Thread: fat loss vs. muscle gain?

Hey everyone,

just to give you a backround of myself, i'm 5'5, and i fluctuate between 125-130... i would like to lose 10 pounds or so, and i of course want to lean out, and gain some muscle... but im a little confused as to where to start... should i focus on losing fat first? or should i work on strength training right away?...how do i reduce my body fat?...

i've heard that if i start strength training before i lose my fat, i won't lose any inches, but just turn the fat i have right now into muscle... and i don't want to be the same size i am now.. i want to be smaller, and THEN be tighter and toned... but then again i'm wondering if i just start strength training, i will automatically shrink down, and tone up?? i'm confused....

any tips will be muchly appreciated!!

Thanks!

There are 3 basic ways to train in the gym...
- loose fat
- gain muscle
- improve fitness

You should work on all of them but focus your attention on one at a time. The best place to start is by gaining a bit of muscle, this will speed up your matabolizm and help you in the other areas.

However, by working fitness, building muscle and sticking to a sensible diet you'll find that the fat loss will take care of its self

Originally Posted by ginabourne

i've heard that if i start strength training before i lose my fat, i won't lose any inches, but just turn the fat i have right now into muscle...

Fat cannot become muscle anymore than your heart can become your lungs.

R.Lewis is right (he usually is). Being that you only have a little fat to lose anyway, strength training and gaining some muscle will most likely help increase your metabolism, therefore helping to reduce bodyfat.

thanks !! i know what i need to do now!

So how exactly does your body know that you are going to lose weight before you start to gain muscle???? Cerious on how that works.!!

huh.. who said you have to lose weight to gain muscle? :s