How to cut fat without losing muscle reddit. Say you want to lose one pound of fat per week.

How to cut fat without losing muscle reddit This paranoia gave me some feelings of body dysmorphia and discouragement and it should be eradicated from the fitness world. I did my first cut after 10 months of bulking and actually got bigger upper body after a 2 months cut. Maximize your fitness results today. With insights from an exercise scientist who’s spent 20+ years in the gym, our guide provides a deeper look at what works—and what doesn’t—when trying to break a plateau. But after 4 weeks (~10lbs), I hit a plateau, so I dropped my carbs down to 180g and began losing weight again. However, fat can be burned as fuel for the exercise and rebuilding process necessary to make muscles grow in size and strength. Aug 8, 2024 · Cutting is when you burn fat while keeping your muscle. But without sufficient protein intake (and resistance training) you will lose more muscle mass. Having more muscle helps, but a lot of it is about how to efficiently recruit muscle groups and have everything work together. You may lose muscle glycogen and/or strength, which some people confuse with loss of tissue. When looking at losing fat without losing muscle, we need to monitor total weight loss, but also understand that only focusing just on how much weight is lost on the scale could, in the long run, have you losing just as much muscle as fat! Let’s dive deeper into this topic and offer you some guidance on how to lose fat without losing muscle. I frequently do 2+hr long bike rides and still have made fantastic gains. Can I then burn 300 calories on the treadmill and lose fat faster while not losing muscle? Or is this the exact same as eating at a deficit of 800, i. What’s the Muscle Loss on a Week or Month-Long Cut? So yeah, it’s important to even maintain muscle as it just makes the whole process easier to keep losing fat or to maintain weight. Of the 7kg/15lbs I lost on my latest cut, 3kgs/7lbs was muscle mass. Before I go into the details of the guide, I want to preface by clearing up a few misconceptions: If your goal is to lose fat but maintain muscle, then once you get a few weeks of diet history recorded, look closer at your weight and BF % over time. Your fat is a single construction which spreads throughout your body. (Yes, I'm pushing back against what was suggested above about 25. Cutting for longer at a smaller calorie deficit will help in addition to the above with maintaining muscle mass. Depending on how fat you are, you’re going to lose glycogen and look like shit while you cut do not mistake this for losing muscle it will all come back within like 2-4 weeks of eating at maintenance again. And there is no way to target your belly fat. Cut smart, not hard. I dont know how much of a clean bulk it was, probably not since I feel most of the weight gain around my belly, anyway Ive been doing ups and downs a lot so I know I can easily cut 4-5kgs. Just look at many body transformations and you'll see that most skinnyfat dudes get bigger muscles while reducing the bodyfat levels drastically. Losing muscle is a bogeyman. 8g/lb of bw protein (and not starving yourself). Learn expert tips on diet, workouts, and recovery to maintain muscle while shedding fat effectively. Make certain you include plenty of resistance training during your cut, including compound lifts where LeanGains is a specific program based on Martin Berkhan's methodology of lifting heavy weights reverse pyramid style, focusing on protein as the main macro-nutrient, and intermittent fasting (IF). Feb 26, 2025 · Getting shredded without losing muscle is an art and a science. Once they have fat to lose again, they can start cutting, and their fat reserves (in combination with protein) will fuel muscle growth once again. It's very hard to put on muscle when you're in a calorie deficit. My advice is don’t confuse some strength loss with muscle loss. May 8, 2025 · Want to cut fat without losing muscle? Discover the ultimate bodybuilding cutting guide with tips on diet, strength training, supplements. It's almost impossible to lose fat and gain muscles at the same time. Anyone can drop weight by slashing calories and ramping up cardio, but ending up smaller, weaker, and flat-looking is not the goal. You want to lose weight, so you'll want to select "lose". Cutting: eating in an energy deficit to lose weight and facilitate fat loss. So weight change = fat change. If you eat enough protein and train hard enough while cutting, you’re not going to lose muscle tissue. Assumption: Muscle mass will be neither lost nor gained. Want to get less fat without losing strength gains. You can in fact lose weight and get stronger. (So you can't expect to gain significant muscle. It is a fine line to lose fat mass without losing muscle mass. Apr 26, 2025 · Key Takeaways Choose a 500-calorie deficit for steady fat loss without excessive muscle loss. Preserving muscle mass while losing fat can be tricky so most serious body builders do carb cycling, but are not necessarily trying to lose weight but are trying to keep fat down and muscle up proportionally to overall weight. You can do both when just starting out on your journey quite easily. This is due to either (a) still being overweight, just less so, or (b) having a poor body composition, which basically means you have a lot of fat and not much muscle. Nov 16, 2024 · Spoiler: Don’t do it by cutting calories. Don't worry too much about it, fill your protein needs and keep lifting while cutting and you won't lose a significant amount of muscle. Within M&F and outside of it, there are plenty of fitness enthusiasts who’ve accomplished these goals simultaneously, serving as anecdotal evidence that it’s possible to achieve body recomposition. Follow these seven tips to burn fat without losing hard-earned muscle. Bulking: eating excess energy to gain weight and facilitate muscle growth. However, it is entirely possible to lose a considerable amount of weight and still be tubby. About participation in the comments of r/nutrition Discussion in this subreddit should be rooted in science rather than "cuz I sed" or entertainment pieces. In order to maintain as much lean muscle mass as possible, you'll want to aim for a slower weight loss; a pound per week isn't unreasonable, but it'll depend on your fat mass. Yes you can lose body fat no problem without exercising, but you will lose muscle while losing weight and not gain any long term without some sort of physical activity. Willing to work it out HARD, and without As you may have already realized, to build muscle while losing fat, you simply want to do what works best for inducing muscle growth: Focus on heavy (4-6 or 5-8 rep range), compound movements like the squat, deadlift, bench press, and military press, and train with a moderate workout volume (9-12 heavy sets per workout). Also, alcohol really works against your goals here so cutting back on booze will make a big difference. You can eat candy and other junk and lose weight. Jul 13, 2025 · Learn effective tips on how to cut without losing muscle using proven dietary and training strategies backed by a certified nutritionist. Strength is a bigger indicator to whether you are losing too fast than the scale, or protein or cardio or whatever. . If you want growth, you need to eat, if you want loss, you need to increase output, decrease input. My strategy up to this point has been heavily diet focused We would like to show you a description here but the site won’t allow us. We would like to show you a description here but the site won’t allow us. The thing w the overweight person you’re thinking about may be attributed to “noob gains” as people call it sometimes. Apr 9, 2023 · Learn how to cut, lose fat and keep (or even build) muscle in this complete guide. Hey all, TL;DR: Was fat, still fat (but not as fat) and stronger. I draw this one, can you give me some thoughts and advice: Monday and For example I am cutting at a 500 deficit to try and avoid muscle loss. With so many knowledgeable people in the sub, I'm curious if people either stick to the FAQ, 41 minutes or if they implement a different approach if they were in this situation. With a rate of 1 pound or less per week, gaining muscle while you lose fat is entirely possible. But when it comes to losing weight, calorie deficit is the most important thing. Even if you lose a bit of expected muscle, it’ll come back extremely easy after There's a reason why lifters do cut/bulk cycles. Share Sort by: Best The ability for you to burn fat and build muscle boils down to your diet and exercise habits. By incorporating strategies such as increasing protein intake, engaging in moderate cardio, emphasizing strength training, adopting moderate calorie deficits, and using supplements wisely, you can achieve a leaner and healthier body while preserving We would like to show you a description here but the site won’t allow us. I really want to start losing weight, but I have a fear that my muscle mass will deteriorate from lack of calories and carbohydrates and such. Jun 28, 2019 · There are a few things you need to know if you want to maintain your muscle while losing fat, not least that weight training is essential. Shockingly, the key to losing body fat percentage and still developing muscle is to eat a lot more fat, no carbs, and not to consume more protein than your body is actually using. But you can't ever really tell. If you lose fat, you will lose it mostly everywhere at the same time little by little. Anyways, you're not going to cut to 10 percent body fat without losing muscle. Eat at a relatively small surplus and keep training regularly. Losing muscle on a cut, what am I doing wrong? Hey everyone I've just finished my second cut and both cuts I've lost a significant amount of muscle mass. I have put on a good start of muscle that is noticeable, but not considered jacked or anything. /. Remember that you get healthy to lose weight, you don’t lose weight to get healthy. Your body is naturally using fat for energy, gaining fat and losing weight is only possible simultaneously if you replace a significant amount of fat and protein calories with carbs, and stop hypertrophy training altogether, and never increase the intensity back up. Last cut I simply dropped my macros to 200 protein, 300 carb, 60 fat and ate there for 18 weeks. Are you getting enough sleep, are you walking enough, how is your stress level, do you meditate? Yeah j did, and I ate like shit and didn't train and I got weak as fuck and lost muscle and felt like shit all day for about idk 2 weeks and didn't even lose that much fat. Everyone wants to speak about protein and rate of loss and how that effects muscle. I’ve been working hard to cut weight since then and doing well (in tandem with blood pressure meds). The amount of calories you cut out of your diet depends on how fast you want to lose weight, not taking into account cardio and other exercise that will burn a significant amount. That being said, you can minimize with the above. If you're brand new to weight training, you may see a little of it at the beginning, known as "newbie gains" and you'll also be more "pumped" all of the time, with more fluid consistently in your muscles, giving them a larger appearance. A mini-cut should be used in the middle of a prolonged bulking phase. You use a mini-cut to drop excess fat you’ve accumulated, to reduce your TDEE, regain an appetite, and most importantly to gain additional time to bulk. Resistance exercises and high-intensity cardio are necessary during the cutting phase to keep muscles active and prevent losses. Make changes (one at a time) if necessary, this comes down to your results. e. However, this does not mean that lifters should stop training during a cut. The challenge is preserving hard-earned muscle while stripping away fat—a process that requires strategy, discipline, and patience. It’s harder to lose actual muscle tissue than you think. Nov 2, 2024 · A trainer outlines the key elements of an effective, fat-burning cutting routine and a seven-day cutting routine to burn fat and build muscle. Learn about the importance of protein intake, strength training, and recovery, along with common mistakes to avoid. I did about 10min of cardio every training day after the first 8 weeks or so. How do I avoid reducing my muscle mass while also getting rid of excess fat? Also, is it possible to gain muscle while trying to lose fat? If so, how? In theory, your body fat percentage can drop from "overweight" to "athletic" without you needing to lose a single pound of fat if you gain an appropriate amount of muscle instead. You don’t have to get fat during a bulk. You’re depleting your glycogen, and even water, but your muscles aren’t going to disappear if you cut smart and slow for only 6 weeks. Review. However, muscle gain is a much slower process than fat loss. Hey guys, so the title pretty much. Mar 5, 2025 · Increasing your protein intake and incorporating strength training into your routine can help you lose body fat and increase muscle mass. You also have to consider if muscle retention or fat loss is your primary goal - whichever one you prioritize will force the other to take a back seat, but with the margins you have, it's not like you're gonna lose pounds of muscle overnight. Get adequate protein and strength training to build muscle, use the caloric deficit to reduce fat. As you lose weight you’ll then start cutting calories little by little. Also, when it comes to exercise it’s not really a great way to lose weight all by itself, you end up developing compensatory behaviors which Apr 8, 2025 · Discover the key strategies for cutting body fat safely and effectively with our comprehensive guide. I am a 22y/o male, 5'11". But even so, if you have significant amounts of bf to lose I would focus on dropping the scale although still a good idea to increase muscle mass in the meantime because being in a significant deficit is still going to be the best tool for fat loss. You won’t even have much fat to lose if you do a lean bulk anyway so a lean cut will be preferable regardless. If you find your progress is stalling and your weight isn't budging at all (or is even dropping), just up the calories slightly. I do think the more body fat you have you can use as fuel during a deficit, the more likely you’ll be able to gain muscle while still losing fat. I started my weight-loss journey in January of 2018 and have dropped close to 80 pounds at this point! [SW->315, CW->235ish). Incorporate high-protein foods to preserve muscle in a caloric deficit. Working out while losing weight is fantastic for PRESERVING muscle mass, but you need that calorie surplus to build muscle. A mini-cut should not be used to get shredded or as the “kick-off” for a sustained fat loss phase. Losing muscle in the glutes would require you to stop performing lifts which target the glutes and running with bad form that doesn't activate there glutes and is over reliant on other leg muscles. Can I lose my body fat while maintaing or growing my glute muscles? Oct 26, 2025 · What about body recomposition? Body recomposition refers to the process of changing your ratio of fat mass to lean mass -- that is, losing body fat and gaining muscle mass. Cardio doesn't make you lose muscle mass (with the exception of like marathon training and excessively long stuff). The benefit of cutting is losing fat, but you may lose a bit of muscle, and it is hard to put on muscle while cutting. I find it funny that most people complaining about their great muscle loss after cutting, are fat people who never had any muscle to begin with. Say you want to lose one pound of fat per week. Your bodyfat should increase minimally and despite gaining a bit more fat you should be looking better too due to the muscle you gained. ) We would like to show you a description here but the site won’t allow us. I like this carb cycling approach better than the no/low carb approach for all 6-8 weeks or however long you need to cut. If you're a novice lifter like it sounds, you can actually keep growing muscles while losing fat. To be clear, even during the cut it was high protein. Building muscle might not happen, but you can get stronger while losing fat -- because strength isn't strictly about muscle mass. It is body recomposition - losing fat and gaining muscle/strength the most effective way. Here is my current understand eat enough protein (1g per kg) keep working out eat in a deficiency (around 500kcal) do some cardio (easier to be in deficiency) lose no more than 1lbs (0. Rinse and repeat. Jul 21, 2020 · Losing weight can be challenging, and trying to cut calories too quickly can have side effects for your health, including loss of hard-earned muscle mass. ) Reasons for the assumption that muscle won't be gained or lost: You're not new to training. My question is how can I cut without losing my butt. Feb 17, 2025 · Losing fat without losing muscle is a challenging but achievable goal with the right approach. Aim to lower your total daily caloric intake to 500 less than your BMR - which stands for Basal Metabolic Rate. LeanGains is a specific program based on Martin Berkhan's methodology of lifting heavy weights reverse pyramid style, focusing on protein as the main macro-nutrient, and intermittent fasting (IF). Eating calorie dense and nutritionally poor food you might feel hungrier and will suffer from nutrient deficiencies. If you are gaining strength you can lose it even faster. This is why bodybuilders go though bulks and cuts. If you want to gain muscle, you need to give your body the resources to do so (calories and protein). May 2, 2025 · Learn how to reduce body fat while preserving muscle mass with expert-backed strategies on calorie deficits, macronutrient planning, strength training, and recovery. Nov 19, 2024 · Discover effective strategies on how to cut without losing muscle in this comprehensive guide. Are you under 10% body fat? If you aren't, it's not "stubborn" belly fat, you just need to lose fat, which is done with a caloric deficit and patience, the smaller the deficit the less likely you'll lose muscle. That means almost half the weight I lost was muscle! We would like to show you a description here but the site won’t allow us. Right now, with the vacations, I earn some extra kg, and need to cut a little fat (6 to 8 kg), and what something more like Push Pull routine. Here's what you should know. Apr 26, 2025 · Want to keep losing fat without losing muscle? In this expert review, we analyze, critique, and expand on Team3DMJ’s approach to adjusting calories when fat loss slows. It's not a a piece of fat connected to some group of muscles. If you start gaining more fat than you're comfortable with, cut back on the calories a little bit. As far as I’m concerned, cutting becomes counterproductive when it significantly impacts your energy levels, sleep, or sex drive. You can lose weight without exercising at all if you eat fewer calories than you consume. How fast can you lose fat without losing muscle? I am currently at around 16% body fat, and I wanna half that in around one month, how could I do this without losing muscle? Archived post. This also allows your body to adapt and hopefully be left with less loose skin as opposed to trying to cut really quickly. Apr 9, 2024 · Looking to lose weight without losing muscle tone? Here are five ways to shed body fat while maintaining the muscle mass you've worked so hard for. You may even be able to gain a bit of muscle while cutting, especially if you’re overweight, out of shape, or new to lifting weights. I just couldn't lose as much fat as I wanted until I cut (and my cut was to replace dinner with fresh fruit and a large serving of greek yogurt or a protein smoothie). I have gained my weight back after not going to the gym as frequently and eating more for the better part of last year and I'm ready to get my weight and body fat down again. I like to keep deficits below 30 kcal per gram of fat mass. In the gym 5-6 days a week and work a fairly physically-active job. Routine to Lose Fat and Build Muscle Hi guys I'm running the Reddit Recommended Routine, and I feel that I need something different. cutting down to 10 percent requires calorie deficit and high intensity training, both of which burn muscle and fat. Really the only lasting solution is to eat a little less than what you currently are. Recognize that each individual’s response varies, so adjust your plan accordingly. of the weight loss coming from muscle mass. Jun 19, 2025 · If you are losing too much muscle mass while being in a mere 500 calorie deficit chances are your body type is an ectomorph and you may be able to burn fat while maintaining muscle with only a 300 calorie deficit. Trying to cut to much to quickly is a good way to eat into your muscle reserves. With other chemicals it's possible and even with straight food it can be done but it's extremely hard. Unless you’re cutting for a show Lean cut will preserve most, if not all, of the muscle you’ve gained on the lean bulk, while losing body fat at a reasonable and sustainable rate, larger deficits will lose more fat but will also put you at higher risk of muscle loss. Body builders in the off season maximize muscle gain (needing a calorie surplus) will minimizing fat gain. Track body composition changes rather than just scale weight for accuracy. If you had 20 days to cut as much body fat as possible while preserving muscle mass, what is YOUR plan to do so? This is only a hypothetical. Unless you’re literally 9% body fat, don’t stress too much about muscle loss on a cut as long as you’re lifting and eating around . To preserve muscle while losing weight do consistent strength training, consume enough protein, and get 8 hours of good sleep. Everything you need to know in easy steps. If you keep your strength you are doing fine. You should provide peer reviewed sources to support your claims when debating and confine that debate to the I'm trying to find out why exactly muscle loss would occur on a cut despite high protein intake and despite consistent workouts. Always be wary of unsupported and poorly supported claims and especially those which are wrapped in any manner of hostility. As a female, gaining muscle while losing fat isn't going to happen in any large degree. Also you will almost definitely lose some muscle on a cut. Jul 15, 2024 · During a cut, that focus is reversed, and losing weight becomes the main goal. For obese people this may be a bit higher, but it's generally a bad idea to crash diet if you're concerned about losing muscle and strength. Jun 11, 2024 · Our expert-backed guide explores 12 scientifically proven ways to lose body fat in a safe and sustainable way. (Went from 15% body fat to 10%). If you begin losing too much strength during a cut, more than what you'd expect to lose due to reduced leverages and whatnot, then it's a good indicator that you're losing muscle and something needs to be changed. Record. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast. A big problem with traditional calorie-cutting methods for weight loss is that they often result in losing a large proportion of “lean mass,” which includes muscle, bone, and internal organs… The goal should always be to preserve muscle while shedding fat. Tips to lose weight fast without losing muscle? Is there any easy tip? For instance eating protein? Or will that make the body think it has enough protein supply so it can keep wasting protein than calories? Any way to only lose fat & carbs without protein and fast? I need to lose weight really fast. Nothing wrong with having little muscles, but I get the feeling most people try to avoid being thin or "skinny fat". They can't keep putting on muscle when they are lean, so they need to be in a calorie surplus, which also causes them to put on a bit of fat. Oct 15, 2024 · Discover how to cut without losing muscle. Just going to echo this, or at least the general point of it. To get enough protein daily. This will create a small deficit. So I made a bulk period for about 3 months, gained about 6kgs, now Im 88kgs and usually feel the best at about 84. While it is possible to recomp (build muscle while losing body fat) it's difficult, and mostly only applicable to skinny-fat noobs like me. Feb 13, 2025 · Are you looking to start a cut and don't know where to start? Learn about seven essential tips that will help you lose and maintain your muscle. possible muscle loss territory? Archived post. If the figures are consistent with only fat loss, then don't worry about it; you're right on track (and you maybe want to reestimate your TDEE lower to match what you're empirically seeing). Its a great diet for recomping, you'll be focused on losing fat primarily but you will gain a few lbs of muscle assuming your program is good and your focused on adding weight onto all your lifts during the cut. The decision of which to do kind of depends on your exact body fat % and the exact size of your muscles. How to cut without losing muscle? During a normal doctors visit about six weeks ago my doctor told me my blood pressure/weight wasn’t good and I needed to make some changes. If you are, you can check out Lyle McDonald's Stubborn Fat Solution, which might be somewhat useful. 5kg) weight per week do not cut for longer than 3 months then maintain your new weight for also 3 months i understand that losing weight is all about being in a deficiency Am i missing something? EDIT: I also This is a guide to help you understand the process of cutting body fat without losing while minimizing any strength or muscle loss. You’ll see slower results on the scale but you’ll recomp much better and lose the weight at a healthy pace. Alternate between deficit and maintenance phases to prevent burnout. What you're saying is true in the sense that fat cells cannot turn into muscle cells; you need appropriate protein intake and amino acids to build muscle fibers. Is the problem based primarily on less energy (which seems easily mitigated via pre-workouts/energy supplements)? Do calories also play a large role in building muscle? I have yet to see an explanation for why muscle loss is unavoidable (and even more so, why muscle To cut, eat high protein/low carb to burn fat, but eat more carbs on heavy lifting days to better fuel the weight training. When I started cutting, I was eating 225g carbs in a caloric deficit and still losing weight, of course. My questions is though how to do it this time without losing the little muscle mass I have If you lose a lot of strength you are going too fast. When you start it's SUPER easy to gain muscle lose fat, when you're way further along it becomes an almost impossible feeling struggle and you have to accept that your abs are going to hibernate for a little bit and it's bulking up time. For me it was better to do a cut, lose a bunch of weight (15 to 20 pounds), and then focus on getting strong again. I still have a little bit of fat left in various places that my aesthetics would benefit greatly from getting rid of. The best practices for muscle sparing during fat loss are to not lose too quickly with a high deficit, stay around or under 1% bodyweight a week. pggtq yaedtyw ejvnzrc qer imnnej xmrpkr aavoee ncp zvzk rxrmiq jrus zosu wzftacl cyc kbhe