3512: [Part 2] Can You Build Muscle in a Calorie Deficit? by Christian Finn of Muscle Evo on Muscle Building

[00:00:00] This episode is brought to you by Facebook. So, you were scrolling on Marketplace, and there it was, the bike you'd been searching for. You sent a message, and it turned out the seller was super chatty, kind of funny, and an avid cyclist. The next thing you know, you're in a cycling crew. Well, a community cycling group. The thing about Facebook, you might find more than what you're looking for. From a browse to a bike ride, this summer, find more on Facebook.

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[00:00:57] This is Optimal Health Daily. Can you build muscle in a calorie deficit? Part 2, by Christian Finn of MuscleEvo.net, and I'm Dr. Neal. Hey there, and welcome back to Optimal Health Daily, where I read you some of the most popular health and fitness articles online, with a little bit of my commentary at the end. Now, for a lot more blogs being narrated for you, just search for Optimal Living Daily wherever you're listening to this. Now, today's post is part 2 of a longer post.

[00:01:27] If you missed part 1, then I'd recommend going back and listening to that episode first. But if you're all caught up, let's get right to part 2 and continue optimizing your life. Can you build muscle on a calorie deficit? Part 2, by Christian Finn of MuscleEvo.net. Nutrition for building muscle and burning fat. On the nutrition side of things, there are two key things to focus on.

[00:01:56] One, make sure the calorie deficit isn't too large. And two, eat a higher protein diet. If the number of calories you eat each day is too low, you'll struggle to hold on to the muscle you have right now, let alone gain any more. Setting your daily caloric intake will depend on a number of factors, one of the main ones being the amount of fat you have to lose in the first place. If you've got a large amount of fat to lose, you can still build muscle while maintaining a relatively large energy deficit.

[00:02:26] But as you get leaner, the more extreme the deficit, the higher the risk of muscle loss. How much of a calorie deficit should you be in to lose fat and gain muscle? As a general rule, aim for a calorie deficit somewhere between 15 to 20% below your maintenance calorie intake. And by maintenance calorie intake, I'm talking about the number of calories you need each day to maintain your weight.

[00:02:52] That is, if you need 2,500 calories each day to maintain your weight, you'd aim for somewhere between 2,000 and 2,125 calories per day. Can you build muscle on a calorie deficit with enough protein? What about protein intake? How much protein should you eat to gain muscle while losing fat?

[00:03:14] Aim for roughly 0.7 grams of protein per pound of body weight per day, or around 1.6 grams per kilogram body weight per day. Without enough protein, you'll find it extremely difficult to retain muscle mass, let alone gain any. Once your protein intake is taken care of, the rest of the calories in your diet will come from carbohydrate and fat.

[00:03:37] For most people, carbohydrate intake should average somewhere between 30 and 50% of daily calorie intake. There's no rule that says it has to stay the same from one day to the next. Some days you might eat a little more carbohydrate, others a little less. But on average, it should be around 30 to 50% of total calories. Muscle repair and recovery Getting adequate amounts of rest is also critical when it comes to building muscle while losing fat.

[00:04:06] And by rest, I'm talking mainly about sleep. One of the ways lack of sleep can make it harder to get in shape is by affecting both hunger, or the physical need for food, and appetite, the desire for food. The result is that you end up eating far more than normal. In some studies, subjects who were deprived of sleep ended up munching their way through the best part of 600 extra calories per day. In other words, a lack of sleep makes it a lot harder to control your appetite,

[00:04:35] especially for ultra-processed, hyper-palatable foods like sweets, cookies, chips, and so on. It gets worse. Another study I looked at shows that overweight adults on a diet lost 60% more muscle with 5.5 versus 8.5 hours of sleep opportunity per night. Both groups followed the exact same diet, losing an average of 6.6 pounds during each 14-day session.

[00:05:02] During weeks with adequate sleep, roughly half of the lost weight came from fat, and half from fat-free mass. But during the short sleep weeks, participants lost an average of 1.3 pounds of fat and 5.3 pounds of fat-free mass. In summary, some people can and do build a decent amount of muscle while they're in a calorie deficit. But it's a phenomenon that's generally limited to people

[00:05:29] who are very overweight and have never lifted weights before, or those who are returning to exercise after a layoff, where muscle memory comes into play. Once you've moved past the overweight-beginner stage, building a significant amount of muscle while losing fat is a goal that becomes progressively more difficult. Frequently Asked Questions Is bulking necessary, or can you build muscle well enough in a deficit?

[00:05:57] Overweight beginners can't expect to build a decent amount of muscle in a deficit, but more advanced lifters are better off focusing on fat loss or muscle growth using a traditional bulk or cut approach. Can I lose muscle mass in a calorie deficit? Yes, you can lose muscle in a calorie deficit. Cutting calories too much combined with a low-protein diet and little or no resistance training can increase the rate of muscle protein breakdown,

[00:06:25] which will lead to muscle being lost. If I am eating in a calorie deficit but also gaining muscle, should my weight go up or down? If you're eating in a calorie deficit but gaining muscle at the same time, it's far more likely that your weight will go down rather than up. That's because fat loss tends to happen a lot faster than gaining muscle. Most people can lose a pound or two of fat over the course of a week without too much trouble,

[00:06:51] but gaining the same amount of muscle can take anywhere from several weeks to several months and eventually a lot longer, depending on your training status, like whether you're a beginner, intermediate, or are advanced, and what your muscle-building genetics are like. What happens if I eat enough protein but not enough calories? If you eat enough protein but not enough calories, meaning that you're in a calorie deficit, then you're going to lose weight. Add weight training into the mix and you'll likely gain some muscle at the same time.

[00:07:21] Why am I gaining weight in a calorie deficit and working out? There are two possible reasons why you're gaining weight in a calorie deficit. The first is that you're gaining muscle more quickly than you're losing fat. That is, if you gain 5 pounds of muscle while losing 4 pounds of fat, you'll have gained a pound in weight. However, while this scenario is not impossible, it's highly unlikely. Most people lose fat a lot more quickly than they gain muscle. The second reason is that you're not actually in a calorie deficit.

[00:07:50] You might think you are, but you're not. This is the most likely reason why someone is gaining weight in a supposed calorie deficit. And it's typically due to underestimating your calorie intake or overestimating calorie expenditure. You just listened to part 2 of the post titled, Can You Build Muscle in a Calorie Deficit? by Christian Finn of MuscleEvo.net and I'll be right back with my commentary.

[00:08:18] This episode is brought to you by Facebook. So you were scrolling on Marketplace and there it was, the bike you'd been searching for. You sent a message and it turned out the seller was super chatty. Kind of funny and an avid cyclist. The next thing you know, you're in a cycling crew. Well, a community cycling group. The thing about Facebook, you might find more than what you're looking for. From a browse to a bike ride, this summer, find more on Facebook.

[00:08:49] This episode is brought to you by State Farm. Listening to this podcast instead of doom scrolling? Smart move. Another smart move? Getting help from one of State Farm's 19,000 local agents when you choose to bundle home and auto. Bundling. Just another way to save with the personal price plan. Prices are based on rating plans that vary by state. Coverage options are selected by the customer. Availability, amount of discounts and savings, and eligibility vary by state. Dr. Neal Malik here with my commentary.

[00:09:18] So, remember how today's author, Christian, was talking about the effects of sleep on our eating habits? Christian said that a lack of sleep can lead to overeating. Overeating to the tune of an extra 600 calories per day on average. And it's not like those extra calories are coming from salads or steamed broccoli. As Christian said, those calories are coming from comfort foods like chips and cookies. So how much sleep should we get?

[00:09:44] Study after study is finding that most adults need 7 to 9 hours of uninterrupted sleep most nights. Not only will 7 to 9 hours of uninterrupted sleep most nights help with body composition, it's also been found to lower the risk for other illnesses, like cardiovascular disease. So, if you can make sleep a priority, just like you do with diet and exercise, it will just add to those wonderful health benefits you're already getting. And it might just help with that extra bit of fat loss

[00:10:14] and a little bit of extra muscle growth at the same time. All right, that'll do it for today. Thank you so much for coming back to listen every day. And thank you for sharing this show with someone. I hope you have a great start to your week. And I'll see you back here tomorrow where your optimal life awaits. And thank you for joining us.