The goal is to lose as much fat as possible while retaining as much muscle as possible.
Losing weight can be detrimental, especially if it is done at the expense of lean tissue such as muscle. If you only use scale weight to gauge your fitness progress, you are only getting half of the picture. Forget about your weight and BMI (Body Mass Index). Instead, concentrate on your lean tissue to body fat ratio. When you do this, you will begin to look and feel better.
The total weight of your body includes body fat, lean tissue such as muscle, internal organs such as the heart, lungs, and liver, food and liquid currently passing through your digestive tract, water retained by body tissue, and skeletal material such as bones and connective tissue. In a healthy female of average weight, bones account for about 12% of total body weight, muscle/lean tissue for about 35%, and body fat for about 27%. Skin, connective tissue, tendons, blood, organs, and other tissues make up the remainder of the body weight. A healthy percentage of body fat for females is around 15 to 20 percent. It has been determined that a healthy body fat percentage for women is between 17 and 24 percent.
We must understand that fat storage is a sign of good health, indicating that metabolic resources are plentiful and the organism is in good health. An excessive amount of body fat puts strain on the body and can be harmful. The higher your fat percentage is above average, the greater your risk of weight-related illness, such as heart disease, high blood pressure, gallstones, type 2 diabetes, osteoarthritis, and certain cancers. This setpoint is controlled by the ob gene, which produces the protein leptin. Leptin is a powerful appetite and food intake suppressor. As your body fat percentage increases, more leptin is produced, and your appetite decreases, causing your body fat to stabilize. When you lose body fat, your leptin production decreases, and your appetite is uninhibited.
Why should you prioritize muscle over body fat?
A significant factor is that a pound of fat burns approximately 2 calories per day. Muscle, on the other hand, burns about 6 calories per day at rest. Depending on your current levels of lean body mass, exercising the muscle (for example, during weight training) can burn up to 250 calories.
Increasing your muscle-to-fat ratio can make you appear fit, even if the scale says you’re heavier because both vary in appearance. Muscle makes you look leaner, whereas fat makes you look fat. Extreme calorie restriction can result in a loss of muscle mass, giving you a flat, boney appearance. The bottom line is that you may appear unhealthy in comparison to women who are fit, toned, and clearly in great physical shape.
Women frequently complain about weight gain as they get older, regardless of how well they eat. The reason for this is that as we age, we naturally lose muscle and become less vigorous in our physical activity, which results in even more muscle loss. As a result of the loss of muscle tissue, the metabolic rate decreases. If you lose 5 pounds of muscle, your calories burned per 24 hours will drop by about 250 calories. While this may not appear to be much, it adds up. If you keep eating the way you did when you were younger, you will gain a pound of fat in about 14 days. You will gain 10 pounds over a 20-week period. The key to losing excess body fat is to reclaim your youthful metabolism by regaining muscle mass. That dormant muscle can be reclaimed with the right exercise stimulus.
How does muscle aid in weight loss?
When there is a high demand for muscle development. In the fat composition, there is a greater layoff. We cannot produce bone or connective tissue cutbacks because we require their support because muscle is useless unless it is attached to strong bone by strong connective tissue. This means that more fat must be shed. We can’t cut any nervous tissue because our new muscle won’t work unless it’s innervated by new nervous tissue. This means that more fat must be shed. All weight loss in this scenario is directed toward fat loss. In this case, your body undergoes a dramatic shapeshift. You’ve gained a small amount of shape-improving muscle while losing a significant amount of shape-ruining fat.
In conclusion
In terms of fat loss, the bottom line is as follows: 1) Increase your calorie-burning muscle mass through regular exercise. 2) Use dietary restraint to create a small calorie deficit. 3) Extreme hydration. 4) Get some extra shut-eye. 5) Avoid excessive activity or activities that are commonly thought to “burn calories.” These simple steps will outperform your expectations if you have the discipline.
Disclaimer
The Content is not meant to be a replacement for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. If you have any questions about a medical condition, always seek the advice of your physician or another qualified health provider.
