Healthy ways to lose weight without losing muscle weight

The major flaw in the concept of weight loss lies in its name itself- “weight” loss because what you specifically want to lose is the fat mass and not the muscle mass from your body. Here are healthy ways to lose weight without losing muscle weight

Weight loss is the key therapy for people with obesity because it reduces the metabolic risk factors for diabetes, heart diseases and cancers but it is important to maintain overall functioning of the body, good physical activity and regular fitness levels and for this it is optimal to preserve muscle mass while safely losing fat. The major flaw in the concept of weight loss lies in its name itself- “weight” loss because what you specifically want to lose is the fat mass and not the muscle mass from your body.

Healthy ways to lose weight without losing muscle weight (Photo by Jonathan Borba on Unsplash)

Weight lost by losing fat mass is what we consider healthy weight loss and for good metabolic health, you need to increase muscle mass and reduce fat mass. Ironically, it's muscle mass that is much heavier and losing even small amounts of muscle mass can lead you to dropping kilos on the weight scale and this is why body weight and even BMI (which is derived from your body weight) are not accurate markers of metabolic health.

In an interview with HT Lifestyle, Functional Nutritionist Mugdha Pradhan, CEO and Founder at iThrive, suggested, "What is important is what we refer to as ‘body composition’ which is measured by tracking body fat percentage. Body fat percentage can be difficult to measure- instead, you can just track your body shape in the mirror or measure your waistline. Higher fat deposition around the waistline referred to as “central obesity” is particularly linked to adverse health outcomes. Weight loss is a huge industry and there are a million different services, products and information sources available today to help you lose weight. Some of these are totally fraudulent and even dangerous, while the majority of others are only partially effective because they only focus on a single factor to boost weight loss.”

She added, “Workout programs for weight loss do nothing to address the diet and even most nutrition programs only focus on calorie intake, which is only one small factor. To lose weight in the right way(by losing fat and not muscle), you need to take a holistic approach. Multiple factors such as hormonal issues, thyroid dysfunction, gut issues, and toxin overload can lie at the root of many people’s obesity.”

She suggested, “The best option is to get a complete health evaluation and work with a functional nutritionist or other holistic health practitioner and work on all aspects of your diet and lifestyle. It’s important to ensure the weight loss is sustainable. This can be achieved by changing your diet and lifestyle gradually instead of jumping on strict crash diets. Most of the time, rapid weight loss through very strict diets involving calorie restriction causes a lot of muscle mass loss.”

Vasundhara Agarwal, Diet and Lifestyle Consultant, recommended 4 healthy ways to lose weight without losing muscle weight -

1. Enhance your protein intake: A high-protein diet boosts metabolism, decreases hunger, promotes weight loss and aids in the retention of lean muscle mass. This is because protein contains amino acids, which are the building blocks for muscle tissue. As a result, increasing protein intake helps to prevent muscle loss. The distribution of dietary protein intake throughout the day is as important as total daily protein intake.

2. Forgo excessive calorie restriction: Weight loss requires a calorie deficit. However, excessive calorie restriction results in muscle loss rather than weight loss. Muscle loss can be avoided, and weight loss can be achieved by consuming adequate calories.

3. Never completely avoid fats: Healthy dietary fats are necessary for your body's overall health. Unsaturated fat is an excellent addition to your muscle-building diet because it helps supply energy to your muscles. Polyunsaturated fat and monounsaturated fat are both types of unsaturated fat. It is essential to restrict unhealthy fats like saturated and trans fats. Thus, the right fats promote weight loss and retain muscle mass.

4. Drink plenty of water: Water helps you lose weight because it naturally suppresses your appetite and boosts your metabolism. It is calorie-free and helps you burn more calories. It is also important in promoting muscle gain because it transports the nutrients required for the production of protein and glycogen structures, which are the building blocks of muscles in the body. These advantages are magnified when sugary beverages are replaced with water.