Is Your Workout Eating Away Your Muscles?

Is Your Workout Eating Away Your Muscles?

What's the main reason that people lift weights in the gym? Well, my guess would be that they're trying to build muscle. Along with that, they're probably looking to increase their strength, burn some fat, and get in overall good shape. That all seems reasonable enough, doesn't it? But what if your workout was actually taking away muscle instead of increasing it? Pretty scary, huh?

I talked to a guy at the gym the other day who was a perfect candidate for this kind of scenario. He had a small breakfast, and then he went through the entire day without eating anything. Then late in the evening, while on an empty stomach, he was about to begin his strength training exercises. I was stunned that anyone who's serious about building muscle would actually try to perform some serious exercises on an empty gas tank. Why was this such a big problem?

Your body needs to have the raw materials to build muscle. You've probably heard that you need to eat more calories than your body is burning in order to gain weight (specifically muscle weight). It's actually a bit more complicated than that, but that is the basic formula. If you don't get enough calories and protein in your diet, where is the new muscle going to come from? At best you will reach a plateau and stop making progress. At worst, you could actually lose muscle.

That's because your workouts require a great deal of energy. (Well, at least they do if you're using some serious muscle building workouts.) The energy for your workouts has to come from somewhere. If it's not coming from the diet, guess where the fuel will come from. Like I said, it's a scary thought. Fortunately, a solid diet plan as part of a comprehensive muscle building program should keep you on the right track.
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