I want to tone up and plan to start lifting weights. But I’m really restricting my food intake and struggle with getting enough protein, especially since I don’t like eating much meat. Would lifting still work, or is it pointless without enough protein?
It’s worrying to hear about your fasting and other eating habits. Please talk to your parents or a doctor. At 16, fasting for 96 hours or bingeing and purging is really dangerous for your health.
Remington said:
It’s worrying to hear about your fasting and other eating habits. Please talk to your parents or a doctor. At 16, fasting for 96 hours or bingeing and purging is really dangerous for your health.
I was confused by this post too until I checked their other posts.
OP, it sounds like you’re going through something difficult. Please talk to someone you trust about what’s going on. You might need some support to handle this safely.
Resistance training is good no matter what. It might take you longer to recover if you don’t get enough protein, but it’s still worth doing. For extra protein, try shakes. They help a lot if you can’t eat enough through regular food.
Protein is crucial for muscle repair. When you lift, your muscles get small tears that need protein to rebuild and grow. Without enough protein, lifting won’t be as effective. You’ll be working hard but not giving your body the tools it needs to make progress.
Lifting is always worth it.
When you lift weights, you damage muscle fibers, which is fine because your body repairs them stronger with protein as the building material. But if you don’t get enough protein, your muscles can’t rebuild properly, and you won’t see much improvement.
Since this is a weight loss forum, I’m curious: why focus on building muscle? Muscle is heavy and will make the scale go up. If fat loss is your goal, focus on cardio instead, like walking. Walking is one of the best exercises for shedding body fat.
@Jin
Building muscle actually burns more calories than steady cardio. Walking burns about 200 calories an hour, but if you add 10 pounds of muscle, you’ll burn half that just sitting still. Plus, lifting weights can burn 200-600 calories per hour.
With 20 pounds of extra muscle, you’d burn the same as an hour of walking just by existing. The hard part is balancing your protein intake and cravings while building muscle, but it’s manageable with a good diet.
@Jin
I’m trying to do both; lose weight and build some muscle. My main goal is fat loss, but I also want to avoid looking skinny-fat and maybe shape my torso a bit better.
Kyrie said:
@Jin
I’m trying to do both; lose weight and build some muscle. My main goal is fat loss, but I also want to avoid looking skinny-fat and maybe shape my torso a bit better.
It’s tough to lose fat and build muscle at the same time. Most people focus on one goal at a time; either cutting fat or bulking up. It’s better to lose the fat first and then work on building muscle. That’s how the pros do it: bulk, cut, and repeat.