Body recomposition, or Body recomp for short, is the process of improving your body composition by increasing muscle mass and decreasing fat mass simultaneously.
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It’s a popular goal for many fitness enthusiasts who want to achieve a lean and muscular physique without going through the traditional cycles of bulking and cutting.
But how do you achieve body recomp?
What kind of training and nutrition plan do you need?
And do you need Cardio for body recomp?
In this article, we’ll answer these questions and more.
We’ll explain what body recomp is, why it’s beneficial, how to do it, and what role cardio plays in it.
We’ll also provide some practical tips and examples to help you get started on your body recomp journey.
What is Body Recomp and Why is it Beneficial?
Body recomp is a term that describes the simultaneous increase of muscle mass and decrease of fat mass.
It’s different from the traditional bodybuilding method that involves alternating between a ‘bulk’ phase (lots of calories + heavy weights) and a ‘cut’ phase (reduced calories + lots of cardio).
Body recomp aims to improve the ratio of lean body mass (LBM) to fat mass, which is also known as body fat percentage.
LBM is your total body weight minus fat mass. It includes your muscles, bones, organs, and water.
Fat mass is the amount of adipose tissue (body fat) that you have.
The benefits of body recomp are:
- You can achieve a lean and muscular physique without gaining excess fat or losing muscle mass.
- You can improve your health and fitness by reducing your risk of obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and other chronic conditions associated with high body fat percentage.
- You can enhance your athletic performance by increasing your strength, power, endurance, and agility.
- You can boost your confidence and self-esteem by improving your appearance and body image.
How to Do Body Recomp: The Basics
To achieve body recomp, you need to follow two main principles:
- Stimulate muscle growth with resistance training
- Create a moderate calorie deficit with nutrition
1. Stimulate Muscle Growth with Resistance Training
Resistance training, also known as weight training or strength training, is the key to building muscle mass.
It involves lifting weights or using your own body weight to create resistance against your muscles.
This causes micro-tears in your muscle fibers, which then repair and grow bigger and stronger over time.
Resistance training also increases your metabolic rate, which means you burn more calories even at rest.
This helps you create a calorie deficit, which is necessary for losing fat.
To stimulate muscle growth with resistance training, you should:
- Train each muscle group at least twice a week with a frequency of 3-6 sessions per week.
- Use a variety of exercises that target different muscle groups and angles, such as compound movements (squats, deadlifts, bench press, etc.) and isolation movements (bicep curls, leg extensions, etc.).
- Perform 3-4 sets of 6-15 reps per exercise, depending on your goal and experience level. Generally, lower reps (6-8) are better for strength and power, while higher reps (12-15) are better for endurance and hypertrophy.
- Rest for 60-90 seconds between sets and exercises to allow for optimal recovery and performance.
- Increase the intensity of your workouts over time by adding more weight, reps, sets, or reducing rest time. This is known as progressive overload, and it’s essential for continuous muscle growth.
2. Create a Moderate Calorie Deficit with Nutrition
Nutrition is the other crucial factor for body recomp.
It determines how much energy you consume and expend, which affects your body weight and composition.
To lose fat, you need to create a calorie deficit, which means you consume fewer calories than you burn.
This forces your body to use its stored fat as an alternative source of energy.
However, creating too large of a calorie deficit can also cause muscle loss, as your body may break down muscle tissue for energy.
This is counterproductive for body recomp, as you want to preserve and increase your muscle mass.
Therefore, you need to create a moderate calorie deficit, which is enough to lose fat but not muscle.
A moderate calorie deficit is usually around 10-20% below your maintenance calories, which are the calories you need to maintain your current weight.
To create a moderate calorie deficit with nutrition, you should:
- Calculate your maintenance calories using a formula or an online calculator. For example, you can use the Mifflin-St Jeor equation, which is: 10 x weight (kg) + 6.25 x height (cm) - 5 x age (y) + 5 (for men) or -161 (for women).
- Subtract 10-20% from your maintenance calories to get your target calories for body recomp. For example, if your maintenance calories are 2000, you can aim for 1600-1800 calories per day.
- Track your calorie intake using an app or a food scale. Try to be as accurate and consistent as possible, and adjust your intake as needed based on your progress and feedback.
- Eat a balanced and nutritious diet that consists of whole, unprocessed foods, such as lean protein, complex carbohydrates, healthy fats, and plenty of fruits and vegetables. Avoid or limit junk food, alcohol, and added sugars, as they provide empty calories and little nutritional value.
- Eat enough protein to support muscle growth and recovery. Protein is the most important macronutrient for body recomp, as it provides the building blocks for your muscles and helps you feel full and satisfied. Aim for 1.6-2.2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day, and spread it evenly throughout your meals and snacks.
- Eat moderate amounts of carbohydrates and fats to fuel your workouts and daily activities. Carbohydrates and fats are both essential for your health and performance, but they also provide a lot of calories, so you need to be mindful of your portions and timing. Aim for 20-40% of your calories from carbohydrates and 20-30% of your calories from fats, and adjust according to your preferences and goals.
Do You Need Cardio for Body Recomp?
Cardio, or cardiovascular exercise, is any activity that increases your heart rate and blood circulation, such as running, cycling, swimming, or hiking.
Cardio has many benefits for your health and fitness, such as improving your cardiovascular system, burning calories, reducing stress, and enhancing your mood.
But do you need cardio for body recomp?
The answer is: it depends.
Cardio is not essential for body recomp, as you can achieve it with resistance training and nutrition alone.
However, cardio can be a useful tool to enhance your body recomp results, depending on your situation and goals.
Here are some scenarios where cardio can be beneficial for body recomp:
- You have a lot of fat to lose. If you are overweight or obese, cardio can help you create a larger calorie deficit and lose fat faster, without compromising your muscle mass. Cardio can also improve your insulin sensitivity and blood pressure, which are often impaired in people with excess body fat.
- You have a low appetite. If you struggle to eat enough calories to support your muscle growth, cardio can help you increase your appetite and make it easier to meet your nutritional needs. Cardio can also stimulate the release of hormones that promote muscle growth, such as growth hormone and testosterone.
- You enjoy cardio. If you like doing cardio and find it fun and rewarding, you should definitely include it in your body recomp plan. Cardio can improve your mental health, mood, and motivation, which can positively affect your adherence and consistency. Cardio can also improve your aerobic fitness and endurance, which can enhance your performance and recovery in resistance training.
However, there are also some scenarios where cardio can be detrimental for body recomp:
- You have a high appetite. If you tend to overeat or binge after doing cardio, you may end up consuming more calories than you burn, which can negate your calorie deficit and prevent fat loss. Cardio can also increase your hunger and cravings, which can make it harder to stick to your nutrition plan.
- You do too much cardio. If you do excessive amounts of cardio, especially high-intensity or long-duration cardio, you may interfere with your muscle growth and recovery. Too much cardio can cause muscle damage, inflammation, and fatigue, which can impair your performance and adaptation in resistance training. Too much cardio can also increase your cortisol levels, which can reduce your testosterone levels and muscle protein synthesis.
- You hate cardio. If you dread doing cardio and find it boring and miserable, you should avoid it or minimize it in your body recomp plan. Cardio can negatively affect your mental health, mood, and motivation, which can lower your adherence and consistency. Cardio can also increase your stress and anxiety, which can impair your sleep and recovery.
So, how much cardio should you do for body recomp?
There is no definitive answer, as it depends on your individual factors and preferences.
However, here are some general guidelines to help you decide.
- If you have a lot of fat to lose, you can do 3-5 sessions of cardio per week, for 20-40 minutes per session. You can choose any type of cardio that you enjoy and can sustain, such as low-intensity steady-state (LISS) cardio (walking, jogging, cycling, etc.), high-intensity interval training (HIIT) cardio (sprints, burpees, jump rope, etc.), or moderate-intensity continuous training (MICT) cardio (running, swimming, rowing, etc.).
- If you have a low appetite, you can do 1-3 sessions of cardio per week, for 10-20 minutes per session. You can opt for HIIT cardio, as it can boost your appetite and anabolic hormones more than LISS or MICT cardio. You can also do cardio before or after your resistance training, as it can increase your energy expenditure and muscle protein synthesis.
- If you enjoy cardio, you can do as much as you want, as long as it doesn’t interfere with your resistance training and recovery. You can experiment with different types and intensities of cardio, and vary your frequency and duration according to your goals and feedback. You can also do cardio on your rest days, as it can improve your blood flow and nutrient delivery to your muscles.
- If you have a high appetite, you can do little or no cardio, as it may not be necessary or beneficial for your body recomp. You can focus on your nutrition and resistance training, and use other strategies to control your hunger and cravings, such as drinking water, eating fiber, protein, and healthy fats, and avoiding triggers and temptations.
- If you do too much cardio, you can reduce or eliminate it, as it may be counterproductive or harmful for your body recomp. You can prioritize your nutrition and resistance training, and use other methods to create a calorie deficit, such as increasing your non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT), which is the calories you burn from daily activities, such as walking, fidgeting, cleaning, etc.
- If you hate cardio, you can skip it or minimize it, as it may not be worth it or enjoyable for your body recomp. You can focus on your nutrition and resistance training, and use other forms of exercise that you like and can stick to, such as sports, yoga, dancing, martial arts, etc.
Conclusion
Body recomp is a process of improving your body composition by increasing muscle mass and decreasing fat mass simultaneously.
It’s a popular and beneficial goal for many fitness enthusiasts who want to achieve a lean and muscular physique without going through the traditional cycles of bulking and cutting.
To achieve body recomp, you need to follow two main principles: stimulate muscle growth with resistance training, and create a moderate calorie deficit with nutrition.
You also need to consider the role of cardio in your body recomp plan, as it can be helpful or harmful depending on your situation and goals.
Body recomp is not a quick or easy process, as it requires a delicate balance between muscle growth and fat loss.
It may take months or even years to achieve your desired body composition, depending on your starting point and end goal.
Therefore, you need to be patient and consistent with your plan, and avoid any drastic changes or shortcuts that may compromise your health and results.
