How to lose fat without losing muscle
When you slim down you lose fat and muscle. Three things that tip the balance towards fat: strength, protein and a moderate deficit.
3 min read
The problem
When weight is lost by diet alone, around a quarter of what is lost tends to be lean tissue rather than fat. It is muscle that is hard to win back and that keeps your daily energy use up.
Strength: the signal that muscle is needed
Strength training two or three times a week tells your body to keep its muscle even when energy is short. It is the most effective of the three measures.
Protein: the material
In a study with a large calorie deficit and intense training over four weeks, the higher-protein group lost more fat and also gained a little over a kilo of lean mass; the other group barely gained any.
A deficit you can sustain
The faster you lose, the more muscle goes. Losing under 1% of your body weight a week is a good reference. That is why Welfitlab caps the calorie cut and softens it if you want to build muscle at the same time.
Sources
- Cava et al., Advances in Nutrition, 2017
- Longland et al., The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2016
- Morton et al., British Journal of Sports Medicine, 2017
This text is for information only and is not a substitute for advice from a healthcare professional.