Its Not About Losing WEIGHT Its About Losing FAT!!!

I just had a debate in another topic about caloric intake and it occurred to me that we as a group are focused on losing weight. In reality we should be focused on losing fat. It is not the same thing. If you do not consume enough of the right nutritional composition you will end up weighing less but could still have considerable fat. Why is this?

Our doctors tell us to focus on protein. This is to prevent our bodies from using proteins from our muscles to burn fat. If you do not consume enough protein your body will still get it but it will cost you muscle mass in the long run. Muscles help to burn fat, so it is critical to at a minimum maintain muscle mass or better yet to increase lean muscle mass.

300 calories of protein is not the same to our weight loss journey as 300 calories of carbohydrates or even fats for that matter. In the way our bodies handle intake a calorie is not a calorie.

How do we make sure we are losing fat weight and not muscle weight? Make sure to eat enough proteins. Additionally our bodies work harder to burn the proteins we consume than carbohydrates we consume so we are getting some benefit in eating a high protein diet in that our bodies burn calories just digesting and processing our food.

ehhhh...on my way to the gym, so going to cut & paste my answer from the other thread

 

thats an entirely different point... and I agree the person would lose weight and it would indeed be losing fat at the expense of muscle.. but that wasnt what t he OP asked...

the point remaining is just that simple, YES at 100 lbs overweight, caloric deprivation is enough to lose weight ( thus the ENTIRE science behind VSG) and there is no need to increase calories when in a stall when there is that much weight to lose.... it is, of course, ideal that the person so something to prevent muscle atrophy and hopeful build stronger muscles as well....that would be lifting weights & such and I still maintain that while doing even that, no need to increase calories ( eating back your workout calories****il MUCH closer to goal  

Which takes a certain amount of caloric intake. Finding the ideal amount for each person is the trick.

Totally different subject......

I'm off for a bike ride......

frisco

This has been so much a part of my awareness for so many years, I forget that others may not have learned this.

YOU ARE SO RIGHT.

There are several reasons to push protein, and this is probably the most important one.  Also, protein is less likely to trigger binges.

I agree about the protein and the weight lifting but we are still very likely to lose some muscle mass....

I don't see how I can't.  My leg muscles are huge from carting around my 265 lbs self (at 5'3").  I won't need all those muscles to cart around my 130 (??) lbs self!  But I am focused on protein and adding in weights when I'm far enough out to lift again, anyhow.  I want lean muscle mass.

To me, the most important thing to remember about protein is that your HEART and LUNGS are muscles.  Feed them or you die.

Exactly!

I recently voiced the concern that I may be losing muscle over fat at my 6 month post op visit, because the body fat % hasn't gone down "that much" compared to the weight loss.  I was told that as long as I'm getting my 100g protein, ~800 calories and doing weight training and cardio exercise I don't have to worry about losing muscle mass.

This is probably true but if you are running for 3 hours per day I am going to go out on a limb and say you could be burning muscle.