Sometimes, adding a few calories to build muscle is a solid strategy, even if you want to become leaner and harder.
Kaplifestyle readers are a passionate group. They reflect the energy of the blog beautifully with their comments and questions. This one came in on Facebook and sparked a mind-fire for me.
Kap, what advice can you give to us “skinny fat” guys? Up until 6 months ago I spent most of my adult life at 6’0” and 155 lbs. No muscle tone and a bit of a pot belly. Then 6 months ago I wanted to change that into a fit and toned guy with a bit of a six pack. I started with cutting calories and lifting weights with a bit of cardio mixed in and I lost a lot of weight (20 lbs) and most of my pot belly was gone. The problem is though that there was still a layer of fat around my stomach and I was losing muscle in my upper body. People were asking me if I was anorexic…..not really what I wanted. So I changed it up. I read that in order to build muscle I would need a lot of calories, so I ditched the calorie count and went with eating a meat, green veggie and a carb, usually rice or quinoa 5 times a day. I also ditched the cardio and went with free weights in the typical bodybuilder 5 day a week thing, which I have followed religiously. I definitely am getting stronger and notice growth in muscle tone. But now my stomach is coming back and maybe faster than my muscle growth. So what am I doing wrong? Too many calories? Should I not worry about how much my stomach grows until I have decent muscle throughout the rest of me?
You said skinny fat guys, and I perked up. Lead with humor; I’m putty in your hands.
Funny (see what I did?), but I can relate in this very moment. A few months back, I was at my strongest since my twenties. My squat was at 475, my deadlift 510 and my bench 315. I was lean and hard at about 195. Life was good. Then my hip started acting funny (it still is). I had to back off on my squats, and my mental and physical outlook changed substantially. Over the course of the last three months, I’ve lost weight, but gained body fat. I certainly don’t feel as solid. Don’t get me wrong, I’m still strong and lean, but it’s all relative. I don’t feel that razor sharp edge that I did back in March.
I’ve been down this road before. The solution is simple, albeit unintuitive. If I want the lost power and muscle to return, I may need to pack on some fat at first. Now, like you, this doesn’t sound the least bit appealing to me, but the truth is harsh. We begin to naturally lose mass in our twenties. From the Mayo Clinic:
The process of losing muscle mass as we grow older is called aging sarcopenia. It begins around the age of 25, but it becomes much more noticeable after age 65.
Starting in our mid-twenties, before most of us are thinking about these issues, we have to make sure we’re losing the right kind of weight, not shedding muscle. Sometimes, we inadvertently blow this. We wear our bodies down with too much cardio, not enough rest and recovery time, injuries or failure to consume enough calories to adequately accompany our weight training sessions. From bodybuilding.com:
You can lift weights until you’re blue in the face, but without excess calories, resistance training won’t affect your muscle mass.
So now what do we do? The answer is a bit scary and easier said than done. Every time I’ve sought to get leaner, I’ve lost some degree of muscle mass. I don’t want to do that this time. In order to support my compound lift workouts, I’m willing to add a few calories. If I’m currently training hard but still losing weight, I’m not getting enough to eat.
In order to compensate, I’ll add a little at a time, then readjust. Perhaps I’ll include a larger yam, an extra egg, a larger salmon filet or an extra apple. It’s similar to cooking; I’ll add and subtract spices until the flavor is exquisite. I’m not in a hurry.
Brace yourself – you’ll look in the mirror and feel sloppier. Our clothes may fit a bit tighter. The abs may begin to disappear. I have never been comfortable with this process, but damn if it isn’t necessary and, more importantly, temporary.
After the initial phase, leaning out will feel better. In the long run, it will be easier, because our muscle mass will act as an aid. From WebMD:
Muscle tissue burns more calories — even when you’re at rest — than body fat. According to Wharton, 10 pounds of muscle would burn 50 calories in a day spent at rest, while 10 pounds of fat would burn 20 calories.
The takeaway is simple. To avoid becoming “skinny fat,” build lean muscle tissue by lifting incrementally heavier weights and adding calories to build muscle, then maintain it while shedding the extra crap you acquired during the foundation phase.
Stop looking for the shortcut. There isn’t (a natural) one.
Kap
Ryan Ross says
Hi Kap
Thanks for the post, really interesting. I was wondering what your sides are usually for dinner and lunch. You have stated that some of your favorites are yams and green leafy veggies. Any others at the top of your list? Looking to change up the sides to my proteins a little bit to get the most out of each meal!
Thanks again for all the work and dedication!
-Ryan
Ryan Ross says
Also to follow up on my comment, Happy Birthday Kap! Pretty exciting one with all the activity at the trade deadline!
Gabe Kapler says
Good stuff, Ryan. Stay tuned. I’ll post about this.
Mark says
Here’s a quasi-academic attempt:
“There have been several clinical studies done on athletes with the overtraining syndrome….Findings in these studies have shown decreased performance in exercise testing, decreased mood state, and, in some, increased cortisol levels– the body’s “stress” hormone. A decrease in testosterone, altered immune status, and an increase in muscular break down products have also been identified. Medically, the overtraining syndrome is classified as a neuro-endocrine disorder. The normal fine balance in the interaction between the autonomic nervous system and the hormonal system is disturbed and athletic “jet lag” results. The body now has a decreased ability to repair itself during rest. Heaping more workouts onto this unbalanced system only worsens the situation.”(http://www.rice.edu/~jenky/sports/overtraining.html)
-AND-
“The long-term, constant cortisol exposure associated with chronic stress produces further symptoms, including impaired cognition, decreased thyroid function, and accumulation of abdominal fat,” (http://dujs.dartmouth.edu/fall-2010/the-physiology-of-stress-cortisol-and-the-hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal-axis#.U9pjVRD5fng)
So, it sounds like your body is over-reacting with a stress response to the rigors of exercise, especially with a new, intense program–panicking and storing body fat (perhaps exacerbated by an absence of dietary fat, from the sound of it). Active rest and recovery times may be part of the solution, too.
(Making me reflect on my own training, diet, stress here, too).
Gabe Kapler says
Thanks, Mark. Strong insight indeed.
Kevin says
So how do you know when you are losing fat as compared to losing muscle.
The scale tells me I have lost 15 lbs in the last 6 months.I only consumed about 300 cals below maintenance hoping to slowly lose fat but I probably lost muscle to.
Gabe Kapler says
Have your body fat tested if it’s important to you to know. How do your clothes feel? Does your body move well at your current weight?
Duane says
Damn good post. I have tried to tell my wife something like this after her back procedure:
“Brace yourself – you’ll look in the mirror and feel sloppier. Our clothes may fit a bit tighter. The abs may begin to disappear. I have never been comfortable with this process, but damn if it isn’t necessary and, more importantly, temporary. ”
I’m currently helping her with a 5×5. No weight increase until she can do another quality set after each 5×5. Usually about a week or 2. She is noticing a difference. Working out together really helps. My 5×5 is a bit different but that’s for another time. Gotta make sure to have her read this one!! I can never say it enough, keep the education coming it is much appreciated. Thank you, Kap.
Duane says
I must apologize for not wishing you a happy birthday on my first post.. HAPPY BIRTHDAY
Gabe Kapler says
My man. Thanks for always showing up.
slappythefishman says
Nice work Kap
Take if from the oldest fart reading this blog…and yes I’ve got an easy decade on all of you whipper snappers…this is not an easy solution because everyone’s body is so different you really need and extended period of trial and error to learn what your body is telling you.
What I have figured out is that combining Anaerobic and Aerobic conditioning in the same workout really helped me. Shy away from the weights and start dynamic strength training and combine that with some High intensity interval training (HIIT) and some patience and you will get there.
Diet wise there is no substitute for red meat, Try ultra-lean (95% or leaner) organic grass fed beef. Also try combing your sugars (no white sugar…Good sugars…Fruits and such) with natural Fats (Avocados and Nuts). It seems to stimulate the metabolism and improve your digestive throughput.
Increase your rest and increase your intake of natural anti-inflammatories like ginger
Actually I do not know why I wrote this since it is just a summary of the past month’s entries but my freaking fingers just won’t stop
Gabe Kapler says
You’re the wisest. The wisest, STF.
Eric says
Kap – any suggestions for a 5×5-style workout I can do in 45 minutes with dumbbells? My office has a fitness center with a lot of cardio machines, rack of dumbbells and a smith machine. I workout during my lunch hour 4-5 days a week (weights 2 days, cardio 2 days), but havent seen any real results.
Based on what you’re telling us, your loyal fans, my calorie count has been too low, especially on my weight days. I’m ready for my hard work to start paying off…
Gabe Kapler says
Easy one. Get out of your office gym and into one with ample resources. Read this, my brother:
https://kaplifestyle.com/2014/02/finding-gym-budget
Eric G203 says
Kap,
Thanks again for the knowledge. I had no idea that aging sarcopenia started so soon in our lives. I saw a picture of Lou Ferrigno the other day and the guy still looks great! I wonder if that is a classic example of genetics or if he still puts in the hard work? I’m definitely going to be researching more about aging sarcopenia. I appreciate the time you take to educate us.
Eric
Matt says
great article, but how would you advise “shedding the extra crap you acquired during the foundation phase” once you’ve built up to the point you want to be muscle definition wise?
curtis99802 says
Ha! I just sent you a message that’s very similar. No matter what I’ve tried, I can’t get that layer of fat and the pinch of love handles to go away. I started to eat 200-300 more calories a day this week after I measured out my meals for a couple days and realized I was only eating around 1600 calories in a day. I think I’ve simply not fueled my body to be able to put in good workouts. It’s kind of scary adding calories, but they’re from nutrient-dense, real food sources, so I’m not as scared as if someone told me to carb load with a bowl of fettuccine alfredo. Here’s hoping for abs!
Griff says
Nutrition Nutrition Nutrition aka Diet, Diet Diet. I’ve been a Health and Fitness coach for over ten years. In those ten plus years almost 99% percent of the time it comes down to what you are eating. Either too many calories or not enough. Most people can change their body composition by starting with small changes in their diet. If your life depended on being so meticulous with your diet that you use a fine tooth comb with everything you ate would you do it? Of course you would, well I’m here to tell you that your LIFE does depend on it.
Ed H says
Like.
Matthew says
Kap,
Love the blog, brother, so inspiring. Speaking of which, you have inspired me. Little background: I caught NAIA D2 until I had my shoulder reconstructed. In the eight years following I shoveled food in like I did when I was playing minus one important component…exercise. Needless to say, I put on a lot of weight (fat) and was 230lbs with a 38 inch waist before I realized something needed to change. About two year as ago I started running and biking religiously and watching my calorie intake. I shed a lot if that weight (down to 185) and could finally get into my 34s. I was happy with that until I read your post on when you were a marathon runner and noticed I, too, was losing muscle mass. After a couple of months I sucked it up, trusted you, and vowed to stop running and start the 5×5. I’ve just finished week five, and now am frustrated. Here is why: my bench is 100, overhead: 75, barbell row: 95, deadlift: 195, squat: 195. I have, frustratingly only been able to increase by 5 every OTHER day on bench and overhead…failing a lot. I failed on squat today, which is pretty weak, but at 195, I think that is at least respectable. I have never been very strong on bench, but did bench 225 in college. Not great, but certainly better. Any advice?
Gabe Kapler says
Go easy on yourself. Breath. Be as patient as you can be. Stay with it. You’re 5 weeks in. The explosive results you’re looking for come at about MONTH 5. You’ve accomplished so much already. Don’t look for the shortcut. Your road is a longer one. Enjoy it.
Finally, if you get frustrated, impatient, sad, or discouraged, congratulations, you’re human.
Keep checking in.
Kap
Colt says
Make sure you are working at 75- 80. % of your 5 rep max that last rep should be tough
Kelebek says
First-Happy Birthday darling! I hope it was a good one!
Second-“Stop looking for the shortcut. There isn’t (a natural) one.” Love it! Honesty at it’s best. I’ve been down this road before as well. It takes work. The right balance between eating properly and exercise is key.
Really Digging this post love.
-Kelebek
Kyle G. says
Sounds similar to a typical bulking and cutting cycle in order to achieve the desired abs