Weight loss vs. Fat loss is one of the most interesting as well as one of the most misunderstood topic of all time.
in the absence of enough knowledge of body composition , body weight was originally the only available measurement and was used as an indicator of health and risk for certain diseases. a height – weight chart was calculated and so the concept of ideal body weight came up. but in today’s scenario that concept is totally worthless.
An individual may attain the “so called” ideal body weight (which practically doesn’t exist ) but yet have a health risk due to high body fat percentage.
When losing body weight , the body always tends to lose both muscle ans adipose tissues (adipose tissues are the tissues in our body that are responsible for storing excess fat ).
Muscle, being a denser tissue , weighs more and occupies lesser space that body fat. So in the state of carbohydrate-deprivation the body will tend to use muscle protein first instead of body fat. Hence muscle can be easily lost.
Muscle contains 75% of water . Hence muscle loss is accompanied by heavy water loss as well.
Poor protein intakes, crash diets and excessive cardio ignoring weight training can all lead to very fast muscle loss. Muscle loss further slows down the metabolism and so the body starts to store fat more easily and rapidly. And so we end up achieving the exat opposite of what we needed (i.e. we gain more fat than earlier due to heavy muscle loss).
It was necessary to understand the above mentioned things in order to understand that what we need to focus is on – “how to loose body fat ?” not on “how to loose weight ? ”
The emphasis is thus to ensure maximal loss of body fat while preserving lean muscle tissue as much as possible.
Loss of excess body weight needs to be in the form of fat loss , not in muscle loss.
Fat loss begins only with muscle gain , which increases the body’s B.M.R (basal metabolic rate – the rate of burning calories when the body is at rest physically as well as mentally ) , burning more fat during all routine activities , even at rest !
We all need to work towards building a strong and fit body for increased productivity at work or home, and to enjoy a better quality of life.
So , we can now understand that any change in body weight consist of a change in both components , muscle mass and body fat. Our aim is always to gain muscle tissue, which is the active metabolic tissue of the body, and loose adipose tissue, which is nothing but storage of fat and acts as an ‘excess baggage’.
The increase in metabolism through muscle gains and loss of excess ‘fat baggage’ is the real secret to and energetic body and active mind.
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