Goal : Lose Weight or Build Muscle??

[crazyqueet]

What is your primary goal? To lose weight or build muscle??

**I know you lose fat when you build muscle**

I'm having a hard time deciding if my top priority should be to lose weight or to build muscle. I'm also having a hard time transitioning from doing "low carb" eating to "healthy" eating...

Guess I'm afraid of gaining too much weight if I decide to start back adding carbs and if I want to build muscle. 

I want my weight to stay low but I also want to build muscle, esp in my arms. Not hard for me to train my legs. I know it will take awhile since I am female to build muscle...

Any tips or advice please??

My mind is just stuck right now....

[Dominique]

Ít’s a tough question I’ve been asking myself too. If you look at my weight for the past four years (my "after Fitbit" era), it shows I’m not sure what my "ideal" weight is:

For me, 70 kg is BMI 23.1 and 60 kg is BMI 19.8, so I’m well within the "normal" range. Lately I’ve been focusing on fat loss. This doesn’t mean I haven’t been lifting weights, quite the opposite actually. Just because being in a caloric deficit isn’t optimal for building muscle doesn’t mean you shouldn’t lift weights in a deficit. You could make some gains (especially as a newbie lifter), gain strength and minimize loss of lean body mass.

My current plan is to lose another 1-2 kg before switching to a surplus, and then regain as slowly as I can (no more than 1 kg per month) so I can spend as much time as possible in a surplus without becoming too fat. Ideally August to December (five months).

[emili]

when I was heavy, my primary goal was to lose weight which meant fat loss. Once I hit the weight I am comfortable at, I started to weight train to tone up my muscles. As Dominique pointed out the two are not mutually exclusive and you can and should do both, but you ultimately have to decide what you want to do first. I am not sure I follow the carb - eat healthy part. Carbs are not bad. Eating carbs does not mean you are eating unhealthy. And carbs are not needed for muscle growth, protein is. You do need some carb if you are doing straight intense cardio like running... I also can not imagine a life without carbs. Complex carbs are a good thing for most people and should be enjoyed completely.

[Mukluk4]

---

@crazyqueet wrote:

Guess I'm afraid of gaining too much weight if I decide to start back adding carbs and if I want to build muscle. 

I want my weight to stay low but I also want to build muscle, esp in my arms. Not hard for me to train my legs. I know it will take awhile since I am female to build muscle...

---

The first thing I would suggest is to stop focusing on the scale number.  You can gain muscle (and weight) and still look better than you do now.  I would suggest looking around at other women and determine what type of body type do you want and then identify how to get there (internet, asking that person, or seeking out a professional).

Or if there is a sport or physical activity that you enjoy, do your research on how to improve and that will assist in defining the way you need to train. 

[mamona6]

IMHO a shapely muscled body  is better than thin Go for the muscle 🙂

[ScottPCarson]

 I think Best thing to do it to find peace with your diet and training routine.

I'd suggest keeping maintenance calories and trying a strength training program and find balance and consistency between both that works for you.

you might not see the scale change much but if you're coming in from a untrained state you should see a change in body composition! 

I think after you get comfortable with your routine you might know better what is a priority for you and get your goals that way!

All the best!

SPC

[Mamabird3]

Definitely both!!

I am tracking my calories and losing weight.  But I am also training with my bootcamp fitness family and gaining muscle.  Combining the two is a really great balance and I am benefiting from both.  Strength without "too much" muscle is absolutely possible and will help your burn more calories. 

Making good food choices doesn't mean I have to cut out carbs.  I just stay away from the bad ones.  I love that fitbit motivates me to get my cardio in.  Diet, weight training and cardio... all important.  I am a work in progress but I feel amazing when I combine the 3.

[Dave001]

Still a fat lad!

I'm still prioritising weight loss.

I've gone from a BMI of 38.1 in January of this year to 31.3 now.

I need to lose another 5.3kg to slip out of the obese category. Being merely overweight will be an experience I've not had for very many years!

I'm very aware of the limitations of BMI. I'm quite a broad framed chap and have previously been very heavily muscled, so reaching "healthy" weight is unlikely to happen whilst maintaining health. I do however still have abdominal fat which I need to shift for long term health reasons.

I'm really enjoying running again and am looking forward to competing again soon, so losing further weight will be beneficial. 

But we are all different with different goals. It's important to set SMART goals and set about reaching them with consistency and a smile on your face. 

[WavyDavey]

It kind of depends what is meant by "build muscle". If that means, add a few contours to the body and tone up a little, then I agree it can be done at the same time.

But if we're talking building muscle as in being able to deadlift over 2 times bodyweight, well I think the choice has to be made between that and fat loss. Putting on serious muscle requires a caloric surplus. Every strength coach I've come across has said that some fat will come along with building muscle. There are ways to skew that towards minimizing fat, but it's somewhat inevitable from what I've gathered.

I noticed the exception to this is during the first few months, where it's possible to lose fat and build muscle at the same time. But eventually the fat loss tapers off, and the calories to build more muscle will have to be added.

[Mukluk4]

---

@Dave001 wrote:

I've gone from a BMI of 38.1 in January of this year to 31.3 now.

---

I would track your BF% while you are at it.  You probably have quite a bit of muscle under there if you've been heavy for awhile that you don't want to lose.