Lose Fat AND Gain Muscle

If you ask most fitness experts, they will tell you to choose: either focus on losing fat OR gaining muscle. Because it's just not reasonable to expect your body to do BOTH at the same time.

Or is it?

For athletes and fitness professionals who are close to their goal in terms of weight and fitness, it is quite difficult to do either one. The closer you get to your goal weight, the more challenging it is to drop even one or two pounds. And once you become very fit and strong, it is also much harder to gain muscle. For those of you in this situation, it makes more sense to focus on one or the other.

But for those of you just beginning, or at the midpoint, in your transformation journey, it makes sense to combine these two goals.

Although building muscle might seem contradictory to a weight loss plan--because muscle weighs more than fat--the two really go hand-in-hand. Muscle cells are extremely active metabolically; they burn thirty-seven times more fat than fat cells. Muscle cells burn fat round the clock, whether you are exercising or sleeping. So the more muscle mass you possess, the more fat you burn--all day long and all night long. As long as you don't feed your body sugar--carbs will switch off the fat burning in favor of burning glucose--you will be a fat-burning machine!

What's the best way to ensure both fat loss AND muscle gain?

Add weight lifting to your weight loss plan. If you are obese, you don't even need to pick up heavy weights, because your body is already heavy enough. Just add body weight exercises like squats, lunges, planks, push ups, step ups, and the like. You can do these in the privacy of your own home, or in a gym, or in an exercise class. Keep in mind that curling a pink 3-lb dumbbell will not build muscle. You need to challenge yourself by lifting something heavy. And focus on the largest muscles of the body: glutes, quads, hamstrings, lats, and pecs.

In terms of your diet, make sure you're eating enough high quality protein in order to build muscle. Look for grass-fed beef, lamb, chicken, eggs, and dairy products. Wild caught fish and seafood is also a great source of protein. Add organ meats and bone broth to receive all the amino acids and minerals your bones, joints, and muscles need. Eliminate the sugar and refined carbs in order to keep your body burning fat. Even if your total calories are low, the protein and fat in your diet will keep you feeling full and satisfied. Ditching the sugary carbs will keep your blood sugar steady.

If you need support for your total transformation, please leave me a message in the comments. I am available for weight-loss coaching, personal training, and total body transformation. I can work with clients in person OR through email, text, phone, or teleportation. I'm hoping to meet with you soon!