Weightlifting Diet To Lose Weight

Most diet tips that you hear for weightlifters relate to muscle building. That makes sense: strength training is the first way to build muscle and, coupled with a balanced diet of macronutrients, high protein and healthy carbohydrates, it will allow you to get a stronger body in no time. time. But if your main goal is to lose weight – not necessarily build muscle – it can be a little harder to find the diet you need. We are here to help, with Dietitian (and CrossFitter ranked nationally!) Michele Fumagalli of Northwestern Medicine and Fit Plate Nutrition.

First of all, Michele confirmed that weightlifting could help you lose weight, but that it would be mostly fat. Nothing to complain about here, but if you only follow the scale, you may not see big changes. "If you start lifting weights, the ultimate goal is to reduce fat and increase your lean body mass," Michele told POPSUGAR. This means that you may be able to see and feel differences in your body, with bigger muscles and less fat, but your actual weight may not change much.

With this in mind, weightlifting is a very effective way to lose fat. The muscle itself does not "burn fat," as the popular saying goes, but muscle gain and fat loss are certainly linked; the higher your muscle mass, the higher your resting metabolic rate, which means that you continue to burn calories even when you are not actively exercising.

Of course, the food you eat also plays a major role. To maximize your fat loss by weightlifting, Michele shared five essential tips on diet.

• Eat enough calories. The underfuel will cause the breakdown of your muscles instead of growth, "and that's the exact opposite of what we want when we're in weightlifting," Michele said. "If you do not feed your body enough, it's almost a starvation, it will keep your fat stores instead of burning them." According to Michele, an easy way to determine just how much you need is simply to listen to your body.
• Helps in the recovery of fruits, vegetables and omega-3 fatty acids. The inflammation occurs naturally after a hard bodybuilding workout; it is linked to the process of decomposing your muscles to help them get bigger and stronger, which ultimately helps you burn fat. While this type of inflammation is a "good" thing, says Michele, you can still help reduce it and help your muscles recover faster by eating plenty of vegetables, fruits and omega-3 fatty acids such as flax flour, chia seeds, etc. nuts, sardines and oily fish like salmon.
• Balance your proteins throughout the day. Protein is essential for post-workout recovery, but it is also an important part of every other meal of the day. "You want to have protein at about every meal and snack," Michele said. It promotes muscle growth and helps keep you full, which contributes greatly to weight loss.
• Stay hydrated. "The muscles need more water," Michele told POPSUGAR. Being dehydrated only weakens your muscles, making it more difficult to perform workouts and recovery. Remember: stronger and growing muscles help you burn more calories and lose weight. So drink this water, at least half a gallon a day.
• Swap starchy carbohydrates – but not all – with vegetables. Good news: "You do not need to completely eliminate starchy carbohydrates," Michele said. (Starchy carbohydrates are the ones you find in breads, pasta, potatoes and cereals.) However, if you really want to burn fat, you'll get faster results if you substitute some of these carbohydrates for vegetables. . . Michele recommended eating at least one meal, where about a quarter of your plate consists of healthy carbohydrates such as quinoa, whole wheat pasta or sweet potatoes, and limiting them in the other two meals of the day.

What should I eat to lose weight in weightlifting?

Now that you have the facts, it is time to determine what you are actually going to eat. Michele recommended that you plan your meals based on your protein source – simply because they usually take the most time to cook – and eat starchy vegetables and carbohydrates all around. For example, bake chicken breasts while spinning spinach and boiling quinoa. Here are some of Michele's healthy meal recommendations for weight loss:

Breakfast:

Breakfast:

• Spring green vegetables with cottage cheese, blueberries, quinoa, almond slices and balsamic vinegar. "Feel free to add leftover chicken or use edamame to preserve herbal," Michele said.
• An open sandwich with turkey, cheese, lettuce, tomato and mustard, as well as sides of mandarin, half a cucumber and Greek yogurt.

snacks:

• Greek yogurt
• Two hard boiled eggs
• Slices of red pepper cucumber
• A small apple with a tablespoon of peanut butter

Having dinner:

• Baked chicken or chopped turkey with lots of vegetables (to choose), whole wheat pasta and tomato sauce

That's what you should be eating – what about what you should not? Michele said you should not completely omit a food to lose weight, but you should try to limit both alcohol and highly processed foods. Alcohol prevents recovery, says Michele, and "it's only empty calories". When it comes to ultra-processed foods, "they just are not nutritious, they may be delicious, but they do not bring you much more than calories." A recent study confirmed that people on ultra-processed diets earned an average of two pounds a week for two weeks.

Eating cleanly and strategically goes hand-in-hand with a strength training routine to help you maximize fat burning and muscle gain, which can mean significant weight loss. To learn more about meal ideas to promote weight loss, check out our two week healthy eating program and pair it with this one week workout program for bodybuilding. for maximum fat burning.