dieting for muscle gain.

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asmorrey1
asmorrey1 Posts: 2
in Fitness and Exercise
Hi,

I'm trying to lost the beer belly and am currently using this site to make sure I eat the right amount and have been for a half an hour run every other day as well as going to the gym each day. My question really, is does anyone have links to resources that can help me organise a diet that helps me lose fat but still put on muscle mass? Any links or tips would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Adam.

Replies

  • runnerdad
    runnerdad Posts: 2,081 Member
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    I'd like to know too!
  • bry_all01
    bry_all01 Posts: 3,100 Member
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    try eating clean along with working out
  • engineman312
    engineman312 Posts: 3,450 Member
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    unfortunatly, you can't go to your body and say "hey, this food i'm eating is for my biceps," and you can't say "ok, this run is for fat burning." you can build muscle and lose fat simultaneously. good job on your cardio, you seem to be doing well. try changing up your work out routines to help confuse your body muscles to allow more muscle to build and different muscles to be used. And allow yourself at least one full recovery day a week, and one rest work out, such as yoga, walking, or swimming. this will allow your muscles to recover and rebuild.

    i love to do the jillian micheals 30 day shred (hence forth known as 30DS) for circuit training about twice a week, and her kettlebell dvd once a week too. she can kick your *kitten*, and i dare any guy to get threw her whole 30DS workout with out modifing a single exercise.
  • Larius
    Larius Posts: 507 Member
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    Check my sig for the ratios I use.

    The basic idea is to try to eat 1g of protein per pound of body weight to build muscle. The rest hardly matters, imho.
  • luckygrrrl
    luckygrrrl Posts: 35
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    Pauline Nordin's Fighter Diet

    http://www.facebook.com/FDfighterdiet?sk=app_135607783795

    Jamie Eason's 12 week trainer

    http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/jamie-easons-livefit-introduction.html

    Or try searching for information on Body Building.com

    Good Luck :)
  • AZKristi
    AZKristi Posts: 1,801 Member
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    Building muscle mass only happens with a combination of exercise and diet. Limit your calories to loose weight while making sure you are getting sufficient protein to build muscle. This gives your body the building blocks of stronger muscle. But what will cause your body to actually use the protein to build muscle? Strength training! Your body will not build muscle simply by eating protein. You have to do the work and give it the fuel to increase muscle mass.
  • Acg67
    Acg67 Posts: 12,142 Member
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    unless you are;
    obese
    a newbie to lifting
    coming back from an extended layoff of lifting

    gaining muscle and losing fat at the same time is incredibly tough, if you don't fit into one of those 3 categories, you're looking at trying a recomp cycle, which are long and tedious for small gains. personally i'd suggest focusing on either cutting or bulking and then start the opposite once you reach your desired weight
  • tigersword
    tigersword Posts: 8,059 Member
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    You can lose fat, or build muscle. You can't do both at the same time. Adding muscle mass requires a calorie surplus, losing fat requires a calorie deficit.

    Do what bodybuilders do, lose fat to bring your body fat percentage down. Then after a couple months, switch over to a bulking phase where you add muscle mass. Then shift back to a cutting phase, and back to a bulking phase, etc.

    Also, you can't lose fat without losing a little muscle, and you can't add muscle without also adding some fat. It's just how the body (and the laws of physics) works.
  • taso42
    taso42 Posts: 8,980 Member
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    unless you are;
    obese
    a newbie to lifting
    coming back from an extended layoff of lifting

    gaining muscle and losing fat at the same time is incredibly tough, if you don't fit into one of those 3 categories, you're looking at trying a recomp cycle, which are long and tedious for small gains. personally i'd suggest focusing on either cutting or bulking and then start the opposite once you reach your desired weight

    Agreed. If you're just starting out, set your calories to the maintenance level, and start a strength training program. You should remain about the same weight, but will likely get some initial recomposition where you lose some fat and gain some muscle. After say around 8 weeks of this, give or take, you probably want to go into a calorie deficit, but continue working out just as hard. This will help you burn additional fat while maintaining your muscle mass. When you've achieved a level of body fat that you are happy with, you can go for a bulking cycle, where you eat at a surplus. Or, you may find that you're happy where you are and you can just maintain from there.
  • asmorrey1
    asmorrey1 Posts: 2
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    Ok thank you all for the advice so far. So basically I need to decide what to do first. Either stay as I am (bit of a belly still), work hard and bulk up to go from fat to muscle, then trim down the fat after... or to lose the weight till i'm happy then start the bulk up phase. Is that correct?
  • tigersword
    tigersword Posts: 8,059 Member
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    That is correct, and the most efficient way to do it.
  • koosdel
    koosdel Posts: 3,317 Member
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    Bulk first. It will make the cut much easier.

    ..and you will be healthier and feel better too.

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