely underestimated.
@chewbacakz, am I correct that you measure food but not weigh it and that you get your exercise burn estimates from one of the sources I listed above?
Fair enough, I didn't look as close as I should have. The protein levels are still pretty low for his purposes though.
Edited to remove inaccuracy after rereading, OP stated that he was eating at a large deficit, not that he was losing fast.
OP, how many pounds are you losing each week?0 -
OP here's a link to a thread that has a pile of links. They address a number of topics, including many beyond what you are asking here. I'm not saying read them all (although if you have the time great). There is specific links for setting your calorie and macro targets, along with exercise calorie burns and logging accurately, all of which can be challenging in the beginning.
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/833026/important-posts-to-read0 -
@chewbacakz, am I correct that you measure food but not weigh it and that you get your exercise burn estimates from one of the sources I listed above? [/quote]
Yes, dead on, but I have bought a scale, I did weigh last night's dinner, but that is the 1st. And I have been losing around 2 ta 2.5 lbs a week, last week I lost 4, but that was a 1st.0 -
But let me add, when I measures out my chicken last night, I was shocked by how much I had to add to get to the rite weight!0
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nutmegoreo wrote: »OP here's a link to a thread that has a pile of links. They address a number of topics, including many beyond what you are asking here. I'm not saying read them all (although if you have the time great). There is specific links for setting your calorie and macro targets, along with exercise calorie burns and logging accurately, all of which can be challenging in the beginning.
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/833026/important-posts-to-read
Thank you very much, I will actually be in a waiting room a lot today, taking children to dentists, so perfect time for reading.0 -
nutmegoreo wrote: »OP here's a link to a thread that has a pile of links. They address a number of topics, including many beyond what you are asking here. I'm not saying read them all (although if you have the time great). There is specific links for setting your calorie and macro targets, along with exercise calorie burns and logging accurately, all of which can be challenging in the beginning.
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/833026/important-posts-to-read
Thank you very much, I will actually be in a waiting room a lot today, taking children to dentists, so perfect time for reading.0 -
Awesome! I hope you get some answers that resonate with you. You need to make the decisions that make sense to you, but I am a firm believer in educating yourself to make the best choices. Best of luck!0
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I highly recommend upping your protein (and total calories in general) and start consistently strength training in an effort to preserve your muscle.0
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It's so much easier to keep the muscle mass you have than it will be to lose it, then try to build it back. Unless you're going for a very specific aesthetic look, you might not even need to bulk later if you lose weight the right way now. 1200-1500 calories for a man isn't the right way -- you're setting yourself up to lose your existing muscle mass.
FWIW, especially when you're a new lifter, making strength gains is not related to making mass gains. Just saying that you can lift more this month than last month isn't a good argument that you're not in danger of losing muscle mass.
At what rate are you losing weight now (how many pounds per week)?0 -
chewbacakz wrote: »
@chewbacakz, am I correct that you measure food but not weigh it and that you get your exercise burn estimates from one of the sources I listed above?
Yes, dead on, but I have bought a scale, I did weigh last night's dinner, but that is the 1st. And I have been losing around 2 ta 2.5 lbs a week, last week I lost 4, but that was a 1st.
About 1% of your weight per week is a reasonable rate of loss. Sounds like you aren't as far off as we'd feared probably due to inaccuracy in calorie counts. Your loss on the scale may slow as you start lifting (at least mine did) but most of it will be from fat which is the goal. If you aren't using a tape measure on yourself, start. Sometimes when the scale isn't moving you're shrinking and that's more important in the big scheme of things. 0 -
I think most find losing weight easier than gaining muscle (not just strength). So, the rule of thumb I've seen is to do the best you can to retain as much muscle during your weight loss. You can do this in two ways in particular: (1) eat enough protein (at least 1 g protein per 1 lb LBM) and (2) lift heavy (like a free weight program like starting strength, 5/3/1, etc or if you don't have access to free weights, bodyweight functional work out like the prison workout). This way you'll keep as much of your current muscle (lean body mass) and maximize fat loss.
Then, when you get to where you want with that, you can start cycling between bulks and cuts. Some people also really like calorie cycling during both phases to maximize the recovery/muscle building on workout days and minimize the gaining of fat or non-lifting days. Leangains is a good example. You can do this both during bulking/cutting or just as you lose by adjusting the weekly cal goals. If you're losing, then you'll have an overall weekly deficit (but eat at maintenance or slightly above on lifting days). If you're bulking, then you'll have an overall surplus (and especially focusing on carbs and protein on lifting days to take advantage of the insulingenic response of carbs on recovery). Some are able to successfully recomp, but many find it difficult and opt for cycles of bulking and cutting instead.0 -
Lift heavy, eat at a slight deficit, BOOM!0
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