Let’s start with the first section:
- Did you know that muscles help you lose weight?
So, how does this happen?
It helps you burn calories at rest.
One pound of muscle burns about 6.5 calories per hour.
Muscles burn 5.5 times more calories than fat tissues, which only burn about 1.2 calories per pound per hour.
Then the push back I get from females is, I don’t want to look like a man.
I always say few things in response:
- Muscle is lean and sleek.
- Most females and guys who are bulky train purposely to look that way
- They put in hours and eat every 2 hours to build that much muscle
- If you want to lose weight as you age, you need to build lean muscle, there are no ifs, ands and buts.
There are other benefits outside of weight loss.
Building lean muscle is associated with:
- Getting stronger
- Fewer injuries
- Stronger bones
- Heart health
- Improved Insulin Sensitivity
- And the list goes on and on
So, by now we know why we need to lift.
2. Let’s talk about how often
I won’t spend too much time on this.
I have at least 2 episodes on weightlifting
For the general public, I say 3 to 4 days per week is ideal for around 45 minutes to an hour.
Now, if you are a bodybuilder, obviously, you will lift a lot more.
This show is for the general person who wants to improve their health.
Of course, it has to be a well rounded program, training your small and large muscle groups.
3. Here, I want to ask, how much muscle is too much muscle?
There are 2 ways to approach this.
- It can be based on reference.
It is perfectly fine to not want to be ripped.
I like to walk around looking like a machine, but between me and you, that is mostly for my ego.
Again, for most of us, if you lift a few days per week and eat adequately, you will build lean muscle and won’t look like a terminator from the future.
- There is such a thing as too much muscle though
The more muscle you have, the more stress you put on your body, including your organs.
There is also a severe condition of having too much muscle called Hypertonia.
Hypertonia is a condition in which there is too much muscle tone so that arms or legs, for example, are stiff and difficult to move.
Again, that will not be for most people.
For the average person,that is where BMI plays a role.
Even with a lot of muscle, with a high BMI, you could be putting too much stress on your body, causing oxidative stress and shortening your lifespan.
I generally say a BMI of 30 to 35 can hinder longevity.
I put a link to a BMI calculator in the show notes. BMI Calculator
If you would like to know, my BMI is 25
Type in your numbers and know your BMI.
4. Lastly, how to not lose muscle as we age.
That is a true issue.
The main reason why we tend to have more pain as we age, is due to the loss of muscle as we get older.
This unfortunate situation is called Sarcopenia
This is defined as involuntary loss of skeletal muscle mass and strength as we age.
In fact research is now tying in the lost of muscle loss and accelerated aging
Meaning they can tell the rate of which you age, by how much muscle you lose consistently .
This is why cardio will never be enough for optimal health.
There are few things you can do to starve off this unfortunate situation:
- Weight Train
Again, this should be 3 to 4 days per week for 45 minutes to an hour.
- Reduce Oxidative Stress & Inflammation
I have many episodes on these topics that you can go back and listen to and I will have more in the future.
This generally means eating foods that are gut friendly and a more favorable Omega 3 to Omega 6 ratio.
- Eat adequate protein.
We know that our muscles require adequate protein to build and grow.
Generally try to eat around 30 to 40 grams with each meal.
If you need more, like myself, it can be up to 40 to 50 grams per meal.
It really depends on how active you are and how often you eat.
The moral of the story is that you need protein.
Thanks for listening
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