T Nation

can I lose fat ang gain weight at the same time?

Bodybuilding
#1

I have been on a bulking diet for precisely a month. I am 5’8" (34 years old)and started weighting 159 and now after a month i weight 174(all natural). although I gained weight, I gained fat on my belly too. my waist went from 32 to 35. My diet is 45 carbs, 35protein and 20 fat.My protein is high(more than 2 grams per pound, consequently my carbs is kind of high too (more than 450 grams).

I really feel I need to decrease the calories, especially the carbs to stop the fat coming and my question is, can I do this without losing muscle, and more importantly, will I continue to gain muscle but less fat? I know everyone has a different body and the way it behaves, but generally, is this a good way to go…I am still experimenting and I will see how it goes by the end of the week.

thank you

3dmuscle

#2

Definitely drop some carbs. I’d recommend eliminating any bread, pasta and rice from your diet and sticking to vegetables, some fruit and oatmeal and the occassional meal with brown rice as your carb choices. This should cut carbs and calories.

If you want to lose fat and gain muscle, try something like the Fat to Fire training program listed on T-mag. It’s brutal, but it may work just like you hope.

#3

Have a listen to the Poliquin interview in the T-MAG archives. He talks about the proper consumption of supplements, specifically EFA’s for gaining muscle and losing fat.

#4

Think about what you want in the long run. if this is a long term fitness/bodybuilding thing you are doing dont drop the calories to quickly if you do plan on dieting. your waist sounds kinda big considering your weight, try not to go over board on you bulking phases. it can be fun seeing the scale go up and up each week but sooner or later you will realise you are getting fat! (not saying you are …) Try to look for smaller more consistent gains or loses so you are not swinging from one extreme to the next. you can deffinately gain strength and muscle while dieting, if you are smart about what you are doing!