How to lose fat without losing muscle?

Who says “weight loss”, necessarily says “diet”, “prohibited foods”, “frustration”? No. In the show E=M6 Why am I gaining weight, how am I losing weight broadcast in May 2019 on M6, the presenter Mac Lesggy and Alexandra Dalu, doctor-nutritionist, had followed three volunteers for 3 months: 2 women and 1 man who had pounds to lose. “One was obese, the other overweight, the third had gained 10 kilos in 2 years, it was time to react” details Mac Lesggy. “Under medical control with entry and exit examinations, they self-corrected their imbalance without eliminating food categories of their plate.” At the arrivalthey lost weight, but not muscle and have the good methods to keep the line while eating everything. Explanations.

What happens in the body when we lose weight?

mac lesggy : The whole point of weight loss, provided it is sustainable, is to lose body fat without affecting the muscles. In the body, We have two distinct masses: muscle mass and fat mass. In general, you can never have too many muscles. On the other hand, we often have too much fat and that’s what we want to lose. The muscle is a real turbine that will constantly consume the calories that we swallow. He needs energy. This energy is provided by food. If in a classic diet, you lose fat mass and also muscle mass, that means that you need less and less energy, you are in a kind of spiral where to maintain your weight, you are doomed. to eat less and less. It is untenable. At some point you want to eat normally again and as part of your muscle mass has decreased and your needs have decreased, you will gain weight. It is the basis of yo-yo that affects 90% of people who diet. The challenge is to explain how to lose fat mass while preserving muscle mass so that you can then stabilize around a weight without falling back into the yo-yo effect.

How to lose weight while preserving muscle mass?

mac lesggy : We avoids removing particular food categories of his diet as in the case of restrictive diets because it does not work. We keep a balanced diet morning, noon and evening with a source of animal protein – fish, eggs -, starchy foods, vegetables, a fruit and a dairy product and we force ourselves to have a regularity in this daily diet, quite simply. This is the great strength of food rebalancing. Tell yourself that instead of removing food categories, which is extremely frustrating, you force yourself to include all the categories on your plate. Not a meal without starches. Not a meal without fruits and vegetables. Not a meal without protein.

Alexandra Dalu : And we only drink water, no sodas, no juice, no flavored waters either because the sweet taste causes the body to call for insulin and there will be poor management of sugar and fat.

Can we lose weight without dieting?

mac lesggy : It’s not a diet, it’s a food rebalancing. The word “diet” should be banned because it is understood in the sense of a private regime. When you eat a balanced diet, satiety comes very quickly. You have to have a diet that you never feel like you’re depriving yourself of. Then this food only works if accompanied by physical activity.

You have to do physical activity, but you don’t always have the time or the desire… Do you have any advice?

Alexandra Dalu : Women who are athletic, we can only advise them to continue to play sports at their own pace and as they wish. The problem arises for people who do not like to play sports. I advise to do 5 to 10 minutes of sport a day: stretching, small movements and then walking as much as possible. It takes a little something every day that pleases. This is how women will be able to keep the muscle mass essential to their good health, menopausal or not.

The metabolism changes over time, especially in women with hormonal fluctuations and it is more difficult to lose weight. How to do ?

Alexandra Dalu : When you get older, you lose muscle in a natural and physiological way, that’s why we always advise to bodybuilding to stay young longer. When you have that adequate muscle mass, you have more youthful hormones and more hormones that keep you lean. Being muscular, without being extremely muscular, allows you to continue eating normally in a balanced way without being restricted. When women come and they have had hormonal imbalances before or after menopause or during pregnancy, these changes are taken into consideration to readjust the needs according to the metabolism that has changed, it is a decision in medical care and not only on food.

You highlight the interest of sleep, why?

Alexandra Dalu : You lose weight when you have a good sleep. When you sleep, slimming hormones are produced at night so there is a clear corollary between getting enough sleep and staying slim or getting slim again or losing weight. Sleep is medicine fully fledged.

Sleep well to lose weight, how do we do it?

mac lesggy : The good criterion is to wake up feeling tired and refreshed. The minimum duration is not 8 hours for everyone, each has its duration but it is generally between 6:30 and 8 hours of sleep per night.

To have a healthy weight, we eat a balanced diet, we sleep well, we play sports, other things?

Alexandra Dalu : We must return to a simpler vision of life.

mac lesggy : It’s sure that it’s easier to go to a fast food restaurant than to put on your plate a quarter of proteins, a quarter of starchy foods and half of vegetables, but it’s a way of life and habits to take. It takes a few days to a few weeks to get started but it changes your life!

Thanks to Mac Lesggy and Alexandra Dalu. Interviewed in May 2019.