How to Get Lean Muscle: "If You Stop Working Out, Muscle Becomes Fat" - Truth or Myth?

This a popular myth because we quickly jump to conclusions when we see things happen in chronological order. If you hear a crash in the kitchen then your cat streaking out, you'd automatically assume that your cat knocked something over. If you see someone you know work out and get muscle, then he stops for a month and you see him maintain the same size, but get a bit round around the edges, you'd automatically assume that his muscle "turned into fat", right?

This is a complete myth and I'll explain why. From a biochemical standpoint, a muscle cell is a muscle cell, a fat cell is a fat cell. Muscle cannot turn into fat and fat cannot turn into muscle. If you have a scientific background, you'll know this is true. So why does a man mysteriously gain weight once he stops working out?

Firstly, how does a man get muscly in the first place? If he wanted to get bigger biceps and really increase the girth of his arm, he'd want to add more muscle that existed in his arm to build muscle upon it. Your arm can only get as much muscle that's already there. He'd need to eat much more food than he usually eats, stuff rich in protein and carbohydrates. Protein, because that is the building block of muscle and carbohydrates because of the excess energy your putting into your work out to increase muscular density. Although you might not be used to eating so much in a day, provided you work out enough, you'll be more than obliging to eat that extra meal.

Eventually, it will become a habit. So as long as you're in the cycle of eating the meal then working out, burning the energy and gaining the muscle, your body will be in a new balance. Say you broke your leg and couldn't work out for a while. What do you think happens then? Your balance is thrown askew and now you have too much energy coming in and too little output. The carbohydrates have to go somewhere until they are used so where do they go? Your gut, your thighs... all the places that retain fat easily. They are stored until they are used. Furthermore, protein breaks down into fat if it's not used for muscle reparation, so that adds more fat as well.

So you see, muscle doesn't become fat. That's a total myth. However, if you were working out properly, you can get fat if you stop working out by taking in more energy than you were expending. All a part in learning how to get lean muscle.