Weight loss and bodybuilding seem to be a weird combination but it is not. The two actually go hand in hand with each other and neither can be done correctly without the other.
Bodybuilding is a process of bulking and cutting (weight loss) in order to achieve that perfect combination of muscles and curves in the right places. On the other hand weight loss without some sort of bodybuilding (exercising) leaves you weighing less but with curves and bumps in the wrong places.
"You cant have one without the other".
To emphasize this fact you can search any bodybuilding website and one of the main topics will be concerning correct diet. Likewise you can search the weight loss forums and you will see that exercise plays a major role in weight loss.
Misconceptions about bodybuilding
One of the major misconceptions about bodybuilding is that you use it to get big. This is obviously a major concern for women but it is purely a misconception. When you do bodybuilding you are creating a toned and muscled body. How much muscle you wish to create is totally up to you.
I like to refer to bodybuilding as body sculpting. You are creating a perfect build for yourself and for your needs. If you want to go big you can go big but most participants are not worried about being big - they want to look good and will do anything necessary to achieve the look that they desire..
Body sculpting is a form of art where you create a masterpiece. The subject is of course yourself and the tools are weight loss and exercise combined with a suitable diet.
Misconceptions about weight loss
The number one misconception about weight loss is that if you just lose a couple of pounds you will look great. Let me say that you may look better in clothes that hide the flaws but how good do you look when nude?
Weight loss without supporting exercise can result in you losing muscle while still having a high body fat percentage. When using a lot of the popular diets your body goes into a catabolic state where it breaks down muscle for it's energy needs. Your metabolism slows down and despite losing weight you begin to feel sluggish. As soon as you stop dieting the weight returns fast and furious.
Dieting without some form of exercise damages your metabolism and as a result you will always experience the famous weight loss yoyo whereby you lose 5 pounds and then gain 7 pounds.
In order to effectively lose weight you need to rev up your metabolism and get your body into an anabolic state so that your body continuously burns fat and not muscle. Building new muscle is one of the major calorie burners in your body and so as you exercise your body becomes a fat burning machine. By converting fat stores in your body directly to muscle your weight might not change much on a scale but your body shape will be drastically altered.
Muscle is far more dense than body fat. Someone who has a lot of muscle and weighs 150 pounds will appear a lot slimmer than someone else who weighs the same but has a high fat to muscle ratio.
Bodybuilding and weight loss supplements.
People often believe that using supplements for weight loss or for bodybuilding is cheating. If a doctor gives you a vitamin shot to boost your immune system you are fine with that. Supplements are merely products that boost some part of your system. Please note I am not referring to anabolic steroids which is a completely different subject altogether.
Using a supplement is merely using another tool in your body sculpting process. A supplement is used to help your body get the correct nutrition needed to perform how you wish it to perform. Bodybuilding supplements mainly help to boost nitrogen content to your muscle to encourage growth while weight loss supplements help your body to burn fat faster.
Using a supplement without some sort of exercise will seldom help your body to change in the way you want it to change. Even hard core steroids need exercise to activate them.
Conclusion.
While bodybuilding is now fairly common among men fewer women participate for fear of getting too big and manly.
Drop the term bodybuilding and replace it with body sculpting and then begin your journey to a healthy and perfect looking you.