This is a poll over at T Nation Instagram.
At this stage of my lifting career, I’d go for the muscle, too. And maybe that’s the smartest choice for everyone given that 5 extra pounds of muscle would help later with fat loss. Plus it’s “easier” anyway to lose fat than it is to gain muscle, at least from a physiological perspective (but not psychological, that’s for sure).
On the flipside, MOST people these days need to lose the fat. Quite a few muscular guys out there with a thick layer of life-shortening fat over the top; the “big traps, big guts” crew.
What do you think? Which would you choose?
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5lbs muscle. Easy choice. I can drop 10lbs of fat in 6 weeks of keeping a clean diet, but packing on 5lbs of muscle takes some more work, and likely comes with a bit of fat gain as well.
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Can I lose like 15lbs of fat before choosing to lose the 10lbs of fat? 
If not, obvious choice is the muscle.
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this is a no-brainer, the muscle.
that is a 8 months to one years work doing everything perfect the whole time.
you can lose 10lbs in a month or three
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Muscle, no question.
Losing fat is silly easy. Don’t eat.
Gaining weight? Also easy: people do that on accident.
Gaining muscle is HARD.
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They’re both great options from a body composition and total health perspective, but… I’ll take the muscle. I’m 30 now, so it’s not like I have to worry about the long-term implications of muscle mass on quality of life quite yet, but I’ll take all the early help I can get.
There hasn’t been a time in my life when 5lbs more muscle wasn’t the best choice.
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Do we get to choose where we add the muscle or lose the fat?
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I’m a climber, so 5lbs of muscles on my forearms would look pretty silly but it sure would push my grades up.
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I’d like to order the muscle, please.
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I bet Popeye could send some routes.
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None.
As weird as it might seem but i cant enjoy what i didnt earn. I have often tought of my shit genetics and maybe trying synthol but i understood that i would never feel like i deserve it.
As much as i would like to get the muscle, it has to be earned.
Like when there was this talk about those cows that just cant stop growing muscle and that humans could extract that stuff - all the point of doing what we do, loses all value.
If someone could just “inject” me with instant muscle, i would say no, because i would never feel good about it anymore.
If i could pick - what i want to earn in the next year, i pick muscle, for sure.
Losing fat is easy, you just dont cook, dont eat, save money on food. Its called basic living in 80% of the world, lol.
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Not a dis, but you’re a “perma blast” steroid user, in your own words. So this comment is a weird flex.
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never crossed my mind