Many people aspire to have a lean, yet muscular, figure. Actually, having a slim and muscular physique has become the ideal standard of beauty in most of our mediatic culture: fashion and fitness magazines, tv commercials and shows, movies, and adds. This applies for both men and women, but the trend seems to be a bit stronger among men in general:
Studies suggest that the male body ideal disseminated in popular magazines has become more lean and muscular over the past 25 years [1].
For instance, a content analysis of the famous magazines Men’s Health & Men’s Fitness suggests that most articles published from 1999 to 2003 featured men with low body fat and high muscularity and, at the same time, that most products offered in its adds promoted benefits related to either leanness or muscularity [1].
Yet, the aspiration of having a lean and muscular body is very difficult to achieve because it involves a two-fold process that tends to be paradoxical: to lose fat, one has to lose weight by caloric deficit; but to gain muscle, one needs a caloric surplus.
Is it possible?
Yes! If done right.
In what follows, we will provide a series of recommendations to achieve building muscle while losing weight.
Building muscle while losing weight
Bodybuilders and practitioners usually use the term “body recomposition” when talking about building muscle while losing weight at the same time [2]. Body recomposition consists in increasing skeletal muscle mass while decreasing body fat. Both processes are known for delivery great health benefits such as improvements in energy level, strength and mobility, the prevention of cardiovascular and chronic diseases, the optimization of insulin sensitivty and health, the reduction of premature death risks.
Building muscle is also very important for maintaining proper health. Losing weight, in general, contributes to optimizing health, but not if this weight loss leads to significant muscle mass loss. We talk about obesity when there’s an excessive accumulation of fat in the body that leads to having a BMI higher than 30.
But we also talk about sarcopenic obesity when there’s a decay in muscle strength due to a loss of muscle mass in relation with body height and weight, in addition with obesity. This is measured with the muscle mass index. So, when there’s a high body mass index and a low muscle mass index, we then have a case of sarcopenic obesity [3]. This problem is more frequent among older patients and it’s an example of why balancing both fat and muscle is important.
How can we get rid of body weight without risking to lose muscle mass, or better yet, how do we lose weight while also building muscle?
Here are few recommendations:
- Practice progressive resistance training at least 3 times per week.
Resistance training implies practicing exercises where you contract your muscles either to lift heavy objects or to apply resistance to an external force. The most effective resistance training exercises are those that work two or more muscle groups at the same time; for instance, squats, chest presses, rows, etc. These exercises keep your muscles strong and defined.
- Combine your resistance training routines with moderate aerobic exercise.
You can either alternate training days, between resistance and aerobic exercises, or you can combine your training in a way in which you start with resistance exercises and then you recover in the end with low-intensity cardio. Aerobic exercises imply elevating your breathing and heart rate to optimize your cardiovascular condition. Cardio exercises help you to lose fat, but too much cardio could also lead to subtle muscle loss. To prevent this, stick to low intensity or moderate aerobic exercises. Walking, swimming, jogging and gentle cycling are good alternatives.
- Do High Intensity Interval Training once a week or every so often.
Once-a-week-workouts on a treadmill, elliptical or bike can help you with losing weight while building muscle.
- Track your progress and adjust your training over time.
Monitor your progress and pay attention to your performance and recovery. Use this information to modify your training accordingly [2].
- Reduce your daily calorie intake, slightly
A low reduction in calorie intake will be enough to reduce body fat. Calorie restriction can’t be too drastic because it would compromise muscle mass. Cutting back on 500 calories per day is a good strategy. However, there is evidence that there’s a way of building muscle while losing weight with caloric surpluses. The higher the muscle mass goal, the higher the calorie intake should be. For instance, eating free fat meals can be a good alternative for consuming more calories without leading to fat accumulation.
If you’re reducing your calories, make sure you do it gradually and very modestly. You want to lose an approximate of 1 pound a week.
According to a study, when people drastically cut calories for 12 weeks with a very low-calorie diet of 500 kcal per day, they lost 8.8% of their total body muscle. But when people cut their calories more progressively, with a low-calorie diet of 1,250 kcal per day, they only lost 1.3% of their muscle [4].
- Increase your daily protein intake
Protein is the micronutrient that supplies the energy for muscle building.
A dietary protein intake higher than the Recommended Dietary Allowance during an energy deficit helps to preserve lean body mass (LBM), particularly when combined with exercise [5].
A recent study suggests that the ideal protein intake for building muscle while losing fat is of 0.4 grams per kilogram of body weight 4 times a day to reach a minimum of 1.6 grams per kilogram of body weight per day [6]. This means an adult of 70 kilograms of body weight should consume at least 28 grams of protein in 4 meals, for a total of 112 grams a day for optimal muscle building.
People interested in body recomposition then need to be very selective in their diet and prefer meals with ingredients that are high on protein to reach their daily target. One way to reach this goal is by also taking protein supplements. This will raise your protein intake and maximize muscle protein synthesis [2].
- Sleep well
Proper sleep improves your metabolic rate, assures good hormone balance, and prevents you from overeating. Making sure you have quality sleep your 8 hours a day benefits your performance, recovery, and metabolism [2], and it can have a great impact in your process of building muscle and losing weight.
- Be patient!
The path to building muscle while losing weight is slow but highly rewarding! Don’t despair and give yourself time to notice the changes of your body. 1 week is not a proper time frame to notice major changes, but one to four months is. Be patient in your process and don’t lose focus from your goal.
Contact us
If you would like to know more about muscle building while losing weight, contact our clinic located in Tijuana, Mexico. At LIMARP International Center of Excellence for obesity, we offer an integral bariatric program that treats obesity from a multidisciplinary approach, focusing on nutrition, mental health, fitness, and bariatric surgery, such as gastric sleeve, gastric bypass, duodenal switch, intragastric balloon or gastric clip. Call our phone number (619) 270 8823 or send us a message through this website or any of our social media pages today to schedule a free consultation. Our team of experts will be glad to help.
References
[1] M. P. Labre, “Burn Fat, Build Muscle: A Content Analysis of Men’s Health and Men’s Fitness,” Int. J. Mens Health, vol. 4, no. 2, pp. 187–200, Summer 2005, doi: 10.3149/jmh.0402.187.
[2] C. Barakat, J. Pearson, G. Escalante, B. Campbell, and E. O. De Souza, “Body Recomposition: Can Trained Individuals Build Muscle and Lose Fat at the Same Time?,” Strength Cond. J., vol. 42, no. 5, pp. 7–21, Oct. 2020, doi: 10.1519/SSC.0000000000000584.
[3] S. Stenholm, T. B. Harris, T. Rantanen, M. Visser, S. B. Kritchevsky, and L. Ferrucci, “Sarcopenic obesity – definition, etiology and consequences,” Curr. Opin. Clin. Nutr. Metab. Care, vol. 11, no. 6, pp. 693–700, Nov. 2008, doi: 10.1097/MCO.0b013e328312c37d.
[4] R. G. Vink, N. J. T. Roumans, L. A. J. Arkenbosch, E. C. M. Mariman, and M. A. van Baak, “The effect of rate of weight loss on long-term weight regain in adults with overweight and obesity,” Obesity, vol. 24, no. 2, pp. 321–327, 2016, doi: 10.1002/oby.21346.
[5] T. M. Longland, S. Y. Oikawa, C. J. Mitchell, M. C. Devries, and S. M. Phillips, “Higher compared with lower dietary protein during an energy deficit combined with intense exercise promotes greater lean mass gain and fat mass loss: a randomized trial,” Am. J. Clin. Nutr., vol. 103, no. 3, pp. 738–746, Mar. 2016, doi: 10.3945/ajcn.115.119339.
[6] B. J. Schoenfeld and A. A. Aragon, “How much protein can the body use in a single meal for muscle-building? Implications for daily protein distribution,” J. Int. Soc. Sports Nutr., vol. 15, p. 10, 2018, doi: 10.1186/s12970-018-0215-1.
