Can You Lose Muscle From Working Out? [Video]

Building muscle is a complex process influenced by various factors, from exercise selection to nutrition and recovery. An ineffective program can not only lead to suboptimal results but can also cause muscle tissue loss. 

On Aug. 27, 2024, Gommaar D’Hulst, a Senior Scientist and Muscle Biologist at ETH Zurich, delved into the possibility of losing muscle despite regular strength training.

Muscle building is an energy-intensive procedure. A comparative study suggests that muscle protein synthesis is the second-most energy-demanding process within a cell. (1)

You need a surplus of approximately 6,700 calories to build one kilogram of muscle.

The body efficiently allocates energy, and muscles not specifically engaged during training could potentially atrophy over the long term.

A study published in the Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercisejournal examined the impact of targeted resistance training on muscle growth. Twenty-one untrained individuals participated in a supervised, 10-week program focusing …