Turning fat into muscle: is it possible?

When you start working out, the goal is often to look leaner and burn fat along the way. Many beginner athletes feel they are too heavy and want to get rid of that layer of fat. This can be a very good reason to exercise. But besides burning fat, many athletes also want visible results in the form of more visible muscle. The two are related. The lower your body fat percentage, the more muscle is visible. Many athletes think you can simply turn fat straight into muscle. But is that actually true? To answer the question of whether you can turn fat into muscle, this article looks at how muscle building works, how you burn fat, and whether you can turn fat into muscle. Curious? Keep reading!

IN SHORT: HOW DOES MUSCLE GROWTH WORK?

Once you have started working out, it is always nice to see results. One possible result of exercise is muscle growth. But many athletes also know that this does not happen overnight. Growing muscle takes time and a lot of effort. But do you know exactly how muscle growth works? It is a long and complicated story, but here we will try to explain it in short.

HYPERTROPHY

When you work out, you put load on your muscles, of course. By loading your muscles, you are deliberately damaging them. This damage happens because you make a movement with your muscle. During this movement, your muscle pulls together and then releases again. This is called contraction. When this contraction takes place under a (too) heavy load, small tears appear in your muscles (microtrauma). In response to this microtrauma, your body starts a repair reaction to heal these tears as quickly as possible. During this process, the repaired part of the muscle becomes bigger and stronger. This is because your body wants to make sure it can handle this load next time. This process is called hypertrophy. After the inflammatory response to the damage in your muscles, your muscle fibres recover, and your muscles grow as a result.

HOW DO YOU BURN FAT?

Burning fat is something many (beginner) athletes want. But how does it work exactly? And what is the best way to burn fat? In this article we explain it briefly. Want to know more about burning fat? Then read our interesting article on burning fat.

If you want to burn fat, you have to eat less than you need. This is also called a calorie deficit. In a calorie deficit, your body chooses to break down your reserves. Your body gets energy from the food and drink you take in. But when your body does not get energy from food, because you eat and drink less, it gets energy from your reserves. The percentage of fat you have is also the energy reserve your body has. When your body breaks down your reserves, you are burning fat. You can burn fat by eating less, but also by exercising. This is because your body then needs more energy than on a day when you don't exercise.

CAN YOU BURN FAT AND BUILD MUSCLE?

It is possible to build muscle while you are burning fat. You can burn fat by exercising more. If you also make sure the amount of protein you take in stays high, your muscles will keep growing. In our blog on muscle growth and protein you can read exactly how this works. Because your protein intake stays high, your muscles will use it to grow, and your body will not store this protein as fat.

Do you want to keep your body fat percentage the same and build muscle? That is possible too. You then need to make sure your calorie intake is just a little higher than your daily calorie requirement. Your body will use this surplus for energy, which you need again to exercise. This will make your muscle percentage go up.

CAN YOU TURN FAT INTO MUSCLE?

The question after reading this article is of course: can you turn fat into muscle? The answer is simple: no, you can't. Biologically, it is not possible to turn fat directly into muscle. You can lose fat and build muscle, or keep your fat and build muscle. But turning fat directly into muscle is (sadly) not possible. Look closely at what your sports goal is and base your diet on it. That is the fastest way to reach your sports goals.