Health Tips : Fat to muscle?
Despite what all the late night infomercials tell us, fat and muscle are two distinctly different tissues and one can’t be turned into the other.
Muscle will always be muscle and fat will always be fat. As to the second thought you mentioned, one pound of either is exactly that – one pound.
It’s indeed a myth that fat cells can change into muscle. You can burn fat and build muscle, but a fat cell will never turn into a muscle cell.
Body fat is a storage place where our body puts additional energy when we consume more calories per day than we burn.
When someone continues to consume more calories than the person needs, the size of their existing fat cells increases.
When we “burn fat” we are actually shrinking the size of our fat cells by using the energy that has been stored there.
There are also have a fixed number of muscle cells so when we’re building muscle the individual muscle cells are increasing in size (bulking up).
Over time, you can gain muscle mass through a selection of activities including strength training and other forms of strength training.
If your primary goal is to bulk up, you are likely increase your muscle mass which may increase your overall weight. Remember that your weight also depends on what you eat and when you are doing other types of exercise.
For example, if you are doing lots of cardio, then you might ultimately lose fat and decrease your weight.
Instead of stepping on a scale, you might want to consider measuring your body composition.
Methods to assess body composition (lean body mass vs. fat body mass) can help give you a more precise idea of what comprises your body.
You can always speak with a Dietetics Professional or a trainer to help determine the weight and exercise plan that’s best for you.