It’s an often asked conundrum: how to effectively train to reduce body fat and increase muscle mass simultaneously. The thing is, the two processes are, at a basic level, contradictory processes, and there’s a ton of scientific evidence to prove it*. However, it’s very obvious when looking at the to-die-for bodies of those we aspire to emulate that it is indeed possible to carry out both processes, and torch that excess fat whilst also building lean muscle.
Changing the composition of your body (in other words, fat to muscle ratio) doesn’t come easy. As anyone who’s tried and failed will tell you, it’s a complex process. But it is possible. And the road to success, although tough, can be made rather much easier by avoiding some of the most common fitness mistakes.
Mistakes to avoid
The following are 5 errors that plague many people’s training efforts.
- Failure to realise that all carbs are not equal: Contrary to popular belief, carbs are not your enemy. Well, not all of them. Simple carbohydrates, such as sugar and refined grains are definitely something to be avoided. However, carbs are an important part of a healthy diet, but to gain maximum effect it’s necessary to ensure that those you eat are complex carbs. These include vegetables, fruits and whole grains. Including small portions of such complex carbohydrates in your diet not only provides necessary nutrition but will help balance insulin levels, an important part of any weight loss program.
- Not consuming quality protein: Forget those protein bars and drinks that are often stuffed full of processed ingredients, what you need to consume daily is good quality, lean protein. It’s this that the body uses to repair and grow muscle. This should come from a combination of animal, dairy and vegetable sources, such as fish, eggs, chicken, nuts, beans, yogurt and milk. Vegetarians and vegans will need to gain this protein from other sources, such as seitan and tofu.
- Overeating: The actual amount of food your body needs when you’re trying to lose fat and build muscle is based on a number of factors. These include how much exercise you’re doing on a daily basis, how much weight you have to lose and your stage of training – in other words, how much muscle you already have and how much fat you have to lose. Eat too much protein and your body will store it as fat. Consuming too much fat of any kind will lead to weight gain, and, as already mentioned, excess refined carbs will also be converted to fat. For most of us, we need at least 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day. Getting dietary advice from an expert is the easiest way to tweak your diet so it works in partnership with your fitness regime.
- Doing too much cardio: Yes, you need to include cardio in your program. But endless pounding the treadmill or pedalling the road to nowhere can actually see you lose muscle. Aerobic exercise is a good way to burn calories, but it needs to done in conjunction with a strategic weight and resistance program.
- Insufficient weight training: The most effective way to increase muscle mass is with weight training. Placing stimulatory stress on your muscle causes the fibres to increase in strength and size, and additional muscle mass burns calories, even when you’re asleep. Moderately intensive weight training should be carried out at least 3 times a week. And by that we mean you need to push enough weight to hit fatigue. Endless reps with light weights are virtually pointless: to get the results you crave you need to be working with heavy enough weights so at end of a set of 8-12 reps the last couple should be extremely difficult to complete.
Losing fat and gaining muscle takes effort and determination. At the beginning of a program most will see significant results over a short period of time, and this is even more apparent if you have a large amount of body fat to lose. As you progress results tend to slow, and tweaks to your regime and diet will be necessary. Everyone suffers the dreaded plateaus, and when this strikes it’s a red flag that dynamic change is needed.
This could mean spicing up your weight training with different exercises, the addition of a HIIT program or two, or the inclusion of other fitness workouts.
The ultimate way to successfully gain muscle and reduce body fat at the same time is to have a personally written program from a professional. Bailey Fitness has gyms in Southern River, Morley and Baldivis, with experts in creating such body transformation programs. The friendly teams at all our gyms will be glad to help with the fitness and nutrition advice you need to hit your goals. Pop in for a no-obligation chat or check out our website at baileyfitness.com.au
* htts://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5421125/
