Why does the body burn muscle when it could burn fat?
Asked by anonymous on Feb 05, 2009
in Weight Loss
I am well over 100 lbs overweight. I workout 50 minutes a day and eat 1200-1800 calories. I was doing okay, or so I thought until I read about "starvation mode". Why would my body consume lean muscle mass for energy when I have more than enough juicy fat morsels to feed on. Surely, it must be different for me.
Answer
The body burns muscle to provide glucose because glucose fuels the central nervous system. The central nervous system, which includes the brain, accounts for least 20% of all calories burned. The body cannot store much glucose, but protein - from muscles, organs and cells - can be converted to glucose in a biochemical reaction. Fats are broken down and burned in other reactions, but fats do not provide glucose. To prevent excess protein breakdown, do not drop your calorie intake extremely low, eat 45-65% of your calories from carbohydrates, which provide glucose, and eat 20% of your calories from protein to offset muscle loss.
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