Can You Build Muscle & Lose Fat at the Same Time?

The most popular question in all of fitness

Photo by Alexander Redl on Unsplash

Is it possible to gain muscle and lose fat at the same time?

This is one of, if not the most frequently asked questions in all of health and fitness.

Traditionally, the answer has been no.

Losing fat requires you to be in a calorie deficit, a catabolic state that makes it impossible to gain muscle.

The best you can hope for in a calorie deficit is maintaining your muscle — building muscle requires a slight caloric surplus.

This is what has been said for years, and it’s what many still believe.

But there’s an alternative view rapidly increasing in popularity.

This third option is called Body Recomposition, and it’s gaining credibility and momentum.

I have never attempted body composition.

One of my biggest mistakes in my fitness journey has been bulking and cutting: spending too much time between miserably restricting food and being a gluttonous asshole.

I’m not going to bulk or cut in 2023 — one of my big goals is to pull off a body composition.