Losing Muscle vs. Losing Fat

[HeatherD]

First of all, I have lost 8 lbs on South Beach.
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I recently went to the gym and hit the eliptical. I noticed that it was harder for me to work out and that I had to turn the resistance down. I have also noticed that I get tired easily and that sometimes I will get very hungry during work outs. The same is true for my skiing. I mentioned this on my first visit to a personal trainer. It turns out that I may not be eating enough protein. It turns out the my body is hungry and is hungry for the protein found in my muscles instead of the fat in body. Make sense? Has anyone had this happen to them before? I always just thought that the body would burn fat and not muscle.


I am into phase 2. I am now making myself eat more meat and cheese and protein. The weight loss is slower.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

[whatsername]

Congratulations on the 8lbs...

I know that if you don't eat enough your body will lose muscle so you need to make sure you get that protein in...especially an hour or so before you workout!!!...

I don't know much of anything else...hahaha...so...I am off!...:happy:

WE

[Sadie147]

Here is a great excerpt about this from www.goaskalice.com (one of my favourite info sites)


http://www.goaskalice.columbia.edu/2437.html

As far as humans are concerned, we can't build muscle and lose fat at the same time. Anabolism, the process of building muscle, requires more calories taken in than expended, plus appropriate resistance exercise to stimulate the many cells involved in muscle development, and adequate rest to allow repair and growth of muscle tissue.

Muscle tissue is comprised of 15 - 20 percent protein, 70 - 75 percent water, and glycogen (carbohydrate), fat, vitamins, and minerals in the remainder. Because of the work involved, rest required, and calorie intake needed, it's unlikely for a person to be able to gain more than two pounds of muscle in a week. As a person adds muscle, her/his metabolic rate increases slightly.

With weight loss, the goal for many is to lose fat and keep muscle. The body does not burn fat only when fewer calories are consumed; carbohydrate and protein are also utilized for energy. When a person loses weight, s/he usually loses not only fat, but also water and protein. If one is restricting carbohydrate in his/her eating plan, protein will be used for energy and will not be available for muscle repair. If a person is taking in too little protein, s/he will not have an adequate amount available to fulfill its many functions, including muscle and tissue repair, enzyme and hormone production, fluid balance, and red blood cell production, among others. Weight loss involves fewer calories taken in than expended, so in this deprivation mode, one would not have the excess calories required to build muscle. As a matter of fact, low calorie eating plans can result in protein deficiency and loss of muscle tissue.

So, what is the answer to this quandary? While trying to lose fat, it's important to work on preserving muscle. Dieters frequently lose lean body mass and experience decreases in basal metabolic rate. Stopping or excluding resistance exercise does nothing for maintaining strength, muscle tone, and bone health. Keeping lean body mass by weight training will also help to keep one's metabolism up. In order to preserve lean body mass, taking in sufficient protein (2 g/kg. or 0.9 g/lb of body weight) is recommended. Timing of protein intake may play a significant role in its use to repair muscle tissue — within two hours of a workout can help assure its availability. The amount of protein will depend on the intensity of the workout and a person's energy needs. Including protein, along with carbohydrate, post-exercise seems to be optimal in muscle repair.

To settle the score — neither of you is exactly right. A combination of aerobic and resistance exercise, while trying to lose body fat, is recommended. Despite all the ads, tapes, and classes for "body sculpting," our bodies aren't lumps of clay, ready to be molded into a preconceived form.

[nancy]

Heather,

I suggest you go back & make sure your entire daily diet checks up with all the SBD guidelines. You need to have enough total food per day for your body to not use muscle for fuel. :Read:

Are you having your food spread out throughout the day? Are you having snacks? You need your required proteins and also all the other recommended food groups all through the day. An adequate, balanced diet,with variety, is the way to make sure you're getting all the nutrients you need to have your body work right.

Are you drinking enough water? Enough water and other fluids decrease tiredness.

(Remember, sometimes gym trainers don't have the knowledge to give specific nutritional advice.)

Keep up the good work! :Hug1:

[luv2bike]

My first thought was whether you're eating enough. I have more energy on this plan than I've had in ages and I'm 49 years old!

Congrats on losing 8 pounds, btw! :Clap:

[exerciseangel]

SOme People take longer to Adapt to Lower carb then others for instance it took me 3 months before I didn't feel lethargic when I exercised but, that feeling did go away and I can now run easily 12 miles and feel great after other then a bit sore. Give it time your Body is adapting I would suggest Lowering your exercise for a bit still exercise but, lower it and see you are not gunna lose anything you have gained during this you just need to increase slowly to allow your body to adapt. Most People give up before the Miricle happens some people it happen quick and others like me it happens slow. If you just started exercising it may also be that you are overdoing it and you are actually experiencing the likes of Overtraining.


Overtraining Syndrome

It is no secret among athletes that in order to improve performance you've got to work hard. However, hard training breaks you down and makes you weaker. It is rest that makes you stronger. Physiologic improvement in sports only occurs during the rest period following hard training. This adaptation is in response to maximal loading of the cardiovascular and muscular systems and is accomplished by improving efficiency of the heart, increasing capillaries in the muscles, and increasing glycogen stores and mitochondrial enzyme systems within the muscle cells. During recovery periods these systems build to greater levels to compensate for the stress that you have applied. The result is that you are now at a higher level of performance.
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If sufficient rest is not included in a training program then regeneration cannot occur and performance plateaus. If this imbalance between excess training and inadequate rest persists then performance will decline. Overtraining can best be defined as the state where the athlete has been repeatedly stressed by training to the point where rest is no longer adequate to allow for recovery. The "overtraining syndrome" is the name given to the collection of emotional, behavioral, and physical symptoms due to overtraining that has persisted for weeks to months. Athletes and coaches also know it as "burnout" or "staleness." This is different from the day to day variation in performance and post exercise tiredness that is common in conditioned athletes. Overtraining is marked by cumulative exhaustion that persists even after recovery periods.

The most common symptom is fatigue. This may limit workouts and may be present at rest. The athlete may also become moody, easily irritated, have altered sleep patterns, become depressed, or lose the competitive desire and enthusiasm for the sport. Some will report decreased appetite and weight loss. Physical symptoms include persistent muscular soreness, increased frequency of viral illnesses, and increased incidence of injuries.

There have been several clinical studies done on athletes with the overtraining syndrome. Exercise physiologic, psychological, and biochemical laboratory testing have been done. Findings in these studies have shown decreased performance in exercise testing, decreased mood state, and, in some, increased cortisol levels -- the body's "stress" hormone. A decrease in testosterone, altered immune status, and an increase in muscular break down products have also been identified. Medically, the overtraining syndrome is classified as a neuro-endocrine disorder. The normal fine balance in the interaction between the autonomic nervous system and the hormonal system is disturbed and athletic "jet lag" results. The body now has a decreased ability to repair itself during rest. Heaping more workouts onto this unbalanced system only worsens the situation. Additional stress in the form of difficulties at work or personal life also contributes.

It appears that there are two forms of the syndrome. The sympathetic form is more common in sprint type sports and the parasympathetic form is more common in endurance sports. The results from various measurements taken during exercise physiologic testing differ between the two forms, but decreased overall performance and increased perceived fatigue are similar. In the parasympathetic form there may be a lower heart rate for a given workload. Athletes training with a heart rate monitor may notice that they cannot sustain the workout at their usual "set point." Fatigue takes over and prematurely terminates the workout. Regulation of glucose can become altered and the athlete may experience symptoms of hypoglycemia during exercise.

I won't comment on all of the differences between the two forms, but one example is resting heart rate. In the sympathetic form, the resting heart rate is elevated. In the parasympathetic form, however, the resting heart rate is decreased. If this sounds confusing, then you are not alone. There is very little agreement in the literature about abnormal laboratory findings. Additionally, it is possible to have the overtraining syndrome, but have completely normal physical findings and biochemical tests. At this point, there is no single test that will confirm the presence of overtraining. The overtraining syndrome should be considered in any athlete who manifests symptoms of prolonged fatigue and performance that has leveled off or decreased. It is important to exclude any underlying illness that may be responsible for the fatigue.

The treatment for the overtraining syndrome is rest. The longer the overtraining has occurred, the more rest required. Therefore, early detection is very important. If the overtraining has only occurred for a short period of time (e.g., 3 - 4 weeks) then interrupting training for 3 - 5 days is usually sufficient rest. After this, workouts can be resumed on an alternate day basis. The intensity of the training can be maintained but the total volume must be lower. It is important that the factors that lead to overtraining be identified and corrected. Otherwise, the overtraining syndrome is likely to recur. The alternate day recovery period is continued for a few weeks and then an increase in volume is permitted. In more severe cases, the training program may have to be interrupted for weeks, and it may take months to recover. An alternate form of exercise can be substituted to help prevent the exercise withdrawal syndrome.

All of the medical studies and advice on overtraining have involved single sport athletes. For triathletes and other multi-sport athletes the recovery process may be different depending on the circumstances. If it can be identified that the overtraining has occurred in only one discipline, then resting that discipline along with significant decreases in the other sports can bring about full recovery. It is vitally important not to suddenly substitute more workouts in one sport in an attempt to compensate for rest in another. The athlete that does this will not heal the overtraining, but will drive him or herself deeper into a hole. Overtraining affects both peripheral and central mechanisms in the body. Resting from overtraining on the bicycle by swimming more will help a pair of fatigued quadriceps, but to the heart, pituitary, and adrenals, stress is stress.

As with almost everything else health related, prevention is the key. Well-balanced gradual increases in training are recommended. A training schedule design called periodisation varies the training load in cycles with built in mandatory rest phases. During the high workload phase, the athlete alternates between high intensity interval work and low intensity endurance work . This approach is used by a number of elite athletes in many sports.

A training log is the best method to monitor progress. In addition to keeping track of distance and intensity, the athlete can record the resting morning heart rate, weight, general health, how the workout felt, and levels of muscular soreness and fatigue. The latter two can be scored on a 10 point scale. Significant, progressive changes in any of these parameters may signal overtraining. Avoiding monotonous training and maintaining adequate nutrition are other recommendations for prevention. Vigorous exercise during the incubation period of a viral illness may increase the duration and severity of that illness. Athletes who feel as if they are developing a cold should rest or reduce the training schedule for a few days.

In conclusion, the prevailing wisdom is that it is better to be undertrained than overtrained. Rest is a vital part of any athlete's training. There is considerable evidence that reduced training (same intensity, lower volume) for up to 21 days will not decrease performance. A well-planned training program involves as much art as science and should allow for flexibility. Early warning signs of overtraining should be heeded and schedule adjustments made accordingly. Smart training is the path to faster times and good health.
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SYMPTOMS OF OVERTRAINING

Overtraining occurs when athletes try too hard to improve performance and train beyond the body's ability to recover.

The common warning signs of overtraining include the following:

* Mild leg soreness, general achiness
* Pain in muscles & joints
* Washed-out feeling, tired, drained, lack of energy
* Sudden drop in ability to run ‘normal’ distance or times
* Insomnia
* Headaches
* Inability to relax, twitchy, fidgety
* Insatiable thirst, dehydration
* Lowered resistance to common illnesses; colds, sore throat, etc.

[HeatherD]

Thanks for all of the feedback. I am eating more protein. I am also eating my snacks even if I am not hungry. I don't eat past 7pm so often I have a large lunch or lots of snacks after a long day at work. I often work until 5.30 or 6 and then work out for an hour and half or so.

I took the advice of eating a snack like a cheese stick or pudding cup an hour before I work out and that helps a lot.