- Losing fat and gaining muscle simultaneously, known as body recomposition, can be tricky.
- Eating a high-protein diet in a small calorie deficit, strength-training, and sleeping enough are key.
Personal trainers have broken down what it takes to to lose fat and build muscle at the same, to achieve what is known as body recomposition.
As a general rule, to lose fat a person needs to eat fewer calories than they burn, known as being in a $4, while building muscle requires a surplus.
However, there are certain contexts that make body recomposition easier to achieve, according to Nick Shaw, personal trainer and founder of $4, the official nutrition coaching platform of the CrossFit Games:
- If you are new to strength training
- If you are returning to strength training after time off
- If you have changed your diet to hit the right calories and protein for the first time
Body recomposition is "not the norm" as it's tricky to achieve, Shaw told Insider.
It may be more difficult for some people due to potential barriers such as their genetics, socio-economics status, or mental health, Dr. Mike Molloy, founder of $4, told Insider. But it's theoretically possible for anyone to lose fat and gain muscle.
Here's what personal trainers said you need to nail to give yourself the best chance of achieving body recomposition.
Eat a high-protein diet
Consuming a $4 while in a slight calorie deficit will give you the best chance of holding on to, or even building, muscle while losing fat, research suggests. $4, or you will be more likely to lose muscle, Emily Servante, a certified personal trainer at $4, previously told Insider.
$4 found that men who consumed more protein while also resistance training and doing high-intensity interval training lost more fat and built more lean body mass, which is everything except the fat.
Another small 2018 $4 of women found that those who ate a $4 while resistance training lost more fat and built more muscle than those who consumed less protein.
$4 helps muscles recover from workouts and is satiating so keeps you feeling full. It also has a higher $4 than carbs and fats, meaning the body uses more energy to digest it.
Eating at least 0.7 grams per pound of bodyweight daily is enough to maximize $4, according to a meta-analysis published on September 4 in $4, Insider's $4.
Strength-train
Resistance training is key for body recomposition.
"Most people focus entirely on the weight loss aspect when trying to recomp," Molloy said. "However, I would argue that most people need to spend as much if not more time putting energy into $4 as well."
While $4 for overall health, and any type of movement burns calories, it's not essential for fat loss, Molloy said.
A $4 found that overweight people who strength-trained lost more fat than those who did cardio.
Another $4 found that people who mostly did strength-training were less likely to become overweight than people who mostly did cardio.
This is because $4 outside of workouts, Molloy said.
Shaw recommends training "like a bodybuilder."
"Make sure you are training with higher volumes in the gym," he said, meaning enough reps, sets, and weight. Shaw suggests $4 of each exercise with weights that are heavy enough to be challenging.
Continue challenging yourself and stimulating muscle growth by applying $4, which means gradually increasing the reps or weights, he said.
Sleep enough and manage stress
As well as eating well and strength training, $4 is also key, Molloy said.
Molloy recommended sleeping for eight hours a night and keeping stress levels down.
A $4 suggested that two nights of less than six hours' sleep could lead to a 25% increase in hunger, and a 33% increase in cravings of ultra-calorie dense food. This is because $4 (known as the "hunger hormone") increases when a person is sleep-deprived, the researchers found.
Be patient
Body recomposition is not a fast process, so patience is required, the experts said.
"Unlike weight loss that can be very rapid (demonstrated with the prevalence of hardcore crash diets), building muscle is a notoriously slow process, and, therefore recomping is no different," Carpenter said.
Seasoned gym-goers may get better results in the long-run by having $4, Shaw said.
"Trying to do both can be counterproductive as the best way to lose fat is by eating less and the best way to gain muscle is by eating more," he said.
It's also not possible to $4, as this largely comes down to genetics.
"People tend to have stubborn areas that, even by training those areas with weights, will still be the last place that you lose fat from," Shaw said. "The best idea is to just slowly get leaner and eventually that stubborn fat will come off."