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2007/08/10, 12:08 PM
Hi, I have a question regarding mass gain vs fat loss.
My objectives are simple :
- i want to increase my muscles mass, but not too much (i don't want to be a bobybuilder)
- i want to decrease my fat % (to the point that I cannot see my love handles :big_smile:)
Can I have a routine that combines the two objectives or do I have to first increase my muscles mass (and inevitably gain some fat?) and then decrease my fat % (and then inevitably loose some muscles mass?)?
Thank you.
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2007/08/10, 01:04 PM
The two are conflicting goals. However, if you are new to training you can probably achieve both to some degree.
Something that you want to keep in mind. Bodybuilder spend years if not decades to get their bodies. Second, they didn't get big by accident. It is not like they woke up one day and realized that they were huge. It took a lot of time and a lot of food.
There reason I am telling this to you is because I don't want you have the perceived notion that lifting will make you huge. Lifting heavy will make you strong and it will help make you look better naked, both of which I think are part of your goals.
Give us a little more about your training background and your current diet. Then we can help you better.
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2007/08/10, 01:05 PM
I was just thinking about this today as well as my scale has not really gone down much the past couple of weeks. My diet has been clean as has my lifting. I admit my cardio is there, but not as much as it should be.
I know (I mean I KNOW) fat does not turn to muscle, but if I'm noticing differences in the mirror, but the scale isn't going anywhere, is it possible that I'm gaining lean muscle and burning off fat too?
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2007/08/10, 01:20 PM
I am not a scientist and I certainly don't all the much about fat loss, but I imagine that if you went from a not so great diet to a clean diet your body would eventually change it's composition to reflect your dietary changes.
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2007/08/10, 01:29 PM
Also as you add muscle and overall size, if you keep fat levels costant they are forced to spread out more and thus you could appear leaner.
You can technically lower your body fat % by gaining lean muscle. A higher amount of lean muscle with constant fat levels can result in a lower overall %.
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2007/08/10, 01:42 PM
I've been working out at the gym for 5 months now and I lost some fat and gain some muscle mass (I gained 6 pounds (158 lbs to 164 lbs for a height of 5'10"), but I lost 1 1/2 inches from the waist 33,5" to 32").
At first I was working with 10-12 reps and now I go with 6-10 reps depending of the muslce region I train. I train 3 times a week, each time with a different muscle region.
I do a lot of basic/compound movements. I also do 20-25 min of cardio training after my weight lifting at 85 % max heart beat. I also walk at lunch and in the evening (1 hour a day).
I usually get 2500-2600 calories a day, but I found it difficult to acheive it when having a healthy diet (you have to eat a lot beacause the caloric density of food is low).
To achieve that I added to my diet protein supplements (Pro-Circuit Whey Isolate 100 % with 1% milk). I also tried to cut on the fat, but at the same time increase proteins and carbs.
So basicaly what you say is that I can't gain muscle mass and at the same time loose fat.
So what can I do to maintain muscle mass and loose fat (is it possible?)? Should I do 10-12 reps instead of 6-10 so I can decrease my caloric intake ?
Thanks
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2007/08/10, 01:50 PM
It it were me, I would drop the reps and up the intensity. During a fat loss cycle, you will want to be careful of volume because it is harder to recover and you have less energy. You also want to lift heavy to help preserve muscle.
Result: higher weight lower reps. I would also use pretty short rest periods 45-90 secs between sets.
However at 5'10 164 I don't think that you need loose weight. Just eat clean and lift heavy...results will come.
Tip: Nuts are a very good high caloric density food.
Cutting out bad fats like transfats is a good idea, but
you still need good fats like the kind you can get from
olive oil or nuts.
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2007/08/10, 02:02 PM
I don't understand. If I want to loose fat would it be best the increase reps and decrease intensity and increase cardio?
If I understand correctly when I increase intesity and decrease reps it will lead to gain mass/volume and I have to eat more because I have less envergy so I can't really loose fat?
What do you mean exactly by "Fat Loss Cycle" ?
Concerning the diet I tried to eliminate trans fat and saturated fats and replace them by good fats (poly-unsaturated fats like omega 3 and 6...more fish)
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2007/08/10, 02:15 PM
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Quoting from MoonRabbit:
I don't understand. If I want to loose fat would it be best the increase reps and decrease intensity and increase cardio?
Adding some interval training as cardio would be good idea because it boost the metabolism.
No...you need give your muscles a reason to stick around when trying to loose fat. The best way to do this is to lift heavy.
The effect of doing more reps(you think that you are burning more calories) can be accomplished by shorting the rest periods to keep the heart rate up. Furthermore, the shortened rest period will give your metabolism a kick in the butt. The objective with what I am telling you is to keep your metabolism up long after you stop working out causing you to burn more calories overall. The interval training will also help with this.
If I understand correctly when I increase intesity and decrease reps it will lead to gain mass/volume and I have to eat more because I have less envergy so I can't really loose fat?
It will promote strength and muscle growth, but if you in a calorie deficit you are not going to gain weight and all you can hope for is minimal muscle loss. You will have less energy, which is why you need to decease the volume in your workout.
What do you mean exactly by "Fat Loss Cycle" ?
What I meant by that was a period of time in your training where you are focusing on weight loss.
Concerning the diet I tried to eliminate trans fat and saturated fats and replace them by good fats (poly-unsaturated fats like omega 3 and 6...more fish)
This is the right approach!!
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