Fat to lose and muscle to gain

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Replies

  • Saturncap10
    Saturncap10 Posts: 23 Member
    Hi there! I’m somewhere along the road to trying to lose fat and gain muscle. I need to start counting my calories again as I’m creeping on weight and need some accountability too.

    @jessicaanswer
    Hey I too am trying lose fat, by trying to gain muscle with weight training. When I first started the fat seemed to melt off now I feel it's harder to lose the remainder. Tweaking my diet ensuring I'm in deficit so had to cut back on some fats, but maybe I should train an extra day. Not sure. How's your journey going?
  • mmapags
    mmapags Posts: 8,937 Member
    GaryRuns wrote: »
    I am sick at the moment (stupid cold/flu) but as soon as I am better I will be back to the gym. I love lifting and sculpting my body. I too am trying to cut. I have about 15 pounds to lose. I have a 1495 calorie diet right now and have it split for macros 33/33/34. Counting macros is new for me. As long as I hit 30% of each, I count it as a win.

    Generally those percentages will put you in the ballpark, but I think it's better, particularly with protein and resistance training, to go with absolutes. 0.8 to 1.0 gram of protein per pound of body weight per day, approximately 0.4 grams of fat per pound of body weight per day, and then fill in the rest of your calorie goal with carbs. Of course that really only applies if you're not too overweight. A 300lb person wouldn't need to, or want to, eat 300 grams of protein a day. A better method is to base the values on the lean body mass you have, but most people don't know that number. And those are minimums. You can increase protein to decrease carbs, for example.

    I'm sure you're aware of all this, but others might find it useful. Also, here's a great thread on nutrition:

    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/911011/calculating-calorie-macronutrient-needs/p1

    @GaryRuns
    Can you give some more information around the lean muscle mass that you mention?

    Your lean body mass is everything that is not fat. Most people don't know their lean body mass with any accuracy.
  • mmapags
    mmapags Posts: 8,937 Member
    evahbuck wrote: »
    (Double posted in “introduce yourself” for exposure)
    Hello!
    I’ve been on MyFitnessPal since 2012, but never used the social aspect. I’ve lost 60 pounds over the last 2 years and I’m at the final push. Tracking calories once again to reinforce habits that have waned and to make sure I stay in a caloric deficit. I also just reread Tom Venuto’s book The Body Fat Solution which is EXCELLENT! I’m strength training 4 days a week and doing cardio/core an additional 2 days a week. Anyone else focusing on physique with their training?
    Looking for training accountability partners!
    Thanks!

    @evahbuck I'm trying to build muscle but I've been giving myself rest days in between. I do this to give my body a rest. Do you do full body 4 days per week? Or do you split it by doing upper one day then lower the next?

    If you are doing a full body workout, you want rest in between. Usually these routines are done 3x per week with a rest day inn between. If you are new to weight training, this kind of routine is best for you to build a base of strength and learn form.

    You need to the rest in between for the muscles to recover and rebuild.

    Upper/lower splits are typically 2 days on, one day off, 2 days on, 2 days off. These are typically more intermediate routines. Rest is important. Train and break down the muscles. Rest and rebuild them.
  • evahbuck
    evahbuck Posts: 12 Member
    @Saturncap10 I train 6 Days a week with split programming. 4 days strength/cardio with 2 addition days for cardio/core (I’ve also just added another glute circuit on day 6 because I wanted to add volume but my leg day was already too long). I take an active rest day on Sundays. I started weight training by doing full body workouts 3 times a week. As I got more into training for physique, I found the body splits to be more effective for the look I’m going after.
  • Saturncap10
    Saturncap10 Posts: 23 Member
    Oh my gosh that's a lot of training. Im doing full body training with weights 3 times a week and finish off with a run on 1 of the days.

    But I've added an extra full body day this week to see how I feel...and so far okay.

    I might try focusing on either upper or lower body superset on that 4th day instead of full body..don't know, do you think you got good results from splitting?

  • Saturncap10
    Saturncap10 Posts: 23 Member
    @mmapags
    sounds like a lot of time at the gym. How long would you spend on split routines, 30m, 40m? What would you suggest.
    I might try that next month to see if that works for me.
  • mmapags
    mmapags Posts: 8,937 Member
    @mmapags
    sounds like a lot of time at the gym. How long would you spend on split routines, 30m, 40m? What would you suggest.
    I might try that next month to see if that works for me.

    It's 45 minutes to an hour per session 4 days per week on PHUL, the routine I use. How long have you been weight training and why are you thinking of changing?

    Would you consider yourself a beginner or intermediate lifter?
  • Saturncap10
    Saturncap10 Posts: 23 Member
    mmapags wrote: »
    @mmapags
    sounds like a lot of time at the gym. How long would you spend on split routines, 30m, 40m? What would you suggest.
    I might try that next month to see if that works for me.

    It's 45 minutes to an hour per session 4 days per week on PHUL, the routine I use. How long have you been weight training and why are you thinking of changing?

    Would you consider yourself a beginner or intermediate lifter?

    @mmapags
    I've been doing it for a while.
    I've stuck to a certain weight and was on a fat loss journey mainly which worked but now would like to lift heavier..maybe intermediate lifter.

    Change it up to because I can focus on just the upper body maybe get more exercises in like 5-6, or do you think that's too much? I think I've gained some muscle over time.
  • mmapags
    mmapags Posts: 8,937 Member
    mmapags wrote: »
    @mmapags
    sounds like a lot of time at the gym. How long would you spend on split routines, 30m, 40m? What would you suggest.
    I might try that next month to see if that works for me.

    It's 45 minutes to an hour per session 4 days per week on PHUL, the routine I use. How long have you been weight training and why are you thinking of changing?

    Would you consider yourself a beginner or intermediate lifter?

    @mmapags
    I've been doing it for a while.
    I've stuck to a certain weight and was on a fat loss journey mainly which worked but now would like to lift heavier..maybe intermediate lifter.

    Change it up to because I can focus on just the upper body maybe get more exercises in like 5-6, or do you think that's too much? I think I've gained some muscle over time.

    Take a look at programs like PHAT and PHUL. Both are upper lower splits and have between 5 and 7 exercises per day.
  • Saturncap10
    Saturncap10 Posts: 23 Member
    mmapags wrote: »
    mmapags wrote: »
    @mmapags
    sounds like a lot of time at the gym. How long would you spend on split routines, 30m, 40m? What would you suggest.
    I might try that next month to see if that works for me.

    It's 45 minutes to an hour per session 4 days per week on PHUL, the routine I use. How long have you been weight training and why are you thinking of changing?

    Would you consider yourself a beginner or intermediate lifter?

    @mmapags
    I've been doing it for a while.
    I've stuck to a certain weight and was on a fat loss journey mainly which worked but now would like to lift heavier..maybe intermediate lifter.

    Change it up to because I can focus on just the upper body maybe get more exercises in like 5-6, or do you think that's too much? I think I've gained some muscle over time.

    Take a look at programs like PHAT and PHUL. Both are upper lower splits and have between 5 and 7 exercises per day.

    @mmpags
    Ok thanks I'll check those out thank you.

  • GaryRuns
    GaryRuns Posts: 508 Member
    GaryRuns wrote: »
    Generally those percentages will put you in the ballpark, but I think it's better, particularly with protein and resistance training, to go with absolutes. 0.8 to 1.0 gram of protein per pound of body weight per day, approximately 0.4 grams of fat per pound of body weight per day, and then fill in the rest of your calorie goal with carbs. Of course that really only applies if you're not too overweight. A 300lb person wouldn't need to, or want to, eat 300 grams of protein a day. A better method is to base the values on the lean body mass you have, but most people don't know that number. And those are minimums. You can increase protein to decrease carbs, for example.

    I'm sure you're aware of all this, but others might find it useful. Also, here's a great thread on nutrition:

    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/911011/calculating-calorie-macronutrient-needs/p1

    @GaryRuns
    Can you give some more information around the lean muscle mass that you mention?

    As @mmapags mentioned, lean body mass is anything that is not fat, which includes muscle, bone, fluids, etc. It's actually easier to measure your total mass then measure your fat mass and the difference between the two is your lean mass.

    Unfortunately there aren't many super-accurate ways to measure body fat. The only highly accurate way to measure it that I'm aware of is via MRI and that's not accessible to most of us. Next would be a DEXA scan, which is more accessible and pretty accurate, but still, not something you can, generally, routinely have done. Next is to get a caliper test done by an experienced practitioner. Calipers + visual estimation is probably the most accessible technique that most of us can routinely have done.

    Here's a chart so you can get an idea of how to visually estimate what your body fat percentage is
    blogpost_Females_Legion-2019-1000x1024.png
  • StargazerB
    StargazerB Posts: 425 Member
    psuLemon wrote: »
    I feel like i am forever cutting but it generally turns into a recomp since my weight rarely seems to budge lol.

    This is me as well