How to lose body fat without losing Lean Body Mass?

Reneefit135 · July 2012

Thank you. I am not looking at building muscle. I only want to reduce body fat .But twice a week doesn't sound bad even for a lazy person like me ! Some one told me not to try lifting weights if I couldn't do it life long and I am sure I wont b doing it other than for weight loss because I simply don't like to see me with muscle cuts in my arms. I just want to be healthy.

If you are eating in a deficit you won't build muscle. You will maitain most of the lean muscle you have. Also, as a woman without the benefit of testosterone, you would have to work very hard to build muscle even if you wanted to. The weight lifting will help you burn fat and keep lean muscle mass. Look for a beginer program that has low reps and the highest weight you can do. 3 recomendations are Stronglifts 5x5, Starting Strength and New Rules of Lifting For Women.

BTW, how much muscle cut you get will depend more on your body fat % than on lifting weights. If you stay just above 20%, which
is a healthy zone for a woman, you will look lean but smooth and not cut.

Thank you, this is so helpful. I really want lean defined muscles and after YEARS of lifting weights off and on, I do have nice shoulders and biceps and i have to say even when i am off the wagon i seem to keep this muscle now that its there. But it helps to be reminded that lifting not only gives muscles a nice shape but helps to burn the fat. I started doing more cardio than lifting because i didn't feel i was losing fast enough. Guess i need to meet in the middle somehow.

geekyjock76 · July 2012

At those numbers, your lean body mass is 80.6 lbs. which certainly would suggest you have quite a naturally petite frame at 5'2".

Maintaining lean muscle mass doesn't simply happen just because you start resistance training - you want to offset the loss of muscle mass due in part by dieting by 1)nourishing your body with proper nutrition and 2)recruiting the fast twitch (Type II) muscle fibers during exercise. These fibers are activated when working against, at minimum, a moderate amount of resistance or engaging in quick movements. For quick movements, engage in calisthenics or body weight exercise that focus on full body movements using interval training.

Use a perceived rating of exertion scale (0 for really light/10 for very challenging) to determine proper volume (amount of resistance x total reps) of an exercise. For example, if you do 1 set of bicep curls using 5 lbs at 12 repetitions, by the end of the exercise you should assess a difficulty of at least 5 or 6 (on a 0-10 scale).

Finally, other benefits of exercise to consider:
-helps maintain a high level of independence and quality of life in your later years.
-training the fast twitch muscle fibers helps stabilize insulin sensitivity.
-reduces the degree of sarcopenia (muscle atrophy) experienced after age 40.

Helloitsdan · July 2012

Eat bat a slight deficit and pick heavy **** up 3x a week.
www.stronglifts.com

JennyZD · July 2012

OP, read what I posted a few days ago. This will give you a better understanding. It's pretty hard to gain significant amount of muscle, especially for us women. You can eat at a calorie deficit, lift weight, and not BULK. I believe you need a caloric surplus in order to put on the muscle lbs.

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/671533-attention-women-who-are-scared-of-becoming-bulky

Tann19 · July 2012

I agree with lifting weights and eat sufficient protein, however keep in mind that checking your body-fat online is not as accurate as using a body-fat analyzer.

vallemic · July 2012

lift weights.

This! ^^^^^^^^

staceyo1211 · July 2012

bump

Determinednoob · July 2012

Hey OP, I'm 5'2.5" and started at 132 with 32% body fat. I'm now 113 with ~23%bf. I've lost very little muscle. I made sure to consume 1g of protein per lb of lean body mass, but I had no lbm to begin with. To be at 20%bf like I want, I'd have to weigh ~109 also, but that seems too small. I think trying to gain muscle mass via lifting (and some excess calories) is the best bet for us.

That's a lot of protein! I hope you don't need to eat that much protein if you aren't lifting!

It's really not much protein, because I have very little lean body mass. Only 87 lbs actually, and 87g of protein is definitely doable. I am only doing bodyweight exercises for now.

Indeed. I am doing 200g per day while cutting, When I switch to bulking I am going to 250.

MFPBrandy · July 2012

First step is to get an accurate measurement. Those online calculators put me at 8% less than the bod pod (much more accurate)--does your gym or doctor have one?

ocukor1 · July 2012

You don't have to pump iron and bench press 200 lb to be considered lifting weights. when people talk about lifting weights, they mean resistance training. Resistance training could be anything that puts your muscles to work, the astronauts have to do that in space in order to still have any muscles and bones left after spending a long time in a weightless condition. There are many resistance exercises out there which can help you maintain your muscle mass. Anyone, by just losing weight, is risking to lose muscle mass as well, and also risking to slow down metabolism. Resistance training is really important to maintain the healthy weight loss and even increase the metabolic rate.

newmom4411 · July 2012

That's a lot of info out there. I read it several times n think I'll need to read it again when I need motivation to keep going! Thanks a lot everyone! I'll b starting it as soon as I decide on which beginner program to follow..

70davis · July 2012

Bump

Nana_Booboo · July 2012

Eat enough, weight train, tone, and be careful to stay within you're "safe zone" with you're heart rate. If your heart rate is too high you are using muscle as fuel. If you are not eating enough, you'll use muscle for fuel.

Sooooo, eat, move, enjoy life.

How to lose body fat without losing Lean Body Mass?

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