how to keep the muscle when you cut?

[werd]

ive been cuttin for like 2 weeks now and have seemed to lost more muscle then fat, i havent worked out any of my muscle just ran/rode the bikes. my arms were 14 3/4 before i started and now are 14 1/4 i dont kno if thats bad but seems pretty bad to me, any ideas?

[user34566548717114]

eat high glycemic index carbs (ie dextrose) following a workout along with protien powder......keep your protien level high, make sure you don't do hard cardio on a totally empty stomich a little oatmeal and some protien go along way, make sure you still lift the human body is an energy effiecent machine if you don't constantly remind it that it needs its muscle mass its gonna burn it

[Heavily_Armed]

I dont know how much you weigh etc but if your not eating at least your body weight in pounds via protein grams your gonna lose muscle. Ie; if you weigh 200lbs eat at least 200g protein daily. Also, unless you need to cut for next weeks anorexic supermodel challenge dont do cardio on an empty stomach. After cardio, take either dextrose, gatorade or fruit juice with a protein powder. Then 1hr later, eat a fair sized meal with a sufficient quantity, according to your goals and macronutrient ratios, a meal full of protein, good fats and low GI carbs. High GI carbs post workourt are necessary, but dont eat them other than right after a workout.

[werd]

im 6'3 180 maybe 170 or so now who knows anyways, yes im fat and im sick of it i have the most disgusting love handles (my main reason for it) then i have a belly and tiny man tits which is very obnoxious too.. ive worked out for like 2 years and im sick of it even when i was skinny i still had these so i dont really care i just want to get unfat once and for all and try not to lose as much muscle as possible, and btw how can i eat 200 grams of protien but not go over 2000 calories a day?

[BuggerOff]

I think most people talk out of their arse on this subject.

Eat healthy, get a decent amount of protein. There is no reason you would lose muscle instead of fat unless your body is in certain rare disease states or you bodyfat is extremely low already.

Weights are FANTASTIC for losing fat! Trust me, they give an awesome pump and burn heaps of calories. They also help prevent muscle loss - not that this is a real concern for people losing weight slowly on a healthy diet.

I average around 3/4 my bodyweight in protein daily, but even that is above the FDA recommended daily amount. I haven't lost any muscle, in fact I'm lifting slightly heavier than I was before.

Now, what makes you think you have lost muscle? Do you feel weaker? Look smaller? What? You're obviously not lifting less weight, because you weren't lifting any to begin with.

No offence, but if you're 6'3", 180-170 and fat, you couldn't be carrying very much muscle at all to begin with. So how do you know you've lost any?

Start weight training twice a week. Once a week on upper body and once a week on lower body. Now if the weight you are lifting is decling at a steady rate over a period greater than 3 weeks, then you know you're losing muscle.But I doubt this will happen.

Your arms a smaller because you have probably lost a little fat and a little water. Fat is not just in the guts, y'know? It's all over your body. It's even INSIDE muscles, around muscles, and over muscles. So when you lose fat from there, it may look like you muscles are smaller.

As you lose fat your muscles will appear smaller and harder.for obvious reasons.

I'd also suggest you could go lower on cals/day. I can easily eat 200g of protein daily on 1600 cals a day. I don't see the problem doing it with 2000 cals a day. Get a protein supplement if you really want to eat that much protein, but really, it is not necessary.

I was 195lbs when I started and I was eating 1800cals a day with 150g of protein. I lost fat fast with no loss of muscle.

[Plop]

i totally agree with what bugger off was saying about doing at least two weight traing sessions a week during your cutting phase.

Remember......the more muscle you have, the more faster your metaboilsim will work, meaning it will burn MORE calories.

Trust me, if you are cutting and you don't do any weights work, you will be making a big mistake.

[werd]

'Now, what makes you think you have lost muscle? Do you feel weaker? Look smaller? What? You're obviously not lifting less weight, because you weren't lifting any to begin with.

No offence, but if you're 6'3", 180-170 and fat, you couldn't be carrying very much muscle at all to begin with. So how do you know you've lost any?'

as i said in my first post i have lost a half of an inch on my arms and they just look alot slimmer now and yes i realize u lose fat on your arms but 1/2 an inch? seems alot to me and i was lifting for 2 years (as i also said in a reply up a few lines)

[n-d-r]

just a question to werd, did u mean 170-180 lbs or kg?

if its in KG then it makes sense why he is worried bout his weight

[BuggerOff]

Oh yeah. I think he means 170 pounds. And at 6'3", that's not very heavy really. Especially if your "fat". If you're 170kg, that's a different story. I'm 5'11", 175 pounds and quite slim (now).

I wouldn't worry about it, werd. And if u are 170kg, then I can almost guarantee that the 1/2 inch you lost on your arms was fat.

[Smegs]

6'3" 180 is aneroxic

[werd]

lol yea yea yea 6'3 170 is anorexic, ill tell u what i think about body building, over 15" arms = too big i was almost to my goal 15 inches and injured my wrist sorta so i decided to just cut and i was 180 *LBS* at the time w/ 14 3/4 arms i have NEVER been able to see my abs i have always had these retarded love handles and yes i am fat if u wanna see my pic ill prove to you how incredibly disgusting my love handles are. even if i have to lose all the muscle i have gained since i started working out 2 years ago i will do it to lose them and start all over

[BuggerOff]

Are you sure it's not just loose skin? Of course, you would have had to have been obese at some stage for that to be so.

If that's not the case, are you sure you're 6'3"? and 180 pounds?

Anyway, there's no need to lose any muscle at all, but we've already been through that. Just make sure you're eating a good amount of protein (whatever makes you feel good), you're doing weights regularly, and you have created a slight caloric deficit in your diet. If that doesn't work, you'd be a medical anomaly.

Good Luck.

[werd]

yea infact i started working out because i was "skinny" infact my first workout partner used to comment on how i must be embaressed to be so skinny ... i used to be like 6'3 160-170 and like had no muscle at all but the same fat i described.. then worked out for 2 years and got to be decent size (for my standards atleast) and never got over 180 its quite odd..