Here’s an original copy of /u/ToeTaggEm’s post (if available):
I absolutely cannot lift heavy weights while also simultaneously trying to lose weight by being in a deficit. Lifting heavy weights makes my appetite unbearable. When I try to consistently lift heavy weights and also eat in a deficit I end up crashing out and binging because not enough calories to maintain the intensity of weight that I am lifting.
I always see people say “keep intensity the same” but there’s no way I’m progressive overloading while in a calorie deficit. Just no way. Keep in mind I’m not a beginner, I have ample muscle mass. I just figure if I want to drop the body fat I have to reduce the weight that I lift and my approach to this.
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In this economy?!
as heavy as possible yeah, otherwise you lose extra muscle mass during the cut
I don’t understand. You should be focused on body fat percentage, not weight. If you weigh 200 pounds with 5% body fat percentage then who cares what the weight is? You’re in stellar shape.
Take this to a fitness-related sub for better advice and include your actual goals. In general, when you’re cutting you won’t be hitting PRs and you may even have trouble maintaining your existing lifts. Rest more, eat more protein is sensible advice. I recently did a recomp and it is rough – your brain is working against you to preserve calories, not to increase your lifts.
From my own experience, drop from the 5/week routine nonsense, do a basic full body 2-3 times a week. Depending on how much you’re looking to cut, you may need to accept that this is going to be several months of progress ‘lost’ while you cut this weight. Once you’re back to normal your lifts will return as well.
Yes.
Yes I try and lift as heavy as I can pretty much always
Sure but the point is that to some extent weight loss and really heavy weight lifting are a bit in tension. If you maintain a 500 calorie deficit daily you need to realize that lifting heavy will make you hungry. You can avoid it a bit by making sure your protein intake is high enough. But the weight loss is best managed with the food and walking…the lifting should be to maintain muscle mass. This person could also control this by keeping number of lifting sessions to a reasonable figure.
Absolutely not. When you’re at a deficit to the leader, lifting will only grow that deficit. You don’t lift until you see god, or the checkered flag.
“Lift heavy” is really just a buzzword these days. They really just mean effort, consistency, and smart training.
In a deficit your capacity is diminished, recovery needs increase and performance decreases. This gap is widened by other factors like age, training history including injuries, and life stressors.
So what this means is keeping your effort consistent while managing fatigue and ensuring recovery is adequate. Fat loss will come from diet so we only need the minimum physical stimulus to promote most the weight loss is fat not muscle. For some people this means a 2x week full body program with only 2 sets per exercise.
If you have further questions, check out r/beginnerfitness
I lift as much as I can whenever I work out, whether in a deficit or not. If that’s heavy, is all relative to the individual. I also acknowledge that if I’m on a sustained deficit, my overall volume is going to be lower most likely and I’ll plateau on certain lifts for longer.
On a deficit you should carb up for heavy lifting sessions. For that time frame you should not technically be on a deficit. Try intermittent fasting and do your heavy eating around lifting time.
You can reduce the total work volume.
My workouts are pretty much strength oriented, so I’m mostly in the 3-6 rep range, if I feel low in energy I cut the session, reducing set number.
13 comments
Here’s an original copy of /u/ToeTaggEm’s post (if available):
I absolutely cannot lift heavy weights while also simultaneously trying to lose weight by being in a deficit. Lifting heavy weights makes my appetite unbearable. When I try to consistently lift heavy weights and also eat in a deficit I end up crashing out and binging because not enough calories to maintain the intensity of weight that I am lifting.
I always see people say “keep intensity the same” but there’s no way I’m progressive overloading while in a calorie deficit. Just no way. Keep in mind I’m not a beginner, I have ample muscle mass. I just figure if I want to drop the body fat I have to reduce the weight that I lift and my approach to this.
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/AskMenOver30) if you have any questions or concerns.*
In this economy?!
as heavy as possible yeah, otherwise you lose extra muscle mass during the cut
I don’t understand. You should be focused on body fat percentage, not weight. If you weigh 200 pounds with 5% body fat percentage then who cares what the weight is? You’re in stellar shape.
Take this to a fitness-related sub for better advice and include your actual goals. In general, when you’re cutting you won’t be hitting PRs and you may even have trouble maintaining your existing lifts. Rest more, eat more protein is sensible advice. I recently did a recomp and it is rough – your brain is working against you to preserve calories, not to increase your lifts.
From my own experience, drop from the 5/week routine nonsense, do a basic full body 2-3 times a week. Depending on how much you’re looking to cut, you may need to accept that this is going to be several months of progress ‘lost’ while you cut this weight. Once you’re back to normal your lifts will return as well.
Yes.
Yes I try and lift as heavy as I can pretty much always
Sure but the point is that to some extent weight loss and really heavy weight lifting are a bit in tension. If you maintain a 500 calorie deficit daily you need to realize that lifting heavy will make you hungry. You can avoid it a bit by making sure your protein intake is high enough. But the weight loss is best managed with the food and walking…the lifting should be to maintain muscle mass. This person could also control this by keeping number of lifting sessions to a reasonable figure.
Absolutely not. When you’re at a deficit to the leader, lifting will only grow that deficit. You don’t lift until you see god, or the checkered flag.
“Lift heavy” is really just a buzzword these days. They really just mean effort, consistency, and smart training.
In a deficit your capacity is diminished, recovery needs increase and performance decreases. This gap is widened by other factors like age, training history including injuries, and life stressors.
So what this means is keeping your effort consistent while managing fatigue and ensuring recovery is adequate. Fat loss will come from diet so we only need the minimum physical stimulus to promote most the weight loss is fat not muscle. For some people this means a 2x week full body program with only 2 sets per exercise.
If you have further questions, check out r/beginnerfitness
I lift as much as I can whenever I work out, whether in a deficit or not. If that’s heavy, is all relative to the individual. I also acknowledge that if I’m on a sustained deficit, my overall volume is going to be lower most likely and I’ll plateau on certain lifts for longer.
On a deficit you should carb up for heavy lifting sessions. For that time frame you should not technically be on a deficit. Try intermittent fasting and do your heavy eating around lifting time.
You can reduce the total work volume.
My workouts are pretty much strength oriented, so I’m mostly in the 3-6 rep range, if I feel low in energy I cut the session, reducing set number.