Calories.

Question
Hello, i'm Jake. I'm 145lbs, 5 foot 6, I lift weights and i'm a bit confused about the whole calorie intake thing, etc. I'm trying to gain muscle, and burn fat. With that said, do I take in more calories or less than 2,000?

Thanks,
Jake.

Answer
Hi Jake,

Depending on your age as well, you probably need more than 2000 calories.  If you aren't 20 years old yet, you still need extra calories for growing--perhaps as many as 2700 per day, also depending on your activity level.

At 145 pounds, even though you say you are trying to burn fat, I doubt you want to lose any weight.  Usually people who are trying to burn fat have excess stores of it.  You need some fat on your body to protect your organs and keep your internal thermostat maintaining your ideal body temperature.

Taking in adequate calories is the first step to building muscle--if you aren't getting enough calories, that is what the protein you eat will be used for: energy first.
Then, be sure you aren't supplementing with extreme amounts of protein (like more than one gram per pound of your body weight).... it will just be used for calories/energy, and the nitrogen wasted may stress your kidneys which have to eliminate the unused portion.

Good luck!

1. Prev:Lifelong belly fat
2. Next:water!