How to maintain muscle while losing weight

Learning how to maintain muscle while losing weight can help you achieve your goals and lead to long-term weight maintenance whether your journey involves diet and exercise, medication, or surgery.

How to maintain muscle while losing weight

For people overweight or with obesity, losing weight can improve overall health. However, it can also cause significant muscle loss. Weight loss from injectable weight-loss medications has increased concerns over muscle loss, as the resulting muscle loss can be as much as 35%. Research shows similar risks when diet, exercise, medication, or bariatric surgery contribute to weight loss. So, how do you maintain muscle while losing weight? Let's look at the effects of muscle loss and ways to protect muscle mass.

Effects of muscle loss

During weight gain, the body increases in fat mass, but there is some muscle gain to support the increased weight. Similarly, some muscle loss occurs with weight loss as a return to baseline after weight gain. The goal, however, is to try to maintain muscle mass and prevent excessive losses while losing weight. Repeated attempts at weight loss can cause sarcopenic obesity, where a person may have a normal BMI but a disproportionate amount of excess body fat compared to fat-free mass. Muscle loss is concerning, as it can lead to a decrease in resting metabolic rate or the amount of calories the body needs at rest. This can make it more challenging to maintain long-term weight loss. It also reduces the ability to engage in physical activity, consequently weakening existing muscles and increasing the risk of metabolic disease.

Ways to protect muscle mass

Protein intake

Protein contains the building blocks used to make muscle and other chemicals and structures around the body. Overall, consuming a diet with less than the RDA of 0.8 grams per kilogram per day (g/kg/d) may result in muscle mass loss at a rate of 0.2-0.5% per week. This can occur even when calorie needs are met or exceeded.

We recommend a target of 1.0-1.2 g/kg/d for sedentary people and >1.2 g/kg/day for active people be achieved to support muscle development and maintenance.

It is important to note that more protein does not necessarily equal better, as consuming too much protein can cause the excess to be stored as sugars in the body and, at some levels, may even be hard on the kidneys. Spreading protein throughout the day with similar amounts at all meals may better support muscle maintenance.

Strength training

Physical activity, especially strength and resistance training, has been shown to help maintain muscle and improve muscle function while losing weight. The Activity Guidelines for Americans recommends 150-300 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity per week to support weight loss, including two to three strength-training sessions. Participating in regular physical activity can help improve the body’s insulin sensitivity, which can inhibit muscle breakdown. It also stimulates muscle growth, improving muscle mass and strength. Studies show that strength training protects muscle mass better than cardio alone, but cardio still benefits your overall fitness.

Combining diet and physical activity best supports maintaining muscle mass while losing weight. Losing some muscle during weight loss can be expected. Still, it can be managed through regular strength training and a healthy diet that meets your protein goals, including a balance of vegetables and fruits, whole grains, and heart-healthy fats.

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Exercise->Weight resistance Weight Loss->Body composition