How can i lose belly fat without losing muscle mass

[ACoochy]

Rod trust me. Back in the day i was a amateur competition bodybuilder... Weighed 230lb and had 8% body fat 24 hours before comps...Fat loss cant occur without some degree of muscle reduction as the two are interchangeable but there are ways of minimizing muscle loss during this period, unless u have insane genetics as pointed out by another poster. You want a minimum 20mins on bike at 90% capacity (after 20mins body will start to burn fat and not draw on minerals from muscle) and maximum of 30 mins...

Also try overhead and side rope ab pulldowns with weights, keeping form 100% of the time, otherwise u wont isolate the targeted area(s) intensely enough to add meaningful size to your abs and obliques in the longterm....Additionally go to failure during sets and have a friend spot you for 5 extra reps or so (taking only enough weight so that ur still in control of the weight)...No pain no gain in this game Rodney...GL man

[wtf]

have you tried playing AAA hockey three hours a day?

[CollegeOverUnder]

watch the tv show I USED TO BE FAT on MTV hahahaha

[CollegeOverUnder]

I have 2% body fat lol

[Ace_of_Spades]

Those muscle builder powders didn't work for me at all. So i started to eat heavy food and protein and lift weights.

[Skidcom]

Interesting development. No way a bunch of men would be talking about this stuff 20 years ago in a public forum. Nothing wrong with it...just observing. Might even follow some of these suggestions. thanx

[Buried_PIRATE]

it's called high intensity interval training. all the hotties do it.

i'd do it myself, but i'm perfect in my natural state.

essentially you run reallly fast. then you s l o w d o w n. then you run really fast again. repeat this for 30 minutes. somehow, and i don't know how cause i'm not a physicist, it causes you to burn fat! not muscle.

you know where to send the points

[Buried_PIRATE]

I have 2% body fat lol

Over -250
Under +190

[ttrace35]

Increase cardio and protein and you will get what your looking for. The extra protein keeps the muscle mass will dieting or cardio. Don't eat or drink anything after 7 pm except a protein shake before bed. And stay away from sit ups and crunches til later, after you trimmed down.

[louis.ana]

Do these every day (you can do these at home), once when you wake up and another set before you go to sleep:
- reverse crunches
- bicycle maneuver

When, or if, you hit the gym.. get on the captains chair and do a few set of those with the above listed.
Your stomach will melt away if you keep up with these everyday, don't overdo though. Five minutes each session is enough time.

[Thunder Gulch]

To answer the original question, it's not possible unless you quit drinking beer, which I will never vain enough to put 5 extra pounds above beer in importance.

[rsnnh12]

Increase cardio and protein and you will get what your looking for. The extra protein keeps the muscle mass will dieting or cardio. Don't eat or drink anything after 7 pm except a protein shake before bed. And stay away from sit ups and crunches til later, after you trimmed down.

Does anyone know where the "don't eat at night/don't eat carbs at night" things came from? I really hope it wasn't a nutritionist, because its flat-out wrong, but almost everyone has the notion that its true...

Everyone I've ever talked to about lifting/nutrition/losing weight has thought that (minus professionals), and I have no idea where it came from.

It doesn't matter when you eat or in how many meals, it all comes down to calories in vs calories out.

[ttrace35]

Does anyone know where the "don't eat at night/don't eat carbs at night" things came from? I really hope it wasn't a nutritionist, because its flat-out wrong, but almost everyone has the notion that its true...

Everyone I've ever talked to about lifting/nutrition/losing weight has thought that (minus professionals), and I have no idea where it came from.

It doesn't matter when you eat or in how many meals, it all comes down to calories in vs calories out.

Your wrong champ. If you eat before bed, those calories are stored as fat, because you don't need much energy while sleeping. What your saying is completely wrong. If that was the case, I could just eat 1 meal a day for the required number of calories. You are so way off bro.

[slatter]

Low-intensity cardio, like walking or jogging. If you can get a gym membership or even better, a treadmill near a TV in your house, just walk on it for an hour or two four or five times a week, and you should start seeing results. Stuff like sit-ups tones the muscles, but if you have fat in front of it, that won't do much good.

[BIGDAY]

is this even possible ?? Not much fat on my belly but if i start doing cardio again ill lose some weight and i dont want that to happen...

Pts to anyone who could help

Hey Rod.

First thing is to increase your protien intake. Believe it or not your diet is going to be the largest factor in this. Eat clean cuts of chicken, beef, and fish. A good Whey Isolate protien will help if you need additonal protien intake. Aim for about 1 gram of protien per pound of weight.

If you are going to do mostly circuit training and treadmill workouts this will help maintain your muscle. And most importantly take a post workout protien within 10 - 30 minutes after workout.

As a wrestler it was a must that we kept our strength up and our body fat down. PM me if you want a detailed meal plan and workout plan and I will more than happy to share.

Best of Luck!

[ttrace35]

Also, try doing cardio first thing in the morning before you eat. This is a big trick used in the military. They wake you up at 5am and have you do jumping jax and shit for 15-20 mins, right out of bed. This is because your stomach has no food in it, so the body has to use reserve fat for energy.

[BIGDAY]

And a protien shake is a must before bed to rebuild the muscles that you broke down over a good hard wrokout.

My protien supp of choice is ISOPURE. Protien in its purest form.

[rsnnh12]

Your wrong champ. If you eat before bed, those calories are stored as fat, because you don't need much energy while sleeping. What your saying is completely wrong. If that was the case, I could just eat 1 meal a day for the required number of calories. You are so way off bro.

No, they aren't stored as fat. I don't feel like typing up a long response, so I'll just link you-

http://www.livestrong.com/article/87749-eating-before-bed-gaining/

"It is a dietary myth that food eaten just prior to bedtime turns into fat. According to the Mayo Clinic, weight management comes down to calories consumed and calories expended"

[ttrace35]

And a protien shake is a must before bed to rebuild the muscles that you broke down over a good hard wrokout.

My protien supp of choice is ISOPURE. Protien in its purest form.

I use the pro-blend 55. All different types of proteins. Whey, cassein and some other shit. Supposably different proteins are better. Seem like you know ur shit big day.

[BIGDAY]

Also, try doing cardio first thing in the morning before you eat. This is a big trick used in the military. They wake you up at 5am and have you do jumping jax and shit for 15-20 mins, right out of bed. This is because your stomach has no food in it, so the body has to use reserve fat for energy.

100%

Don't overdo the early workout as the body will breakdown and use muscle and a sorce of energy as well if it is too intense. A good morning workout is a jog/run/walk interval. Working your body's heart rate up and down will burn a ton of fat in the am before your first meal.

[BIGDAY]

I use the pro-blend 55. All different types of proteins. Whey, cassein and some other shit. Supposably different proteins are better. Seem like you know ur shit big day.

ISOPURE post workout and Cassein before bed. The Cassein is a slower digesting protien and is great for over night. The ISOPURE is very fast digesting and perfect for post workout.

[ttrace35]

No, they aren't stored as fat. I don't feel like typing up a long response, so I'll just link you-

http://www.livestrong.com/article/87749-eating-before-bed-gaining/

"It is a dietary myth that food eaten just prior to bedtime turns into fat. According to the Mayo Clinic, weight management comes down to calories consumed and calories expended"

I could link you to 50 articles that say different. I know from experience and how my body reacted.

[ttrace35]

ISOPURE post workout and Cassein before bed. The Cassein is a slower digesting protien and is great for over night. The ISOPURE is very fast digesting and perfect for post workout.

What do you think about what this other guy is saying about the calories? I think that is completely bs. If you just have 1 or 2 big meals a day, your metabolism will slow to a stand still.

[BIGDAY]

. Seem like you know ur shit big day.

There are always a ton opinions but it is honestly a lot of trial and error. One supp will work diferently in my body than someone elses. The key is to find your fit. As a wrestler I did learn that wthout proper nutrition, it didn't matter how good my workouts were. In fact I would say it is 80% nutrition and only 20% of what you do as a workout. It is very hard to keep strict on a clean cut diet. Make sure you throw in a cheat day or cheat meal every once in a while as it will be good for your mind and something to look forward to. Once you are to a point of where you want to be, you can have the whole weekend as a cheat and be very strict on the week.

[SRBI]

Running sucks but you gotta do it if you wanna drop the fat. I think an even better solution would be to use one of those stationary bikes/treadmills since they're easier on your knees and shit. At least that's what I've heard. Good luck man.

[BIGDAY]

What do you think about what this other guy is saying about the calories? I think that is completely bs. If you just have 1 or 2 big meals a day, your metabolism will slow to a stand still.

On a cut diet, one should at least consume 1300 to 1500 caleries a day. To be honest, if you workouts are extreame, you could consume 2000 to 2500 and still cut 2 to 5 pounts of fat a week. But I am talking about 2 a days! hour and a half workout in the AM and 2 hour workout in the PM.

As for the protien shake before bed thing, I do know 100% that the body repares it's muscle damage most while the body is rested. (aka sleeping) Without a good source of slower digesting protien supply while this process is taing place will repare your muscles less. You may lose more overall weight as your body will not repair as much muscle, but if it is your goal to not lose your muscle, I would highly reccomend a slow digesting protien before bed. Nothing too crazy, but around 20 grams of protien. If you don't want a shake. Low fat cottage cheese is a great Alternative.

[rsnnh12]

I could link you to 50 articles that say different. I know from experience and how my body reacted.

Go ahead, link them. Science disagrees with you and those articles. There is no arbitrary time that the human body starts storing glucose as triglycerides, and hormones release the stored fat and glycogen pools throughout the day and night. They don't stop once you go to sleep

The biggest reason people think eating at night causes weight gain is because it is usually junk food that people eat at night. Correlation=/=causation though. If you eat under maintenance for calories, you will lose weight, regardless of when you eat (obviously assuming its a healthy amount of calories and not crash dieting/eating disorder stuff)

[BIGDAY]

Also would stick to 5 to 6 meals a day. Always keep something fueling your muscles throughout the day. The more muscle you have in your body, the more calories you are able to burn as well. Therefor keeping your musles fueled will help shed the fat.

[BIGDAY]

Water intake is also a HUGE factor. Keep your body well hydrated!!!

[big0mar]

Almost impossible to lose fat without losing a little muscle.

Best I can suggest is to bulk up, then cut weight.

But don't fall into the trap of thinking you can lose fat unless you're willing to lose some muscle

[rsnnh12]

What do you think about what this other guy is saying about the calories? I think that is completely bs. If you just have 1 or 2 big meals a day, your metabolism will slow to a stand still.

I should have clarified a bit. Obviously it is optimal for energy levels to be constantly fueled throughout the day and smaller meals would be better. From a scientific and weight loss standpoint though, it doesn't matter.

Look up Greg Plitt. One of the top fitness models in the world. He eats 1 meal a day, but hits his caloric and macro needs

[BIGDAY]

I should have clarified a bit. Obviously it is optimal for energy levels to be constantly fueled throughout the day and smaller meals would be better. From a scientific and weight loss standpoint though, it doesn't matter.

Look up Greg Plitt. One of the top fitness models in the world. He eats 1 meal a day, but hits his caloric and macro needs

If that's how you'd like to do it and it works for your body, by all means do it.
That would not work for me, that's for sure.

[BIGDAY]

Almost impossible to lose fat without losing a little muscle.

Best I can suggest is to bulk up, then cut weight.

But don't fall into the trap of thinking you can lose fat unless you're willing to lose some muscle

Yup, Correct. Rod I think your goal should be to minimize muscle loss while cutting your fat. It will be more realistic. You will see more definiton in your muscles and you will actually feel like you've added muscle.

[Fang-Banger]

it's called high intensity interval training. all the hotties do it.

i'd do it myself, but i'm perfect in my natural state.

essentially you run reallly fast. then you s l o w d o w n. then you run really fast again. repeat this for 30 minutes. somehow, and i don't know how cause i'm not a physicist, it causes you to burn fat! not muscle.

you know where to send the points

Completely agree

[konck]

CARDIO-CARDIO-CARDIO forget what anyone else says I was 274 a year ago Im 218 today going to be 200