Build muscle first
The most effective way to get ripped and shredded is to build a significant amount of muscle mass first, and then shed body fat through diet and cardio. Why is it more effective to put on muscle first? The main reasons include:
Increasing muscle mass increases your metabolism. For each additional pound of muscle the average person will burn an additional 50 calories a day. You literally become a fat burning furnace.
"Cutting" or burning off body fat inevitably results in some muscle loss as well. You always want to end up with more muscle mass than you started with, so you should always start with building more muscle than you have.
What about burning the fat first?
It would be significantly more difficult and more time consuming to attempt to burn off fat first. This is assuming there is not an ample amount of muscle mass to begin with. The reason this method would be difficult is because there will inevitably be muscle loss while burning fat. Never end up with less muscle than you begin with! Don't get me wrong, there are a lot of individuals who are shredded and are not muscular, but these are usually individuals with extremely high metabolisms or athletes who utilize their slow-twitch muscles over long periods and distances (i.e. marathon runners). If that is the look you are after, go for it.
Can't I gain muscle AND burn fat a the same time?
Can a person gain muscle while burning fat simultaneously? Yes, however the process would be much slower and much more difficult. Why? The main reason is that it these are opposing goals. One of the main requirements for building muscle is a calorie surplus. Although it is possible to burn fat while in a calorie surplus, there would have to be the following requirements:
The calorie surplus would have to be very small. This would mean there would be minute amounts of muscle gain as compared to a larger calorie surplus.
The diet would have to be very clean and precise. An error of just 100-200 calories a day could take you two steps backward instead of one step forward.
The amount of fat loss would be very slow.
What if I just want to maintain my current muscle while burning fat?
Can a person maintain their current muscle mass while burning fat? Again, yes this is possible, but not optimal. The most effective way to lose fat is through a calorie deficit (either through eating less or increasing activity.) Unless the fat loss is very slow, it would be very had to burn fat without losing some amount of muscle. And remember, the less muscle you have the slower your metabolism, and the harder it is to burn fat.
Steps to Gain Muscle First then "cut" the fat
So, if I've sold you on the "gain muscle first" principle, how exactly should you go about it? Here are some basic steps to follow:
1. Determine what your present situation is, in terms of weight, body fat percentage and lean muscle mass.
As an example, let's take Joe Sixpack. Joe is a 200 pound man with 16% body fat. That would mean his lean muscle mass is 84% of 200 pounds, or 168 pounds of muscle. His total body fat is 32 pounds.
2. Determine what your goal is.
Get specific. Determine exactly the percentage of body fat you want to be at and at what weight. To give you an idea, for men abdominals begin to show at about 10% body fat, for women it would be around 14%.
Joe Sixpack's goal is to be 190 pounds at 8% body fat. His lean muscle mass would be 92% of 190 pounds, or about 175 pounds of muscle. His total body fat would end up being 8% of 190 pounds, or about 15 pounds.
3. Overshoot by 10%.
As a general rule, aim to attain at least 10% more muscle mass than your final goal, while maintaining the same amount of body fat. Why overshoot? Inevitably some muscle will be lost when the "cutting" phase is implemented. An individual's genetics and the speed of "cutting" will determine the amount of muscle that will be lost, but 10% is a good general estimation.
Joe would aim for 110% of 175 pounds of muscle, or about 193 pounds of lean muscle. If he maintained 16% body fat, this would mean a total body weight of 230 pounds at the end of the Overshoot phase.
4. Implement a 12-week "cutting" phase. Once you have reached your 110% muscle mass level, it is time to shift the focus to cutting your fat levels. Here are the steps:
1) Reduce your daily caloric intake to 10-15% less than your maintenance level for the first week. If you have been doing cardio, maintain the same level and frequency to start.
2)Track your body fat level. If you have not lost at least ½% of bodyfat at the end of the week, do the following:
- Reduce your caloric intake another 10-15%.
- Perform an additional 2 cardio sessions per week.
3) Repeat this formula for each successive week.
If you have not reached your desired level of body fat percentage at the end of 12-weeks do the following:
1) Rest completely for one week (no workouts or cardio.).
2) During that week return to your normal caloric intake.
3) At the end of that week begin another cutting phase.
4) Continue until you have reached your desired body fat level.
The reason for the week of non-activity and normal caloric intake is to rest your body and to recharge your metabolism.
Let's get back to Joe Sixpack. At the end of the muscle overshoot phase he is at 230 pounds, and has maintained the 16% body fat.. As you recall, Joe wants to get down to 8% body fat. Over the 12-week cutting phase this would mean going from 16% to 8%, or a reduction of 8%. On average he would have to lose about ½ - 1 percent of body fat a week. This is very doable. Most people can lose up to 1% of body fat per week if they are focused. At the end of the cutting phase Joe will lose 40 pounds. Of that, about 22 pounds will be body fat. He will lose 18 pounds of muscle. Wow, he lost 18 pounds of muscle along with the fat. But, since he began with an overshoot of muscle, he actually ends up with 7 more pounds of lean muscle than he began with. He not only has the washboard abs, he has the chest, shoulders, quads and "guns" to go with it. Joe has totally transformed his physique along with getting ripped and shredded.
There you have it! Joe Sixpack now resembles his name. Don't get me wrong, this process is not easy. It takes a lot of work and dedication. However, it is more than worth it to take your body to the next level. And, once you reach that higher level, it will be much easier to maintain.
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