Building strength at deficit

emilysusana
emilysusana Posts: 416 Member
edited November 14 in Fitness and Exercise
I understand now after some time on MFP that you can't add new muscle at a deficit.

Since the beginning of my journey toward a healthier me, I've focused quite a bit on strength training. First I did some strength programs without counting calories (but tried eating "clean" and high protein). I didn't really lose weight but my body definitely changed. Maybe that is considered recomp. For the past 6 months, I've continued working through strength programs but have started tracking and eating at a deficit. I've added quite a bit of cardio because I love to eat. I still eat well and lots of protein, but I've learned that I can eat some of the sugary foods I love and still hit my target, so I'm such the happier lady.

Since I began eating at a deficit, I've gotten a lot stronger (I can do some unassisted pull-ups and way more push-ups than I used to), and I understand that I can't have gained muscle. So you can get stronger without gaining any muscle. Is that true? This feels like a very stupid question.

Replies

  • bbell1985
    bbell1985 Posts: 4,571 Member
    Yes. Your muscles become more efficient at moving the weight and the lifts.

    Also remember that you were NOT in a deficit prior to this, so you were training with a sufficient amount of calories. You will get stronger in maintenance.

    Also remember that if you've lost weight, that's less weight you are pulling and pushing up
  • Tacklewasher
    Tacklewasher Posts: 7,122 Member
    My understanding is that beginners can indeed gain muscle and lose weight, assuming they are really beginners and have a fair amount to lose.
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,328 Member
    Greater efficiency in utilizing the muscle you already have, and assuming you are losing weight, things like pullups will be easier since you have less to lift. There are also newbie gains, and while they are not going to be significant, they are part of the answer as well. The biggest part is the greater efficiency.
  • emilysusana
    emilysusana Posts: 416 Member
    Okay, that make sense. I am currently halfway through a 60 day break from lifting (I thought I'd try Insanity Max30 for some variety). I'm going to keep up my deficit through the end of that and then I should be at my target weight. At that point if I start eating at maintenance and go back to lifting heavy things, I might add a bit of muscle? The little I've read of bulking and cutting sounds complicated.
  • bbell1985
    bbell1985 Posts: 4,571 Member
    emilysusana wrote: »
    Okay, that make sense. I am currently halfway through a 60 day break from lifting (I thought I'd try Insanity Max30 for some variety). I'm going to keep up my deficit through the end of that and then I should be at my target weight. At that point if I start eating at maintenance and go back to lifting heavy things, I might add a bit of muscle? The little I've read of bulking and cutting sounds complicated.

    If you eat at maintenance and do a lifting program with a progressive overload, yes you can gain some music. Insanity Max stuff, I always believed, was more cardio/endurance based. I could be wrong.
  • emilysusana
    emilysusana Posts: 416 Member
    Yeah, it is more cardio/endurance. There's some effort to incorporate body weight strength-building exercises but it's more of a HIIT kind of thing. Lots of varieties of push-ups on some of the days.
  • emilysusana
    emilysusana Posts: 416 Member
    I was going to check out Alwyn Cosgrove's latest program (Strength, I think) after this.
  • emilysusana
    emilysusana Posts: 416 Member
    I totally got that wrong. It's Lou Schuler and it's called Strong. Haha!
  • CathReese33
    CathReese33 Posts: 112 Member
    If you have lost weight, and are doing better at body weight exercises it is because there is less mass to move... Even a couple of lab's can make a big difference. Try adding that weight lost as a hanging plate when you try your next set and see if you can still do it. Great boost to your confidence though, well done x
  • bbell1985
    bbell1985 Posts: 4,571 Member
    emilysusana wrote: »
    I totally got that wrong. It's Lou Schuler and it's called Strong. Haha!

    Yeah, that one would probably be better. If you want to see physique results in maintenance you need to train properly to meet specific goals. The progressive overload is important. Lou Schuler knows what's up. Programs like SL 5x5, Ice Cream Fitness, Strong Curves, New Rules of Lifting, All Pro's Beginner Routine are good too. I liked PHUL in maintenance...heavy compound lifts and a good deal of hypertrophy work as well.
  • Unknown
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  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    emilysusana wrote: »
    Okay, that make sense. I am currently halfway through a 60 day break from lifting (I thought I'd try Insanity Max30 for some variety). I'm going to keep up my deficit through the end of that and then I should be at my target weight. At that point if I start eating at maintenance and go back to lifting heavy things, I might add a bit of muscle? The little I've read of bulking and cutting sounds complicated.

    You can slowly add muscle training in maintenance. People who are looking for a "fitness body" don't really need to bulk and cut and do fine eating around maintenance and training. Bulking and cutting is great if you want to put on a significant amount of mass in relatively short order.
  • themunchkinmaker
    themunchkinmaker Posts: 9 Member
    I lost 50 pounds a while ago while eating at strict deficit and lifting heavy for 5 months. I also checked my composition regularly, and what I discovered was that I was losing about one pound of lean mass for every nine pounds of body fat I dropped. During that run I continued to get stronger with the barbells

    I think the majority of my apparent strength increase was due to following the learning curve, and the rest came from simply having less bulk to move. None of it was due to an increase in lean mass.
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