"Can I build muscle while in a calorie deficit?"

Yesterday, I tweeted if you want to lose fat + gain muscle simultaneously, you should be in a slight deficit, eat plenty of protein, and train hard with weights.

Of course there were a few "Akshually bros" who said I was wrong.

Much of the internet is strife with bullshit. Studies are good to point you in the direction of what to do, but anecdotes can teach you much more.

The OG bro-science, if you will.

I've witnessed hundreds, if not thousands of men/women gain substantial muscle while in a deficit.

There are a few subsets of people who can gain a lot of muscle while in a deficit.

1. The untrained.

If you've never trained with weights, gaining muscle while in a deficit is relatively easy.

You might not gain huge amounts of pure body mass, as most of your gains will be neurological (skeletal) and connective tissue.

But you will gain muscle as you lean out - your body will adapt to the stimulus nicely - you'll be surprised how quickly you gain lean body mass.

2. Those coming off an injury/lay-off.

If you're trained, and you take a long break (over a month), your muscles will deflate like a balloon.

This is normal. Take comfort in 'muscle memory'. Anything you lose, you'll gain back very quickly once you resume training.

When you build muscle, even if you lose it, the mitochondria of the cell will stick around.

Once you resume training, it will come ROARING back.

I once was laid up with a hurt elbow for 3, full weeks. My weight remained unchanged the entire time.

Once I returned, I properly got into an aggressive deficit (it was post-holidays) and started lifting again.

In a 1k deficit/day, I GAINED 7 pounds on the scale in one week.

The human body surprises the hell out of you sometimes.

3. Trained individuals the first month of a new training program.

If you're trained and you've been following the same program for awhile, the first month on a new (and good) program will cause some modest muscle gain.

Not huge or anything, but you'll gain a few pounds of LBM as your body adjusts to the new stimulus.

In a trained individual, every pound of muscle is precious; use the start of a new program to really get in the zone - it's a great way to spark extra growth.

Anecdotally, I have seen a LOT of clients come through Anyman Fitness who have wanted to lose body fat.

We set them up with a proper program, a proper deficit, and we track their body measurements to see how things are working.

MOST of these clients lose scale weight, inches across the waist, and they GAIN size in their biceps.

Some gain size in their quads, but that's dependent on genetics (those who carry a lot of fat in the quads tend to lose size there as they lose the fat).

If you're losing on the scale, and you're losing on the waist, and your bicep size iss increasing, you are 100% gaining muscle.

It happens all the time.

You just have to have a proper set up and plan of attack to ensure it happens.

If you enjoyed this thread, and you need a proper program to start building muscle, grab our Chad Dad Program.

It's the program I'm currently on, and no other program has stacked muscle + mass on me like the Chad Dad Program has:

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Coach J
Anyman Fitness https://anymanfitness.com/coaching/