Many people don’t know that you can maintain your muscle mass while shredding. Most people think that you have to choose between the two. They feel that you have to decide to either keep your muscle mass or shred the extra fat. After all, if we’re honest the two seem antithetical to one another, right?
Well, guess what? Your body is strange in some ways. One of the funny things I’ve learned is that you can keep your muscle mass and cut body fat at the same time! I’m not saying that the journey will be easy, but what I am saying is that this is something that can be done.
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Effect of Calorie Deficit on Protein Synthesis- The Major Challenge
When building or maintaining muscle mass, people are advised to work out a lot. When they do so, unbeknownst to them, their muscle cells undergo damage. The body repairs this damage by the process of protein synthesis. As you exercise more, the rate of protein synthesis over strips protein degradation, which leads to increased muscle mass.
Up until this point, everything seems to be on track, right?
Well, not quite. The challenge comes when you try to lose fat while working to maintain your muscle mass. Now, to shred you have to cut down on your carbs and increase your cardio to lose fat. This creates a calorie deficit which slows down the rate of protein synthesis making it challenging to maintain muscle mass and shred at the same time.
How to Build Muscle Mass and Shred?
Just because the journey is arduous doesn’t mean it is undoable. Here are a few ways you can do it.
Cycling Intakes
Since keeping muscle mass means increasing calorie intake and shredding means decreasing it, you need to do both. Incorporate a diet which allows you to cut the cycle of both; which enables you to burn and gain at the same time.
Add macronutrients
Your calorie intake will need to be lowered; however, this does not necessarily translate into less protein. Instead, you can focus on reducing your carb intake. This means that you will still have protein in your diet, but since the overall calorie level will be lower than usual, you won’t be losing out on muscle mass.
Workout
There can be no muscle mass without proper exercise. There are two main exercises you must incorporate into your life. They include:
• Lifting – This may not increase muscle mass. However, it maintains it at the current level and prevents muscle loss.
• Cardio – Everyone hates cardio, but, it is the most powerful exercise to lose fat. However, when trying to shred and maintain your gains, you want to make sure the cardio you are incorporating has as much incline as possible! Cardio will help with calorie deficiency.
If you do both lifting and cardio, you will be able to keep muscle mass and shred simultaneously.
It is crucial to understand that the act of doing both is not easy. But, again, it is not impossible either. Introducing the correct diet into your lifestyle and combining it with a perfect workout can take you a long way. Remember to be patient! This journey doesn’t have to be as hard as it may seem and it won’t be accomplished overnight. You’ll definitely have to put in the work and keep persevering through it all. Witness the change and watch as you become bulky in all the right places while losing the extra fat!
