Lose fat or build muscle?

Alishia6606 wrote: »

So I've been doing a cardio program on my PS3 for a month now. I have stayed within my calorie allowance and the scale read an amazing 8 lb loss from the beginning (not logging until Friday though). So it's working.
However, my muscles aren't really being built. My game includes a resistance band and doing things like squats, curls etc. and some days I am sore (which is normal I assume)
My friend does no cardio and only lifts weights at the gym. I can already see s difference in her muscles in only a few weeks. Should I cut some cardio and focus more on building muscle to see similar results?

If you want to see some muscles then yes, I would cut some cardio and focus on building...

samanthaluangphixay wrote: »

To see definition, you would need to lower your bodyfat %.

That comes from a calorie deficit.

To maintain your muscle mass, start an established progressive strength training program. If you go to the gym, try Stronglifts, Starting Strength, or Strong Curves.

If you work out at home, you can do a bodyweight program such as You Are Your Own Gym.

To actually build more muscle, you would have to eat in a surplus along with the strength training goals.

The bolded is a very good point and it made me realize I forgot to ask a very important question. How lean are you?

Well, you can gain lean muscle while in a deficit, especially if you're new to lifting and you have a good reserve of fat to burn off, but then you'll be doing a recomp. You can do cardio, or no cardio, up to you. However, it is less likely you'll see gains if you do cardio because of the extra caloric needs. Good thing is that the more muscle you build, the more calories you'll burn overall and the more fat you'll lose but there will come a point of diminishing returns so you have to constantly adjust your caloric intake up if you're gaining muscle and losing fat or down if you're not seeing a change in your body makeup.

Your friend could be one of those genetically lucky ones who puts on muscle more easily than others (I have a couple friends like that).

Why not leave your cardio levels the same (for me, cardio = improved mental health, as well as heart health), and just change up your resistance bands to some dumbbells.