3 Things you MUST do to Lose Fat without Losing Muscle [3 Studies]

Summary

The video script discusses the importance of preserving muscle mass during weight loss, emphasizing that losing fat rather than muscle is crucial for health and metabolism. It explains how weight loss affects cellular energy and protein synthesis, increasing the risk of muscle loss, especially in older individuals. The script suggests three strategies to combat this: resistance training to activate mTOR, consuming adequate protein to stimulate mTOR, and focusing on leucine, an essential amino acid that potently stimulates mTOR, to maintain muscle mass while losing body fat.

Takeaways

• 📉 Weight loss is generally seen as positive, but it's crucial that the loss is primarily fat, not muscle mass, as muscle is essential for metabolism and overall health.
• 💊 When trying to lose fat, consuming fewer calories than the body needs can lead to a decrease in ATP levels, affecting protein synthesis and increasing the risk of muscle loss.
• 🔬 Muscle cells rely on the Tor signaling molecule and ribosome function for protein synthesis, both of which are sensitive to ATP levels.
• 🏋️‍♂️ Resistance training can activate the Tor signaling pathway and stimulate protein synthesis, even in an energy deficit, helping to maintain muscle mass.
• 🥚 Consuming enough protein is vital for muscle maintenance, as amino acids can stimulate the Tor signaling pathway independently of ATP levels.
• 📈 A study showed that people who resistance trained even in an energy deficit had protein synthesis rates comparable to those in energy balance.
• 🍗 Consuming 15g or 30g of protein post-resistance training can outperform the protein synthesis rates of those in energy balance, even in a state of energy deficit.
• 🌱 Lucine, an essential amino acid, is a potent stimulator of the Tor signaling pathway, making Lucine-rich protein sources beneficial for muscle preservation.
• 🥗 Plant-based alternatives rich in Lucine, such as soybeans, nuts, and chickpeas, can be mixed and matched to ensure adequate Lucine intake.
• 💊 Supplementation can be considered if necessary, but it should not replace the importance of adequate protein and Lucine intake from whole foods.
• 🔑 To maintain muscle mass while losing body fat, a combination of resistance training, sufficient protein intake, and Lucine-rich foods is key.

Q & A

Why is it problematic to lose more muscle mass than fat when trying to lose weight?

Losing more muscle mass than fat is problematic because muscle mass plays a crucial role in protecting against disease, preserving functionality, and influencing metabolism. Muscle loss can negatively affect health and physical performance.

What is the primary reason for the shift in cellular energy during weight loss?

The primary reason for the shift in cellular energy during weight loss is the consumption of fewer calories than the body needs to maintain itself, which leads to a decrease in ATP (adenosine triphosphate) levels, the primary cell energy molecule.

What are the two primary sites within muscle cells that are influenced by cell energy levels?

The two primary sites within muscle cells influenced by cell energy levels are the master signaling molecule called mTOR and the ribosome system, which is responsible for protein synthesis.

How does resistance training help to maintain muscle mass during weight loss?

Resistance training helps to maintain muscle mass during weight loss by activating mTOR through multiple mechanisms, including the production of a molecule called phosphatic acid, which enhances mTOR activity independently of cell energy levels.

What role does the amino acid leucine play in muscle protein synthesis?

Leucine is a potent stimulator of mTOR, which is a key regulator of protein synthesis. Consuming leucine-rich protein sources can help to maintain muscle mass by stimulating mTOR activity and promoting protein synthesis.

What was the effect of calorie restriction on protein synthesis in a study mentioned in the script?

In the study, calorie restriction led to a reduced protein synthesis rate in muscle. Individuals who were not in an energy deficit had an almost 37% higher protein synthesis rate compared to those in an energy deficit.

How does consuming enough protein help in maintaining muscle mass during weight loss?

Consuming enough protein, particularly leucine, helps in maintaining muscle mass by stimulating mTOR activity, which is essential for protein synthesis and muscle maintenance.

What are some examples of leucine-rich protein sources that can help in muscle preservation?

Examples of leucine-rich protein sources include salmon, chicken, and other meats, as well as plant-based alternatives like soybeans, combinations of nuts, and chickpeas.

Why is it important to combine resistance training with adequate protein intake during weight loss?

Combining resistance training with adequate protein intake is important because it helps to stimulate mTOR activity and promote protein synthesis, which are both essential for maintaining muscle mass during weight loss.

What is the significance of the balance between protein synthesis and degradation in muscle maintenance?

The balance between protein synthesis and degradation is critical for maintaining muscle mass because it determines whether muscle cells grow or shrink. Weight loss can disrupt this balance by favoring protein degradation, leading to muscle loss.

How can supplements be used to support muscle mass maintenance during weight loss?

Supplements, particularly those containing leucine or other essential amino acids, can be used to support muscle mass maintenance during weight loss by providing the necessary nutrients to stimulate mTOR activity and promote protein synthesis.

Outlines

00:00

💪 Importance of Preserving Muscle Mass During Weight Loss

This paragraph emphasizes the significance of losing fat rather than muscle mass when shedding weight. It explains that muscle mass is crucial for disease prevention, functionality, and metabolism. The script details how weight loss can lead to a decrease in ATP, affecting protein synthesis and muscle maintenance. It introduces the role of the mTOR signaling molecule and ribosomes in muscle cell size regulation, and how an energy deficit can disrupt the balance between protein synthesis and degradation, increasing the risk of muscle loss, especially in older individuals. A study is cited to illustrate the reduced protein synthesis rate during energy deficit.

05:00

🏋️‍♂️ Combating Muscle Loss with Resistance Training and Protein Intake

The second paragraph discusses strategies to prevent muscle loss during weight loss. It highlights the importance of resistance training, which can stimulate mTOR activity and protein synthesis even when ATP levels are low. The paragraph provides data showing that resistance-trained individuals in an energy deficit have comparable protein synthesis rates to those in energy balance. It also underscores the necessity of adequate protein consumption, with a study indicating that even small amounts of protein post-workout can enhance mTOR activity and muscle preservation. The paragraph concludes with the significance of leucine, an amino acid that is particularly effective in stimulating mTOR, and suggests consuming leucine-rich protein sources or supplements to support muscle maintenance during weight loss.

Keywords

💡Weight Loss

Weight loss is the reduction of total body mass, typically for the purpose of improving health or appearance. In the context of the video, it is a positive goal, but it becomes problematic when it results in the loss of muscle mass rather than fat mass. The script emphasizes the importance of maintaining muscle mass during weight loss to preserve functionality and metabolism.

💡Muscle Mass

Muscle mass refers to the amount of muscle tissue in the body. It is crucial for the video's theme as it plays a protective role against disease, supports functionality, and is a key component of metabolism. The script discusses the risk of losing muscle mass during weight loss and strategies to prevent it.

💡Protein Synthesis

Protein synthesis is the process by which cells produce the proteins they need, which is vital for maintaining muscle mass. The script explains that weight loss can negatively impact protein synthesis by reducing cellular energy, leading to a decrease in muscle size.

💡ATP (Adenosine Triphosphate)

ATP is the primary energy molecule within cells. The script mentions that a reduction in ATP concentration during weight loss can slow down protein synthesis machinery, affecting muscle maintenance.

💡mTOR (Mechanistic Target of Rapamycin)

mTOR is a master signaling molecule that activates protein synthesis when it is active. The video script describes how mTOR activity can be influenced by cell energy levels and how resistance training can stimulate mTOR independently of ATP levels.

💡Ribosome

Ribosomes are the cellular structures responsible for protein synthesis by translating genetic information into proteins. The script explains that ribosome function is sensitive to ATP concentrations, affecting the ability to maintain muscle size.

💡Resistance Training

Resistance training, such as weightlifting, is a form of exercise that promotes muscle growth and strength. The video script highlights resistance training as a method to activate mTOR and stimulate protein synthesis, even during energy deficits.

💡Protein Intake

The amount of protein consumed is essential for muscle maintenance and growth. The script emphasizes the importance of eating enough protein to support protein synthesis, especially during weight loss.

💡Leucine

Leucine is an essential amino acid that is particularly important for stimulating mTOR and promoting protein synthesis. The video script identifies leucine as a potent stimulator of muscle protein synthesis and suggests that leucine-rich protein sources can be beneficial during weight loss.

💡Amino Acids

Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins. The script explains that amino acids, in addition to whole proteins, can stimulate mTOR and are important for muscle maintenance, especially when consumed in adequate amounts during weight loss.

💡Energy Balance

Energy balance refers to the state where energy intake matches energy expenditure. The video script uses the term to contrast with energy deficit, showing that even in an energy deficit, certain strategies like resistance training and adequate protein intake can help maintain muscle mass.

💡Energy Deficit

An energy deficit occurs when energy expenditure exceeds energy intake, typically leading to weight loss. The script discusses how an energy deficit can reduce protein synthesis and muscle mass, but also how this can be mitigated with proper exercise and nutrition.

Highlights

Weight loss is generally seen as positive, but it should primarily involve losing fat mass, not muscle mass.

Losing muscle mass can be detrimental as it plays a key role in metabolism, disease prevention, and functionality.

Weight loss can cause a shift in cellular energy, affecting ATP levels and protein synthesis.

The Tor signaling molecule and ribosomes are key in maintaining muscle cell size and are sensitive to ATP levels.

Protein degradation systems become more active during weight loss, increasing the risk of muscle loss.

A study showed reduced protein synthesis rates in individuals under energy deficit.

Resistance training can stimulate mTOR activity and increase protein synthesis, even in an energy deficit.

Consuming enough protein is crucial for maintaining muscle mass during weight loss.

Amino acids, particularly leucine, stimulate mTOR and are essential for muscle preservation.

Leucine-rich protein sources like salmon, chicken, and soybeans are beneficial for muscle maintenance.

The balance between protein synthesis and degradation is critical for muscle maintenance.

Weight loss over time can lead to visible and performance declines in muscle mass.

Optimal nutrition and exercise strategies are needed to maximize muscle preservation during weight loss.

Joining the Physionic Insiders provides extended information on nutrition and exercise for muscle preservation.

Supplements can be considered if needed, but should not replace other muscle preservation strategies.

Leucine is more potent in stimulating mTOR when combined with other conditions like insulin.

Transcripts

losing weight is generally considered a

positive but that positivity assumes

that the weight loss is dominantly fat

Mass yet if you don't do these three

things you're very likely losing less

body fat and more muscle mass that's a

huge problem because muscle mass

protects against disease preserves your

functionality allows you to fight off

bears and plays a major role in your

metabolism and in the end why would we

not want to avoid void the loss of all

of that if we easily can that's

especially true for older individuals

getting into your 60s and progressively

more with age so why is that well it's

relatively simple when you're trying to

lose body fat it is necessitous for you

to be consuming less than your body

needs to maintain itself this causes the

cells of your body to experience shift

in cellular energy by that I mean the

concentration of ATP or adenosine

triphosphate which is the primary cell

energy molecule and it drops so protein

synthesis Machinery within the

musculature also slows its ability to

produce new proteins keeping the muscle

maintained to describe that further if

we zoom into your muscle cell in your

body there are two primary sites where

the cell energy influences the ability

for us to maintain the muscle cell size

and thereby the overall muscle size one

is the master signaling molecule called

Tor which when active activates

Downstream signaling molecules to ramp

up the protein synthesis to generate new

proteins for the cell the more proteins

produced outpacing degradation of

proteins the larger the muscle cell gets

the second place that cell energy

matters is well the actual protein

synthetic Machinery itself at the

ribosome which translates information

from your genes into the required

proteins both of these sites mtor and

ribosome system are sensitive to

concentrations of ATP meaning if ATP is

abundant mtor can be stimulated and the

ribosomes can function unimpeded

assuming all else is abundant however if

Cell Energy drops as it does with weight

loss not only are both of these systems

reduced in activity but their counter

systems the protein degradation systems

are more active to generate substrate

for energy generation as well as amino

acids for protein synthesis so this back

and forth balance between protein

synthesis and degradation is critical

for maintaining a large functional

muscle but since weight loss tilts

things in favor of protein degradation

the risk of muscle loss increases this

is especially true for older individuals

as well as a matter of fact we can see

that in action in this study where the

researchers calorie restricted people

for several days and then measured their

protein synthesis in their muscle if we

look at the data here here you can see

that the fractional synthesis rate is on

the vertical axis and on the horizontal

axis we see EB which stands for energy

balance indicating that these people

were not in an energy deficit and Ed

stands for erectile

dysfunction I had you there didn't I it

stands for energy deficit the erectile

dysfunction of energy see I can still

make it connect the individual dots and

triangles are the data from the

individual men and women in each group

the researchers show A reduced protein

synthesis rate in those undergoing an

energy deficit that's a pretty sizable

effect too in relative terms those

consuming enough to maintain their

energy State the EB condition had an

almost

37% higher protein synthesis rate that's

nothing to sneeze

at it's kind of you know always comes to

these Expressions honestly where in the

world did that expression come from

nothing to sneeze at what I mean I get

what it means but who came up with

that

anyway what can you do to fight this

effect and tilt things back to

normalizing protein synthesis in your

muscles well aside from stopping your

weight loss which would return cell

energy levels to their previous state

and stop the aforementioned catabolism

there are three main things that you can

do one you must resistance train while

it is true that cell energy ATP is

diminished in your cells thereby

reducing mtor activity resistance

training has multiple mechanisms by

which it alternatively activates mtor

many moons ago I covered several studies

on mtor stimulation from resistance

training and your cells produce a

molecule called phosphatic acid from

resistance training that's an incredible

mechanism related to your cell membrane

and the conversion of another molecule

phosphole choline I won't go into it now

but the the bottom line is the molecule

phosphatic acid enhances mtor activity

so an independent mechanism of cell

energy let's look at what happens to

people who resistance train shall we to

the data this is the same data and same

designations as before so EB being

energy balance Ed

being energy deficit PL stands for

Placebo but these individuals are

resistance trained and notice where that

data is grouping together it's about on

par with the energy balanced individuals

even though they are also in an energy

deficit so simply lifting weights

recovers protein synthesis how freaking

cool is that okay number two you have to

eat enough protein okay it seems obvious

but let me explain why and show you the

effect that it has in your cells again

just like resistance training protein or

more so so the amino acid molecules that

make a protein also alternatively

stimulate mtor keep in mind that in the

images that you're seeing there are

simplifications of the process it's

usually multi-steps as described here

but as this isn't about the you know

molecular mechanisms of amino acid

priming and activation of mtor I'm

simplifying things just so that you're

aware of the awesomeness that's bubbling

underneath the surface of this casual

video okay back to the data now we have

the complete picture but we've added two

conditions so 15g and 30g which doesn't

stand for Grand like money but grams

like grams of protein so post-resistance

training these participants consume 15

or 30 gram of protein and as you can see

even in an energy deficit they are able

to outperform those that were in an

energy balance now think about the

effect of doing nothing and losing

weight Ed for not just hours or days but

months eventually that leads to not just

your cellular detections but Visual and

performance detections of having lost

muscle this is critical how do we put

this information together into a neat

package of what is optimal as in when

should you consume protein how often

should you lift weights to maximize this

muscle preservation and what other

nuances should be considered well uh

let's see uh hold on

what was it I wanted to say here oh

right uh join the physionic Insiders

that's where you'll get the extended

version of this video and all my videos

including everything put together for

you to use Link is in the description

and I would really love to have you

aboard number three Lucine you know how

we've been talking about protein and I

briefly mentioned how proteins are made

up of amino acids well the most critical

amino acid is called Lucine why because

Lucine is a potent stimulator of mtor if

we return to this study and we pop open

one piece of data we can see that the

Leu condition there is loosing the

vertical axis is the phosphorilation or

activation of a protein called S6 kyes

which is a measure of mour activity if

it goes up that means that there's more

mour activity the other conditions don't

matter as much but if you're interested

the Ala is the amino acid alanine and in

s is insulin the minuses mean that the

condition is not present and the plus

means that the condition is present in

brief Lucine alone is more potent than

insulin or alanine but clearly not as

potent as insulin with Lucine or all

three in combination that's a story for

a different time the big takeaway for us

is that Lucine is an independent and

potent Inc combination stimulator of

mtor so while consuming protein as a

whole is beneficial consuming Lucine

Rich protein is even more beneficial

relatively Rich protein sources of

Lucine are you know for example like

salmon chicken and other meats or for

more plant-based Alternatives soybeans

combinations of nuts chickpeas those are

just a few examples but you can easily

just find others and mix and match

especially for plant-based it may be

especially necessary to mix and match

but it's entirely doable or if needed

you can also just consume a supplement

that can help but keep in mind that

locing alone is not sufficient even if

it is necessary so this is how you

maintain that precious muscle mass when

losing body fat if you're interested in

more on nutrition specifics I'd

recommend this video right here and

otherwise this one right here will also

offer some useful insights speak with

you over

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