How To Lose Weight And Build Muscle Bodybuilding

It's not impossible to build muscle and lose fat at the same time. It's actually a very do-able, predictable process... I'm here to help you achieve your goals because I know for a fact that you can! Learn more.

It's a given that every reader of this site wants to build muscle. It's also a given that every reader of this site wants to lose fat.

Take a look around and you'll find that I am in the minority for believing that you can bulk up and cut simultaneously. I say 'believe' but I really mean 'know' as I have 'done the impossible' on many an occasion and so have my readers by implementing my advice.

How To Build Muscle And Lose Fat At The Same Time

The evidence isn't just anecdotal however, there's solid scientific evidence for my position, but we'll get to that later. So why don't most people believe that this can be done?

The logic is, since you can't do both of the above at the same time, you can't build muscle and lose fat at the same time. Wrong, yes you can!

Here's what they don't understand. Yes, you need sufficient calories to build muscle and you need a deficit to burn fat. However, body fat is actually the solution! What is body fat?

Can You Gain Muscle And Lose Fat At The Same Time?

Stored energy or stored calories, if you will. If you don't meet your caloric needs through food, you tap into your 'stored calories' to do the job. Since those stored calories are in the form of body fat, you therefore have to lose fat in order to build that muscle.

Do you see what I'm saying here? Let's say a guy eats 500 calories less than what his body needs to get him through the day (his maintenance calories including exercise). How will his body get those extra 500 calories needed to energize him and build muscle?

Answer: by burning his body fat. There are about 3500 calories in a pound of fat. 500 calories times 7 days equals 3500 calories, i.e. in this example, our guy fuels protein synthesis (building new muscle) and loses 1 pound of fat per week in the process - that's nice, very nice.

Should I Lose Weight Before Building Muscle?

You quite literally trade your fat @ss for fab abs (aren't I clever?). Please note that it is impossible for fat tissue to directly turn into muscle tissue but you can trade that fat for muscle by using it for fuel. For some reason, most people seem to forget that not all your calories have to come in through your mouth.

'Calories In/Calories Out' still holds true friends, the laws of thermodynamics are not broken, but it is at the level of the cells, not at the level of your mouth!

There is one condition you must adhere to! On a high-carb diet, this is not going to be achievable by anyone except those very few genetically gifted individuals.

This Is How To Eat To Lose Weight Faster

However, for those of us in the know, we can use our knowledge to activate a fat metabolism and achieve remarkable results. You need to flip that metabolic switch and become a fat-burner in order to make this work.

A fat-burner is simply someone who restricts carbohydrate intake to encourage the body to burn fat for fuel. This typically takes around 3 days of low carb dieting to achieve.

When you eat high-carb and create a calorie deficit, you'll lose weight alright, but you'll lose up to 50% of that weight in muscle. Therefore, attempting this on a high-carb diet will result in stagnation, i.e. neither moving forwards or backwards, and a very frustrated you.

How Bodybuilders Cut Weight While Still Holding Onto Muscle

When you're a certified fat-burner it works a treat. Skeptical? Want some solid evidence? Good! Ok, check out the info from 5 studies in the image below.

Pay particular attention to the last group—'Volek et al'. As most of us aren't going from 'overweight' to lean, and we aren't restricting calories to 1000 or less per day, this is where we'll find relevant answers.

This group lost 2.2 kg or 4.8 lbs in total weight. The great news is that they actually lost 7.26 lbs / 3.3 kg of fat and gained 2.42 lbs / 1.1 kg of muscle in 42 days. Is it any wonder carb cycling is so darn effective?

Build Muscle And Lose Fat Simultaneously: Yes, It Is Possible!

As a sidenote, check out the top study. A low-carb group consuming just 1000 calories per day was observed alongside a group that ate absolutely nothing for 10 days. Sure the fasting group lost more total weight, but the low-carbers lost almost twice as much fat!

It's not impossible to build muscle and lose fat at the same time. It's actually a very do-able, predictable process when you know what you're doing. That's why I'm here doing this, writing articles. I'm here to help you achieve your goals because I know for a fact that you can!

I'm not special, I don't have amazing genetics. I'm just a regular guy who got his wish by continually learning and being my own guinea pig. Now I'm passing it on to you.

Want To Lose Weight? Build Muscle

Hey, the next time someone discourages you and tells you that you can't build muscle and lose fat at the same time, point at their big gut and suggest that they start using some of those calories in future.

Hailing from Ireland, Mark is a muscle & nutrition enthusiast who has spent years in independent research... Better nutrition for fat loss!How to Burn Fat While Building Muscle | Nutrition to Build and Burn | Hack Your Workouts to Build and Burn | Supplements to Build and Burn

And fitness articles geared toward men often say you need to bulk up when you want to increase muscle tissue. But many women (and plenty of men) have no desire to get see the scale go up while increasing lean mass! 

How To Lose Weight & Build Muscles Like This Guy Who Transformed His Body To Get Rid Of A Constant Back Pain

Yes, it's possible to recompose, or add muscle while burning fat. But it's tricky, to say the least! You have to fuel your body with enough calories in the form of protein, carbs, and fats to feed muscle growth, dialing in each macronutrient to help your body tap into fat stores. But diet on its own isn't enough. To maximize results,  you also need to perform a combination of resistance training and high-intensity cardio.

Adding muscle and burning fat both demand protein–especially when you're doing both at the same time! Aim for 1 g per lb. of bodyweight daily, and use shakes to help you get there.

To walk the fine line of building muscle while burning fat, it's imperative you find your caloric sweet spot. You need to eat enough calories to fuel muscle building while encouraging release of fat from storage.

How To Avoid Muscle Loss While Dieting — The Bodybuilding Dietitians

Remember, you're not on a diet! You're trying to increase muscle tissue while preferentially burning stored fat. Someone who is going all-out in the gym needs the proper balance of macronutrients and enough calories to fuel their efforts to build muscle and lose fat.

Getting in plenty of protein, spread fairly evenly throughout the day, helps protect your muscle tissue from breakdown. When amino acids are floating around in your system, your body senses that it doesn't need to break down muscle tissue to harvest them.

So, don't be afraid to push protein consumption. Consider increasing your daily protein to at least 1 gram per pound of body weight. Really pushing it hard in the gym, or aiming to get seriously lean? You might benefit from more like 1.5 grams or more.

How To Lose Fat And Gain Muscle At The Same Time

Yup. You read that right. It might sound like a lot,  but recent research has shown that eating five times the current daily protein recommendation (0. 36 grams per pound of body weight) has shown no adverse impact on body-fat stores.

Furthermore, a high-protein diet has been shown to positively impact the number of calories you burn throughout the day. This manifests as an increase in the number of calories burned through the process of digestion, absorption, and distribution of nutrients, referred to as the thermic effect of food (TEF).

You knew this one was coming, didn't you? Yeah, you've got to cut carbs—not completely, but to a point where they're efficiently used. Consume most of your carbs when they benefit you the most: two hours before your workout and right after your workout. The rest of your carbohydrates throughout the day should come from high-fiber vegetables. Vegetables will help keep your energy in check and work to stave off hunger.

Bodybuilders Top 10 Tips To Help You Cut

A good starting place is to aim for 1.5 grams of carbs per pound of body weight throughout the day. Of course, the amount of exercise you do in a given day will affect this. On non-training days, consider dropping your carbs to 0.75-1.0 gram per pound.

Too many people outrageously slash their fat intake in an attempt to reduce body fat. Fats play an integral role in maintaining optimal cell structure and hormone levels, each of which are crucial for supporting a muscle-building environment. They also play a role in keeping you feeling full.

Strive to consume about 0.5 grams of fat for every pound of body weight each day. Make sure you include a variety of sources to reap the many benefits various types of healthy fats have to offer.

How To Lose Weight And Gain Muscle

Spending time doing endless circuit training using light weight for high reps isn't the best recipe for muscle gain. Instead, focus on integrating compound movements, such as squats,