If you’re looking to get in shape, then you’re typically deciding between building muscle and losing body fat. But, anecdotal accounts and scientific research demonstrate that you may not have to choose one or the other -- it is possible to lose fat and gain muscle at the same time!
There are some caveats, however (as will many things in life).
Today, we’ll discuss what you need to do to lose fat and gain muscle at the same time as well as whether it’s the “best” decision for you in your current situation.
Is It Possible To Gain Muscle While Losing Fat?
Yes, it is possible to build muscle and lose fat. Now, your body isn’t turning fat into muscle. These two processes are independent and can take place over a certain period of time (e.g. a 12-week training block or 8-week transformation challenge).
There are some important caveats to consider when losing fat and building muscle, though…
Strategies for Losing Fat Safely
To lose fat, there are several things you need to do:
- Maintain a calorie deficit: This is basic thermodynamics. To lose fat, you must consume less energy than you intake. In order to do this, you need to know how many calories per day that you roughly need to maintain your weight (TDEE). Then, you need to consume ~5-10% below this amount to create the deficit necessary for your body to burn its stored fat for energy. The deficit is most effectively accomplished through a mixture of diet and exercise.
- Eat enough daily protein: In order for your body to maintain lean muscle and burn fat for energy, you must consume enough daily protein to support muscle recovery and growth. For body recomposition, you’ll want to consume at least 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight, though research shows that even higher protein intakes (~1.5 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight) are beneficial.
- Perform resistance training 2-4x / week: Resistance training (along with eating enough protein) sends a powerful signal to your body that it needs the muscle it has and reinforces the message that it should turn to body fat for the energy it needs each day.
- Eat a healthy diet: Choosing less processed, micronutrient-rich foods like fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, seeds, legumes, lean proteins, and healthy fats help to keep hunger in check, maintain steady energy levels, and fuel your body properly when dieting for fat loss (or body recomposition).
If you’re not sure how many calories you need for your goals, don’t worry about it. We’ve got you!
The 1UP Fitness App provides customized calorie and macronutrient targets based on your goals and preferences for FREE! You’ll even gain access to customized training plans to help you shed fat, build lean muscle, and sculpt a lean, toned physique.
Tips for Building Lean Muscle While Losing Fat
To build muscle, you must:
- Perform resistance training: this provides the stimulus your muscles need to grow. In addition to improving your physique, lean muscle also helps boost your metabolism so you burn more calories throughout the day, even while you’re resting.
- Consume enough protein: intense workouts create microtears in your muscle fibers. To repair this damage, and support the growth of new lean muscle, your body requires protein. A good rule of thumb is to consume at least 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight (though more is fine!).
- Be consistent: training one time per week isn’t the most efficient way to build muscle. Ideally, you will hit each muscle at least twice per week and keep a training log of your workouts so you know when to increase the number of reps or weight on the bar.
- Don’t neglect recovery: Workouts are when muscles are broken down. It is in the hours and days after training when our bodies repair, recover, and grow lean muscle. On off days, perform low-intensity activities like walking, hiking, swimming, yoga, etc.
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Prioritize sleep: Sleep is a superpower. When we sleep, our bodies are flooded with recovery and growth hormones that help growth stronger, become more resilient, and wake up feeling refreshed. Adequate sleep also helps keep stress levels and hunger hormones in check, which help support weight loss and body recomposition efforts!
Benefits of Losing Fat and Building Muscle
- Boosts heart health
- Decreases body fat
- Improves blood sugar, cholesterol, and bone density
- Increases strength, endurance, coordination, and functional capabilities
Reduces the risk of injuries or falls
Why Protein Is Essential
Protein is essential for overall health, well-being and longevity, and it plays a pivotal role for fat loss and muscle gain. Eating enough protein each day helps keep you feeling full (so you’re less likely to snack/overeat. It maintains and builds lean muscle as well as supports healthy hair, skin, nails and joints. Protein even helps boost metabolism as your body burns more calories digesting protein than it does carbohydrates or fats.
And, if you’re keep on losing fat and building muscle at the same time, adequate protein intake is paramount as you’re trying to maintain/build lean muscle in the midst of a calorie deficit (something that is naturally hard for the body to do).
With that in mind, you want to make sure you’re consuming the right amount of high-quality protein sources (i.e. complete proteins that supply all of the essential amino acids your body needs to fuel protein synthesis).
The Best Protein Sources for Fat Loss & Muscle Building
- Lean red meat (beef, pork, elk, venison, etc.)
- Eggs and egg whites
- Fish and shellfish (salmon, shrimp, oysters, mahi mahi, etc.)
- Poultry (turkey, chicken, duck, etc.)
- Nuts and seeds
- Legumes
Protein powders also offer a convenient, affordable, and high-quality option to meet your daily protein requirements. 1UP Nutrition offers a variety of delicious proteins, including Whey Protein, Clear Protein, Isolate Protein, and Vegan Protein.
Our proteins are manufactured under strict quality standards in an NSF/ANSI cGMP 455-2 Certified and FDA-Registered Facility in Miami FL, USA. Every batch undergoes rigorous lab testing for formula accuracy, potency, purity, and safety to ensure we deliver the highest standards of quality.
The Bottom Line
While burning fat and building muscle at the same time is possible. However, you need to be dialed in with your training, nutrition, and sleep. Individuals best suited to body recomposition are those that are new to training (novices) as well as those that are coming back from a hiatus from training, (injury, pregnancy, lifestyle circumstances, etc.).
If you have been training consistently for some time, then body recomposition may not be ideal as changes will be slower which can make tracking/noticing improvements difficult. In this case, it may be more effective to focus on one goal (losing fat or building muscle).
Wherever you are in your health and fitness journey, know that we’re always here to help! When you join our transformation challenge, you’ll also gain access to our private Facebook group where you can interact with other challenge participants, motivated trainees, and experienced coaches for help, motivation, and support.
