Losing weight without losing muscle?

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PoAer
PoAer Posts: 17
in Food and Nutrition
Is there any way to lose weight (just fat), without losing muscle?
It seems when ever I lose weight I seem to lose muscle as well. I exercise and left weights everyday.
Also for awhile I have been maintaining body weight while lifting weights to tighten some lose skin. I'm
thinking about going back to losing 1/2 a week, but I don't want to lose all the muscle that I gained and
be left with more lose skin (or what I an presuming is lose skin). I heard that taking in a large amount
of protein while keeping your carbs light(especially at night) will help this. However, I've also heard that
excess protein turns into fat. I also wonder if any of this is true, and if so, how much of protein and carbs
(at night) should I be consuming.
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Replies

  • fastbelly
    fastbelly Posts: 727 Member
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    I'm no expert but I guess the key will be to mix cardio routines with strength training to gain muscle mass and thus prevent the loss of lean muscle tissue.
    From what I've read when you exercise you'll always burn both fat and muscle.
  • change_happens
    change_happens Posts: 491
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    wow... (hi, by the way *smile*), but i have never heard of protein turning into fat. that is interesting. if you build muscle and eat well, you shouldn't lose muscle. i have read this over and over again. are you sure you are losing muscle?
  • portexploit
    portexploit Posts: 378 Member
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    Is there any way to lose weight (just fat), without losing muscle?
    It seems when ever I lose weight I seem to lose muscle as well. I exercise and left weights everyday.
    Also for awhile I have been maintaining body weight while lifting weights to tighten some lose skin. I'm
    thinking about going back to losing 1/2 a week, but I don't want to lose all the muscle that I gained and
    be left with more lose skin (or what I an presuming is lose skin). I heard that taking in a large amount
    of protein while keeping your carbs light(especially at night) will help this. However, I've also heard that
    excess protein turns into fat. I also wonder if any of this is true, and if so, how much of protein and carbs
    (at night) should I be consuming.

    consuming about 1g of protein for every lbs of lean muscle mass. Do low intensity cardio, if you have to 2-3x a day (such as walking)
  • change_happens
    change_happens Posts: 491
    Options
    Is there any way to lose weight (just fat), without losing muscle?
    It seems when ever I lose weight I seem to lose muscle as well. I exercise and left weights everyday.
    Also for awhile I have been maintaining body weight while lifting weights to tighten some lose skin. I'm
    thinking about going back to losing 1/2 a week, but I don't want to lose all the muscle that I gained and
    be left with more lose skin (or what I an presuming is lose skin). I heard that taking in a large amount
    of protein while keeping your carbs light(especially at night) will help this. However, I've also heard that
    excess protein turns into fat. I also wonder if any of this is true, and if so, how much of protein and carbs
    (at night) should I be consuming.

    why did i know you would have the answer ;) ((thanks for that post))
    consuming about 1g of protein for every lbs of lean muscle mass. Do low intensity cardio, if you have to 2-3x a day (such as walking)
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,243 Member
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    Ditch the cardio completely and stick with strength training and High Intensity Interval Training.
  • melizerd
    melizerd Posts: 870 Member
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    You need to consume more protein than MFP has set for you to help maintain lean muscle (mixing cardio for weight loss and weight lifting).

    There's no way to JUST lose fat, your body does lose muscle when you lose weight. So it's a balancing act.

    Lose skin is the result of previous rapid (or long term) weight gain, and then rapid weight loss, so the skin doesn't have a chance to tighten, of course some of it is genetics and can't be helped but slow steady weight loss results in LESS lose skin than ZOMG FAST weight loss.
  • PoAer
    PoAer Posts: 17
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    Thanks for all the great suggestions everyone! Hmmm, but how exactly am I suppose to know how much protein I am suppose to
    consume? Any ideas?
  • 1_up
    1_up Posts: 1,414 Member
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    Thanks for all the great suggestions everyone! Hmmm, but how exactly am I suppose to know how much protein I am suppose to
    consume? Any ideas?

    .75 - 1.25 grams of protein per lb of lean mass. The slower you lose the weight, the better chance you have to retain muscle. Also, eat back your exercise calories.
  • portexploit
    portexploit Posts: 378 Member
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    Thanks for all the great suggestions everyone! Hmmm, but how exactly am I suppose to know how much protein I am suppose to
    consume? Any ideas?

    well i am currently working on a computer program, it does a lot of stuff. Currently it can tell you your less body mass. It uses a method used by US Navy to determine your bodyfat. If you email me your, height, diameter of waist, and neck in inches and weight. I can calculate your lean bodymass and fat mass for you.
  • alleyag
    alleyag Posts: 142
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    Easy rule of thumb for most is keep your protein at your goal weight. If your goal weight is 130 eat 130 g of protein. And answering tour question of protein turning into fat. Well any macro can be used for storage if your in a calorie surplus on your diet. Eat your protein to match that statement at a minimum and adjust your other macros to meet your daily calorie goal. Keep healthy fats a good part of your diet. I.e. egg folks almonds peanut butter. This is not the only answer but an easy one to follow and given your workouts and such it should suit your needs. Stay motivated !
  • 1_up
    1_up Posts: 1,414 Member
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    However, I've also heard that
    excess protein turns into fat. I also wonder if any of this is true, and if so, how much of protein and carbs
    (at night) should I be consuming.

    I've read in the past about excessive protein becoming fat. Here is a quick google search link I found interesting on the topic. http://www.exploringwomanhood.com/mindbodysoul/weightloss/excessprotein.htm

    I'm pro low carb (50 - 100 depending) when cutting, but to each their own.
  • change_happens
    change_happens Posts: 491
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    Ditch the cardio completely and stick with strength training and High Intensity Interval Training.

    I read this in oxygen magazine. All of the conflicting info out there. Which is right? And how do you determine lean muscle mass?
  • Rae6503
    Rae6503 Posts: 6,294 Member
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    Is there any way to lose weight (just fat), without losing muscle?
    It seems when ever I lose weight I seem to lose muscle as well. I exercise and left weights everyday.
    Also for awhile I have been maintaining body weight while lifting weights to tighten some lose skin. I'm
    thinking about going back to losing 1/2 a week, but I don't want to lose all the muscle that I gained and
    be left with more lose skin (or what I an presuming is lose skin). I heard that taking in a large amount
    of protein while keeping your carbs light(especially at night) will help this. However, I've also heard that
    excess protein turns into fat. I also wonder if any of this is true, and if so, how much of protein and carbs
    (at night) should I be consuming.

    consuming about 1g of protein for every lbs of lean muscle mass. Do low intensity cardio, if you have to 2-3x a day (such as walking)

    Why low intensity cardio??
  • simoneq
    simoneq Posts: 7 Member
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    Your body can only process 30 grams of protein in 3 hours. So only if your meal is containing more than that, it will end up in fat. It's no use eating more proteins in a meal en it makes no difference if you have a meal at night or at day. It depends on what kind of exercise how much protein you need. I do not know that from you, (your diary is not public). But the amounts myfitnesspal suggests in % are not so wrong.
    More important is if you are consuming enough calories? And are you having a meal with enough carbs (50-60 grams per kg bodyweight) within 1 hour after exercising?

    I hope my English is correct.
    Greetings from the Netherlands
    Simone
  • mrk34
    mrk34 Posts: 227 Member
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    I would say that some muscle loss is unavoidable when your main objective is weight loss.

    There are ways to try minimize this process.

    I don’t think it is possible to lose fat only.

    In my opinion eating exercise calories back doesn’t make any sense for those of us who try to lose weight.

    This practice works best for those who exercise for body building or super fitness and perhaps don’t need to lose weight.
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,243 Member
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    Your body can only process 30 grams of protein in 3 hours. So only if your meal is containing more than that, it will end up in fat. It's no use eating more proteins in a meal en it makes no difference if you have a meal at night or at day. It depends on what kind of exercise how much protein you need. I do not know that from you, (your diary is not public). But the amounts myfitnesspal suggests in % are not so wrong.
    More important is if you are consuming enough calories? And are you having a meal with enough carbs (50-60 grams per kg bodyweight) within 1 hour after exercising?

    I hope my English is correct.
    Greetings from the Netherlands
    Simone

    Good thing it takes more than three hours to digest a meal then.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,714 Member
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    Is there any way to lose weight (just fat), without losing muscle?
    It seems when ever I lose weight I seem to lose muscle as well. I exercise and left weights everyday.
    Also for awhile I have been maintaining body weight while lifting weights to tighten some lose skin. I'm
    thinking about going back to losing 1/2 a week, but I don't want to lose all the muscle that I gained and
    be left with more lose skin (or what I an presuming is lose skin). I heard that taking in a large amount
    of protein while keeping your carbs light(especially at night) will help this. However, I've also heard that
    excess protein turns into fat. I also wonder if any of this is true, and if so, how much of protein and carbs
    (at night) should I be consuming.
    It's almost impossible to not lose some muscle when on a weight loss program. Even professional bodybuilders who are juiced to the gills, and use a myriad of drugs to help retain muscle, lose some muscle when they "cut up" for a contest. And they eat spot on with exact amounts of protein to sustain their muscle tissue to the max.
    The consensus is to consume 1 gram of protein per lb of body weight to maintain current lean muscle tissue while on calorie deficit.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,714 Member
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    Why low intensity cardio??
    Low intensity cardio will utilize fat stores more efficiently.
  • portexploit
    portexploit Posts: 378 Member
    Options
    Is there any way to lose weight (just fat), without losing muscle?
    It seems when ever I lose weight I seem to lose muscle as well. I exercise and left weights everyday.
    Also for awhile I have been maintaining body weight while lifting weights to tighten some lose skin. I'm
    thinking about going back to losing 1/2 a week, but I don't want to lose all the muscle that I gained and
    be left with more lose skin (or what I an presuming is lose skin). I heard that taking in a large amount
    of protein while keeping your carbs light(especially at night) will help this. However, I've also heard that
    excess protein turns into fat. I also wonder if any of this is true, and if so, how much of protein and carbs
    (at night) should I be consuming.

    consuming about 1g of protein for every lbs of lean muscle mass. Do low intensity cardio, if you have to 2-3x a day (such as walking)

    Why low intensity cardio??

    Like niner said. It uses mostly fat for energy. When you train to intensely it will increase lactate acid in the muscle. Which will use sugar for energy. Once the sugar is gone it will canabolize protein(muscle mass). I wouldn't change my diet, just do more cardio. This should keep your MASS(muscle and fat) but the cardio will reduce the fat. Should keep your muscle mass the same. Loss of muscle mass starts when you reduce your calories. I said earlier To eat more protein, that would "help" but... there is more to it than that. Protein can be converted to carbs, my buddy alley made a good point, but the issue with most methods is keeping your carb intake the same which goes against most weight reduction protocols. This will keep your muscles full of glycogen(sugar) and will prevent catabolic state for muscles. Also as I said low intensity cardio would use mostly fat and not sugar...which can run out and cause your muscles to go in to a catabolic state.
  • MrCake
    MrCake Posts: 53
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    I did the following over the past two months to lose about 10lbs of fat with little to no muscle loss:
    -(50/40/10) (protein/fat/carbs) split for my diet
    -lifting heavy as often as possible
    -fasted low intensity cardio (wake up, drink coffee, step on the treadmill for 30-45 at about 60% of "max heart rate", I kept it about 120 bpm, start sipping on a protein + water mix after the first 10-15 min have gone by)
    -About 95% of the daily carbs where consumed in two equal servings, one half way through my workout and 1 right after. Taking in my a break in the middle of my workout to take in some carbs and protein seems to have help.
    -High intensity cardio 2-3 a week (mostly sprinting on the field. short warmup + 5-7 sprints total). Kept these sessions fairly short so they wouldn't mess with my recovery or cause muscle loss.
    -Little to no carbs the rest of the day
    -Meals were mostly lean meats + fats
    -Because of all the exercise I was doing, I was able to keep my calories still fairly high (around 4000) and still lose fat fairly quickly. In the past I would restrict calories to very low, but that never really worked out

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