How to Get Lean Muscle: Are You Losing the Right Kind of Weight?

The diet is a popular way for people to "lose weight". Have you ever stopped and thought to yourself what that actually meant, to "lose weight"? What weight are you losing, specifically? Reality television programmes, such as "The Biggest Loser" promote good health through eating properly and a strict exercise regime. Unfortunately, the focuses of such shows revolve around the journey of the individual rather than the facts that back their weight loss.

People that work out soon find out that they are backed into a corner, trapped into a cycle they can't seem to extract themselves from without undoing the results of all their hard work. They don't want to gain weight and let fat blur the definition that they were excitedly starting to see.

If you've been working out for a while, or even if you're new to working out, these types of weight loss are important for you to understand if you want to effective "lose weight". See, you really don't want to lose weight. You want to lose fat.

1. "Water weight"

Water weight means what it implies: weight on your body, that is simply water beneath your fat. Because water evaporates so readily, people seeking to lose fat will drink heaps of water beforehand, so that during exercise, when we sweat, we lose more fat.

2. Muscular weight

This is typically the type of weight that is lost on a diet. It can be dangerous and if you're a guy who wants to get stronger by beefing up by gaining muscle, you don't want to go on a diet. Fat acts as the biological larder of our bodies, storing energy for down the track if we don't eat. If we increase our energy usage significantly, say with exercise, typically our body is going to hold on to dear life to fat and our body will have no choice but to turn to muscle instead. This is because fat lasts longer than muscle. Cardio is notorious for stripping off muscle, which is why long distance runners are so thin.

3. Fat

Fat is what you want to lose when you work out. You want to be able to whittle down that larder to really just what is necessary. Some people retain it stubbornly, while it just drains off others.