When we start hitting the gym, many of us are likely to overhear terms of the likes of “Lean muscle,” “Muscle mass,” and so forth. What do these things even mean? It is perfectly normal to be confused, mostly because many of the terms are regurgitated by people with little expertise regarding these issues, tending to misinterpret their actual meaning, hence confusing the layman even moreso. Here these terms will be explained to you!
What is Lean Muscle?
Lean muscle, or should we say Lean Body Mass, is a form of measuring the bodily composition, excluding any percentages of body fat. LBM comprises not only the mass of muscle present in the body itself, but also the weight of the bones, the water and fluids we have present in our body, and several organs.
In general terms, it can be measured by subtracting the body fat from the overall bodyweight that we obtain from the scale where we measure ourselves. How do we measure body fat? We can do it in several ways. The rather easier ones are the Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis, and using skinfold calipers.
Most of the time when people refer to “gaining lean muscle” they refer to gaining muscle while obtaining the least amount of body fat possible along the way.
What is Muscle Mass?
Now, we need to ponder the following predicament: What is “muscle mass”? First, let’s dive into the actual term…
In simplified terms, muscle mass is the amount of muscle the body possesses. We can think that it only refers to skeletal muscle, but it also includes smooth muscle (the muscle that organs are made of) and heart muscle. The only way of determining the concrete amount of muscle mass we possess is through MRIs.
What is frequently referred to when we use this term is that we gain muscle mass, albeit with the implication that we are also getting body fat in the process, due to the consumption of unhealthy foods.
Which One is More Convenient?
Whenever we speak about physical improvements, we should all try to become the best version of ourselves. That also means staying healthy while doing so. If we try to bulk in calories disregarding the quality of the products, not only will we be gaining higher body fat levels, but we are also going to compromise both our cardiovascular, and digestive systems.
This means that whenever we try to achieve higher levels of body mass, we should also look after the quality of the nutrients we incorporate into our bodies. If we want to gain muscle mass, and limit the intake of wrongful body fats, we could consider high-protein, low-fat products such as poultry, meat, seafood, beans, peas, oats, and others. These will provide not only the needed proteins but other much-needed minerals for improved body functions.
The Importance of Good Counseling
The route which you pick solely depends on you, and what you desire to achieve. If you wish to have both your physical and nutritional needs addressed by a professional personal trainer and health coach from California, you have to go to the contact page to receive further information about the different options available.