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High Reps low weight or low reps heavy weight

iveeleague30
iveeleague30 Posts: 1 Member
edited December 2024 in Getting Started
how to lose fat and increase muscle mass?

Replies

  • cecsav1
    cecsav1 Posts: 714 Member
    The highest weight you can lift with proper form for 8-12 reps. If you can perform a 13th rep, it's too light
  • andrewq6100
    andrewq6100 Posts: 415 Member
    what worked for me was high volume sessions, like @cecsav1 said, 10-12 reps good form, rest about 15-30 secs and try to superset every exercise. throw in a little bit of cardio after your lifting but keep your heart rate at around 30-50bpm to make sure that muscle mass isnt burned first. it will be a way slower process then bulking or cutting but it is so worth it to keep a nice weight, drop bodyfat, and have muscle.

    for instance i started last month at 210 and 21% bodyfat, after a mediocre nutrition plan but solid training plan, im now at 197 and 16% bf and my strength has greatly increased as well as endurance. focus on hypertrophy and endurance first then you can start bumping up to heavier weights and still burn fat.
  • BinaryFu
    BinaryFu Posts: 240 Member
    How to lose fat: CICO. Calories In vs. Calories Out.
    How to increase muscle mass: Low rep high weight - no more than 8 reps before rest, heaviest weight you can do proper form with.

    Moderate lifting is good for some bulk and some endurance, heavy is all about bulk and light is all about endurance and carving muscle.

    1-8 reps = heavy
    9-12 = moderate
    13-20 = light

    Weight = varies per person. You want to feel like the last rep is taking sheer will to move and you literally *cannot* do another one without rest.

    But, none of the above will help you lose fat faster - It's all about CICO and a safe, sane level of weight loss is 2lbs/week. Weight training during this will cause you to be depressed at times, because you're going to gain muscle.

    Muscle weighs more than fat, so while you'll be burning 2lbs/week, you may be gaining that much or more in muscle for awhile. By awhile, I mean a week, two weeks, a month...varies per person as well. You can also have growth spurts in muscle where you're going along great and suddenly you stop losing weight - a plateau even though all your numbers are accurate and up to date. Don't panic, you just gained more muscle.

    Be sure to use measurements to help accurately gauge what's going on with your body at a given time. For example, if you have gone 2 months without a single pound of lost weight, but you've gained two inches on your arms and thighs, an extra inch on your calves and you've dropped an inch around your waist? Then you know it's alright, you're just gaining muscle mass.

    Hope that helps.
  • alanlmarshall
    alanlmarshall Posts: 587 Member
    edited May 2016
    Heavy is better for preserving muscle mass. Look into a 5x5 style beginner's program.
  • AnvilHead
    AnvilHead Posts: 18,343 Member
    BinaryFu wrote: »
    Muscle weighs more than fat, so while you'll be burning 2lbs/week, you may be gaining that much or more in muscle for awhile. By awhile, I mean a week, two weeks, a month...varies per person as well. You can also have growth spurts in muscle where you're going along great and suddenly you stop losing weight - a plateau even though all your numbers are accurate and up to date. Don't panic, you just gained more muscle.

    Be sure to use measurements to help accurately gauge what's going on with your body at a given time. For example, if you have gone 2 months without a single pound of lost weight, but you've gained two inches on your arms and thighs, an extra inch on your calves and you've dropped an inch around your waist? Then you know it's alright, you're just gaining muscle mass.

    Hope that helps.

    Let's set him up with a little more realistic expectations, shall we? Because ain't nobody gaining 2 pounds of muscle per week. Not for a week, not for two weeks, not for a month. Especially while in a calorie deficit. Unless he's doing some heavy-duty cycles of anabolic steroids at the same time.

    To the OP - there are a lot of solid beginner weight training programs listed here: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10332083/which-lifting-program-is-the-best-for-you/p1 Pick one of them and stick with it for a while. You'll gain some muscle (it's called "noob gains") for a while, but nowhere near 2 pounds a week...think more like 1/4 - 1/2 pound per week at best. Keep your protein intake somewhere around 1g/lb. of lean body mass. Expect your weight loss to seem slow/inconsistent at first, because your muscles will be retaining water/glycogen to repair themselves after your workouts (this is something almost everybody experiences). The water weight masks your weight/fat loss, but if you're keeping a consistent deficit, have faith that you're losing weight/fat. Maintain a reasonable caloric deficit to cut fat, but don't go overboard with it.

    Once you get past the "noob gains" stage, it's very difficult to build any appreciable amount of muscle while in a calorie deficit. At that point, most people will either choose to recomp (continue lifting and eat at/near maintenance calories), or start a series of bulk/cut cycles - bulk to gain muscle (you'll also gain fat), then cut back down to get rid of the fat and retain (hopefully at least most of) the muscle.
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