Three top tips for protecting muscle during a cut phase

When looking to lose body weight, either to improve health or get lean for a competition, one thing that we all look to protect is muscle! Here we have three top tips to help you do so.

Table of Contents

• Tip 1 - Go slow
• Tip 2 - Increase protein intake
• Tip 3 - Avoid severe calorie restriction
• Take home message

Tip 1 - Go slow

It may be that you have a specific timeframe to work to or that sometimes losing weight can't come quick enough. However, taking your time to lose weight can be more beneficial to you in the long run. A seminal study by Garthe and colleagues in 2011 looked at two different weight loss rates on body composition, 40-metre sprint, 1RM strength and jump height. Participants were randomly assigned to either a weight loss rate of 0.7% or 1.4% of total weight per week.

Although, the participants in the fast weight loss group lost weight more quickly, they ultimately saw a minor loss of lean body mass (-0.2%) on average. This is compared to the slow group who interestingly saw an increase in lean body mass during the study whilst still losing weight. Combined with this, greater improvements in strength were also observed in the slow group compared to the fast group.

Tip 2 - Increase protein intake

Total protein intake is often a contentious subject as governmental health bodies will often promote an RDA of 0.8 g/kg/d. However, some athlete populations such as body builders will tell you that this is way too little and you should be aiming something more like 2 g/kg/d and then there is everything in between.

A recent review by Hector and Phillips (2018) sought to identify protein intakes for athletes who undergo weight loss through energy restriction. Literature presented within the review found that when in an energy restricted state a diet that consisted of protein at the RDA was not sufficient to protect lean tissue. However, further evidence within the review identified that studies that had participant groups who consumed between 1.6 and 2.4 g/kg/d retained or put on extra muscle during an energy deficit when compared to intakes of between 0.8 - 1.2 g/kg/d.

Tip 3 - Avoid severe calorie restriction

The main mechanism for weight loss is create a calorie deficit. However, knowing how much energy to restrict can be frought with issues and consequences for performance. Too much restriction can lead to major health implications not just muscle loss. Too little and the weight goal/performance may not be achieved in the timeframe required.

A study completed in military recruits by Pasiakos (2013) provided only 60% of total daily calories for 30 days. The recruits in the study lost on average 3.3 kg in a month, with 1.9 kg (58%) coming from lean tissue. Other studies completed in this area that have restricted daily calories by 25% have seen much better retention in lean body mass compared to more severe strategies.

Take home message

So as discussed above, if you are looking to retain or even build muscle in a calorie restricted state then the following recommendations are suggested:

1. Take things slow - aim for around 0.5% total body weight loss per week.
2. Increase protein intake to between 1.6 and 2.4 g/kg/d, consuming higher values for higher deficits.
3. Do not undertake a severe energy restriction - 500-700 kcal is a good starting range.