Can You Build Muscle In a Calorie Deficit / Lose Fat In a Surplus? (Science Explained)
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Date: 2019-11-06
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Comments and reviews: 9
Derangedxzombie
I like when people actually use science and study's to support a hypothesis when it comes to bodybuilding. I'm a beginner with a somewhat fast metabolism, on 3000 cals a day (I'm 6'2. Training hard with weights, having 240g protein a day and overall good food, only 70g of good fats (fish etc. I've seen good results so far (fat % isn't really increasing but muscle is) and with more time I expect the fat will decrease. My TDDE is about 2500 so it's only a 500 surplus and by the time I go to sleep and recovery really begins it can take a good 400-600 cals for say 8 hrs sleep. I train 3 on 1 off so even after 30hrs for a male when fat is being broken down in the large intestine, my body will always be training or repairing. I think it's definitely possible to gain muscle and lose fat, if I got back into cardio regularly then more so, but I want to try getting most gain from muscle.
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I like when people actually use science and study's to support a hypothesis when it comes to bodybuilding. I'm a beginner with a somewhat fast metabolism, on 3000 cals a day (I'm 6'2. Training hard with weights, having 240g protein a day and overall good food, only 70g of good fats (fish etc. I've seen good results so far (fat % isn't really increasing but muscle is) and with more time I expect the fat will decrease. My TDDE is about 2500 so it's only a 500 surplus and by the time I go to sleep and recovery really begins it can take a good 400-600 cals for say 8 hrs sleep. I train 3 on 1 off so even after 30hrs for a male when fat is being broken down in the large intestine, my body will always be training or repairing. I think it's definitely possible to gain muscle and lose fat, if I got back into cardio regularly then more so, but I want to try getting most gain from muscle.
reply
Francois Kruger
Hi Jeff and Everyone, shout out from South Africa: )I need some advice on Nutrition / Calories etc. etc. My goal is lean muscle gainWhen I started to exercise I weight 231. 45 pounds (about an year ago, exercised 3/5 times a week but mostly cardio / running obstacle sources etc. but I kind of stop 4 months ago cause I didn't see any desired results (Lean Muscle Gain) when I stopped my weight was 176. 37 pounds, I looked way to skinny and I didn't like it at all, being kind of more informed now I realize that your diet is very important if not the most important and you can't cut carbs out of your diet, I'm currently 202 pounds, 6. 07 foot, with body fat % of 24, Age 30, Do I cut and drop my body fat % to 13-18 with more cardio related exercises (including Weights) before starting to build series muscle or just go with building?
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Hi Jeff and Everyone, shout out from South Africa: )I need some advice on Nutrition / Calories etc. etc. My goal is lean muscle gainWhen I started to exercise I weight 231. 45 pounds (about an year ago, exercised 3/5 times a week but mostly cardio / running obstacle sources etc. but I kind of stop 4 months ago cause I didn't see any desired results (Lean Muscle Gain) when I stopped my weight was 176. 37 pounds, I looked way to skinny and I didn't like it at all, being kind of more informed now I realize that your diet is very important if not the most important and you can't cut carbs out of your diet, I'm currently 202 pounds, 6. 07 foot, with body fat % of 24, Age 30, Do I cut and drop my body fat % to 13-18 with more cardio related exercises (including Weights) before starting to build series muscle or just go with building?
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b1uezer
Finally someone notable said it. Too often people think musculature is so dependent on energy intake because calories changes the number on the scale. Building muscle isn't /just/ about calories, musculature is made up of all sort of compounds and amino acids that you could certainly get enough of before reaching a calorie surplus. And not just that, they also rely on the endocrine system to facilitate the right amount of hormones, and that varies wildly from person to person. If you have naturally high testosterone, it could be just that much easier for you body to dedicate the resources it gets to building muscle and vice versa. Your body isn't only adding or subtracting from itself at a given point, it is capable of doing both at the same time.
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Finally someone notable said it. Too often people think musculature is so dependent on energy intake because calories changes the number on the scale. Building muscle isn't /just/ about calories, musculature is made up of all sort of compounds and amino acids that you could certainly get enough of before reaching a calorie surplus. And not just that, they also rely on the endocrine system to facilitate the right amount of hormones, and that varies wildly from person to person. If you have naturally high testosterone, it could be just that much easier for you body to dedicate the resources it gets to building muscle and vice versa. Your body isn't only adding or subtracting from itself at a given point, it is capable of doing both at the same time.
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Castles
Late to the party on this, but I've been searching this topic, because I've been in a deficit for about 7 weeks now. Based on the mirror, as well as my measurements, I've increased my overall size across multiple muscle groups, despite dropping body fat, visibly and tangibly. I have been running your intermediate hypertrophy programme for the first time however, so this more intense regime may be a contributing factor, but I've been training for 10 years. so goes some way to present some evidence that experience may not be the primary indicator. Maybe a variation in your training can also make a difference. I. e. if you've run push/pull/legs before, perhaps try an upper/lower split instead, which may increase intensity. What do you think?
reply
Late to the party on this, but I've been searching this topic, because I've been in a deficit for about 7 weeks now. Based on the mirror, as well as my measurements, I've increased my overall size across multiple muscle groups, despite dropping body fat, visibly and tangibly. I have been running your intermediate hypertrophy programme for the first time however, so this more intense regime may be a contributing factor, but I've been training for 10 years. so goes some way to present some evidence that experience may not be the primary indicator. Maybe a variation in your training can also make a difference. I. e. if you've run push/pull/legs before, perhaps try an upper/lower split instead, which may increase intensity. What do you think?
reply
The NEW Plan
You can't lose body fat in a surplus. However, it's definitely possible for people to gain muscle whilst losing fat. Anyone that has ever worked with an overweight client, that has never been introduced to weight training, would of witnessed this. I've seen my clients dramatically increase in strength whilst losing body fat which I think is evidence enough. I think body fat has a lot to do with it. Completely unproven (as far as I know, but I think the calories from fat stores provide your muscles with the energy to build muscle - even if in a calorie deficit. From my personal experience (with clients, gaining muscle with low body fat only really works on a calorie surplus.
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You can't lose body fat in a surplus. However, it's definitely possible for people to gain muscle whilst losing fat. Anyone that has ever worked with an overweight client, that has never been introduced to weight training, would of witnessed this. I've seen my clients dramatically increase in strength whilst losing body fat which I think is evidence enough. I think body fat has a lot to do with it. Completely unproven (as far as I know, but I think the calories from fat stores provide your muscles with the energy to build muscle - even if in a calorie deficit. From my personal experience (with clients, gaining muscle with low body fat only really works on a calorie surplus.
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IamGilgamesh666
Your videos are always the most useful and informative on YouTube. But just to be particular, those energy formulas are wrong. There are many endocronological factors which determine fat storage. If you eat X calories a day of protein, fat and complex carbs with fibre, you will gain less fat than if you consume X calories a day where some calories come from simple sugars without fibre. High glyceme foods require insulin to be digested, which raises blood insulin, which results in fat tissue storing more fat. An individual's calorie output varies day by day with insulin (among other hormone) levels in the blood.
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Your videos are always the most useful and informative on YouTube. But just to be particular, those energy formulas are wrong. There are many endocronological factors which determine fat storage. If you eat X calories a day of protein, fat and complex carbs with fibre, you will gain less fat than if you consume X calories a day where some calories come from simple sugars without fibre. High glyceme foods require insulin to be digested, which raises blood insulin, which results in fat tissue storing more fat. An individual's calorie output varies day by day with insulin (among other hormone) levels in the blood.
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Lukas Askolin
Hello Jeff i have a question, I have been trainng pretty hard for like a week or so and can now train every other day witout getting sore. I was under the impression that you had to be in a calorie surplus to build muscle quicker but my body fat is already pretty high. I am 17, 5ft 7, 5 inch and weigh about 150 pounds. I would like to build alot of muscle over the next 3 months but also lose body fat, or at least keep my bodyfat from being higher. So how big of a calorie deficit can i do without slowing down muscle gains too much, or should i be in exactly 0 calories on or out, thanks in advance: )
reply
Hello Jeff i have a question, I have been trainng pretty hard for like a week or so and can now train every other day witout getting sore. I was under the impression that you had to be in a calorie surplus to build muscle quicker but my body fat is already pretty high. I am 17, 5ft 7, 5 inch and weigh about 150 pounds. I would like to build alot of muscle over the next 3 months but also lose body fat, or at least keep my bodyfat from being higher. So how big of a calorie deficit can i do without slowing down muscle gains too much, or should i be in exactly 0 calories on or out, thanks in advance: )
reply
Bob Kukiel
I'm 71 years old. A year ago I changed my diet to a ketogenic diet (meat and low-carb veggies. In 6 months I lost 50 lbs (from 240 to 190) without losing muscle mass (I maintained the same exercise routine with the same weights. Since then, in the last 6 months, I've maintained my 190 lb weight, while actually increasing my muscle mass a little (i am lifting more weight, mostly arms and back. I can do 7 full, non-cheating pullups, for example. So, yes, you can lose weight and maintain, and even increase muscle mass. Even a 71-year-old can do it. (I'm 6 ft tall, by the way)
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I'm 71 years old. A year ago I changed my diet to a ketogenic diet (meat and low-carb veggies. In 6 months I lost 50 lbs (from 240 to 190) without losing muscle mass (I maintained the same exercise routine with the same weights. Since then, in the last 6 months, I've maintained my 190 lb weight, while actually increasing my muscle mass a little (i am lifting more weight, mostly arms and back. I can do 7 full, non-cheating pullups, for example. So, yes, you can lose weight and maintain, and even increase muscle mass. Even a 71-year-old can do it. (I'm 6 ft tall, by the way)
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Ben Stoyles
There's one circumstance for muscle recomp you didn't discuss, which is regaining old muscle whilst dieting, i. e. you stop training for a while, established muscle size diminishes and body fat increases. Then you go on a diet and start training again; body fat drops and muscular size increases. I would expect that as you're essentially re-upping the established nuclei, rather than generating new nuclei, there is a lower calorific requirement to increase muscle size back to it's previous level. So you're getting a re-comp effect while not being in newb-gains stage.
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There's one circumstance for muscle recomp you didn't discuss, which is regaining old muscle whilst dieting, i. e. you stop training for a while, established muscle size diminishes and body fat increases. Then you go on a diet and start training again; body fat drops and muscular size increases. I would expect that as you're essentially re-upping the established nuclei, rather than generating new nuclei, there is a lower calorific requirement to increase muscle size back to it's previous level. So you're getting a re-comp effect while not being in newb-gains stage.
reply
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