There is a myth in the fitness world that revolves around the belief that when you build muscle, fat just falls off. Regardless of the hype surrounding many of the fad “get in shape” programs, this is just not true.

Some facts:

• The human body requires muscle and fat
• Muscle does not replace fat.
• Fat does not turn into muscle.
• Muscle does not turn into fat.

Fat and muscle are two very different components of the human body.

Reducing fat and building muscle requires a well designed program that incorporates both muscle building exercises and a muscle building/fat loss diet. Let’s look at each component.

Effective Muscle Building Plan

Workout programs that are designed to build muscle quickly, generally consist of high intensity resistance training utilizing weights and machines. These high intensity workouts are broken up by intermittent rest and recovery periods to ensure maximum muscle growth.

A typical plan may dictate that you work the chest and triceps on Monday, legs and biceps on Wednesday, shoulders on Thursday, and back on Saturday. This is just one example and there are multiple muscle group combinations and workout schedules that will allow you to maximize your training efforts. Again, the key is to hit the major muscle groups at least once a week and allowing time between workouts for the muscles to recover. Trying to perform high intensity resistance training on the same muscles day after day will not provide the time the muscle needs to recover and grow, and in fact, will usually lead to injury.

Effective Muscle Building Diet

An effective diet for muscle building must focus on providing plenty of the muscle growth building blocks: protein. In addition, your diet must be tailored to your weight loss or weight gain goals. A typical diet will consist of 5-6 small meals throughout the day. Each meal will have approximately 60% protein, 30% carbohydrates, and 10% fat.

A meal will consist of a lean protein such as fish, skinless poultry, or lean beef. Lean and skinless cuts are key here, as you want to minimize the intake of the fat that is associated with beef cuts such as ribeyes and filet mignon and the fats found in poultry skin. Carbohydrates should come from fruits, vegetables, and legumes. Fat intake requirements will typically be met through the intake of meat, poultry, and seafood, but can certainly be supplemented with limited portions of seeds and nuts.

The backbone of any successful muscle building diet is managing calories. In other words, portion control. The breakdown between proteins, carbohydrates, and fats is important, but the raw size of each portion is even more important.Caloric needs vary from person to person and depend primarily on weight, body type, and energy consumption needs. Daily calories required also depends on your weight loss / gain goals. An effective diet will take these factors into account and dictate portion sizes accordingly.

Caloric requirements can be calculated based on an individual’s weight loss and muscle building goals.

The market is full of fad diet and exercise programs. Some focus on weight loss with minimal coverage of workout routines. Others cover extensive exercise programs with very little attention paid to diet recommendations. Very few do a good job of presenting a program that combines both.

Again, when you build muscle, fat does not melt away or change. To accomplish your goals around muscle growth and weight gain/loss, an effective program combining exercise and diet is required. To learn about an effective and comprehensive muscle building / weight loss program, check out the Adam Waters RTP Transformation System