One Pound of Muscle One Pound of Fat (from HCG diet forum)

I had posted this at the HCG diet forum, and thought I would share my thoughts on this here!



While cruising thru the forum, I noticed someone mentioned that there is no difference between one pound of fat and one pound of muscle. I would like to argue this.

There is a huge difference between fat and muscle. One pound of muscle is far better! Why? Muscle actually works for you. It burns calories, it makes you stronger, with it you can become more healthy. What does fat do? It sits there. If you don't make any attempt to get rid of it, it will just grow and get heavier.

A lot of people put a lot of stock in their BMI (Body Mass Index), which calculates your height and weight and tells you whether or not you are "underweight" "normal" "overweight" "obese" or "morbidly obese". Just using the calculations you are to find how "fit" you are. There is a problem with this. Because muscle will weigh more (muscle being more dense, one square in of muscle will weigh more then one square inch of fat), muscle will throw off the BMI. Tom Cruise's BMI lists him as obese, Arnold Schwarzenegger too! Now, they are a bit older, but obese? No.

If you have a scale that measures weight/fat/water, start noting down what your fat content is on your weigh ins. It is by no means "accurate", but even if you are in a stall, you just might see your fat content going down. This is a good thing. Sometimes the extended fat cells will fill with water, leaving you weighing the same (or even more sometimes). It doesn't mean you aren't losing weight, it means your body is adjusting.

If you are working out, gaining muscle, and not losing weight, take comfort that you are getting stronger, and that new muscle wants to suck your fat cells dry. Don't freak, this is good, even if numbers don't drop. Your muscles will override those fat cells in no time. Leaving you lighter, healthier and stronger!