The Gain Muscle And Burn Fat At The Same Time Myth

Fact: You cannot gain muscle and burn fat at the same time.

Few who understand the muscle building process will want to argue against this except the snake oil salesmen peddling their magic pills! Let us break down the muscle growth process in order to understand why one cannot do both at the same time.

Muscle growth results from protein synthesis, a process that requires a surplus of calories beyond your basic sustenance. This excess has to be obtained by eating more calories than you need. The thing is, the protein synthesis process cannot make use of all the excess calories you consume and some invariably end up as fat.

Lifting heavy weights and eating more than your body needs results in gaining muscle as well as a little fat. It is possible to reduce the fat gained by following a strict diet but you cannot eliminate it completely. But worry not.The trimming phase that you will perform after you have bulked up will take care of this fat.

The good news is that as you add muscle mass, your basal metabolic rate aka BMR also increases. The basal metabolic rate is the amount of calories one burns while at rest. This increase in BMR results in you burning more fat over time.

Once you have bulked up now it is time for the fat burning or trimming phase. During this phase reduce your food intake and do lots of cardio vascular exercise. When you do this the body is forced to tap into its fat reservoir as a source of energy and you end up burning fat.

One thing to be mindful of during this phase is doing too much cardio and also burning muscle in addition to fat. You can avoid this by controlling the intensity of the cardio-only do light exercises for about twenty minutes at a time. No vigorous hour long sprints!

I personally use a supplement called Catalyst to make sure I don't burn muscle. It protects the muscle tissue when doing cardio vascular exercise.

To recap what I've said, the amazing physique we all want-muscular, lean and well proportioned-can only be built by first bulking up and then trimming down.

Some tips that will be of help to you are:

1. Don't overstuff yourself

Even though you need a 'caloric excess' to build muscle don't over eat and consume calories that will not be used in muscle building. A rule of thumb is, don't consume more than twenty percent above whatever is your weight maintenance diet. Put another way, aim to eat about 1-1.5g of protein per pound of body weight with your overall food in take being comprised of 40% protein, 40% carbohydrates and 20% fat.

2. Watch what you eat

Consume a diet rich in complex carbohydrates, lean proteins and unsaturated fats. Skip junk foods full of useless calories as these only lead to fat. To make this plan sustainable also have one 'off day' every week when you can eat whatever you want.

3. Engage in cardio exercises

Even while bulking up do a little bit of cardio to further reduce the amount of fat you pack on as gain muscle. I recommend 2-3 sessions per week of about 15-20 minutes.

Let me say it again loud and clear. One cannot burn fat and gain muscle at the same time. The method detailed above is the only way to get the super duper amazing physique you've always dreamed of!

by: Don Demarco

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