Hey CT
If I am doing the HFBB or MMM plan and I am aiming to stay as lean as possible (if not lose fat). Would doing the 5/2 Diet with this plan be a good/bad idea.
Or how about using the Energy Systems workouts from the Fat Loss plan on the rest days?
Thanks for another plan!
the 5/2 diet, if you tried it in the past and know that you respond well, will work. But it might not be an approach I would use if you have never tried it before. As for adding energy systems work… maybe… but do the program as is for 2 weeks to see how your body is handling it.
Also be aware that trying to LOSE fat while attempting to build muscle (especially if you are natural) WILL limit your gains.
Thank you!
Would you recommend getting as lean as possible first before attempting to build muscle. I am currently 16%.
If so what is the best way to weight train while dieting. I have seen different approaches. The full body strength style (in your fat loss plan), or just muscle failure (such as plans like BDWP and MMM)
Thanks
It depends on your goal.
Some people are being more pudgy in their quest for size and strength, others (like me) hate it. If you are not comfortable with carrying too much fat it can actually decrease your motivation which will hurt your gains.
It also depends on your capacity to diet and lose fat. If you have gotten lean several times in the past then you now that even if you gain some fat you will be able to diet it off. If you have tried many times to diet down to get lean and failed, then allowing yourself to pile on fat in hope of building more muscle is likely a mistake because you have never been able to diet down so you likely will not lose the fat you added.
Your level of muscularity might also have its importance. If you have a lot of muscle already and you only want to fine tune the package then you don’t need much of a surplus and there is no need to gain fat in the process. If you are a beenpole you might have to gain some fat to be able to build a lot of size.
But generally speaking, the leaner you are the better your body responds. The workouts are batter, you are more easily motivated because you like what you look like, your body handles nutrients better because when you are leaner your insulin sensitivity will be higher/better.
From your questions and the way you formulated them it’s pretty obvious that you put a high value on leanness, and you current level displeases you. You likely have this ideal physique in your mind and you know you need to get a lot leaner and build some muscle to get it. In that case I suggest getting lean first.
There is not ONE best way.
It depends on the person’s neurological profile (when you are dieting down you might lose some motivation and have lower energy, so enjoying your training is even more important). as well as the objective. I would not use the same approach with someone you wants to focus solely on losing fat at all cost (in which case we would use the workouts to stimulate fat loss) or on getting leaner (at a slightly slower pace) while adding some muscle… in which case we want to use the workouts to trigger growth not stimulate fat loss.
When calories are restricted one of the biggest mistake a natural trainee can do is doing too much volume (subconsciously trying to “burn more calories”). This will jack up cortisol which might work at first but it will quickly lean to a slower fat loss and maybe even muscle loss.
That’s why I like the MMM and BDWP when on a caloric restriction. You wont build a lot of mass (naturally you can’t build a significant amount of muscle while losing a lot of fat… you can gain SOME muscle, but not a lot).
Thanks so much for the replies CT!
And thank you greatly for all of your work, articles, videos and of course the plans!