It’s a common misconception that muscle weighs more than fat. In reality, muscle weight vs. fat weight is exactly the same — a pound of fat vs a pound of muscle still weighs in at one pound.
The myth that muscle is heavier than fat likely stems from a difference that does exist between fat vs muscle: density. Muscle is denser than fat, which means that if you have one pound of each, fat is going to take up more space than muscle does.
This is important to understand because it helps explain why it’s important to focus not just on the number on the scale, but rather on what makes up that number. Read on for a more in-depth explanation of why the rumor that muscle weighs more than fat is totally false.
What Weighs More: Muscle or Fat?
The answer here is neither — a pound of fat vs a pound of muscle weighs exactly the same.
However, if you were to ask ‘Is muscle denser than fat?,’ then the answer is yes. While muscle doesn’t weigh more than fat, it does have more volume.
Muscle mass is leaner and more compact in comparison to fat. This makes muscle look different from fat on the body. Imagine a pound of feathers compared to a pound of tangerines — they weigh the same, but the feathers are going to take up a lot more space.
The Importance of Body Composition
The fact that muscle doesn’t weigh more than fat illustrates why the numbers on the bathroom scale don’t always tell the full story. Even if two people weigh the exact same amount, they could have completely different percentages of fat vs muscle.
For instance, women tend to have more body fat than men, as do older people in comparison to younger people. It’s also possible for people who fall within the range of a normal body mass index (BMI) to have excess body fat, as one study found.
In other words, similarly to the numbers on a scale, BMI may not accurately convey the risks that having a higher amount of body fat can pose.
Find out your BMI with the this BMI Calculator.
Health Risks of Body Fat
While some body fat is necessary, too much of it can pose serious health risks.
For instance, the previously mentioned study with 967 participants found that 38% of the women who had ‘normal’ BMIs had too high an amount of fat as well as high cholesterol levels.
High cholesterol can contribute to heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and other health issues. Your muscle-to-fat ratio can indicate your risk of metabolic syndrome, a term that refers to a group of obesity-related conditions like stroke and diabetes.
Still, you’ll want to have some fat. Healthcare professionals recommend maintaining a body fat percentage between 20 and 30 percent for women and between 12 and 20 percent for men.
Benefits of Having More Muscle
Unlike with fat tissue, there are myriad benefits of having more muscle tissue.
In fact, one study with a total of 11,687 participants found that muscle mass is inversely associated with the risk of death. Meanwhile, a review of existing scientific literature concluded that low muscle mass is associated with poor health and a higher risk of mortality.
There’s also evidence to suggest that if you gain muscle when you’re younger, it can help to prevent the loss of bone density and mobility as you age.
How to Build Muscle and Lose Fat
To reap the benefits of increased muscle mass, resistance training is key.
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recommends strength training at least twice a week, targeting all major muscle groups. You can do this by lifting weights, or you might try bodyweight exercises like pushups or even yoga to help with building muscle mass.
Regular cardio activity also will help increase fat loss, as burning more calories than the amount you consume is key to losing weight.
In addition to strength training, the CDC recommends 150 minutes of moderate-intensity cardiovascular activity per week, which could be as simple as walking for weight loss. Or, you can cut down on the time involved by opting for 75 minutes a week of more intense aerobic activity, like running or swimming.
You can also lose body fat by eating a balanced diet, swapping out junk food for healthy snacks and ensuring you’re getting enough protein.
The Takeaway: Misconceptions About Muscle Weight vs Fat Weight
There’s a lot of fact and fiction when it comes to weight loss. One rumor in the mix is that muscle weighs more than fat. Here’s a recap on what the facts are:
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Does muscle weigh more than fat? Simply put, no. One pound of muscle weighs the same as one pound of fat. However, lean muscle takes up less space than fat.
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A higher fat-to-muscle ratio translates to an increased risk of health conditions like heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, and more. Having a higher amount of muscle, on the other hand, can have preventative effects for health.
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While maintaining a healthy weight is important for overall health, building lean muscle mass is also critical. Maintaining a healthy diet and an active lifestyle, whether that’s playing sports or getting in your steps each day, are both important for body composition and weight loss.
If you’re struggling with your weight, remember you don’t have to do it alone. You can consult with a healthcare provider for personalized guidance and to learn more about weight loss tools, like weight loss medications.
This article originally appeared on Forhers.com and was syndicated by MediaFeed.org.
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Lose Fat & Gain Muscle: 6 Tips for Optimizing Body Composition
Persuasive headlines and social expectations can pressure men to achieve a certain body type, which isn’t helpful. These pressures suggest urgency and ease that simply aren’t accurate. If you’re wondering how to lose fat and gain muscle, we can guide the way — just know it’s not a quick process or a one-and-done thing.
The truth is, optimizing body composition and weight loss are long games that require consistency and patience. But when you focus on the right things, you can gain muscle and lose fat in a healthy, sustainable way — and we’re here to help.
These slides cover the best way to lose fat and gain muscle at the same time, prioritizing things like protein intake, nutrient density, strength and cardio workouts and getting enough rest.
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Yes, it’s possible to simultaneously burn fat and build muscle, although it can be challenging. The process is often referred to as body recomposition. Achieving this dual goal calls for strength and resistance training, cardio exercise and solid nutrition.
Resistance training helps build muscle mass while increasing metabolic rate (how fast your body burns calories), which can support fat loss. Doing cardio helps burn calories and fat, contributing to overall fat loss.
When making a plan for how to lose fat and gain muscle, a focus on getting enough protein to support muscle growth and repair is key while prioritizing the nutritional quality of the food you eat.
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Contrary to popular belief, it’s physiologically impossible to turn fat directly into muscle (see also: turning straw into gold).
Fat and muscle are two distinct tissue types with different structures and functions. However, it’s possible to lose fat while simultaneously building muscle through a combination of exercise, nutrition and lifestyle changes.
Listen, if there was an easy solution to turn fat into muscle, more people would be doing it. When planning how to gain lean muscle and lose fat, getting realistic with expectations is the first order of business here.
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Resistance training exercises, such as weightlifting or bodyweight exercises, can stimulate muscle growth (and prevent lean muscle loss). They can also give your metabolism a boost, aiding in fat loss.
Additionally, eating nutrient-rich meals with lean protein, healthy fats and fiber-rich carbohydrates — while being mindful of portions — supports muscle growth and fat loss. Over time, these habits can help foster muscle mass increase and a reduced body fat percentage.
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Body composition and body recomposition are distinct concepts in the world of health and fitness. And if you’ve never heard of the latter, you’re not alone — so let’s define the two.
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Body composition is the proportion of fat, muscle, bone and other tissues in your body. It’s typically measured using body fat percentage, which assesses the amount of fat on your body relative to your lean mass.
A healthy body composition for men varies among individuals. Generally, there’s a healthy distribution of body fat where the excess is primarily stored around your vital organs (to protect them), with less around the abdomen and waist (where most men store extra fat). Muscle mass, on the other hand, is a significant portion of your overall weight.
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Body recomposition is the process of reducing body fat and increasing lean muscle mass at the same time. This is what we mean when we talk about how to lose fat and gain muscle.
While body composition focuses on your current body tissue percentages, body recomposition involves actively changing this makeup through targeted exercise, nutrition and lifestyle adjustments.
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So without further ado, you’re probably ready for some actionable tips around how to safely reduce body fat percentage and increase lean muscle mass.
If burning your fat stores is a top priority, a few tried-and-true things can help.
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When talking about weight loss, we tend to focus on the whole “calories in versus calories out” concept that emphasizes creating a calorie deficit. While it’s true your body needs a certain range of calories to gain, lose and maintain a healthy body weight, there’s more to weight loss and fat burning.
Instead of scrutinizing calorie intake, focus on nutrient density. This means prioritizing the nutritional quality of the foods you’re eating (and beverages you’re drinking) versus just looking at the calorie content. After all, something can be low in calories but also low in nutritional quality (we’re looking at you, “diet” brownie bar).
Two main ways to boost the nutrient density of your meal plan include:
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Eat more plant foods. This includes fruits, vegetables, legumes (beans, peas and lentils), whole grains, nuts and seeds. These are naturally lower in calories per serving than meat and dairy and high in nutrition. They’ll also keep you fuller longer, subsequently helping you eat less if you’re trying to lose weight.
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Eat fewer highly processed foods. Try to reduce your intake of ultra-processed foods, such as packaged snacks made with refined white flour, donuts, cookies, candy, soda, fruit juice, hot dogs and fast food items.
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Getting enough calories is vital for achieving body recomposition goals. Rather than focusing on creating a calorie deficit, you might consider calorie cycling.
Calorie cycling involves alternating how many daily calories you eat throughout the week. It can aid in weight loss for men by preventing metabolic adaptation (when your body doesn’t burn as much energy to preserve fat and muscle) and weight loss plateaus. Cycling a higher and lower number of calories can help your body stay responsive to caloric deficits (essentially meaning it won’t get too comfortable because it can’t predict what’s next), enhancing fat loss while preserving muscle mass.
For instance, on a higher-calorie day, you might focus more on nutrient-dense foods to fuel your workouts and support muscle-building and repair. On days with fewer calories, you might eat more fruits, veggies, healthy fats and lean proteins and fewer carbs (as these tend to contribute a more significant amount of calories per serving).
This approach may help limit some of the negative side effects associated with prolonged calorie restriction. It can also help prevent you from feeling physically deprived of food — the last thing anyone wants.
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Fitness experts recommend aiming for at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise a week or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity aerobic exercise to stay healthy. For gradual weight loss, a goal of 200 to 300 minutes perweek is sometimes suggested.
This is a lot. No one expects you to hit 300 minutes a week (or even half that) if you’re just getting started. Do what you can and work your way up.
Cardiovascular exercise is important for fat loss in men because it boosts your metabolism and helps you burn more calories. This type of movement helps reduce visceral fat (the type of fat stored around your stomach and organs), which is linked to a higher risk for heart disease and type 2 diabetes.
What’s more, exercise supports cardiovascular system health, increases endurance and releases feel-good hormones called endorphins. Here are some great ways to add more cardio to your life:
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Taking your dog for a jog around the neighborhood
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Joining a community running club
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Meeting up with a friend to play tennis
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Joining a high-intensity interval training (HIIT) group or another fitness class
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Using cardio gym machines like a stair climber, elliptical, stationary bike, row machine or treadmill
Varied intensity can be key when working out. If you don’t like high-intensity exercise all the time, that’s okay — research shows that aerobic exercise (pretty much anything that gets your heart rate up) is just as effective for weight loss if you do it regularly.
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Strength training helps break down muscle fibers, which then repair to become bigger and stronger over time.
Besides cardio workouts, weight training is critical for fat loss in men because of its unique ability to increase lean muscle mass and boost metabolism. Unlike aerobic activity alone, strength training workouts not only burn calories during the workout but also boosts your metabolism after exercise. This means you’ll burn more calories throughout the day.
Studies have found that several weeks of consistent resistance training can boost your metabolic rate by roughly seven percent. Building muscle through strength training also helps support body recomposition, leading to a leaner and more toned appearance. Furthermore, maintaining muscle mass is crucial for sustainable fat loss.
Here are some ways to work all your muscle groups:
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Lifting free weights or dumbbells
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Using weight machines at the gym, like the leg press, shoulder press or tricep extender
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Trying resistance bands
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Doing bodyweight exercises, like push-ups, tricep dips, squats and pull-ups
Does gaining muscle burn fat? Not directly, but muscle tissue uses more energy than fat tissue, which promotes a higher resting metabolic rate (aka you burn calories when you’re not working out).
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While you’re busy burning off extra fat, there are a few other things you can prioritize in your weight loss journey to gain muscle mass safely and effectively over time.
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All the macronutrients — protein, fats and carbs — are essential for health and wellness. But a high-protein diet can be especially helpful when trying to build more muscle.
The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends 56 grams of protein a day for adult men. However, this is the basic amount needed to prevent losing muscle. To promote weight loss, you’ll need to boost your protein intake.
As for how much protein to add, this can vary among men. Someresearchsuggests 1.2 to 1.6 grams (or more) of daily protein per kilogram of body weight — or at least 25 to 30 grams of protein per meal to improve weight management. Some good protein sources include:
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Lean meats
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Poultry
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Fish
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Eggs
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Low-fat dairy products
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Legumes (beans, peas and lentils)
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Soy foods like tofu and tempeh
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Nuts and seeds
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Protein powder supplements (including creatine)
If you need guidance on how much protein to eat and how to incorporate these into a healthy meal plan, your best bet is to check with a registered dietitian or nutritionist.
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Protein is necessary for muscle repair, growth and maintenance. It provides the essential amino acids (the ones we can’t make ourselves and have to get through food) for building and repairing muscle tissue.
Eating more protein also helps preserve lean muscle mass (preventing muscle loss) while you’re trying to lose fat. Protein has a higher thermic effect than carbs and fats. This means your body uses more energy digesting and using protein than it does the other macronutrients.
For body recomposition, more protein supports small additional gains in lean body mass and gains in lower-body muscle strength when you pair it with resistance training.
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Despite its torturous-sounding name, progressive overload is a foundational principle of strength training to increase muscle mass.
It involves continually challenging your muscles by gradually increasing the resistance, volume or intensity of workouts over time to support your fitness goals. So, by “progressively overloading” your muscles, you stimulate muscle fibers to adapt and grow stronger, increasing overall muscle mass. This also helps prevent a muscle gain (or weight loss) plateau because your body is regularly challenged and redirected.
Some ways you can do this:
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Increasing the amount of weight you’re lifting (slightly bigger dumbbells or a heavier setting on the weight machines, for instance)
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Adding more reps (e.g., if you’ve been doing 10 reps of an exercise, increase it to 12 or 15)
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Increasing resistance (such as switching to a tighter resistance band)
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Reducing rest intervals between sets (if you’ve been resting for one minute between sets, you might reduce it to 45 seconds)
These gradual changes help challenge your muscles in a way that ensures ongoing muscle stimulation and adaptation, maximizing gains in strength and muscle size. If you need guidance, a personal trainer can be a great resource when designing a training program.
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We’ve been talking about exercise and movement quite a bit, but rest is equally important for successful body recomposition — especially if you’re regularly challenging yourself with a progressive overload approach.
Adequate rest allows your body to recover, repair and rebuild muscle tissue following your workouts. During rest periods, muscles undergo a process called hypertrophy. This means they adapt and grow stronger in response to the stress they’ve been placed under with exercise and strength training. Not allowing your body enough rest time can hinder this process (and your overall progress).
Rest is vital for other reasons too. It helps prevent mental and physical burnout (the classic symptoms of sleep debt), which can make it harder to stay consistent. It also helps prevent overtraining that can otherwise increase your risk of injuries. Beyond that, being well-rested also gives you the energy and focus to stay on track as much as possible.
Here are some ways to ensure you’re getting enough rest and recovery time:
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Aim for seven to nine hours of minimally-interrupted sleep per night.
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Go to bed and wake up at the same time every day.
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Implement strategies like foam rolling, stretching or using a massage gun to help relax your muscles.
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Include at least one full rest day as part of your weekly routine.
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Weight loss and muscle gain don’t always work cohesively. Body recomposition can become a convoluted mess of mixed information and societal pressure — two things that aren’t going to help with how to gain muscle while losing fat.
Here’s what to remember when beginning a body recomposition journey:
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It’s a multifactorial process. Simultaneously losing fat and building muscle is possible, but it can be challenging. Doing so requires a mix of strength and resistance training, cardio exercise and a solid nutrition plan. Sometimes, weight loss medications may also be appropriate.
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Nutrition and physical activity are key. What you eat and how you move your body are at the top of the list when it comes to changing your body composition. Consider how you can prioritize nutritional quality, protein intake, progressive overload at the gym and — yes — even rest to support your progress.
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Patience, grace and consistency are essential. Targeted weight loss and quick fixes for body recomposition aren’t reality. Start where you are, build a rhythm that makes sense and is sustainable for you, and be as consistent as possible. You’ve got this!
This article originally appeared on Hims.com and was syndicated by MediaFeed.org.
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