05-31-2004, 03:26 PM
Hi,
Fat really doesn't turn into muscle . . .
That's the trouble with verbal shortcuts or idioms, sometimes they don't convey the same meaning to the listener (reader) as they do to the speaker (writer).
Of course fat doesn't turn into muscle. The complete concept is something like this: "Weight at a given height (or any index calculated from this) by itself does not matter. Percentage of body fat does. Exercising builds lean muscle tissue. When combined with a diet that forces the body to use stored fat, it can lead to a weight reduction, a weight increase, or no change in weight depending on the rates of building muscle mass and burning fat. The final result is less fat, more muscle and a lower percentage of body fat. Some of the weight that was in fat (but not the material that was in the fat) is now in muscle. And, in that sense, the dieter/exerciser has 'turned fat into muscle.'" Without getting into "energy" food versus "building material foods", that's about the best I can do. Too much of a mouthful for casual conversation, too little to really satisfy a nutritionist or bio-chemist :)
I'll stick with the short form :)
--Pete
Fat really doesn't turn into muscle . . .
That's the trouble with verbal shortcuts or idioms, sometimes they don't convey the same meaning to the listener (reader) as they do to the speaker (writer).
Of course fat doesn't turn into muscle. The complete concept is something like this: "Weight at a given height (or any index calculated from this) by itself does not matter. Percentage of body fat does. Exercising builds lean muscle tissue. When combined with a diet that forces the body to use stored fat, it can lead to a weight reduction, a weight increase, or no change in weight depending on the rates of building muscle mass and burning fat. The final result is less fat, more muscle and a lower percentage of body fat. Some of the weight that was in fat (but not the material that was in the fat) is now in muscle. And, in that sense, the dieter/exerciser has 'turned fat into muscle.'" Without getting into "energy" food versus "building material foods", that's about the best I can do. Too much of a mouthful for casual conversation, too little to really satisfy a nutritionist or bio-chemist :)
I'll stick with the short form :)
--Pete
How big was the aquarium in Noah's ark?