Loosing Fat and Gaining Muscle - For Women Too

As unbelievable as it may sound,
that really is my fiancee, Samantha 

The biggest mistake I see people making when it comes to fitness is trying to do too much at once. As I keep saying it's all about finding your balance. We would all like to lose all the fat and put on some muscle at the same time. What most people do not understand, this is nearly impossible to do.  Your body, no matter how hard you work is not designed to do both functions at once.

When you first start working out after a long break you may see both muscle gains as well as fat loss. But that usually very short-lived. The manner in which you lose weight is simple, you have to burn more calories than you consume. That's usually done through cardiovascular exercise and minimal weight training. The weight training is essential because muscle burns more calories than fat.  But that is another post.

In order to gain muscle you have to have optimal caloric intake as well as the optimal amount of protein to help build those muscles. If you don't have enough calories or you don't have enough protein your body can not build any new muscles because it simply does not have the building blocks it needs.. And if you get your point where your burned so much fat your body can't burn anymore, it will start using the muscle as a fuel source further slowing you muscle gains.

Bodybuilders achieve muscle gains by overloading on calories and protein. It's almost impossible to sit there and figure out exactly how many calories or how much protein you need to be at the optimal level. So the best way to ensure the nutrients your muscles need is to simply overload on them and consume more than you need.

That's why when you see bodybuilders in the off-season they look fat and bloated. It's because they're in muscle building phase. They're trying to bulk up, make everything bigger but in the process they have to consume extra calories which puts on fat. Then they will begin doing the opposite as they prepare for a competition.

So it is essential you understand the difference between the two distant phases of a workout season.  How much you gain or how much you lose is up to your individual preference.  Now I know under no circumstances does any woman want to put on fat at all, so ladies you probably will ignore much of this post.  But understanding how diet affects your overall weight goals is important.

Also it is important to know that muscle does a lot to help you keep weight off.  Muscle burns more calories than fat.  So every minute of everyday you will burn more calories if you add just a little muscle.  Doesn't that sound like a great idea?  Who doesn't want to burn extra calories while they sleep?  This will help you to keep that lean figure you have put so many miles on the treadmill for.

I have worked with a lot of women to achieve there fitness goals.  And I always got the same complaint the first two months.  They were doing the workout, but they were gaining weight.  Do not worry about the scale when you are working out, at all!  Muscle not only burns more calories than fat but it weighs more.  Muslcle is much more dense.  All of these women looked great after two months and had obviously lost a few pounds as well as gained some definition, but still they complained.

I would ask them if there pants still fit the same.  They would always so no they felt a little looser.  Then I would explain to them what I just told you thinking it would make sense.  But usually I got "but I do not want to gain weight".  After a few minutes of flattery they would finally accept I knew what I was talking about.  Women just think differently than men.

When you're trying to gain muscle you don't do a lot of cardio and when you're trying to lose fat, don't do a lot of weightlifting. And I say don't do a lot of either, but that doesn't mean don't do any. Your body does need the different types of activities to maintain strength and endurance.

You just have to take a balanced approach to whatever you are doing.

Fitness Goals

Just like everything else in life, we have to have balance in our fitness routine.  We all know people who either really need to get in shape and maybe a few who are to obsessive about it.  I spent years as one of those who was way to obsessed with it.  Now I am in the other category :/.

After years of various workouts and supplements as well as helping others get into shape I learned a few things.  Their were two things I learned that stand out above everything else.  One is you are stuck with your genetics no matter what.  Some of us just naturally have thicker bodies and some of us just have a thin body.  Nothing you can do will ever change that.  For me, despite my weight gain over the last few years I have a thin body type.  That is why I saw now I am fat and skinny at the same time.  I have a belly, but long thin arms and chicken legs.

When I was in the gym all the time I would get bigger.  But I never saw the results I wanted to.  I could eat as much as I could, lift the heaviest weights possible for me and the most I ever weighed was 205 at 5'10".  That weight gain did not happen until I was 25 years old.  Before that I was a scrawny 170.

Meanwhile I saw people who were heavier, but still looked great wanting to get into a size zero and they never could get their.

The first part of fitness is accepting the fact we are not all Jennifer Anniston or Brad Pitt and few of us can ever have bodies like them.  By accepting that fact it will help you to be happier with your fitness plan.

And being happy with your fitness plan is what will make all the difference.  That was the other thing that stands out to me after 20 years of athletics, consistency is what matters the most.

I would see people go on diets where they would starve themselves to lose weight.  But then they would binge eat.  Which ironically have a double effect of weight gain on the body.  By not eating enough calories your body thinks it is starving and slows down your metabolism to save energy.  Once it slows down the amount of calories you burn to save energy, binge eating actually doubles the weight gain since it takes time for your body to balance out.

Anything with fitness requires consistency.  If you ran one day a week for 10 miles, it will not have the same benefits of running two miles ten times a week.

A lot of people get so hyped up about a new diet or workout plan they over do it.  Its great to be excited about getting in shape.  But you have to pick a plan you know you will stick to.  Going to the gym everyday for a month will not help you once you get burned out.  But starting a routine of going 30 minutes a day after work and sticking to it will help you for a lifetime.

The trick is not getting where you want to be fitness wise, its staying where you want to be.  The only way to stay there is by being consistent.