What happens to muscles when the body doesn't eat enough calories?

To lose 1 kg of excess fat, the body needs a deficit of about 7,700 calories. If you have a deficit of 500 calories/day and continuously for 1 month, you can lose about 2 kg of excess fat, according to the health website Verywell Health (USA).

A calorie deficit diet and high exercise will result in rapid fat loss but will also cause loss of muscle mass.

The body needs a certain amount of energy to maintain its functions and activities. Therefore, when entering a state of calorie deficit, the body will respond by slowing down the metabolism and mobilizing energy from many different places in the body.

First, the body will mobilize the glycogen stored in the cells, liver, heart and some other places. Then, excess fat will be converted into energy. This is the goal of weight loss efforts.

But it doesn’t stop there. The body needs protein to function, and muscle is the source of this protein storage. Muscle catabolism occurs, causing the body to mobilize muscle protein and convert it into calories. The result is muscle shrinkage.

With a calorie deficit diet and regular exercise, even if fat is reduced a lot, muscle mass will also be lost. For many gym goers, especially men, muscle loss is completely undesirable.

Strength exercises such as weight lifting will create muscle stimulation and limit muscle catabolism.

To avoid muscle loss, people who want to lose weight need to ensure two factors. That is to do strength exercises and supplement the body with enough protein. Strength exercises such as weight lifting will stimulate the muscles and limit muscle catabolism. The frequency of exercise is at least 2-3 sessions/week.

Meanwhile, consuming enough protein will help provide enough of this important nutrient for the body and avoid using protein stored in the muscles. To consume enough protein, the practitioner needs to supplement from 1.2 to 1.5 grams of protein/kg of body weight. For example, a 60 kg person needs to consume from 72 to 90 grams of protein per day. With this amount of protein, muscle mass is not only maintained but even increased.

In addition, experts also note that the greater the calorie deficit and the higher the intensity of the exercise, the faster the weight loss will be. However, the level of muscle loss will also be greater, even causing the body to weaken. Therefore, the best way is that the diet and exercise should not be more than 500 calories/day in deficit, according to Verywell Health.

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