Steve C
23rd May 2001, 16:04
Hiya, all. Got some queries about a subject. Don't know much about it and wondered if you guys can help.
I was reading an article at http://bodybuilding.about.com/recreation/bodybuilding/library/weekly/aa041900.htm?terms=bodybuilding+skinny+fat+person - here's a quote;
If you increase your lean body mass, you increase your metabolic rate. And the faster your metabolism is, the more fat you'll burn all day long - even while you're sleeping! This explains why bodybuilders, who have extremely high muscle to fat ratios, can stay lean year round without doing much aerobic work [...]
The best you can hope for from diet and aerobics alone is to become a "skinny fat person." You may lose weight from diet and aerobics, but much of it will be muscle, your fat to muscle ratio will plummet and you will take on a "soft" appearance. [...]
Without the weight training, you will never optimize your muscle to fat ratio and you will always struggle to keep fat off permanently.
Seems to be a fairly sound idea - the more muscle you have, the higher your metabolism stays in order to maintain your body mass. Simple so far. But - inspired by Danny's thread about mass gain, I was wondering whether, if you train for mass, you'll end up needing a higher calorific intake than if you train for strength.
(Reality check - low weight +high reps = mass, high weight + low reps = strength?)
My approach is the opposite of danny's - to lose fat. The more muscle I have, the more calories my body'll burn off at rest. This leads to reduced bodyfat. At least, that's the idea. I wondered if anyone out there had any clue whether this is a sound idea.
Another question - after gaining 'massy' muscle, what happens if you switch to a 'strong' muscle regime?
I was reading an article at http://bodybuilding.about.com/recreation/bodybuilding/library/weekly/aa041900.htm?terms=bodybuilding+skinny+fat+person - here's a quote;
If you increase your lean body mass, you increase your metabolic rate. And the faster your metabolism is, the more fat you'll burn all day long - even while you're sleeping! This explains why bodybuilders, who have extremely high muscle to fat ratios, can stay lean year round without doing much aerobic work [...]
The best you can hope for from diet and aerobics alone is to become a "skinny fat person." You may lose weight from diet and aerobics, but much of it will be muscle, your fat to muscle ratio will plummet and you will take on a "soft" appearance. [...]
Without the weight training, you will never optimize your muscle to fat ratio and you will always struggle to keep fat off permanently.
Seems to be a fairly sound idea - the more muscle you have, the higher your metabolism stays in order to maintain your body mass. Simple so far. But - inspired by Danny's thread about mass gain, I was wondering whether, if you train for mass, you'll end up needing a higher calorific intake than if you train for strength.
(Reality check - low weight +high reps = mass, high weight + low reps = strength?)
My approach is the opposite of danny's - to lose fat. The more muscle I have, the more calories my body'll burn off at rest. This leads to reduced bodyfat. At least, that's the idea. I wondered if anyone out there had any clue whether this is a sound idea.
Another question - after gaining 'massy' muscle, what happens if you switch to a 'strong' muscle regime?