It’s really quite obvious why you wish to target fat loss with a diet and exercise program. While you are creating that all important calorie deficit keep in mind you must only burn the fat not the muscle. Here are three reasons to lose the fat while you feed and nurture the muscle tissue.

Your health should be your main concern.

First and foremost, your goal should not be to appear skinny! Your health should always be your primary objective. The truth is, you can be quite thin and still have too much body fat to be considered healthy. Men require around 3% body fat for proper body function and as much as 24% is considered within a healthy range. Women require about 11% and up to 30% is considered acceptable. Set your goals based on your body composition or the ratio of fat to lean muscle mass.

You’ll never be hungry again.

If you structure your eating plan to preserve your current muscle mass and build new muscle while exercising, you will seldom be hungry. You will be eating plenty of quality protein and complex carbohydrates spread over five or six meals each day. This will keep your blood sugar levels very steady and prevent those pesky cravings that so often derail our fitness plans.

Why muscles are your friends.

Muscles actually burn calories around the clock. Whether you are exercising or sleeping, they are helping you create that desired calorie deficit that will burn your body fat. It’s just simple arithmetic. More muscle mass means more calories burned each and every day.

Many women are a bit hesitant to begin any type of resistance or weight training program. After all, real women don’t pump iron! In truth, many females do and you just don’t realize it. Body fat hides the defining lines of well-developed muscles. Most women will not want to reach such low body fat percentages, so no worries.

To sum it up, you should lose body fat to optimize your health. You can also slim down and not feel deprived because your exercise builds muscle to help create a calorie deficit. Just strive to burn the fat not the muscle.

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