Building Muscle: Debunking the Fat Burning Myth

Question
Hi I would like to find out if there is any truth in the statement "Fats are burned first before muscles are built".

Answer
Hello Colleen,

  Thank you for your nutrition question.  The statement
"Fats are burned first before muscles are built" is not true because the body first uses carbohydrates for energy to build muscle.  The energy for contraction comes from the mechanical reaction between the food we eat and the oxygen we breathe.  Almost all the sugars in food are converted into glucose, the fuel of muscles.  Muscles, therefore, need a good blood supply to bring nutrients and oxygen and to remove chemical waste products.  The actual chemical process involves the breakdown of glucose to carbon dioxide and water.  This process releases energy which is used by the muscle proteins to cause contraction which results in the building of muscle.

For more answers to your nutrition questions check out "Ask the Nutritionists" by George Rapitis at www.authorhouse.com

-George Rapitis, Bsc, Nutritionist
www.juiceblend.com